Sunday, February 29, 2004



Rediscovering the legend of the lake dwellers

One hundred and fifty years ago, the first settlements of ancient lake-dwelling peoples emerged from Lake Zurich. The discovery gave Europeans a new insight into the lives of the distant ancestors.

This year, around 20 Swiss museums are organising exhibitions dedicated to this significant chapter in Swiss history.

Siss Info


Analysis of Roman epitaphs alters concept of 'family'

If ancient Romans observed Family Day, their celebrations would have included wet nurses, slaves and possibly many others who had no blood relationship, according to new University of Calgary research.

University of Calgary


HISTORIC FIND AT NOTTS SITE

Metal detecting enthusiast Thomas Wallace struck lucky - by digging up a 600-year-old silver pendant.

Evening Post


Viking graves in Pskov, North-Western Russia

Archaeologists are examining the items found in the ancient burial place of a Viking woman in downtown Pskov.
In the last days of 2003 in Pskov during archaeological research of the construction site, burial place related to X century, was discovered. At the depth of 4 meters in the burial chamber the remains of a woman were found along with decoration of bronze and silver, bronze scales, glass beads and several dozens of other items.

Pravda


Roman Paris was not in Paris, but Nanterre

PARIS, Feb 26 (AFP) - The historic Paris - the Gallic town of Lutetia captured by Julius Caesar in 52 BC - lay not on the island in the centre of the modern French capital but in a suburb 10 kilometres (six miles) to the west, according to archaeological evidence published on Thursday.

Expatica


Castle costs rocketing

WORK to restore the site of a medieval castle is being besieged by hidden extras.

The cost of sprucing up Bedford's Castle Mound has now reached £650,000.

Serious about News


The skeleton key

The story of man's ascent can be traced from a single skull uncovered on Gibraltar in 1848. Ian Tattersall tells how language triumphed in The Monkey in the Mirror

Guardian

Saturday, February 28, 2004



Bulgaria's Archaeological Find of 20th Century Hidden among Fearful Rocks

The Thracian treasure from Rogozen is said to be Bulgaria's archaeological find of the previous century or as many archaeologists say "the horn of plenty was poured out over Bulgaria once again in 1986 when that great treasure was found".

Its uniqueness gave the archaeologists much material to work on as it revealed some ancient secrets unknown by now. The exclusive finding is now strictly guarded in the Vratsa History Museum that offers its visitors a rare journey through the ancient world of the Thracian art.

Novinite


Archaeologists uncover Ayrshire village ancient history

Short video of the excavations.

You can find the video here


Archaeologists uncover Ayrshire village ancient history

A village in Ayrshire has discovered that it could be the oldest continuously-occupied settlement in Scotland, dating back 5,500. Archaeologists have uncovered the remains of stone age houses in the middle of Dreghorn near Irvine.

Scotland Today


Archaeologists uncover Ayrshire village ancient history

A village in Ayrshire has discovered that it could be the oldest continuously-occupied settlement in Scotland, dating back 5,500. Archaeologists have uncovered the remains of stone age houses in the middle of Dreghorn near Irvine.

Megalithic Portal


Iron Age remains unearthed in Edinburgh

Workmen digging up a city street in Edinburgh in preparation for a new bus route have uncovered an Iron Age structure. The remains of the 3000-year-old stone enclosure were discovered in the Broomhouse area. Archeologists believe the 130ft by 100ft structure dates back to around 1000BC, making it from the late Bronze or early Iron Age.

Megalithic Portal


Iron Age enclosure found in Edinburgh

The remains of a 3000-year-old stone enclosure have been found in Edinburgh Scotland. The discovery was made by workmen in the Broomhouse area of the city during work on a new bus route.

The site has now been taken over by Headland Archaeology for a fuller evaluation. Archaeologists have dated the structure, which measures 40m by 30m, to around 1000BCE, placing it in the late Bronze Age or early Iron Age.

Stone Pages


Poznań archaeological museum

The Web Site of the "Muzeum archaeologiczne w Poznaniu (Poznań archaeological museum)" is in both Polish and English. The museum focuses on prehistoric and mediaeval archaeology of Wielkopolska and the prehistoric archaeology of Egypt and the Sudan. The site provides information on the museum's opening hours, location, and its collections. Permanent exhibitions include: the prehistory of Wielkopolska; death and life in Ancient Egypt; and the granite obelisk of Ramesses II. There are also details of temporary exhibitions. The site is well-illustrated, with details of the archaeologists that work in the museum and their interests. For those interested in the IT side of archaeology details of programmes developed at the museum are also to be found on the side.

http://www.muzarp.poznan.pl/


Medieval road found in Exeter

Archeologists were called in when South West Water started work to mend the sewer at the entrance to Cathedral Close, in Southernhay. They found a street and items of pottery dating back to medieval times. . .

