December 2011, Daily News

Archaeology News for the Week of September 4th, 2011

Thu, Sep 08, 2011

September 10th, 2011

Forgotten archaeological gems: The ancient turquoise mines of South Sinai

……….Rock inscriptions left by ancient Egyptian miners in South Sinai are rich with details of working conditions and weather, as well as praise for the pharaoh and the gods. They present a lively narrative of daily life that can be easily compared to modern business reports, or even a diary. (Almasryalyoum)

Noatak site contains new artifacts for Alaska

August 2011 - When Mareca Guthrie packed her bags to join a team of archaeologists on an expedition to the Noatak National Preserve in Northwest Alaska this summer, she made sure to bring some art supplies along with the camping gear and obligatory mosquito head net. “I packed pencils and even a watercolor set.”

The fine arts collection manager at the University of Alaska Museum of the North joined the expedition to a prehistoric settlement on Feniak Lake to make sketches and take tracings of a group of boulders adorned with petroglyphs, part of the foundation rocks used for several groups of ancient house pits. (Alaska Native News)

Bishop Auckland Roman fort features on BBC’s Digging for Britain

A Roman fort in Bishop Auckland will unveil new glimpses of Roman life in Britain when it features on a BBC Two programme later.

Footage of an excavation carried out over the summer at Binchester Roman Fort is being aired on Digging for Britain.

The episode follows a team from Durham University's Department of Archaeology as it uncovers the remains of very late Roman activity at the fort. (BBC News)

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September 9th, 2011

Was there a fork in our family tree?

The discoverer of the famous "Lucy" fossil says fresh findings suggest that more than one ancient species made the transition to more humanlike forms in different parts of Africa. (Cosmic Log)

A 1,400-year-old funeral chamber found in south Mexico

A 1,400-year-old funeral chamber was found by chance in the southern Mexican state of Guerrero, authorities said.

The chamber, regarded as an elite burial place and dating between A.D. 600 and A.D. 900, was found by locals in the village of Chilacachapa, Mexico’s National Institute of Anthropology and History said late Wednesday. (thestar.com)

‘Torah archaeology’ sheds light on ancient Talmudic dispute

In the heart of ultra-Orthodox Jerusalem two weeks ago, an unwritten taboo was shattered in broad daylight: The first Haredi conference on "Torah archaeology" - having been boldly advertised in the Haredi daily Hamodia, and approved by several leading rabbis - drew a packed audience. (Haaretz.com)

Paleoanthropologist Now Rides High on a New Fossil Tide

This week, Science publishes five papers by Lee Berger of the University of the Witwatersrand and his colleagues, featuring details and analysis of the 2-million-year-old remains of Australopithecus sediba (see pp. 1370 and 1402). Berger hopes the fossils will confirm his controversial views about the role of southern Africa in hominin evolution and the place of Au. sediba as a link to our own genus, Homo. But he will have to work hard to convince the field that his team's interpretations are correct. His career has been dogged by controversy, and some of his peers find Berger, whose background includes a stint in TV news, heavy on style and light on substance. (Science)

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September 8th, 2011

Malapa: A Glimpse into the Ancient Past

The newly discovered Australopithecus sediba is now thought to be a hominin that existed around the same time or just before the earliest Homo (ancestral human) species first began to appear on the Earth. New findings make it clear that this species featured a mosaic of both primitive and modern, human-like characteristics. In light of the fact that the skeletons found are among the most complete early hominins ever found, and that their dating is perhaps the most thorough and accurate ever conducted, many scientists are now suggesting that A. sediba may be the best candidate for the ancestor to the Homo genus. (Popular Archaeology)

Into the Stone Age with a Scalpel: A Dig With Clues on Early Urban Life

A pair of space-age shelters rising from the beet and barley fields of the flat Konya Plain are the first clue to the Catalhoyuk Research Project, where archaeologists are excavating a 9,000-year-old Neolithic village. (The New York Times)

Archaeology can help First Nations rediscover cultural identity

Watching Heiltsuk First Nation members lower the remains of their ancestors into a grave made Simon Fraser University’s Catherine D’Andrea reflect about the value of archaeology. “I thought about how it is sometimes viewed as a hobby with very limited practical value or relevance to the modern world,” says the chair of SFU’s archaeology department.

Retired SFU archaeologist Roy Carlson originally excavated the human remains in 1977 – with permission from the Heiltsuk – in Namu, B.C., a former trading post and B.C. Packers cannery site near Bella Bella.

