Archaeology News articles

 MANAUS (AP) — The Negro River, the major tributary that runs through the Brazilian Amazon, has reached historic lows, revealing millennia-old carvings previously hidden under water. The engravings deeply etched into the black rock along the riverbanks represent human faces, animals and other figures, and are thought to be 1,000 to 2,000 years old, archaeologists said. “They allow us to understand the way of life of prehistoric populations,” Jaime de Santana Oliveira, an archaeologist with Brazil’s National Historic and Artistic Heritage Institute, said.                                              From:   AP News Visit Website  https://www.weaversnest.org/  for more information on Archaeology and History.                               ...

The archaeologists unearthed the ruins of a 5,000-year-old tomb in Orkney, which reflected the best construction example of neolithic engineering in northern Britain. During the excavation, 14 articulated skeletons of women, men and children – two of them positioned in a way as if they were embracing each other – were discovered inside one of the six cells or side rooms. The tomb has been measuring more than 15m in diameter and includes a stone structure, which can be reached through a long passage which is around seven metres. Senior curator of prehistory (neolithic) at the National Museums Scotland Dr Hugo Anderson-Whymark along with professor of neolithic archaeology at Cardiff University Vicki Cummings headed the excavation.                                                   From:   Wion Visit Website  https://www.weavers...

 A University of Glasgow archaeology student on her first dig in August discovered a trove of ancient coins under a fireplace in Glen Coe, Scotland. Believed to have once belonged to a highland chief, the 36 coins, dating back to the late 1600s, were found at what was believed to have been a hunting lodge or feasting hall. “As a first experience of a dig, Glencoe was amazing,” said Lucy Ankers, the student who came upon the ancient coins. “I wasn’t expecting such an exciting find as one of my firsts. I don’t think I will ever beat the feeling of seeing the coins peeking out of the dirt in the pot.” As first reported by the Guardian, the collection includes international currency from the reigns of some of history’s most iconic monarchs, including Elizabeth I, James VI, and Charles II. Other discoveries included pottery from England, Germany, and the Netherlands as well as musket and fowling shot, a gun flint, and powder measure.               ...

 NAPLES, ITALY—Euronews reports that an intact chamber tomb estimated to be about 2,000 years old was discovered in southern Italy during a survey conducted ahead of a construction project. The tomb has been named the “Tomb of Cerberus” for a painting of the three-headed dog Cerberus from Greek mythology on one of the tomb walls. The scene shows the hero Hercules arriving at Hades to capture Cerberus, who guarded the gates to the underworld. One of the tomb’s other frescoes features a cupid-like individual and sea creatures known as ichthyocentaurs that have human upper bodies, lower bodies of horses, and fish tails. “The excitement was enormous,” said archaeologist Valentina Russo in describing the discovery. The team members are continuing to excavate the tomb and plan to also investigate the surrounding necropolis. To read about the restoration of some of the most famous frescoes in Pompeii, go to "Saving the Villa of the Mysteries."          ...

For the first time, ancient DNA has been recovered from the bodies of ancient Israelites living in the First Temple period, Haaretz has learned. This achievement, a Holy Grail in the study of lost civilizations, was enabled following the discovery near Jerusalem of a rare family tomb dating to the Iron Age. So far the collaboration of archaeologists and geneticists has been able to extract genetic material from two individuals, producing partial information, which is a tiny sample indeed. But it promises to pave the way for further research on longstanding questions about the origins of the ancient Israelites, their links to earlier populations living in the Levant, as well as to modern-day Jewish people.                                     From: HAARETZ Visit Website  https://www.weaversnest.org/  for more information on Archaeology and History.           ...

KONURALP, TURKEY—Live Science reports that a marble head belonging to a sculpture of Alexander the Great has been uncovered in the upper level of the ruins of a Roman theater at Konuralp, which is located near Turkey's northwestern coast. Researchers believe the statue dates to the second century A.D., highlighting the Macedonian king's enduring popularity in the ancient world more than 400 years after his death at the age of 32 in 323 B.C. The head's long curly hair, which is parted to either side in the middle of the forehead, is reminiscent of a lion's mane—a style that the researchers note was unique to portraits of Alexander. To read more about Alexander's life and death, go to "In Search of History's Greatest Rulers: Alexander the Great, King of Macdeon."                      From:  Archaeology Visit Website https://www.weaversnest.org/ for more information on Archaeology and History.           ...

BARCELONA, SPAIN—According to a BBC News report, researchers from the University of Barcelona and Alcalá University and their colleagues examined and carbon dated a collection of more than 70 artifacts made of wood, reed, and grass that were recovered from southwestern Spain’s Cueva de los Murciélagos, or Cave of the Bats, by nineteenth-century guano miners. The scientists determined that the objects are about 2,000 years older than previously thought. A wooden mace and sandals made of leather, lime, and different types of woven grass are now thought to be about 6,200 years old, while woven grass baskets have been dated to more than 9,000 years ago. “The technological diversity and the treatment of raw materials documented highlights the skill of prehistoric communities,” said María Herrero Otal of the University of Barcelona. Read the original scholarly article about this research in Science Advances. To read about a lion butchered by hunter-gatherers in a Spanish cave some 15,000 yea...