Thursday, July 03, 2008
Archaeologists discover Britain's first 'shopping centre' in Roman dig
One of Britain's very first shopping centres has been unearthed - a high street that was fashionable 1,800 years ago when togas were still in vogue.
A row of narrow shop buildings uncovered by archaeologists shows that the Romans in Britain had their very own well-heeled fashionistas.
The shop buildings used by the stylish Romans in ancient Britain were uncovered by archaeologists in fields at Monmouthshire, South Wales.
The site, now occupied only by the rural village of Caerwent near Newport, was formerly Venta Silurum - one of 15 major towns in Britain at the time.
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# posted by David Beard @ 10:09 AM 
Rare Roman artifact found near Sicily
Italian researchers say a rostrum, used by ancient Romans to ram enemy ships, was found off the coast of Sicily.
The rare bronze appendage may have been used in the final naval battle of the First Punic War, ANSA reported Tuesday. The rostrum was recovered about 230 feet below the surface by divers aided by remotely operated vehicles.
Sicily's maritime affairs department department head, Sebastiano Tusa, said the Egadi rostrum confirms his theory that a battle took place northeast of the island of Levanzo between fleets from Rome and Carthage during the Battle of the Egadi in 241 B.C., the Italian news agency said.
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# posted by David Beard @ 10:08 AM
Doubt over date for Brit invasion
Julius Caesar's invasion of Britain in 55BC could not have occurred on the dates stated in most history books, a team of astronomers has claimed.
The traditional view is that Caesar landed in Britain on 26-27 August, but researchers from Texas State University say this cannot be right.
Dr Donald Olson, an expert on tides, says that the English Channel was flowing the wrong way on these dates.
An invasion of the south coast at Deal on August 22-23 is favoured instead.
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# posted by David Beard @ 10:05 AM
Heritage: Race to save mystery wreck from shipworm
In the depths of Poole harbour there is a magnificent ship in serious trouble. The vessel, lying off the Dorset coast, sank almost 400 years ago but its surviving timbers are now being devoured by Mediterranean shipworms flourishing in the warmer British waters.
Archaeologists from Bournemouth University have recovered from the wreck a spectacular merman, which was part of the decorative carving from the stern. Divers plan to descend again to lift the 8.5-metre (28ft) rudder.
The ship, and the fate of hundreds of souls on board, is a mystery.
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# posted by David Beard @ 9:55 AM
Jacobean 'Titanic' discovered by archaeologists
The wreck of a richly-jewelled 17th century ship has been discovered in the English Channel.
Marine archaeologists who explored the 600-ton vessel off Dorset believe it may have been as luxurious in its day as the Titanic.
Among the treasures they have retrieved is a statue of a merman whose eye sockets would have held precious stones.
The 4.5ft wooden figure was one of a number of statues that would have adorned the stern of the vessel.
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# posted by David Beard @ 7:10 AM
Wednesday, June 25, 2008
Medieval boat found on Suffolk coast
THE unearthing of a medieval boat on the north Suffolk coast is of “great national importance”, the archaeological team behind the discovery said last night.
As reported in yesterday's EADT the remains were found during excavations at Sizewell in advance of the onshore works for the Greater Gabbard Wind Farm.
The vessel, which was probably a small inshore fishing boat, was broken up sometime between the 12th and 14th Centuries and parts of its hull were re-used to create a timber lining for a well.
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# posted by David Beard @ 1:35 PM
Dig unearths Neolithic settlement
Archaeologists have found the remains of a 4,000-year-old Neolithic settlement in Wrexham.
The Clwyd-Powys Archaeological Trust (CPAT) is excavating the site at Borras Quarry, and hopes to discover evidence of timber houses.
They began digging after cooking pits were discovered during work to expand the site, which is owned by Tarmac.
The mining and construction company said topsoil removal nearby had ceased to allow artefacts to be retrieved.
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# posted by David Beard @ 1:34 PM
Lizard shipwreck to be studied
Cornwall's historic environment service and Penzance-based maritime archaeologist Kevin Camidge have been commissioned by English Heritage to carry out a marine environmental assessment of the Royal Anne Galley, a protected wreck lying in about five metres of seawater off the Lizard Point.
It follows a historical study of the wreck undertaken by HES in 2005.
