Archaeology news

• Head of a Large Statue Unearthed at Cambodia’s Angkor Thom

  11-05-2024 00:32 via archaeology.org
  SIEM REAP, CAMBODIA—An excavation conducted by Cambodia’s Heritage Protection Police and the APSARA National Authority near the Angkor Thom temple complex has uncovered the head of a statue of a deity, according to The Phnom Pen Post. Angkor Thom, built in the late twelfth century by Jayavarman VII (reigned 1181–1218), was the last capital of the Khmer Empire. The carving, including pieces of its mouth and nose, was found about 330 feet from the city’s Victory Gate, where
  
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• Viking Age Silver Ingot Recovered on the Isle of Man

  07-06-2024 04:01 via archaeology.org
  MANX, ISLE OF MAN—According to a Witchita Eagle report, a metal detectorist on the Isle of Man discovered a silver ingot thought to be about 1,000 years old. Vikings arrived on the Isle of Man in the ninth century and eventually settled there. “Ingots like this were used in the Viking world for trade,” said archaeologist Allison Fox of Manx National Heritage. Each ingot would have been weighed and tested to confirm its silver content before it would be accepted in trade anywher
  
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• Genetic Study Yields New Thoughts on Horse Domestication

  07-06-2024 03:31 via archaeology.org
  TOULOUSE, FRANCE—According to a Science News report, molecular archaeologist Ludovic Orlando and his colleagues analyzed the genomes of 475 ancient horses and 77 modern ones. The oldest remains were dated to some 50,000 years ago. The researchers then combined the genetic data, carbon dates, and archaeological information to determine that horses were domesticated some 4,200 years ago on the steppes of what is now southwestern Russia. Domestication was identified through the decrease in th
  
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• Study Shows Bronze Age Cauldrons Held Blood and Milk

  06-06-2024 03:12 via archaeology.org
  BASEL, SWITZERLAND—According to a statement released by the University of Basel, an international team of scientists has analyzed proteins recovered from residues in two 2,700-year-old bronze cauldrons discovered in northern Mongolia. The test results indicate that the vessels were used to process animal blood, mostly from sheep and goats, and milk, mostly from domestic cattle and yaks. The researchers, led by Shevan Wilkin of the University of Basel, suggest that nomads in Mongolia collec
  
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• Bones of Early Cattle Herd in Northern Europe Analyzed

  06-06-2024 02:46 via archaeology.org
  GRONINGEN, THE NETHERLANDS—According to a statement released by Antiquity, new dates and stable isotope analysis for the bones of cattle, sheep, and pigs from the Swifterbant site indicate that animal husbandry in what is now the Netherlands dates back to about 4240 B.C. “What is more, these early farmers had different herds of cattle that were fed and herded in different ways,” said Nathalie Brusgaard of Leiden University. The chemical composition of the cattle bones shows tha
  
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• Roman Pet Burials Examined in Egypt

  06-06-2024 02:22 via archaeology.org
  WROCŁAW, POLAND—According to a Science in Poland report, the graves of more than 200 monkeys, dogs, cats, and calves have been recently unearthed by an international team of researchers led by Marta Osypińska of the University of Wrocław in the pet cemetery at Berenice, a port city built on the coast of the Red Sea in the first century A.D. by the Roman emperor Tiberius. Previous research has shown that many of the monkeys buried in the cemetery were rhesus macaques and bonn
  
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• Rock Art May Have Marked Territory in South America

  05-06-2024 05:03 via archaeology.org
  LONDON, ENGLAND—According to a statement released by Antiquity, a new study of rock engravings along the Atures Rapids on the Orinoco River in Colombia and Venezuela suggests that they may have been used to communicate territorial boundaries more than 2,000 years ago. Philip Riris of Bournemouth University and his colleagues worked with local guides to map artworks at 14 sites in the river basin with drone photography. Some of these rock art sites had been previously identified, but a few
  
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• Genetic Study Investigates Relationships Between Iron Age Elites

