Archaeology in the News

[ronin92]

Steamed vs baked: scientists use China remnant DNA to reveal ancient regional cooking differences

" The study, published in the journal Antiquity, argues that, as millet spread westward, it was not accompanied by traditional cooking methods, leading to stark differences in regional cuisine. "

"The DNA evidence supports a hypothesis that regional cuisine differences in Neolithic China were linked to how pottery developed in East Asia versus Central Asia and Eurasia.

In the east, the development of pottery came before grain agriculture via coarse ware cooking pots, which first emerged in China between 15,000 and 20,000 years ago.

A subsequent tripod design that later emerged indicated that those ancient peoples would steam or boil their food, so, when millet was raised, it was applied to the tools already in existence.

In the western regions, cereal cultivation predated pottery, so as millet agriculture developed, it “decoupled from traditional cooking methods and were incorporated into local cuisines”."

https://www.scmp.com/news/people-culture...e=homepage

Original paper is (paywalled):-

Hunt HV, Jiang H, Liu X, et al. Did crops expand in tandem with culinary practices from their region of origin? Evidence from ancient DNA and material culture. Antiquity. Published online 2024:1-18. doi:10.15184/aqy.2023.197

Abstract
Grain-cooking traditions in Neolithic China have been characterised as a ‘wet’ cuisine based on the boiling and steaming of sticky varieties of cereal. One of these, broomcorn millet, was one of the earliest Chinese crops to move westward into Central Asia and beyond, into regions where grains were typically prepared by grinding and baking. Here, the authors present the genotypes and reconstructed phenotypes of 13 desiccated broomcorn millet samples from Xinjiang (1700 BC–AD 700). The absence in this area of sticky-starch millet and vessels for boiling and steaming suggests that, as they moved west, East Asian cereal crops were decoupled from traditional cooking practices and were incorporated into local cuisines.

[Orentil]

Archaeologists may have found a marketplace from the Viking Age (Norway)

https://partner.sciencenorway.no/archaeo...ge/2322224

[Orentil]

Some weeks ago I visited the "Nacht der Bandkeramik" ("Night of the Linear Pottery Culture LBK") in Würzburg, Lower Franconia, Germany. Three nice presentations by Joachim Pechtl, Silviane Scharl and Detlef Gronenborn focusing on the Linear Pottery Culture in Franconia and Bavaria, combined with a small but very good exhibition of artefacts etc. These presentations (sorry, in German) are now available on youtube.
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL...A7MbuSnhSP
Looking forward to more such events!
I found it esp. interesting that they claim that during LBK just 25000 people lived at the same time in Bavaria. Those small numbers explain of course that we see founder effects, bottlenecks or shifts in haplogroups in such populations.
They also hinted to a new and not yet published genetic study on LBK showing again that during the LBK there are no genetic traces of interaction with hunter gatherers who lived at the same time in the surrounding forest regions - two separate worlds.

[ronin92]

Should be the potential here to improve Y chromosome trees...


Genomic data in the All of Us Research Program

Comprehensively mapping the genetic basis of human disease across diverse individuals is a long-standing goal for the field of human genetics1,2,3,4. The All of Us Research Program is a longitudinal cohort study aiming to enrol a diverse group of at least one million individuals across the USA to accelerate biomedical research and improve human health5,6. Here we describe the programme’s genomics data release of 245,388 clinical-grade genome sequences. This resource is unique in its diversity as 77% of participants are from communities that are historically under-represented in biomedical research and 46% are individuals from under-represented racial and ethnic minorities. All of Us identified more than 1 billion genetic variants, including more than 275 million previously unreported genetic variants, more than 3.9 million of which had coding consequences. Leveraging linkage between genomic data and the longitudinal electronic health record, we evaluated 3,724 genetic variants associated with 117 diseases and found high replication rates across both participants of European ancestry and participants of African ancestry. Summary-level data are publicly available, and individual-level data can be accessed by researchers through the All of Us Researcher Workbench using a unique data passport model with a median time from initial researcher registration to data access of 29 hours. We anticipate that this diverse dataset will advance the promise of genomic medicine for all.

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-023-06957-x

[JMcB]

Rare Roman head of Mercury discovered at Smallhythe Place goes on display




New discoveries
The excavation of a medieval site at Smallhythe Place that was once used for shipbuilding has delighted archaeologists when they also came across earlier evidence of a Roman settlement.