Cronaca


The Archaeology of the Thornborough Henge Complex Conference

A major conference on the archaeology of the threatened Thornborough Henge Complex has been organised by the Yorkshire branch of the Council for British Archaeology. The event, to be held in Northallerton at the end of March 2004, boasts an impressive line up of names including Dr Mike Parker Pearson, Dr Jan Harding and George Lambrick, the Director of the Council for British Archaeology.

Megalithic Porta


Present-day journey reflects on 400 years of Thai-Dutch relations

Floating down the river on the way from Ayutthaya to Saraburi, with the sun dappling the water and children splashing along the banks, one could almost imagine one was back in the 18th century, save for the cement plants periodically dotting the landscape. Yet it was the meeting of the historical and the contemporary that was the abiding theme of the expedition at hand.

Bangkok Post


Restoration of a Bronze Age ring ditch

A major awareness campaign, aimed at highlighting the vast wealth of archaeology found in quarry workings in the Lower Ouse Valley (Cambridgeshire, England) is launched this week. Leading the initiative is Cambridge Archaeological Unit and building materials company Hanson Aggregates, backed with a grant by English Heritage.

Stone Pages


Quarry sites begin to give up secrets

A major awareness campaign, aimed at highlighting the vast wealth of archaeology found in quarry workings in the Lower Ouse Valley is launched this week. Leading the initiative is Cambridge Archaeological Unit and building materials company Hanson Aggregates, backed with a £50,000 grant by English Heritage from the Aggregates Levy Sustainability Fund. It is based principally on investigations at Hanson sites at Needingworth, Earith and Whittlesey.

Megalithic Portal


Controlled fire scorches Cornish stone circle

The 4,500-year-old Bronze Age stone circle at Tregeseal, located in a designated "Environmentally Sensitive Area" on the Penwith moors, near St Just (Cornwall, England) has been scorched black by flames following a "controlled" gorse fire. The local farmer who had been asked to clear the gorse around the stones has a management agreement with the county council's Historic Environment Service to keep the circle and pathways clear of gorse. He started the controlled fire to clear gorse that was encroaching on to the circle on the advice of Anne Preston-Jones, of the council's environment service.

Stone Pages


Italy's Medici Murder Plot Solved

One of the most notorious crimes of the Renaissance, the attempted assassination of Florence's grandest son, Lorenzo dei Medici, has been solved more than 500 years later.

Discovery Channel


Camp Grafton, North Dakota USA

June 1 - July 9, 2004. University of North Dakota. Archeological sites located within two National Guard training areas in eastern North Dakota; (1) block excavations at prehistoric archeological site 32RY389, (2) test excavations at prehistoric archeological site 32ED94, and...

Archaeology


North wants its Lindisfarne treasure returned

Britain's internal version of the Parthenon Marbles row will be raised in the Commons today by northern MPs determined to reclaim the "stolen icon" of their region's golden age.

Guardian


Mystery Roman Emperor Existence Proven

The discovery of a coin appears to confirm the brief rule of Domitianus, a mysterious Roman emperor whose very existence had been doubted, according to a museum curator.

Discovery Channel

Wednesday, February 25, 2004



Emperor strikes back

Coin depicts obscure Roman ruler

A scruffy bronze coin, unveiled yesterday at the British Museum proves that the Roman emperor Domitianus was not a Victorian forgery but a real ruler - and a tough cookie if the image is a good likeness.

Guardian


Archaeological Study Tour to Berry - Limousin

29 May - 4 June 2004

Further details, including a detailed itinerary, cost and contact details can be obtained from Archaeology in Europe


Bid to preserve remains of pre-17th century chapel

A resident in the area of Sant' Andrija, San Gwann is calling on the Malta Environment and Planning Authority to see to the urgent conservation of the remains of the chapel bearing the same name in the area.

Times of Malta


Roman coin confirms emperor's existence

It is made of base metal, is not much bigger than a 5p piece and 1,700 years ago it would not have bought much more than a few loaves at Tescorums.

But its discovery in a field in Oxfordshire rewrites history. The copper coin confirms the existence of an almost unknown Roman emperor, Domitian or Domitianus, who ruled Britain briefly in AD 271.

Telegraph


Arabs want ancient artefacts back

A regional conference in Egypt has called on Western museums to return "stolen" Middle Eastern artefacts to their country of origin.