  05-06-2024 03:53 via archaeology.org
  BADEN-WÜRTTEMBERG, GERMANY—An analysis of DNA samples suggests that elite Iron Age Celts may have passed power along matrilineal lines, according to a Live Science report. The samples were taken from 31 skeletons recovered from seven burial sites in southwestern Germany that have been dated to the sixth and fifth centuries B.C. and include gold and bronze artifacts. State of Baden-Württemberg archaeologist Dirk Krausse and his colleagues identified two men buried in neighboring m
  
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• Rare “Blue Room” Discovered in Pompeii

  05-06-2024 03:50 via archaeology.org
  NAPLES, ITALY—CNN reports that a possible sacrarium has been uncovered in a large residential area in central Pompeii’s Regio IX. Gennaro Sangiuliano, Italy’s Minister of Culture, said that the room is thought to have been dedicated to ritual activities and the conservation of sacred objects. The walls of the room are painted blue and feature female figures representing the four seasons of the year and allegorical representations of agriculture and pastoralism. A collection of
  
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• 18th-Century Lime Kiln Uncovered in Northern England

  04-06-2024 03:33 via archaeology.org
  YORKSHIRE, ENGLAND—Teeside Live reports that a limestone kiln has been uncovered on a farm in North York Moors National Park. The structure likely dates to the eighteenth century. Limestone from a nearby quarry would have been fired in the kiln to produce lump lime, or quick lime, which was spread over local farmland to improve it. Landowners Elaine and Dave Newham said that although the kiln was marked on an old map, it was not clear if any of the structure had been preserved. Archaeologi
  
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• Remains of Medieval Warrior Monks Examined in Spain

  04-06-2024 03:17 via archaeology.org
  GUADALAJARA, SPAIN—According to a statement released by the University of Rovira i Virgili (URV), the remains of 25 people who were buried between the twelfth and fifteenth centuries in central Spain’s castle at Zorita de los Canes have been examined by researchers from URV, the Max Planck Institute, and the University of Barcelona. In the late twelfth century, Alfonso VIII of Castile ceded the castle to a Cistercian military and religious order known as the Order of Calatrava. Carme
  
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• Lost World War II Sub Discovered in South China Sea

  04-06-2024 02:42 via archaeology.org
  NEW YORK, NEW YORK—Live Science reports that the wreckage of the USS Harder has been found under 3,750 feet of water by members of the Lost 52 Project, a group that looks for the 52 U.S. submarines lost during World War II. Naval records show that the Harder, nicknamed the “Hit ‘Em Harder,” had torpedoed and sunk five Japanese destroyers and other enemy ships in the Pacific Ocean before it was lost during a battle in the South China Sea near the Philippine Island of Luzon
  
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• Audio News for May 26th through June 1st, 2024

  03-06-2024 10:50 via archaeologychannel.org
  
  
  News items read by Laura Kennedy include: 4,000 year old tablet reveals Anatolian business plan(details)(details)Ancient Egyptians may have performed cancer-treating surgeries(details)(details)Characteristics of prehistoric Central European burial mounds may indicate trends in inequality(details)(details)Seven-century-old ceremonial offerings recovered at Mexico’s Tlatelolco Archaeological Zone(details)(details)
  
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• 2,000-Year-Old Burial Mounds Excavated in Kazakhstan

  01-06-2024 01:30 via archaeology.org
  ASTANA, REPUBLIC OF KAZAKHSTAN—According to a Live Science report, archaeologists from Ozbekali Zhanibekov University and the Turkistan Regional Administration have excavated three 2,000-year-old burial mounds in southern Kazakhstan. The researchers found that two of the mounds had been looted in antiquity. Aleksandr Podushkin of Ozbekali Zhanibekov University said that the recovered artifacts are thought to have been made during the period of the Kangju state, which was made up of groups
  
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• Ancient Roman Correspondence Recovered at Egyptian Sea Port

  01-06-2024 01:01 via archaeology.org
  WROCŁAW, POLAND—Newsweek reports that correspondence between Roman centurions has been found on the outskirts of Berenice, an ancient port on the Egyptian coast of the Red Sea. Founded during the Greek Ptolemaic dynasty in the third century B.C., the city came under Roman control in 30 B.C. The papyrus letters, recovered in fragments from the site of a 2,000-year-old pet cemetery, may have originated in a nearby centurion’s office or residence. Archaeologists have now reassemble
  
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• U.S. Museum Agrees to Return Ptolemaic Statue to Libya

  31-05-2024 04:52 via archaeology.org
  CLEVELAND, OHIO—According to a New York Times report, the Cleveland Museum of Art has agreed to return a 2,200-year-old sculpture to Libya. The two-foot-tall basalt carving of a striding man was discovered in a storage jar unearthed at the site of a Greek palace in eastern Libya in the 1930s. It was put on display and photographed in Libya’s Ptolemais Museum, which was located near the site, before it was stolen in the 1940s during World War II. The statue reappeared in Switzerland i
  
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• Did Ancient Egyptian Physicians Treat Cancer?

