The Discovery in the Caves
In the winter of 1938, a Chinese-American archaeologist named Chi Pu Tei led an expedition into the remote Bayan-Kara-Ula mountain range on the border of Qinghai and Sichuan provinces in China.
Deep in a series of interconnected caves, his team discovered an extraordinary find: 716 stone discs, each about 30 centimetres in diameter and 2 to 3 centimetres thick. The discs were made of granite-like material, remarkably uniform in size and shape.
What made them extraordinary was the spiral groove running from the outer edge to the centre, similar to a modern gramophone record, containing thousands of tiny hieroglyphic symbols etched into the groove itself. The carvings were microscopic, requiring magnification to read.
The Dropa and Ham Legends
According to the cave inscriptions (later translated by Professor Tsum Um Nui in 1962), the discs told the story of the Dropa people, a small, frail race who arrived from the stars in a fleet of ships 12,000 years ago.
Their craft crashed in the mountains. Unable to repair them, the Dropa settled among local tribes. They described themselves as 1.2 metres tall with large heads and slender bodies. The local Ham tribe initially feared them but eventually coexisted.
The inscriptions claim the Dropa had lived in the region for generations, eventually dying out. The discs served as historical records, with each groove containing up to 2,000 characters.
The Hieroglyph Translations
Professor Tsum Um Nui spent four years (1958 to 1962) deciphering the microscopic symbols using magnification and linguistic analysis. He published his translation in 1962.
The main narrative describes the Dropa arrival: "The Dropas came down from the clouds in their aircraft. Our men, women and children hid in the caves ten times before sunrise. When at last we understood the sign language of the Dropas, we realized that the newcomers had peaceful intentions."
Additional passages recount their crash landing, failed attempts to repair the ships, and integration with the Ham tribe. One section mentions: "The Dropa are small people. Their bodies are thin and their heads large. They came from the stars in ships that flew through the sky."
Another fragment: "The Dropa could not leave. Their ships were broken. They stayed and taught us their ways. Many died. The children of the Dropa and Ham grew strong."
Tsum Um Nui noted the symbols were not Chinese, Tibetan, or any known ancient script. They appeared as a unique proto-writing system. Some discs contained astronomical data, including references to Sirius and other stars.
The Physical Properties
The discs were dated by Chinese scientists to approximately 10,000 to 12,000 years old, based on surrounding artefacts and cave strata. They were incredibly thin for their size, with a central hole and precise spiral grooves.
Some discs reportedly had a high cobalt content and unusual magnetic properties. The grooves were uniform in depth and spacing, suggesting advanced tooling far beyond Neolithic capabilities.
Controversy and Disappearance
Professor Tsum Um Nui's publication was suppressed by the Chinese government. Many discs vanished from museums and research institutes in Beijing and elsewhere.
Western researchers who sought access were denied. Photographs and samples became scarce. Some claim the discs were confiscated during the Cultural Revolution.
A few surviving photographs show the discs with clear spiral grooves and tiny symbols. No modern re-examination has been allowed.
Location / Anomalies:
- Primary site: Bayan-Kara-Ula caves, Qinghai-Sichuan border, China (Coords: approx 33.3333° N, 97.0000° E)
- Secondary reports: Related finds in nearby caves
- Anomalies: 716 uniform stone discs with double spiral grooves and microscopic hieroglyphs, dated 10,000 to 12,000 years old, describing alien arrival and crash, unusual cobalt content and alleged magnetic/electrical properties, precise engineering beyond known ancient tools, disappearance of most specimens and restricted access.
Sources / Balance:
Professor Chi Pu Tei 1938 expedition notes
Professor Tsum Um Nui 1962 translation and research
Bayan-Kara-Ula cave archaeological records
Surviving photographs and disc measurements
Erich von Däniken's "Chariots of the Gods" documentation
Chinese Academy of Sciences restricted access reports
International UFO researcher correspondence
Final Verdict
THE DISCS THAT SPOKE OF THE STARS. In 1938, a remote Chinese cave gave up 716 stone discs etched with microscopic writing that told of beings from another world crashing on Earth 12,000 years ago. The Dropa arrived in ships, settled among locals, and left behind records of their lost civilization. The discs are too precise, too uniform, too ancient to explain with known Neolithic tools. Most have vanished into restricted vaults. Only a few photographs remain.
The story of the Dropa Stones still persists in the shadows of ufology and archaeology even today. If these discs are indeed genuine, then what other records of the stars might still lie hidden in the Earth?