SFU worked closely with Heiltsuk chief Harvey Humchitt to arrange the return of the ancestral remains. Carlson and D’Andrea participated in a burial ceremony last Friday attended by about 100 people, including Heiltsuk chiefs and elders....... (The First Perspective)

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September 7th, 2011

Gladiator school found in austria rivals Ludus Magnus in Roma

Austrian archaeological experts have unveiled what one local official is calling a “world sensation” in terms of scientific discovery – the only problem is that it’s trapped underground.

The ruins of a gladiator school have been discovered in the ancient Roman city of Carnuntum in Austria, a major military and trade outpost linking the far-flung Roman Empire’s Asian boundaries to its central and northern European lands. (Australian News.net)

What’s new with ancient Jerusalem?

The Annual City of David Archaeology Conference will reveal the newest research and discoveries on ancient Jerusalem and the City of David. (The Jerusalem Post)

Lost Great Escape Tunnel is pinpointed

BRITISH archaeologists have discovered a missing tunnel at one of the most infamous German prison camp of the Second World War and unearthed a wealth of escapers' tools and equipment sealed underground. (The Scotsman)

Passport in Time archaeology project 

WILLOWS For a week, from Aug. 22-26, 32 volunteers, 11 archaeologists and two tribal representatives from Round Valley lived on the Mendocino National Forest to work on a Passport in Time (PIT) archaeology project.

The project participants were working on sample excavations across a site believed to be a prehistoric hunting base camp. (Red Bluff Daily News)

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September 5th, 2011

Before they left Africa, modern humans interbred with archaic humans, reports DNA study

It has become increasingly clear through DNA studies that modern humans may have interbred with Neanderthals in Eurasia following their migration from their ancestral African homeland. Now, based on new DNA research conducted by a team of scientists from the University of Arizona and the University of California, San Francisco, it seems that modern humans had already established a pattern of mixing it up with their more archaic cousins before they even left their southerly African climes. (Popular Archaeology)

Sights and Insights: Where history becomes a story

Tel Maresha and Beit Guvrin offer a wonderful peek at life as it really was, says Dr. Wayne Stiles. (The Jerusalem Post)

China excavates Upper Capital of Liao dynasty

The archaeological excavation team formed by archaeologists from the Archaeological Institute of Chinese Academy of Social Sciences and Culture Relics Archaeological Institute of Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region is excavating the Qiande Gate of the royal city at Upper Capital of the Liao dynasty, which was founded by a minority group called the Qidan more than 1,000 years ago. (People's Daily)

Could this be the oldest pub in Scotland?

A historic site's true purpose may have been revealed - as an Iron Age boozer.

Experts believe that 4600 years ago, thirsty natives may have been enjoying a pie and pint at Jarlshof in Shetland.

They say the layout of the stone settlement near Sumburgh Head suggests it may be the oldest pub ever found in Britain. (Daily Record)

Ancient images in our backyard

Ten miles west of Farmington, visible from U.S. 64, is a little-known treasure trove of prehistoric artwork.

Carved into the sandstone cliff are hundreds of ancient petroglyphs depicting early life in San Juan County.

Herds of deer, goats and running horses can be seen galloping across the sandstone walls, and enigmatic symbols and stylized human figures tell a story of ancient life. (The Daily Times)

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September 4th, 2011

Neanderthal skull fragment discovered in Nice

Part of a prehistoric skull, dating back 170,000 years, has been discovered during an archaeological dig in Nice. Experts say the discovery could reveal important clues to the evolution of humans.

Students Ludovic Dolez and Sébastian Lepvraud were working on the excavation site, Lazaret Caves, on 13th August, when they came across the partial remains of a forehead belonging to a Homo Erectus. (Free Republic)

Under the beach

The 2004 tsunami revealed ancient sites along the coast near Mahabalipuram. Archaeologists are still busy with the finds. (Business Standard)

Locals find ancient warships off Sicily

For thousands of years the remnants of the final battle of the first Punic War lay undisturbed off the coast of Sicily, until last week when a Stock Island-based research firm raised artifacts from the seafloor that historians say provide clues as to how the largest conflicts in antiquity were waged. (keysnews.com)

City's sole ancient pyramid languishes despite lofty plans

The Ixtepete pyramid, Guadalajara’s sole archaeological site, remains ignored, despite plans to excavate the ruins properly and build an on-site museum ahead of October’s Pan American Games. (Guadalajara Reporter)

New scientific research reveals the reality of life in Nelson's navy

Archaeologists have completed the most detailed scientific investigation ever carried out into life and death in Nelson's navy.

Detailed examination of 340 skeletons from three mid-18^th-to-early-19th Century Royal Navy graveyards are yielding unprecedented insights into the grim realities of naval life before and during the Napoleonic Wars. (4 Press)