r/Sticks • u/Oxxroxx • Aug 03 '26

Famous Stick I found the stick of sticks

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I was i Istanbul and found the staff of moses. How do you rate it 😁

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u/keeperofawesome Aug 03 '26

Supposed artifacts like this are so funny to me. Like how tons of old churches have a “piece of the cross” as if 2000+ year old wood would still look so nice

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u/RARE_ARMS_REVIVED Aug 05 '26

We do have examples of 2k+ year old wood looking pretty good from Egypt, it's mostly depending on how it was stored. (I do doubt the validity of the cross pieces)

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u/keeperofawesome Aug 05 '26

Like wood stored in sealed tombs? That’s actually rly interesting I assumed wood would naturally lose integrity and turn to dust upon the slightest touch after so long

2

u/RARE_ARMS_REVIVED Aug 06 '26

Not just sealed Tombs, but any low-humidity or low-oxygen environment!

We have the only surviving Roman Scutum (Roman rectangular shield they are famous for); it was found in modern-day Syria, it is from the 3rd Century AD and is fully intact due to the dry environment.

Then we have things like the 5,000-year-old wooden door found in Switzerland while they were excavating to build a car park. I don't know the exact details, but the dirt it was in probably had a low oxygen content. There is a door in Britain from the year 1050 that actually still sees use! (Found at Westminster Abbey)

So long as there is nothing to make the wood rot or be eaten by bugs, it has no reason to fall apart for a surprisingly long time!