Charles Johns, senior archaeologist from HES said: "This project is particularly important because it is the first environmental assessment of a protected wreck to be commissioned and will enable the council's Historical Environment Service to be a key player' in developing methodologies for assessing and managing protected wreck sites."
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# posted by David Beard @ 1:28 PM
Tuesday, June 24, 2008
Archaeology Expert
Readers may be interested in a new website: ArchaeologyExpert.co.uk.
The site descriptions states:
ArchaeologyExpert was formed to offer a unique reference point on extensive information on archaeology, archaeological sites, excavations and artefacts.
Information on all aspects of archaeology - including archaeological facts, myths, famous archaeologists, and sites of archaeological interest.
Our concern was that there was no single UK resource for interesting features and practical advice on this subject.
Our features and articles are written by professional journalists and experts - who have a particular interest, or a background in this area.
You can find the site here, or use the link in the sidebar under Multi-Media Resources for Archaeology.
# posted by David Beard @ 2:04 PM
Campaign to bring the Bayeux Tapestry back to Britain
A campaign has been launched to bring the Bayeux Tapestry, one of the world’s great works of art, back to Britain for the first time centuries, and put it on display in Canterbury Cathedral.
The famous embroidery of the 1066 Norman Conquest is the subject of a major conference of world experts being held at the British Museum next month.
Feted as the most famous cartoon strip of history, the tapestry was made in Britain but never displayed here and now historians believe we should take advantage of French president Nicolas Sarkosy’s friendship with Britain and ask for the chance to bring it home.
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# posted by David Beard @ 2:03 PM
Roman remains are revealed
ARCHAEOLOGISTS have unearthed more fascinating finds at a 2,000 year old Roman village.
A quern stone which is used for grinding corn has been found at Catcote Village in Hartlepool.
What is believed to be an oven has also been discovered at the site, which is now part of the Summerhill outdoor adventure park.
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# posted by David Beard @ 2:01 PM
Britain’s last Neanderthals were more sophisticated than we thought
An archaeological excavation at a site near Pulborough, West Sussex, has thrown remarkable new light on the life of northern Europe’s last Neanderthals. It provides a snapshot of a thriving, developing population – rather than communities on the verge of extinction.
“The tools we’ve found at the site are technologically advanced and potentially older than tools in Britain belonging to our own species, Homo sapiens,” says Dr Matthew Pope of Archaeology South East based at the UCL Institute of Archaeology. “It’s exciting to think that there’s a real possibility these were left by some of the last Neanderthal hunting groups to occupy northern Europe. The impression they give is of a population in complete command of both landscape and natural raw materials with a flourishing technology - not a people on the edge of extinction.”
The team, led by Dr Pope and funded by English Heritage, is undertaking the first modern, scientific investigation of the site since its original discovery in 1900. During the construction of a monumental house known as ‘Beedings’ some 2,300 perfectly preserved stone tools were removed from fissures encountered in the foundation trenches.
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# posted by David Beard @ 1:59 PM
Pumice as a Time Witness
A chemist of Vienna University of Technology demonstrates how chemical fingerprints of volcanic eruptions and numerous pumice lump finds from archaeological excavations illustrate relations between individual advanced civilisations in the Eastern Mediterranean. Thanks to his tests and to the provenancing of the respective pumice samples to partially far-reaching volcanic eruptions, it became possible to redefine a piece of cultural history from the second millenium B.C.
Vienna (TU). During the Bronze Age, between the years 3000 and 1000 B.C., the Mediterranean was already intensely populated. Each individual culture, whether it may be the Egyptian one, the Syrian one, or the Minoan culture from Santorini, has in most cases its own well-researched, chronological history. However, the connection between these individual cultures and locations is often missing for the most part because more often than not, there is no correspondence or similar exchange that has taken place, has been preserved, or is comprehensible. It is so much more difficult to synchronize the individual cultures among themselves.
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# posted by David Beard @ 1:58 PM
Monday, June 23, 2008
Archaeology - Hidden City Provides Fascinating Insight into the Structures of Hellenistic Settlements
The discovery of an ancient city buried beneath the sands of modern-day Syria has provided evidence for a Hellenistic settlement that existed for more than six centuries extending into the time of the Roman Empire. The site provides a unique insight into the structures of a pre-Roman Hellenistic settlement. The project, funded by the Austrian Science Fund FWF, sheds new light on city life in the Hellenistic period.