  31-05-2024 04:21 via archaeology.org
  TÜBINGEN, GERMANY—Cosmos Magazine reports that two skulls held at Cambridge University were examined as part of a study of ancient Egyptian medical practices by an international team of archaeologists and medical professionals. The first skull and jaw, labeled 236, belonged to a man who died between the ages of 30 and 35, sometime between 2687 and 2345 B.C. The second skull, labeled E270, belonged to a woman who was more than 50 years old when she died between 663 and 343 B.C. Micro-C
  
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• Ancient Egyptian Sarcophagus Fragment Reexamined

  30-05-2024 03:20 via archaeology.org
  PARIS, FRANCE—According to a Live Science report, a new study of a granite fragment unearthed in Abydos in 2009 suggests that it was part of a sarcophagus that belonged to the 19th Dynasty pharaoh Ramesses II, who reigned from about 1279 to 1213 B.C. The pharaoh’s mummy and an ornate coffin were discovered in Deir el-Bahari in 1881. Archaeologists Ayman Damrani of Egypt’s Supreme Council of Antiquities and Kevin Cahail of the University of Pennsylvania suggested at the time of
  
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• 2,000-Year-Old Horse Burials Unearthed in France

  30-05-2024 03:18 via archaeology.org
  VILLEDIEU-SUR-INDRE, FRANCE—CNN reports that the remains of 28 horses have been found in nine graves in central France by researchers from the French National Institute of Preventive Archaeological Research (INRAP). The bones have been radiocarbon dated to between 100 B.C. and A.D. 100. Traces of a fortified Celtic settlement of similar age have been found in the area. In one of the pits, the complete remains of 10 horses were found. Another contained the remains of two horses. All of them
  
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• Excavation Update From Pompeii

  30-05-2024 03:17 via archaeology.org
  NAPLES, ITALY—Gizmodo reports that recent excavations at Pompeii have uncovered graffiti on the walls of the House of the Colonnaded Cenacle that may have been drawn by children with charcoal. The images include two gladiators; a possible hunting scene with a figure thought to represent a wild boar; the head of a bird of prey; outlines of small hands; figures playing with a ball; and a scene drawn in red pigment of two boxers—one of whom appears to have been knocked out. In front of
  
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• Switzerland Hands Over Artifacts to Iraq

  29-05-2024 05:36 via archaeology.org
  BERN, SWITZERLAND—Hürriyet Daily News reports that Switzerland handed over three Mesopotamian artifacts to Fuad Hussein, Iraq’s Foreign Minister, in a ceremony in Bern. The objects, including two Neo-Assyrian reliefs dated to the eighth century B.C. from the site of Nimrud, and a partial royal bust from the ancient city of Hatra dated to the second or third century A.D., were confiscated in Geneva last year during a criminal investigation. These three objects were uncovered in I
  
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• Hundreds of Stolen Artifacts Repatriated to Italy

  29-05-2024 05:34 via archaeology.org
  ROME, ITALY—The Telegraph reports that more than 600 artifacts recovered in joint operations conducted by agents from U.S. Homeland Security Investigations and Italy’s Carabinieri Command for the Protection of Cultural Heritage were handed over to Italian officials during a ceremony in Rome. Some of the artifacts had been recovered from antiquities dealers in London and New York, including items that were recently discovered in a storage facility in Brooklyn. The repatriated objects
  
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• 2,200-Year-Old Mosaic Uncovered in Turkey

