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Fujimura Shinichi is a Japanese archeologist who faked important
discoveries for years before he was exposed in 2000.
In 1972 Fujimura begun to study archeology and look for prehistoric
artifacts. At the time he was working for a manufacturing company. He
established his reputation as a leading amateurs archeologist in Japan when
he made a major discovery in 1981. By stratum, it was dated as much as
40.000 years old and his career really begun.
Over the years he worked in 180 archeological digs all around Japan and
always seemed to find something important and increasingly older. More
superstitious would talk about his "divine hands". His work became basis of
numerous textbooks and research of other archeologists. His reputation kept
the would-be critics silent. He gained a position as a deputy director in
Tohoku Paleolithic Institute.
In October 23, 2002 Fujimura and his team announced that they had made an
important find in Kamitakamori site near the town of Tsukidate in Miyagi
Prefecture. They were dated 570.000 years old.
However, in November 5, newspaper Mainichi Shimbun published pictures of
Fujimura digging holes and burying the artifacts his team had later found.
The pictures had been taken one day before the find had been announced.
Fujimura confessed the same day in a press conference. He said that he
had wanted to be known as the person who would have found the earliest
stoneware in Japan. He had planted the artifacts from his own collection to
strata that would have indicated earlier dates. In Kamitakamori he had
planted 61 of 65 artifacts and earlier all of the stonework in Soshin
Fudozaka site in Hokkaido. He claimed these were the only times he had
planted artifacts. He was immediate dismissed from his position in Tohoku
institute.
All of Fujimura's work immediately fell under suspicion - and it also
affected the research of many other archeologists in Japan and elsewhere,
based on his findings. Professor Mitsuo Kagawa of the Beppu University
hanged himself. Publishers of archeology textbooks had to change everything.
Most of Fujimura's other findings have been later proven to be forgeries.
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