The Syrian deserts have long kept an important secret hidden deep beneath their sands - the remains of the pre-Roman Hellenistic settlement of Palmyra. Until now, the only evidence for the existence of such a settlement was to be found in historical writing. As part of an FWF-funded joint project, the Institute of Classical Archaeology at the University of Vienna, the German Archaeological Institute and the Directorate General of Antiquities and Museums in Syria have been the first to track down the location of this early city. Moreover, their findings are now producing a unique insight into the structures of a pre-Roman Hellenistic settlement.
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# posted by David Beard @ 2:44 PM
'Neanderthal tools' found at dig
Dozens of tools thought to have belonged to Neanderthals have been dug up at an archaeological site called Beedings in West Sussex.
Dr Matthew Pope, of University College London, said the discovery provides new insights into the life of a thriving community of hunters at the site.
The tools could have been used to hunt horses, mammoth and woolly rhinoceros.
The archaeologists, funded by English Heritage, have been carrying out their investigations over the last few weeks.
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# posted by David Beard @ 1:13 PM
Ancient Roman Vestalia revived in Italy
In the Italian countryside, the ancient Roman feast of Vestalia is being revived. Six modern Vestal Virgins have presided over an event that used to mark the end of the harvest. It's part of a growing trend of "experimental archaeology," to teach history in a more interactive way.
The Vestal Virgins gathered at the Temple of Vesta to revive an ancient ritual. They celebrated the "Vestalia", Rome's week-long feast from ancient times marking the end of the harvest and the beginning of a new season of work.
Adriana Serpi, Member of Senate & Roman People Cultural Club said "During the Vestalia, noble Roman women were allowed the honour of approaching the temple. During the celebration that we are reviving today, the temple was washed with spring water, and actually donkey dung was cleared away."
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# posted by David Beard @ 1:12 PM
Run-down heritage sites embarrass the Greeks
Extra staff have been dispatched to guard the great cultural gems of Greece as the government in Athens tries to deflect growing criticism of its handling of national treasures.
Amid unprecedented protests from tour guides, travel companies and tourists irritated by conditions at prime archaeological sites, the ruling conservatives last week rushed hundreds of additional personnel to staff museums and open-air antiquities.
"The situation at museums and sites around the country is bad," the culture minister, Michalis Liapis, conceded in parliament last week. "It has to be corrected."
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# posted by David Beard @ 1:11 PM
Thursday, June 19, 2008
Saxon bowl on show
AN exciting archaeological find has been donated to Andover Museum.
The bronze, Saxon hanging bowl was discovered near Kimpton by local metal detectorist Michael Robbins.
He took it to the Hampshire finds liaison officer, Rob Webley, in Winchester.
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Mr Webley, whose post is part of the national portable antiquities scheme, said: "It was covered in mud and a far cry from its current appearance."
The bowl dates to between 600 and 700AD. Such bowls appear to accompany what archaeologists call sentinel burials of men on the edge of a tribal boundary. Intere-stingly the bowl was found near to a Bronze Age barrow cemetery, which was investigated by the Andover Archaeological Society in the 1970s. It's not unusual to find Saxon burials near to those of earlier periods.
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# posted by David Beard @ 4:15 PM
Ancient Jewelry Unearthed in Temple of Sun near Bulgaria's Sliven
The archaeologist team of Bulgaria's Georgi Kitov has unearthed precious jewels, dating back from second or third century in Drumeva Mound near the Town of Sliven, the manager of the expedition himself announced.
The scientists found golden earrings, silver bracelets and three bronze rings in a Roman brick tomb of woman, buried in the mound.
A mourning bronze coin was discovered in the mouth of the skeleton and there was clay beads round its neck, the deputy-head of the group, Nikolay sirakov, revealed.
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# posted by David Beard @ 4:13 PM
Thracian Tomb Dated on 360 Year B.C. Found in Tsarevo
A Thracian tomb with semi cylinder arch was found by archaeologists in the territory of the south seaside Tserovo municipality.
Tombs of this kind haven't been found to the moment in the Strandja Mountain, the chief of the excavations works Daniela Agre informed.
Undoubtedly the tomb is of a local dynasty ruler, who used to govern Southeastern Thrace and most probably controlled the production of ore.
