Archaeology news

• The Mesoamerican attraction to magnetism

  30-07-2019 21:28
  The purpose of Mesoamerican potbelly statues have been the subject of debate among anthropologists for decades: Are they depictions of the ruling elite? A way to honor dead ancestors? Or perhaps portrayals of women giving birth?Magnetic scans performed on potbelly sculptures from Monte Alto, Guatemala, now housed in La Democracia,Guatemala, revealed for the first time that they were originally magnetized by lightning strikes...[[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, o
  
  Read more

• Student’s find in Peru offers lesson in how archaeologists piece together stories of a people

  30-07-2019 21:17
  Caroline Coolidge was stunned. The rising second-year was digging at the archaeology field school in San José de Moro, Peru, and there in the dusty dirt a small face stared up at her. She thought her eyes were playing tricks on her.Caroline Coolidge at the excavation site [Credit: Harvard Gazette]"I honestly at first just thought I was imagining it because I just wanted to find something so bad," said Coolidge, a Leverett House...[[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for ful
  
  Read more

• Iraq displays stolen artifacts recovered from UK, Sweden

  30-07-2019 21:05
  Iraqi officials are displaying stolen artifacts from the country's rich cultural heritage that were recently recovered from Britain and Sweden.Recently recovered antiquities are displayed at the foreign ministry, in Baghdad, Iraq,Monday, July 29, 2019 [Credit: AP/Hadi Mizban]Many archaeological treasures from Iraq, home of the ancient "fertile crescent" considered the cradle of civilization, were looted during the chaos that...[[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, o
  
  Read more

• 'Abnormally shaped' skulls from ancient hypogeum in Malta to be studied

  30-07-2019 20:48
  Human skulls found at the prehistoric Ħal Saflieni Hypogeum are to be studied in attempt to uncover the mystery of their origin and abnormal shape.The skulls, dating back to 3000-2500 BC, were first discovered in 1902[Credit: Times of Malta]In 1926, Temi Zammit described the skulls found at the prehistoric burial site as being “of the long variety (dolichocephalic.)”(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});Some...[[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website
  
  Read more

• Advertisement

• Menhirs and dolmens point to major prehistoric necropolis in Kerala

  30-07-2019 20:12
  The sighting of new menhirs, perhaps the largest-ever recorded in Kerala, on the Pothamala hills in Udumbanchola taluk on the Kerala-Tamil Nadu border, has thrown light on the possible existence of a major prehistoric necropolis there.Credit: Times of IndiaThe menhirs were identified by a team of historians led by Rajeev Puliyoor, assistant professor at the Government Teachers’ Training College, Elanthoor, near here, during a visit...[[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for
  
  Read more

• More than 460 artefacts unearthed from 38 Qing Dynasty tombs in Shenyang

  30-07-2019 19:55
  Chinese archaeologists have discovered 38 ancient tombs dating back to the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) in northeast China's Liaoning Province.Credit: Xinhua News AgencyThe tombs were found in Shuijia Village in the city of Shenyang, the ancient capital, archaeologists with the provincial cultural relics and archaeological institute said.(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});A total of 460 items have so far been...[[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other
  
  Read more

• Rostrums, helmets and sword recovered at the Battle of the Egadi Islands site

  30-07-2019 19:29
  Two more rostrums have been recovered from the bottom of the Egadi. The precious artefacts were found thanks to the collaboration between the Superintendence of the Sea of the Sicilian Region, the Rpm nautical foundation and the divers of the Global underwater explorer.Credit: RPM Nautical FoundationDuring the research, which this year was also conducted with the oceanographic ship Hercules, further targets were discovered that...[[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links
  
  Read more

• Strange bacteria hint at ancient origin of photosynthesis

  30-07-2019 18:14
  Structures inside rare bacteria are similar to those that power photosynthesis in plants today, suggesting the process is older than assumed. The finding could mean the evolution of photosynthesis needs a rethink, turning traditional ideas on their head.Credit: mehdimido/ShutterstockPhotosynthesis is the ability to use the Sun's energy to produce sugars via chemical reactions. Plants, algae, and some bacteria today perform 'oxygenic'...[[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full
  
  Read more

• Advertisement

• Revolutionary method could bring us much closer to the description of hyperdiverse faunas

  30-07-2019 18:10
  Two hundred and sixty-one years ago, Linnaeus formalized binomial nomenclature and the modern system of naming organisms. Since the time of his first publication, taxonomists have managed to describe 1.8 million of the estimated 8 to 25 million extant species of multicellular life, somewhere between 7% and 22%. At this rate, the task of treating all species would be accomplished sometime before the year 4,000. In an age of alarming...[[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full l
  
  Read more

• Hidden genetic variations power evolutionary leaps

  30-07-2019 18:06
  Laboratory populations that quietly amass 'cryptic' genetic variants are capable of surprising evolutionary leaps, according to a paper in the journal Science. A better understanding of cryptic variation may improve directed evolution techniques for developing new biomolecules for medical and other applications.Laboratory populations that quietly amass "cryptic" genetic variants are capableof surprising evolutionary leaps [Credit:...[[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full li
  
  Read more

• World's smallest fossil monkey found in Amazon jungle

  30-07-2019 17:52
  A team of Peruvian and American scientists have uncovered the 18-million-year-old remains of the smallest fossil monkey ever found.These fossil-rich sediments along the Alto Madre de Dios River in southern Peru have yielded hundredsof fossil teeth and bones, clues to what life in the Amazon was like 18 million years ago[Credit: Wout Salenbien, Duke University]A fossilized tooth found in Peru's Amazon jungle has been identified as...[[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full lin
  
  Read more

Follow @archaeology_uk1 on Twitter!