archaeologyprehistoricstones

[archaeologyprehistoricstones]

Esoteric arts: Archaeologists at Pompeii in Italy have found what they believe is a female sorcerer’s box of objects. The magnificent little miniature amulets, gems, and other items were found in the remains of a wooden box at Casa del Giardino, and were most likely used for personal ornamentation or protection from evil forces and bad luck. Among the objects found were crystals, buttons made of bones, phallic amulets, and a glass bead engraved with the head of Dionysus.

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"The skull was as flat as a pizza, basically," said Professor Graeme Barker

An absolute astonishing discovery and work by a team of British archaeologists who managed to reconstruct a 75,000 years of Neanderthal woman skull

Dubbed Shanidar Z, discovered in the Shanidar cave in the Kurdistan Region.

The groundbreaking discovery offers fresh insights into the lives of Neanderthals and challenges previous perceptions of their intelligence and behaviors.

Shanidar Z, named after the cave where her skull was unearthed in 2018, represents a significant find in the study of Neanderthals. Led by researchers from the University of Cambridge and Liverpool John Moores University, the excavation sheds light on ancient burial rituals and Neanderthal culture.

The discovery rekindles interest in the work of American archaeologist Ralph Solecki, who first unearthed Neanderthal remains in the same cave in the 1960s. Solecki's findings, which included the remains of multiple Neanderthals and evidence of burial practices, suggested a level of sophistication previously unrecognized in these ancient hominids.

Despite political challenges delaying further exploration for decades, the recent excavation allowed researchers to delve deeper into Shanidar Z's story. Her remarkably preserved skull, flattened to a thickness of 0.7 inches, offers unprecedented insights into Neanderthal anatomy and behavior.

Dr. Emma Pomeroy, a palaeo-anthropologist from the University of Cambridge, described the discovery as a privilege and emphasized its potential to deepen our understanding of Neanderthal life. "It's extremely exciting and a massive privilege actually to be able to work with the remains of any individual but especially one as special as her," she told BBC News.

The team's return to the Zagros mountains in the Kurdistan Region underscores the significance of ongoing research in unlocking the mysteries of human evolution. "The skull was as flat as a pizza, basically," said Professor Graeme Barker from Cambridge's McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research, highlighting the remarkable preservation of Shanidar Z's remains.

Neanderthals, who disappeared from the Earth around 40,000 years ago, continue to fascinate scientists and the public alike. Each new discovery, such as Shanidar Z's reconstructed face, adds layers to our understanding of these ancient relatives and their place in the human story.

As archaeologists continue to analyze Shanidar Z's remains and unearth new discoveries, their findings promise to reshape our understanding of Neanderthal life and their interactions with early humans.

Source: https://www.basnews.com/en/babat/847393

Image: 3D images of Shanidar Z can be seen in the BBC documentary «Neanderthal Secrets» broadcast on Netflix

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The Tudor Intruders

#archeology #history

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(ETA: Some followers have taken offense at the word 'elderly' being used in context of a 50-60 year old and demanded it be removed from the post. Firstly this is how the researchers at the National Museum of Denmark describe the woman, secondly at the time where people on average lived until about 40 anything older was considered 'elderly' however I will remove the word so as not to offend the delicate sensibilities of a few people.

Secondly, while the museum does not go into details as to why the body was disassembled for travel and several of you have expressed outrage at this, I can only assume that in the mid 1870s a 300 km journey over rough terrain and a couple of water crossings must have been quite the ordeal, perhaps the body was dismembered for easy travelling in fear of it being irreparably damaged. I do not condone digging up bodies I am merely bringing to you the history.

And lastly to the lady who was angry because she claimed she and her fellow Americans were too dense to Google places for themselves - I do not believe this to be true it has been my experience that our American followers are very astute and interested in all kinds of history and very capable of being able to c&p a place name and Google it , you do yourself and your country men and women a disservice with your comment, however I will add the word "Denmark" to the post.)

