Tuesday, December 21, 2004
UNIQUE ROCK CARVING FOUND AMONGST ARCHAEOLOGY AFTER MOORS FIRE
Archaeologists are pondering one of the most intriguing archaeological discoveries for some years after a fire revealed a unique carved stone thought to be 4,000 years old.
The find came to light after a blaze in 2003 at Fylingdales near Whitby consumed two and a half square kilometres of heather moorland - before being brought under control by hundreds of fire fighters and a water-dumping helicopter.
However, in the fire’s aftermath archaeologists were astonished to find a vast array of archaeological remains – uncovered by the intensity of the blaze, which burnt away much of the peat.
25 Hour Museum
Carved Imagine May Be Ancient Map
An image on a carved stone thought to date back more than 4,000 years may depict an ancient map, it was revealed today.
English Heritage archaeologists said the relic, which is unique in England and considered internationally significant, may show a map or landscape drawing – thought to be a first for rock art.
The stone was uncovered after a wildfire devastated two and a half square kilometres of heather moorland on the North York Moors at Fylingdales, near Whitby, in September last year.
The Scotsman
Monday, December 20, 2004
Fire reveals moor's stone legacy
A fire which devastated a huge area of Yorkshire moorland has uncovered hidden archaeological secrets of the area's past, experts have revealed.
A 2.5 sq km area of the North York Moors national park was scorched by the blaze in September 2003.
But a 4,000-year-old carved stone found in the aftermath could "re-write the history books", English Heritage says.
BBC News
The Warriors of Paros
Soldiers' bones in urns-evidence of a forgotten battle fought around 730 BC. Did these men perish on their island home of Paros, at the center of the Aegean Sea, or in some distant land? The loss of so many, at least 120 men, was certainly a catastrophe for the community, but their families and compatriots honored them, putting the cremated remains into large vases two of which were decorated with scenes of mourning and scenes of war. Grief-stricken relatives carried the urns to the cemetery next to the ancient harbor in Paroikia, the island's chief city and placed them in two monumental cist graves.
Excavation of the ancient cemetery began after its discovery during construction of a cultural center in the mid-1980s. It proved to be a veritable guidebook to changing funeral practices, the cemetery yielded up seventh and sixth c. BC burials in large jars, fifth-century marble urns and grave stelae, and Hellenistic and Roman marble sarcophagi on elaborate pedestals. But the two collective burials of soldiers from the late eighth century are the most important of the finds; as the earliest such burials (polyandria) ever found in Greece [dated 240 years earlier that the Marathon polyandrion of 490 BC] their very existence offering evidence for the development of city-states at this time.
Hellenic News
New archaeological discovery uncovered at Carrickmines
A new discovery of archaeological remains, thought to be those of a "curtain wall" extending up to 80 metres and dating from the 17th century, has been made at Carrickmines Castle in south Co Dublin.
The area of the remains, on a hillside to the south-west of an existing farmhouse, indicates the castle itself was a considerably larger complex than was originally thought, according to archaeologists.
Eircomnet
Sunday, December 19, 2004
Police find 100 stolen Roman artefacts
Police in southern Italy have seized some 100 ancient Roman treasures, from marble busts to vases, that were unearthed by archaeological scavengers and sold illegally to collectors.
A Naples police unit that specialises in archaeology raided homes, restaurants and hotels, said Lorenzo Marinaccio, the unit’s commander. The raids stemmed from an investigation of scavengers and traffickers.
The finds included a sarcophagus and busts of bearded men, all made of marble.
Breaking News
Medieval artefacts unearthed
Archaeologists have unearthed well-preserved remains of early medieval buildings in Winchester, Hampshire.
The dig is taking place at Northgate House, in advance of the planned redevelopment of the site.
A series of walls have been discovered in the excavation, the biggest that the city has seen for twenty years.
BBC News
Saturday, December 18, 2004
IRON AGE FORT IN LEICESTERSHIRE DEFENDED FROM RAIDING RABBITS
During the Iron Age it stood up to marauders, protecting the people of ancient Leicestershire against anyone that might do them harm. But a couple of thousand years later Burrough-on-the-Hill was in need of a little defending of its own.
They might not sound as fearsome as a neighbouring tribe, or even the might of the Roman Empire, but the ancient hill fort has recently been under attack from the local rabbit population.
However, under the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affair’s Countryside Stewardship Scheme, farmer and Country Park Ranger, Tim Maydwell, has been fighting back.
24 HourMuseum News
A 3,500 year old crossing recreated online
The thrill of archaeologists’ discovery of the oldest bridge ever found in England can now be relived through a series of web pages. Wessex Archaeology has put up information on its website about how its staff found the timbers from a 3,500-year-old Middle Bronze Age bridge near Testwood, Hampshire and can be viewed at http://www.wessexarch.co.uk/projects/hampshire/testwood/index.html
Megalithic Portal
Rare Roman sword comes to Armouries
THE Royal Armouries has sharpened its collection with the acquisition of a 2,000-year-old Roman sword – autographed by the original owner.
It is the best preserved sword of its type in the UK.
The blade and its scabbard mounts have been bought at auction by the Leeds-based national museum of arms and armour, and they are about to go on display alongside a replica of how the sword may have looked when carried by a Roman infantryman in the first century AD.