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# posted by David Beard @ 4:13 PM
Large golden rind found in excavations near Veliko Tarnovo
Veliko Tarnovo. A burial site of an apparently notable boyar was found at an excavations site near the St. Ivan Rilski church, located close to the town of Veliko Tarnovo in Bulgaria, Prof. Nikolay Ovcharov, part of the excavation team, said in an interview for FOCUS Radio – Veliko Tarnovo.
The site is yet to be processed and works are expected to continue throughout the afternoon.
The Archeologist noted that a large golden ring was found on one of the fingers of the skeleton’s right hand, depicting a two-headed eagle.
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# posted by David Beard @ 4:12 PM
Ancient Christian "Holy Wine" Factory Found in Egypt
Two wine presses found in Egypt were likely part of the area's earliest winery, producing holy wine for export to Christians abroad, archaeologists say.
Egyptian archaeologists discovered the two presses with large crosses carved across them near St. Catherine's Monastery, a sixth-century A.D. complex near Mount Sinai on the Sinai Peninsula.
More presses are likely to be found in the area, which was probably an ancient wine-industry hub, according to Tarek El-Naggar, director for southern Sinai at Egypt's Supreme Council of Antiquities.
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# posted by David Beard @ 4:11 PM
Archaeological dig at Enderby park and ride site
Work starts this week to investigate the archaeology of land earmarked for a new park and ride site in Enderby.
The park and ride service will start in Autumn 2009. Before work can commence on the £9million park and ride site, the County Council is taking steps to uncover, record and remove any archaeological remains.
The investigations will try to uncover evidence of how people were living 2000 years ago just before the Roman invasion, building on previous works in the Enderby area. These have uncovered houses and farmsteads of our Iron Age ancestors who were farming this part of the Soar valley. The investigations could be an exciting addition to our knowledge of the heritage of this area.
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# posted by David Beard @ 4:09 PM
Wednesday, June 18, 2008
Neolithic camp found at Wrexham quarry
ARCHAEOLOGISTS have begun excavating a quarry near Wrexham after evidence of a Neolithic settlement was uncovered.
The exciting discovery was made at Tarmac's Borras Quarry, off Holt Road, near Wrexham and archaeologists have begun to uncover the remains of the settlement, believed to be about 4,000 years old.
The archaeologists noticed dark areas resembling cooking pits appearing as topsoil and subsoil was being removed in preparation for sand and gravel extraction.
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# posted by David Beard @ 2:40 PM
Archaeologist's search for ancient Lanky tribe
AN amateur archaeologist has been given a lottery grant to help him dig into Bolton's hidden past.
Paul Kay, the founder of the Bolton Cambrian Archaeological and Historical Society, believes the moors around Bolton and Lancashire have secrets to be unearthed which may give a rare insight into life in Anglo-Saxon times and earlier.
He has been awarded £9,900 by the National Lottery Awards For All scheme to help set up the society's headquarters and website, and to start exploring the moors.
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"I want to look at the commonly held notion that Lancashire was unremarkable before modern times," said Mr Kay, aged 39, who is a student teacher. "The moors have a lot of archaeological evidence suggesting the area might be a repository for a culture that was altered elsewhere in Britain when invaders arrived from other nations."
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# posted by David Beard @ 2:37 PM
Remains of medieval bishops identified
Archaeologists have identified the remains of medieval bishops buried at Whithorn Priory in Galloway, Scotland, 600 years ago.
The bones of the six bishops were discovered over 40 years ago, but have only just been identified using the latest techniques for scientific analysis of remains.
Thought to have died between 1200 and 1360AD, the bishops were found during excavations at the priory between 1957 and 1967, but their identity has remained a mystery until now. Other items, such as fragments from vestments, silver altar vessels and a gold pontifical ring were also unearthed.
Archaeologists from Edinburgh-based Headland Archaeology have employed state of the art analysis to determine who the bishops were and how they died, with the examinations even revealing that they came from southern Scotland or Cumbria and what they ate.
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# posted by David Beard @ 2:36 PM
Green reapers
Fledgling farmers in the Middle East treasured ornamentation as much as irrigation. These ancient villagers traveled great distances to obtain green stone for making beads and pendants that held special meaning for them in a brave new agricultural world, a new study finds.
