Why Are Millions of Sea Shells Found on Mount Everest?

Question from Jonathan:

"Hello. I'm curious about the evidence of the Great Flood. I understand that water covered even the highest mountains, including Mount Everest, which stands at around 29,000 feet (9 kilometers) above current sea level. That's an unimaginable amount of water..."

* * *

Hello Jonathan, and thanks for your question.

The Torah states: "And He blotted out all existence on the face of the ground—from human to animal to creeping thing to the birds of the sky—and they were blotted out from the Earth. Only Noah and those with him in the ark survived." (Genesis 7:23).

This verse describes a universal flood, and the commentator Ibn Ezra emphasized its global nature: "...Only Noah and those with him survived. This is the answer to those among us lacking understanding, who claim that the flood wasn't worldwide."

Scientists—including geologists and paleontologists—agree on the occurrence of catastrophic events on a global scale that affected every continent. While they may divide these into different epochs like the "Cretaceous" or "Ice Age," the physical evidence is undeniable: a significant number of fossils formed from sudden natural disasters illustrate a mass extinction of animals worldwide, highlighted by the major extinction of dinosaurs:

"The Cretaceous-Paleogene extinction event saw the loss of about 50% of species. This extinction had varied impacts on different animal groups—some were wiped out, others suffered greatly, and some were slightly affected. The leading theory attributes this extinction to an asteroid or comet impact" (Wikipedia, Mass Extinction).

Scientists are unsure about the exact cause of the dinosaurs' extinction, along with countless other species whose remains are found across the globe. However, their fossilized remains in many locations indicate a catastrophe of global proportions. Fossils typically form from disasters where living creatures are rapidly buried in waterlogged sediments and mudflows, commonly occurring during floods. The mere presence of fossils worldwide suggests a water-driven catastrophe that affected all continents.

The most compelling evidence comes from the type of fossils found: 97% of global fossils are marine fossils—shells, coral, crabs, and fish skeletons—all found on land.

(Photo: shutterstock)

Keep this in mind when discussing the flood: Millions of marine fossils like shells and corals have been discovered in arid deserts like the Sahara and the Negev, and even atop the highest mountains like the snowy Rockies and Mount Everest!

The Rocky Mountains span Canada and the U.S. and rise to 14,440 feet (4,401 meters). Marine fossils found there are displayed at the Denver Museum of Nature and Science. Mount Everest, the world's tallest peak, is part of the Himalayas, primarily in Tibet, with a height of 29,032 feet (8,848 meters) around sea level.

How did millions of shells and fish remains get to the Rockies, the summit of Mount Everest, and the Himalayas? How did clams reach the Sahara Desert?

The simplest explanation: A flood covered all the continents, even the highest mountains. A global catastrophe explains the mass extinction of countless animal species, including dinosaurs, as well as the discovery of marine fossils in deserts and high mountains.

Incidentally, clams that die naturally open due to the decomposition of the muscles holding them shut. Some claim the clam fossils on Mount Everest were found closed, suggesting they were swept there and perished in a sudden disaster, unable to open due to the overwhelming rush of water and debris that buried them until fossilized.

The Malbim, in Noah's story (Genesis 7:23), explains that primordial animals perished in the flood and were buried where their remains are found:

"After they all perished, as it says, 'and they died out,' their bodies were erased without a trace left on the Earth... it says 'and they were erased from the Earth,' meaning that although many of their sturdy bones remained like pillars of iron and weren't erased, they were still erased from the Earth because the floods carried the carcasses into valleys, and most were swallowed into the deep abyss, where the Earth opened from the great depths of the raging abyss, and they descended thousands of feet into the deep pit. Thus, when Noah left the Ark, he found no trace of the carcasses or bones of the enormous creatures that existed before the flood. And the testimony of Hashem, which makes fools wise, stands as a response to geologists who dig deep and find bones of large animals lost long ago from the Earth, no longer existing from the days of the flood onward... for during the flood, the Earth opened its mouth through the natural upheavals from the deep abyss, overturning the lower and upper realms, sending these animal carcasses deep, while it baffled the researchers and diggers trying to understand the nature of this great upheaval that performed wonders for 150 days of sustained water levels, thereby confusing all geological studies and calculations about Earth's structure, sweeping away all their assumptions and imaginings, and if they were wise, they would understand this and recognize the works and wonders of Hashem in the abyss."

Moreover, it's essential to note the geological observation that Earth's surface is "cracked." Across the continents, there's evidence of a global catastrophe leaving scars in the form of massive canyons, valleys, and caves. For example, the famous Grand Canyon in Colorado, U.S., stretches over 277 miles (446 kilometers) and plunges up to 6,093 feet (1,857 meters)! Only an immense disaster could carve such fissures and breaks into the Earth's landscape.

In the next article, we'll dive deeper into this subject, exploring where the floodwaters came from and where they went.