Borum Eshøj barrow near Århus, Denmark is located on a hill with a wide view. In 1871 during excavations of the mound the first grave, of a woman, was found. Her remains tell us that she was between 50 - 60 years old when she died. She was relatively short and stocky; traces of muscles on her bones reveal that she did hard physical work.

The woman’s clothes were well preserved and consisted of various items: a rectangular piece of cloth made of several pieces sewn together, a blouse, hairnet, cap and two belts, all made from wool. Her wealth is reflected in the numerous pieces of bronze jewellery, which include a belt plate, two ornamental bronze plates, a neck ring, arm rings, spiral finger rings and a clothes pin. The grave also contained a pottery vessel, a wooden box, a bronze dagger and a horn comb.

Four years later two more coffins were found containing the remains of two men. The older man was also between 50 - 60 years old. The body was so well preserved that it had to be dismembered during transport to Copenhagen – the muscles still held the skeleton together. He had manicured nails and a freshly shaved face. The man was lying on a cowhide and was covered by a woolen blanket. He was wearing a round-padded cap, a cloak, a kilt, two foot-paddles and a belt. All the textiles were made of wool. The only object in the grave besides his clothing was a wooden stick attached to the collar of the cloak.

The younger man was around 20 years old.His body too was very well preserved with muscles and other soft tissues still connected the bones to each other, he also had a full head of hair. He was buried wearing a cloak and kilt made of woven wool and a leather belt. It is possible that the man also wore a pair of leather shoes. His grave goods included a bronze dagger in a wooden scabbard, a horn comb, a bark box, a bone pin and a wooden double button.

Researchers believe that the older man was buried first, in the centre, and the mound was raised around him. The second and third bodies were interred later.Wood shavings, found in and around the graves lead historians to believe the coffins were hollowed out on the spot from oak trees which were felled around 1350 BC.

Source:

https://natmus.dk

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The Tudor Intruders

#archeology #history #denmark

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[archaeologyprehistoricstones]

Gal Vihara,Polonnaruwa Sri Lanka

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Girl buried with a crown of ceramic flowers. Patras, 300-400 B.C. 

Can be seen at the Museum of Patras (Greece)

[archaeologyprehistoricstones]

The skeletons of two women dated between 6740-5680 BC who died violently were discovered at Téviec,buried under a "roof" of antlers and decorated with necklaces made of shells.The grave assemblage was excavated from the site in one piece and is now on display at the Muséum de Toulouse.

More: https://thetravelbible.com/mysterious-archaeological-finds/

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Museum of Artifacts

#archeology #history

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Oh, would that it were permitted to grasp with my neck your little arms as they entwine [it] and to give kisses to your delicate little lips. Come now, my little darling, entrust your pleasures to the winds. (En)trust me, the nature of men is insubstantial. Often as I have been awake, lovesick, at midnight, you think on these things with me: many are they whom Fortune lifted high; these, suddenly thrown down headlong, she now oppresses. Thus, just as Venus suddenly joined the bodies of lovers, daylight divides them…

This piece of graffiti scratched into the wall of a hallway in Pompeii may be the only surviving piece of love poetry from ancient Roman society written by a woman, to a woman. It’s not so clear in the English, but it is more apparent in Latin, since it’s a gendered language, and both the author and subject are described with feminine words.

Check out our podcast on sexuality in Pompeii if you want to learn more!

(Note - this isn’t the translation I used in the podcast, but I found it afterwards and liked it better. It and both the pictures are from Kristina Milnor’s Graffiti and the Literary Landscape in Roman Pompeii)

[Images: Latin writing scratched onto a cracked, brown plaster wall; hand-drawn transcription of the poem from the wall]

[archaeologyprehistoricstones]

A petroglyph panel in Southeastern Utah. March 30, 2024.