BBC News


Another call for return of Middle Eastern artifacts

A regional conference in Egypt has called on Western museums to return "stolen" Middle Eastern artefacts to their country of origin.

Lawyers taking part in the event said monuments such as the Rosetta Stone at the British Museum had been plundered and should be handed back.


Cronaca


Preserving the past in 3D

Recording and conserving the millions of artefacts uncovered annually from excavation sites is a daunting task for archaeologists, but the 3D MURALE project has developed an integrated set of multimedia tools to help archaeologists preserve Europe’s ancient remains.

The 3D acquisition systems developed during the recently completed IST programme-funded project can measure a range of objects of different dimensions such as pottery shards and statues to produce precise, realistic-looking 3D models. After documenting and classification, these virtual artefacts are stored in a database with MPEG7 compatible features, allowing searching on the basis of 3D shapes. The scanning capabilities even allow for the reconstruction of excavated archaeological sites for the different periods of their occupation, providing an integrated visualisation of landscape, buildings, and artefacts true to the era that they represent.

Innovations Report


Second Roman Coin Featuring "Emperor" Domitianus Found

A man with a metal detector has unearthed a Roman coin so rare it bears the face of a mystery emperor who ruled Britain for a matter of days.

Roman Archaeology

Tuesday, February 24, 2004



White Rose may be sunk

Solving York’s flood problem may endanger its archaeological remains said hydrogeologists

York’s world-renowned archaeological remains are in danger – of drying out. The problem also threatens to cause roads to buckle, sewers collapse and subterranean gases leak into the air, unless a team from Leeds geography department can discover the effect of flood defences and new building in and around the city.

The Geological Society


Roman town house may have to close

THE historic Roman Town House in Dorchester could close, it was claimed today, after Dorset County Council pulled the plug on funding for a town heritage group.

This is Dorset


Rare coin find stuns historians

A man with a metal detector has unearthed a Roman bronze coin so rare it bears the face of a mystery emperor who "ruled" Britain for a matter of days.

Ananova


Arabs want ancient artefacts back

Lawyers taking part in the event said monuments such as the Rosetta Stone at the British Museum had been plundered and should be handed back.

BBC News


Why keeping out the floods may still sink York's historic streets

WORK to prevent flooding in York may be threatening the city's roads and sewers with collapse as the peat-like layer under the streets dries out, experts believe.

York's world-renowned archaeological remains, which have been exceptionally well preserved in the damp conditions, could also be at risk.

Yorkshire Post


So how far did the Phoenicians really go in the region?

In one of the early adventures of Asterix and Obelix, a Phoenician trade ship takes the world’s funniest Celtic warriors from the Gaul’s last village free from Roman rule to Queen Cleopatra in the land of the Nile. Now, of course this is but an image in a comic book, but still, is it possible that the Phoenicians, generally known as the greatest seafarers of antiquity, actually reached Brittany, or even further?

Daily Star


Heritage groups rally to save historic site

A HOST of international academics and historians have joined a campaign to save Ireland’s most precious heritage site from damage by motorway construction. .... Plans for the M3 motorway show that it will come within one kilometre of the Hill of Tara, something viewed with growing alarms by archaeologists and historians worldwide.

Irish Examiner


Bam, un rêve de reconstruction

ARCHÉOLOGIE Après une visite du ministre français de la Culture et une délégation de l'Unesco, l'Iran organise l'avenir du site et de la citadelle

Le Figaro


The Digger

The February issue of The Digger archaeological newsletter is on line.

You can find it here

Monday, February 23, 2004



£30,000 find for metal detector fan

A gold sword belt ornament, possibly belonging to the brutal seventh-century Saxon king Caedwalla, has been declared treasure after being found on a beach by a man with a metal detector.

Telegraph


Treasure island faces loss of belt ornament 'of a king'

A Saxon gold sword belt ornament, declared treasure after being found on a beach by a man using a metal detector, may be lost to the island where it was discovered after an initial valuation suggested that it could be worth £50,000.

The Isle of Wight Museum had hoped to bid for the garnet-encrusted ornament, which may have belonged to the brutal seventh-century king, Caedwalla.

Telegraph


Wimpey holds fire for Dreghorn archaeological dig

Work on a new luxury housing estate in Dreghorn, Ayrshire, has been suspended because archaeologists believe they have discovered Scotland's first purpose-built "suburb", built more than 600 years ago.

EGI News


UNDERWATER CLUES TO ISLAND'S PREHISTORY

A DOUGLAS scientist who's helped reveal the prehistoric lost world beneath the North Sea could use the same techniques to discover how the Isle of Man first became inhabited.