  29-05-2024 05:33 via archaeology.org
  ANTALYA, TURKEY—A mosaic floor dated to the second century B.C. has been discovered near the monumental fountain in the ancient city of Side, according to a Hürriyet Daily News report. The harbor city, located on the southern coast of Anatolia, dates back to the seventh century B.C. A figure at the center of the mosaic depicts Calliope, a muse who inspired epic poets. The room where the mosaic was uncovered was also decorated with frescoes on its walls. To read about terracotta figuri
  
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• Well-Preserved Stone Tool Recovered in Western Canada

  29-05-2024 05:31 via archaeology.org
  SASKATCHEWAN, CANADA—According to a CBC Canada report, a stone tool known as a grooved maul was recovered from a suburban strawberry patch in western Canada. “It’s got the nice groove going all the way around, it’s got some wear on its end,” said Karin Steuber of the Saskatchewan Archaeological Society. “It probably would have been hafted to a handle and would have been used as a hammer,” she explained. This type of tool would have taken a long time to m
  
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• Audio News for May 19th through the 25th, 2024

  27-05-2024 08:58 via archaeologychannel.org
  
  
  News items read by Laura Kennedy include:Found: a forgotten, fiery moment in Hannibal's Iron Age war(details)(details)(details)Chile’s Tagua Tagua Lake served as the hunting ground for early elephants(details)(details)(details)Vikings ship horses up to 900 miles across Baltic Sea(details)(details)Greek Marines prove Bronze Age body armor wasn't just for show(details)(details)(details)
  
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• Wisconsin’s Lake Mendota Yields Ancient Dugout Canoes

  24-05-2024 22:28 via archaeology.org
  MADISON, WISCONSIN—The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports that a total of 10 dugout canoes have recently been found in southern Wisconsin’s Lake Mendota. The first two canoes were discovered in 2021 and 2022 by maritime archaeologist Tamara Thomsen of the Wisconsin Historical Society while she was scuba diving, leading to additional searches of the area, which is thought to have been the lake’s ancient shoreline. Researchers think the canoes were submerged to preserve them thro
  
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• Study Compares Childhood in Neanderthals and Modern Humans

  24-05-2024 22:26 via archaeology.org
  TÜBINGEN, GERMANY—According to a statement released by Scientific Reports, differences observed in the remains of Neanderthal and modern human children who lived between 50,000 and 12,000 years ago may reflect variations in childcare strategies. Laura Limmer and Sireen El Zaatari of the University of Tübingen and their colleagues analyzed the enamel of 423 Neanderthal teeth from 74 individuals, and the teeth of 444 modern humans who lived during the Upper Paleolithic. Horizontal
  
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• Legendary Hermit’s Possible Coin Caches Recovered in Poland

  24-05-2024 22:23 via archaeology.org
  KIELCE, POLAND—Science in Poland reports that metal detectorists of the Świętokrzyska Exploration Group discovered several caches of seventeenth- and eighteenth-century coins in central Poland’s Świętokrzyskie Mountains and handed them over to the Historical and Archaeological Museum in Ostrowiec Świętokrzyski for conservation and analysis. The coins are thought to have belonged to Antoni Jaczewicz, a preacher who claimed to have supernatural healing abi
  
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• Volunteer Soldiers Test Bronze Age Armor

  24-05-2024 02:17 via archaeology.org
  VOLOS, GREECE—According to a statement released by the Public Library of Science, Andreas Flouris of the University of Thessaly and his colleagues equipped 13 volunteers from the Marines of the Hellenic Armed Forces with replica Bronze Age battle gear in order to test possible Mycenaean armor technology. The replica armor was based upon a 3,500-year-old suit of armor discovered in 1960 near the village of Dendra, which is located in southern Greece, just a few miles from the ancient site o
  
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• Gomphothere Butchering Camp Discovered in Chile

  24-05-2024 01:46 via archaeology.org
  SANTIAGO, CHILE—Newsweek reports that a team of archaeologists led by Rafael Labarca of the Pontifical Catholic University of Chile has uncovered a 12,000-year-old site in the Tagua Tagua lake region of central Chile where hunter-gatherers butchered a gomphothere, an extinct relative of the modern elephant. Similar sites have previously been found in the region, which is thought to have supported hunter-gatherers with abundant, diverse, and predictable resources. This site may have been us
  
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