The fascinating weapon, an important sword of the Pompeii type, is decorated with engraved figures – possibly Mars, the Roman god of war, and Victory – and has a dot-punched inscription of the owner's name, Caius Valerius Primus.
Leeds Today
Friday, December 17, 2004
After the hunt, ice age man chilled out - with a flute
He is better known for his hunting skills, but now it appears that ice age man did not merely chase prey - he was also fond of music.
German archaeologists revealed yesterday that they had discovered one of the world's oldest musical instruments, a 35,000-year-old flute carved from the tusk of a now-extinct woolly mammoth.
The flute was dug up in a cave in the Swabian mountains in south-western Germany, and pieced back together again from 31 fragments. Its discovery suggests that ice age man, who roamed across Europe during prehistoric times, had precocious aesthetic talents, and probably discovered music far earlier than previously assumed.
Guardian
Roche says he has no power to alter Tara motorway
Environment Minister Dick Roche has reportedly stated that he does not have the power to significantly alter the proposed route of the M3 motorway through Co Meath.
Campaigners are urging Mr Roche to re-route the road away from the Tara-Skryne valley due to the archaeological and historical importance of the area.
The proposed route of M3 would pass close to the Hill of Tara and would also lead to the destruction of dozens of archaeological sites.
However, reports this morning said the minister had insisted that his only role in the controversy is to decide on the method of preservation for archaeological sites.
Breaking News
Roche 'cannot change M3 route'
Campaigners are demanding the protection of archaeological sites and want the road re-routed away from the Hill of Tara.
Minister Dick Roche can direct that individual archaeological sites are preserved, and he is now being asked to issue an order for the entire Hill of
Tara site.
UTV Newsroom
ARCHAEOLOGISTS EXCITED BY 500,000-YEAR-OLD AXE FIND IN QUARRY
A Stone Age hand axe dating back 500,000 years has been discovered at a quarry in Warwickshire.
The tool was found at the Smiths Concrete Bubbenhall Quarry at Waverley Wood Farm, near Coventry, which has already produced evidence of some of the earliest known human occupants of the UK.
It was uncovered in gravel by quarry manager John Green who took it to be identified by archaeologists at the University of Birmingham.
24 Hour Museum News
Roman graves threat to homes plan
ANCIENT remains could force changes to a controversial multi-million pound Chichester redevelopment scheme.
Plans to build more than 70 homes and a handful of shops on land between Eastgate and New Park Road are opposed by English Heritage because it is concerned they will impact on buried archaeological sites including part of a Roman cemetery and the city's Roman defences.
In a letter to Chichester District Council it said it had concerns over the height and bulk of the proposed development.
English Heritage can press for planning applications to be considered at Whitehall level if a council looks set to approve a plan it is against.
Portsmouth Today
Ancient treasure trove on Thasos
Two gold rings and a pair of earrings decorated with floral and marine motifs, as well as the goddess Nike (l) were among the rich finds from an ancient cemetery on Thasos made public yesterday.
Rich grave offerings dating from the fourth century BC, including exquisite gold and silver jewelry, have been discovered in a crowded ancient cemetery on the northern Aegean island of Thasos, it was announced yesterday.
Around 150 artifacts have been excavated so far from the seaside necropolis at Limenas, close to the island’s new port. The closely clustered group of graves dates to between the fourth and the first centuries BC.
Kathimerini
Thursday, December 16, 2004
The Digger issue 34
The latest issue of "The Digger", the on-line magazine for archaeologists is now online at: http://www.bajr.org/DiggerMagazine/Latest/index.html
Roman remains found by busy road
THE remains of a “waterfront” settlement dating from Roman times have been discovered in a Suffolk village.
Archaeologists have found pottery, brooches, coins and other items on a site at Stoke Ash, beside a tributary of the River Dove and close to the A140 road, itself Roman in origin.
Information gleaned from the site and from the adjacent Thornham Estate is adding to the academic understanding of the Roman occupation of Britain.
EADT
English Heritage warns of dire consequences of cuts
Badly eroded structures of national significance face a bleak future, it became clear yesterday.
Simon Thurley, chief executive of English Heritage, warned that the consequences of the imminent 5% cut in its budget - £13m in real terms - will be dire for the whole heritage sector. "We need to look and see what a £13m cut means for us: it will mean something, and probably something that we don't like very much and that our partners won't like very much."
Dr Thurley was speaking at the launch of the annual Heritage Counts audit of the historic environment, which shows that there is still a multi-billion pound job to be done.
Guardian
Wednesday, December 15, 2004
ARCHAEOLOGISTS UNCOVER YORK'S HIDDEN INDUSTRIAL HERITAGE
Archaeologists from York Archaeological Trust are working on the remains of an important Victorian iron foundry in York.
The team carrying out the excavation of the site hope to locate and record everything that remains of the Walker Iron Foundry before it is redeveloped into housing. The site had previously been covered up by a 1970s office block.
The Walker Iron Foundry at Walmgate was one of several in 19th century York, though the city is not known for its industrial heritage – unlike its neighbours Leeds and Bradford.
24 Hour Museum News
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