[archaeologyprehistoricstones]

Stone cooking supports used to grill skewers of meat by Minoans on Santorini, circa 3600 years old. The line of holes in the base supplied coals with oxygen. Many consider modern "souvlaki" street kebabs a direct descendant of this portable food system. Museum of Prehistoric Thera, Greece. More: https://thetravelbible.com/museum-of-artifacts/

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Museum of Artifacts

#archeology #history #greece #grilled food

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This artifact, found in Birka, Sweden, is a whalebone smoothing board, which is about 35.5 cm in height. It’s believed to have been used for ironing clothes during the Viking Age. The discovery of this ironing board provides valuable insights into the daily life and practices of the Vikings. It’s a testament to the Vikings’ domestic life and their skills in utilizing available resources. This ironing board, along with other artifacts found in Birka, helps us understand more about the Northmen's way of life during the Medieval Era.

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Pagan Traveler

#archeology #history #sweden #whale bones #smoothing board #viking age

[archaeologyprehistoricstones]

The stunning Etruscan war chariot ca 6th Century BC photographed by Jason Martinez Photography. The Monteleone chariot is one of 6 known to remain in this condition and was undoubtedly used to accomodate a driver and a highly distinguished individual. Made of bronze with heavy useage of ivory inlays, Achilles and other Homeric scenes adorn this beautiful piece. The wheels are rather significant as they are wooden but covered with bronze to prevent damage, an expensive and unusual practice. It is on display at the Met, NY.

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Photo: Jason Martinez Photography

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#dansromanhistory #romanrepublic #romanhistory #romanempire #rome #ancientromanhistory #ancienthistory

#archeology #history

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Altar to Astarte from Corbridge, England dated to the 3rd Century CE on display at the Tullie House Museum and Art Gallery in Carlisle, England

This altar was set up by a man called Pulcher who had his inscription writted in Greek. It is dedicate to an ancient Near Eastern goddess called Astarte, who has been worshipped since prehistory. A patera, or pan, is depicted on one side of the altar and a jog on the other. Both these items would have been used during religious ceremonies.

Photographs taken by myself 2023

[archaeologyprehistoricstones]

Face of a man who died in 1361 during the Battle of Visby in Swedeп, one of the wildest of Eυrope.

More: https://artifactsmuseumhistory.blogspot.com/

[archaeologyprehistoricstones]

Scarab with Perfect Existence Signs

Egyptian/Canaanite, ca. 1648-1539 BCE (Second Intermediate Period; Hyksos; late MB IIB)

This amulet has a recreative and /or good luck connotation; the duplication of the signs should strengthen the effect. The third sign is either a fill character, or refers to the all-inclusiveness of 'perfect existence.' The scarab originally would have been mounted or threaded.

[archaeologyprehistoricstones]

Archaeologist Nermine Sami talks about the remains of the Lighthouse of Alexandria used in the Citadel of Qaitbay.

ANCIENT EGYPT BY TRAIN (2023) — 1.01 Alexandria

[archaeologyprehistoricstones]

WOW.

Scientists found an amazingly well-preserved village from 3,000 years ago

Text below, in case article access dries up:

LONDON — A half-eaten bowl of porridge complete with wooden spoon, communal rubbish bins, and a decorative necklace made with amber and glass beads are just a handful of the extraordinarily well-preserved remnants of a late Bronze Age hamlet unearthed in eastern England that’s been dubbed “Britain’s Pompeii” and a “time capsule” into village life almost 3,000 years ago.

The findings from the site, excavated in 2015 to 2016, are now the subject of two reports, complete with previously unseen photos, published this week by University of Cambridge archaeologists, who said they cast light onto the “cosy domesticity” of ancient settlement life.

“It might be the best prehistoric settlement that we’ve found in Britain,” Mark Knight, the excavation director and a co-author of the reports, said in an interviewThursday. “We took the roofs off and inside was pretty much the contents,” he said. “It’s so comprehensive and so coherent.”

The reason for the rare preservation: disaster.

The settlement, thought to have originally consisted of several large roundhouses made of wood and constructed on stilts above a slow-moving river, was engulfed by a fire less than a year after being built.

During the blaze, the buildings and much of their contents collapsed into a muddy river below that “cushioned the scorched remains where they fell,” the university said of the findings. This combination of charring from the fire and waterlogging led to “exceptional preservation,” the researchers found.

