Here’s something you don’t get to see or hear every day. A report from International Business Times points to a group of archaeologists who discovered stunning ancient items that hit close to home for us in the auto industry. No, they didn’t discover a medieval combustion engine. They also didn’t discover ancient texts pertaining to the study of flying cars. Let’s leave all of that to the sci-fi stuff. What they did discover, however, is something far more innocent and, at least in my case, emotionally disarming. They discovered a toy, or to be specific about it, a small toy chariot.

According to the report, the startling discovery was made during a dig in the ancient city of Sogmatar, located in the south east of Turkey. It’s also believed to be the place where Moses went after fleeing from Egypt back when he was still up and about. As far as ancient cities are concerned, Sogmatar is historic in that regard. The report adds that archaeologists also found a small rattle alongside the toy chariot, adding weight to the hypothesis that this toy was buried with a child who died during those times. All that makes this discovery even more incredible considering that something like this could exist 5,000 years ago. The whole thought of children getting buried with their toys is creepy and sobering at the same time, but it was a common practice back then, especially for those who belonged in the upper crust of the elite. Egyptian pharaohs were often buried with items from their lives, so it wouldn’t be surprising if kids were afforded the same respect when they passed on.

I’m not one to wax sentimental on other things, but this discovery got to me. Just imagine a child from those days actually playing with this small chariot. Those children are long gone now, but something like this remains. It’s been said that there are certain items that act as windows to a world gone by. Well, consider this toy chariot as one of them. It may be old, brittle, and God-knows-what exactly, but the connection between the child who played with this chariot before his death and all of us who just saw it get unearthed after 5,000 years is quite literally timeless.

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