As part of the discovery, finds from a Roman settlement in use between the 1st and 3rd centuries included the head of a figurine of the god Mercury, made from pipeclay, which experts believe to be “incredibly rare”.

Mercury was the god of all the fine arts as well as commerce and financial success, but while he is the most common god for metal figurines, pipeclay examples are extremely rare, with less than ten so far found from Roman Britain.

Religion was a central part of daily life in most Roman provinces, and statues as well as portable figurines of gods like the one discovered at Smallhythe were worshipped by both the Roman elite and the ordinary citizens in their homes.

Pipeclay figurines were made of clays local to central Gaul (modern-day France) and the Rhine-Moselle region and were imported, however most pipeclay figurines found in Britain are of female deities, the majority being of Venus.

This complete figurine probably would have depicted Mercury standing, either draped with a chlamys (a short cloak), or naked, holding a caduceus (a staff with two intertwined snakes).


For more on this and all of the other finds they’ve come across, see:

https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/visit/k...-320463211

[Alain]

Archeology: Man stumbles upon royal gold ring


https://www.morgenpost.de/vermischtes/ar...dring.html

[JonikW]

Anglesey treasure: Iron Age and Roman objects found in 'boggy' field

"The 16 items include a number of chariot and cavalry fittings from the latter part of the first century AD, including a ram's head."

The invasion of the Welsh island in 60 AD is so vividly conjured up by Tacitus in his Annals that any finds from the period always grab my attention. You might remember this:

"On the shore stood the opposing army with its dense array of armed warriors, while between the ranks dashed women, in black attire like the Furies, with hair dishevelled, waving brands. All around, the Druids, lifting up their hands to heaven, and pouring forth dreadful imprecations, scared our soldiers by the unfamiliar sight, so that, as if their limbs were paralysed, they stood motionless, and exposed to wounds."

[JMcB]

Rare Phoenician Jewel Found in Jerusalem. But Is It Linked to King Solomon?

Conservative scholars claim gold earring proves biblical story of Phoenician presence at Solomon's court. But the dating is all wrong, and the jewel may have been traded, skeptics respond



The earring at the 'King David and Solomon Exhibit'Credit: Reese Zoellner / AIBA



Thither came Phoenicians, men famed for their ships, greedy knaves, bringing countless trinkets in their black ship." - Homer, Odyssey, 15:415

Archaeologists have found a rare Phoenician pendant among the remains of a First Temple Period structure in Jerusalem, which may attest to links between the ancient Israelites and this civilization, whose trading ships once plied the entire Mediterranean.

The tiny jewel, made of a gold-silver alloy, is known as a basket pendant. This type of artifact has usually been found in the colonies and trading posts established by the Phoenicians across the ancient world, experts say.

Measuring just 4 x 4 x 2 millimeters, smaller than a dime, the pendant is shaped as a box with two crisscrossing handles, around which a thin gold thread has been wound, likely to attach it to an earring.

It is a distinctly Phoenician ornament, experts agree. But it was found in a distinctly non-Phoenician context, namely a large public structure in the Ophel, an area just beneath the Temple Mount in Jerusalem, according to its discoverers.


For the rest of the article, see:

https://www.haaretz.com/archaeology/2024...7ef50c0000

[Alain]

Archaeologists discover necropolis with “spicy” content

https://www.morgenpost.de/vermischtes/ar...nhalt.html

[JMcB]

Rare coin from the time of the Bar Kokhba Revolt discovered in the Judean Desert




Rare coin from the time of the Bar Kokhba Revolt, engraved with the name of “Eleazar the Priest” in ancient Hebrew script and bearing the inscription “Year One of the Redemption of Israel,” discovered in the Judean Desert

[…]

A rare coin from the time of the Bar Kokhba Revolt, bearing the name  of  “Eleazar the Priest”, and dated to the first year of the revolt (132 CE), was discovered in the Mazuq Ha-he'teqim Nature Reserve.

The coin was discovered together with three other coins from the time of the Revolt, bearing the name  “Simeon”. The coin was discovered in the course of the Judean Desert Cave Survey carried out by the Israel Antiquities Authority in cooperation with the Ministry of Heritage and the Archaeological Office for the Military Administration of Judea and Samaria, with the aim of retrieving the ancient treasures before they are stolen by antiquity looters.