“Because of the nature of the settlement, that it was burned down and its abandonment unplanned, everything was captured,” Knight added.

“As we excavated it, there was that feeling that we were picking over someone else’s tragedy,” he said of the eerie site in the swampy fenland of East Anglia. “I don’t think we could smell the fire but the amount of ash around us — it felt close.”

Researchers said they eventually unearthed four large wooden roundhouses and an entranceway structure, but the original settlement was probably “twice as big.”

The site at Must Farm dates to about 850 B.C., eight centuries before Romans came to Britain. Archaeologists have been shocked at “just how clear the picture is” of late Bronze Age life based on the level of detail uncovered, Knight said.

The findings also showed that the communities lived “a way of life that was more sophisticated than we could have imagined,” Duncan Wilson, head of Historic England, the public body responsible for preserving England’s historic environment, said in a statement.

The findings unearthed include a stack of spears, possibly for hunting or defense; a decorative necklace “with beads from as far away as Denmark and Iran”; clothes of fine flax linen; and a female adult skull rendered smooth, “perhaps a memento of a lost loved one,” the research found.

The inhabitants’ diet was also rich and varied, including boar, pike and bream, along with wheat and barley.

A pottery bowl with the finger marks of its maker in the clay was also unearthed, researchers said, still containing its final meal — “a wheat-grain porridge mixed with animal fats” — with a wooden spatula resting inside the bowl.

“It appears the occupants saved their meat juices to use as toppings for porridge,” project archaeologist Chris Wakefield said in the university’s news release. “Chemical analyses of the bowls and jars showed traces of honey along with ruminant meats such as deer, suggesting these ingredients were combined to create a form of prehistoric honey-glazed venison,” he added.

Skulls of dogs — probably kept as pets and to help with hunting — were also uncovered, and the dogs’ fossilized feces showed they fed on scraps from their owners’ meals, the research found.

The buildings, some connected by walkways, may have had up to 60 people living there all together, Knight said, along with animals.

Although no intact sets of human remains were found at the site, indicating that the inhabitants probably fled the fire safely, several sheep bones were found burned indoors. “Skeletal remains showed the lambs were three to six months old, suggesting the settlement was destroyed sometime in late summer or early autumn,” according to the university’s news release.

Ceramic and wooden vessels including tiny cups, bowls and large storage jars were also found. Some pots were even designed to nest, stacked inside one another, Knight said — evidence of an interest in aesthetics as well as practicality.

A lot of similar items were found replicated in each home, Knight added, painting the picture of completely independent homesteads for each family unit rather than distinct buildings for shared tasks — much like we live today.

Household inventories often included metal tools, loom weights, sickles for crop harvesting, axes and even handheld razors for cutting hair.

The roundhouses — one of which had almost 50 square meters (nearly 540 square feet) of floor space — had hearths and insulated straw and clay roofs. Some featured activity zones for cooking, sleeping and working akin to modern-day rooms.

The Must Farm settlement has produced the largest collection of everyday Bronze Age artifacts ever discovered in the United Kingdom, according to Historic England, which partly funded the 1.1 million pound ($1.4 million) excavation project.

The public body labeled the site a “time capsule,” including almost 200 wooden artifacts, over 150 fiber and textile items, 128 pottery vessels and more than 90 pieces of metalwork. Some items will go on display at the nearby Peterborough Museum next month.

Archaeologists never found a “smoking gun” cause for the fire, Knight said. Instead, they suspect it was either an attack from “outside forces,” which may explain why the inhabitants never returned to collect their possessions from the debris, or an accidental blaze that spread rapidly across the tightly nestled homes.

“Probably all that was left was the people and what they were wearing; everything else was left behind,” Knight said of the fire.

But the preservation has left a window for people to look back through in the future. “You could almost see and smell their world,” he said.

“The only thing that was missing was the inhabitants,” Knight added. “And yet … I think they were there — you certainly got glimpses.”