Bead-making began by 110,000 years ago in what’s now Israel. But an emphasis on green beads emerged only about 11,000 years ago in concert with the agricultural revolution, say archaeologist Daniella Bar-Yosef Mayer of the University of Haifa in Israel and geologist Naomi Porat of the Geological Survey of Israel in Jerusalem.
“Because beads in white, red, yellow, brown and black colors had been used earlier, we suggest that the occurrence of green beads is directly related to the onset of agriculture,” Bar-Yosef Mayer says.
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# posted by David Beard @ 2:35 PM
Tuesday, June 17, 2008
Stone of Destiny is fake, claims Alex Salmond
Alex Salmond dropped a cultural bombshell yesterday when he claimed that the Stone of Destiny, one of Scotland's most famous relics, was a medieval fake.
Scottish, English and British monarchs have been crowned on the ancient coronation stone since the ninth century.
It spent 700 years under the chair in Westminster Abbey after it was seized in 1296 by King Edward I, and was finally returned to Scotland 12 years ago.
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# posted by David Beard @ 2:55 PM
Archaeological finds in Ledbury
Archaeoleogists found part of a medieval wall during a dig in flower beds by the Master's House in Ledbury. The excavation, which took place over several days last week, was carried out by a team of experts from Worcestershire County Council, on behalf of Herefordshire Council.
Now Herefordshire Council is awaiting a report on the finds, due out in a few weeks time. Council spokesman John Burnett said: "The archaeological survey was essential due to the historic nature of the site and its completion paves the way for the design brief of Ledbury's new library to be finalised." He added: "We plan to build a new library with access for disabled people, a new information centre and tourist information centre and visitor attractions with a focus on local history and culture, as well as community space."
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# posted by David Beard @ 2:51 PM
Treasure found in farmer's field
A haul of ancient coins found buried in the mud of a farmer's field could be bound for the Harris Museum.
The 11 Tudor coins, which are more than 400 years old, were found by amateur metal detector user John Davis in Barton, near Preston.
And the English and Spanish silverware has now officially been declared as 'treasure' after an inquest to decide who had the rights to the unusual find.
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# posted by David Beard @ 2:50 PM
Let's safe guard treasure sites
A protection plan for a treasure house of ancient and modern-day history on the Roussillon Barracks and Graylingwell sites has been urged before plans for major housing developments are considered.
The sites are important because of prehistoric earthworks, listed buildings and the Grayling Well itself. Links to smuggling mean the sites have great significance in social history.
West Sussex County Council has recommended there should be a desk-based archaeological and environmental assessment to address the impact of the proposals in response to district council consultations on a development brief for the area.
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# posted by David Beard @ 2:48 PM
Digging into the Roman Legion
Archaeologists from Cardiff University today began excavating part of the remains of the 2,000 year old Roman Fortress in Caerleon, Newport.
Led by Dr Peter Guest, of the School of History and Archaeology, the team of 50 archaeologists from Cardiff and University College London will excavate the remains of a monumental courtyard building in the south-western corner of the fortress.
The building's existence was discovered during geophysical surveys undertaken by staff and students from the University and was investigated during trial excavations in 2007.
This year's excavation will open a large trench over the building, which is believed to be a store-building or warehouse. It is hoped that the excavations will reveal a wealth of new information about the storage facilities, provisioning, and supply of a Legion in Britain.
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# posted by David Beard @ 2:46 PM
Pursuit of Females Dates Way, Way Back
Men fighting over women? Nothing new there, based on the findings of a prehistoric mass grave in southwest Germany.
Durham University-led researchers say that genetic evidence from 34 skeletons dating back to around 5000 B.C. shows the deaths were the result of a tribal war over the need for female companionship.
While adult females were found among the immigrant skeletons, only men and children were found among the native group of skeletons buried in the village of Talheim. The lack of local females, the researchers said, shows that they were captured instead -- a possible primary motivation for the attack.
"It seems this community was specifically targeted, as could happen in a cycle of revenge between rival groups. Although resources and population were undoubtedly factors in central Europe around that time, women appear to be the immediate reason for the attack," lead author Dr. Alex Bentley of Durham University's Anthropology Department, said in a prepared statement. "Our analysis points to the local women being regarded as somehow special and were therefore kept alive."
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# posted by David Beard @ 2:44 PM