For the rest, see:

https://www.gov.il/en/departments/news/r...4-mar-2024

[Alain]

Is this a village of the original Scheeßel people? (Single grave culture)

https://www.kreiszeitung.de/lokales/rote...79276.html

[Nictus]

Copper Age necropolis unearthed in Italy contains skeletal remains and still-sharp weapons, maybe from ancient warriors

The necropolis dates to the Copper Age and contains 22 tombs.

Archaeologists in Italy have unearthed a Copper Age necropolis that contains nearly two dozen tombs and a collection of weapons.

The discovery was made in November at San Giorgio Bigarello, a municipality in northern Italy, during the construction of a community garden. However, researchers had no idea how extensive the 5,000-year-old burial site was until excavations earlier this year revealed 22 tombs containing human remains. Many of the burials included flint weapons, including daggers, "perfect arrowheads" and blades, according to a translated article in ArchaeoReporter, an archaeology-focused newspaper based in Italy.

"Some of the tombs also had burial goods like necklaces made with soapstone beads," Simone Sestito, the archaeological officer at the Italian Ministry of Culture, told Live Science. "We found at least six or seven tombs with good preservation."

The cemetery's location on a sandy hill helped to preserve many of the skeletons because of the dry sand.

"The conditions were great for a necropolis, since the sand provided conservation of the bones," Sestito said. "The [preservation] was impressive, especially since the tombs were located only about 10 centimeters [4 inches] below the surface."

Archaeologists noticed that many of the skeletons were buried on their left sides "with legs bent to their chests and heads oriented to the northwest," according to ArchaeoReporter.

"The positioning of the bodies suggests that there might have been some correlation with another Copper Age culture from northern Italy known as the Remedello," Sestito said. This is because members of that culture buried their deceased in a similar fashion, thus "leading to some parallels between the two societies."

While archaeologists don't know the identities of those interred at the site, the weapons buried with them suggest that many were warriors. These grave goods include "high-quality," sharp flint arrowheads that are "so light they are practically translucent — and can only have been crafted by people of great technical ability and experience," according to The History Blog.

Sestito said he and his team "have recovered all of the San Giorgio Bigarello site's burial goods and bones" and are working with researchers at the University of Bologna to analyze the DNA in the skeletons to learn more about who was buried there.

This isn't the first time archaeologists have discovered ancient human remains at San Giorgio Bigarello. In 2007, a different team of researchers found a pair of 6,000-year-old skeletons buried in an embrace, which led them to be called "the Lovers of Valdaro," according to The History Blog.

https://www.livescience.com/archaeology/...t-warriors

[JMcB]

Haaretz | Archaeology

Archaeologists Discover Canaanite 'Temple of the Rising Sun' Near Jerusalem

Monumental structure built 3,300 years ago would have sparkled in the morning light atop Azekah, and shows close cultural links with ancient Egypt


An aerial view of the temple: The entrance courtyard (A), a paved entryway (B) with two side rooms ©, leading to the inner sanctuary (D)Credit: TAU/Lautenschläger Azekah Expedition


Archaeologists have uncovered the ruins of a Canaanite temple built to greet the rising sun atop the mound of Azekah, an ancient settlement in today's central Israel.

The Late Bronze Age compound and the spectacular artifacts found within it offer insight into the religious beliefs of the Canaanites, showing a strong influence of ancient Egyptian culture, researchers say.

Evidence of the violent destruction of the temple and the entire site also opens a window into the sudden collapse of multiple civilizations that occurred at the end of the Bronze Age and led to the rise of new cultures and political entities in the Levant, including the ancient Israelites.

The temple at Azekah has been under excavation since 2014 by a team from Tel Aviv University, led by Prof. Oded Lipschits

[…]

The archaeologists have detected two phases in the temple's long history, which spans the latter half of the Late Bronze Age (16th - 12th century B.C.E.). Initially, sometime in the late 14th or early 13th century B.C.E., the people of Azekah created an open-air sanctuary, building a large stone-paved platform at the top of the mound with a spectacular eastward view of the Elah Valley, later the setting of the biblical duel between David and Goliath.

[…]


A Bronze Age whodunit

Whatever its name, the Late Bronze incarnation of Azekah survived only a couple of decades after the Egyptian withdrawal. It was utterly destroyed by an unknown force and its population seemingly massacred around 1130 B.C.E.

Human skeletons and signs of violent destruction are found pretty much every time archaeologists reach the Late Bronze Age layers of the site, including in the newly-uncovered temple, Lipschits and Kleiman note.

Five victims, all men between 16 and 55, were found in the temple, buried beneath its collapsed walls. Two died in the temple's courtyard while the other three were likely standing on the roof of the building when it collapsed, the archaeologists report.

Whether they were making a last-ditch attempt to defend the temple or praying to their gods for salvation we will likely never know.


For the rest of the article, see:

https://www.haaretz.com/archaeology/2024...ffa0260000

[JMcB]

3,300-year-old tablet from mysterious Hittite Empire describes catastrophic invasion of four cities

By Tom Metcalfe

Researchers think a sacred language inscribed in cuneiform on the tablet suggest the Hittite king visited or lived where the tablet was found in Turkey.


The ancient tablet is inscribed with cuneiform text in both the Hittite and Hurrian languages. The Hittite inscription describes the outbreak of war, and the Hurrian inscription is a prayer for victory. (Image credit: Kimiyoshi Matsumura, Japanese Institute of Anatolian Archaeology)



A 3,300-year-old clay tablet from central Turkey describes a catastrophic foreign invasion of the Hittite Empire, a mysterious Bronze Age state. The invasion took place during a Hittite civil war, apparently in an effort to aid one of the warring factions, according to a translation of the tablet's cuneiform text.

The palm-size tablet was found in May 2023 by Kimiyoshi Matsumura, an archaeologist at the Japanese Institute of Anatolian Archaeology, amid the Hittite ruins at Büklükale, about 37 miles (60 kilometers) southeast of the Turkish capital Ankara.

Archaeologists think Büklükale was a major Hittite city. The new discovery suggests it was also a royal residence, perhaps on a par with the royal residence in the Hittite capital Hattuša (also spelled Hattusha), about 70 miles (112 km) to the northeast.


According to a translation by Mark Weeden, an associate professor of ancient Middle Eastern languages at University College London, the first six lines of cuneiform text on the tablet say, in the Hittite language, that "four cities, including the capital, Hattusa, are in disaster," while the remaining 64 lines are a prayer in the Hurrian language asking for victory.

The Hittites used the Hurrian language for religious ceremonies, Matsumura told Live Science, and it appears that the tablet is a record of a sacred ritual performed by the Hittite king.

"The find of the Hurrian tablet means that the religious ritual at Büklükale was performed by the Hittite king," he said in an email. "It indicates that, at the least, the Hittite king came to Büklükale … and performed the ritual."


[…]

The tablet "seems to come from a period of civil war which we know about from other [Hittite] texts," he said. "During this time, the Hittite heartland was invaded from many different directions at once … and many cities were temporarily destroyed."



For the rest, see:


https://www.livescience.com/archaeology/...our-cities

[JMcB]

British warship identified off Florida coast 3 centuries after wreck left surviving crew marooned on uninhabited island

By Stephen Smith
Updated on: March 15, 2024 / 3:07 PM EDT / CBS News


A National Park Service diver documents one of five coral-encrusted cannons found during a recent archeological survey in Dry Tortugas National Park
NPS PHOTO BY BRETT SEYMOUR



A British warship has been identified off the Florida coast nearly three centuries after it sank while on patrol in the waters of what is now Dry Tortugas National Park, officials said. HMS Tyger went down with hundreds of sailors on board and the surviving crew were marooned on an uninhabited island for more than two months before making a dramatic escape on makeshift boats.

The shipwreck was initially located in 1993 off of Key West, but new research by archeologists has confirmed definitive evidence that the wreck is indeed the 50-gun frigate HMS Tyger, the National Park Service said on Thursday.

The ship sank on Jan. 13, 1742, after it ran aground on the reefs of the Dry Tortugas during the Anglo-Spanish War, a nine-year conflict between Britain and Spain, officials said. Old logbooks described how the crew "lightened her forward" — presumably by offloading heavy equipment — after initially running aground, briefly refloating the vessel and then sinking.

[…]

About 300 crewmembers were on board HMS Tyger when it wrecked, and the survivors spent 66 days marooned on an island of what is now Garden Key, park officials said.

The stranded survivors battled heat, mosquitoes and thirst while attempting to escape the deserted island," the park service said.

The crew burned the remains of the warship to make sure its guns did not fall into enemy hands. Ultimately, they built makeshift boats from salvaged pieces of HMS Tyger and "made a 700-mile escape through enemy waters" to Jamaica. The journey took 55 days.


For the rest, see:


https://www.cbsnews.com/news/1742-shipre...hms-tyger/