IoM Online


Viking festival attracts record crowds

RECORD numbers of visitors got a taste of history at this year's Jorvik Festival.

This is York


Norway honours `Mr Jorvik'

Norway has bestowed one of its highest honours on a York man - for events that took place more than 1,000 years ago.

Dr Peter Addyman, who was director of York Archaeological Trust and the man behind the city's world-famous Jorvik Viking Centre, was presented with the Insignia of the Royal Norwegian Order of Merit by the Norwegian Ambassador, His Excellency Tarald O Brautaset.

This is York


600-year-old 'suburb' is found on building site

Scotland's first, purpose-built "suburb", constructed more than 600 years ago, may have been discovered on the site of a 21st-century development.

Independent


Murder most foul: Robert Garland asks what murder meant to the apparently bloodthirsty Greeks and Romans.


WHAT DID MURDER MEAN in the ancient world? Did it exist? How was it defined? We have no statistical evidence of its incidence within ally population. There is little information about motives or even about methods. We never hear of serial killers, other than the Roman emperors. We know little about the socio-economic inducements to murder. Our evidence from the Greek world is random and largely restricted to Athens.

History Today

Sunday, February 22, 2004




Psalter could fetch £1m


A beautiful medieval book of psalms originally from Norfolk is expected to fetch more than £1m at auction.

The tiny psalter, whose 252 brightly coloured pages depict animals, birds and scenes from daily life, was first owned by someone connected with St Andrew's Church in Gorleston.

EDP 24


Human brain began evolving early

The human brain may have started evolving its unique characteristics much earlier than has previously been supposed, according to new research.

BBC News


First grenade found at Killiecrankie

A SCOTTISH battlefield has yielded a remarkable discovery more than three centuries after the slaughter ended.

Archaeologists have found proof of the first ever use on British soil of a terrifying new weapon at the Battle of Killiecrankie, at which 2,500 Jacobites annihilated a force of 4,000 redcoats.

The Scotsman


Wanted: Medieval entertainers

The organisers of one of Ireland’s most popular tourist attractions have embarked on a talent hunt.

An influx of new entertainers is needed to keep visitors happy at the medieval banquets laid on by Shannon Heritage at castles in counties Clare and Galway.

Breaking News IE


Fight begins over Stonehenge tunnel scheme

Campaigners have accused the Government of planning to scar one of the world's most valuable archaeological treasures by building a tunnel on the site of Stonehenge.

Indepedent


Bronze Age cremation site unearthed in Derby

The remains of people who lived in Derby (England) 3,500 years ago have been found on the site of a derelict hotel in Littleover. Archaeologists say the Bronze Age cremation site, containing burial urns dating back to 1500 BCE, is the oldest historical exhibit found intact in Derby. A major highway used by Roman armies from 70AD was also discovered, along with the boundaries of what is thought to be an Iron Age field.

Stone Pages


Bush Barrow treasures loaned to German museum

Treasures from the Wiltshire Heritage Museum in Devizes (England) are to be loaned to a museum in Germany for a prestigious exhibition. Prehistoric items that were excavated at Bush Barrow...

Stone Pages


Stonehenge public inquiry underway

The inquiry into the controversial plans for Stonehenge (England), announced in September 2003 and reported in Archaeo News (21 September 2003), opened on 17 February 2004. Some 200 people packed...

Stone Pages

Saturday, February 21, 2004



DEXTER SNIFFS OUT AN ANCIENT RARITY

DEXTER the labrador proved he had a nose for history when he unwittingly helped his owner make a significant archaeological discovery dating back more than 3,000 years.

IoW County Press


Roman "minefields" on Scottish frontier

Excavations of the 38-mile Antonine wall at Mumrills Fort, near Falkirk, have revealed evidence of the Romans' defensive structures, which were designed to cause the maximum damage to attackers, and even the daily cooking routines of foot-soldiersCronaca


Confessional gives up secrets

Greek archaeologists hope a priest who convinced a gold digger to give up ancient artifacts he unearthed by accident will let them know where the treasures came from, a representative said on Thursday.

Phluzein


Academic showdown over hunter-gatherer riddle

A team of Australian archaeologists have sparked an academic row by claiming to have solved the riddle of a missing 1,000 years in human prehistory.

Phluzein


Plans to restore ancient Rome spur dissent

Controversial plans are afoot to revamp Rome's historic centre - to give visitors a better insight into how the ancient city looked.

BBC News


Gruesome secret of Antonine wall

RESEARCH into the largest relic from the Roman Empire's invasion of Scotland has given historians a dramatic insight into the daily life of ordinary soldiers and the gruesome nature of ancient warfare.

The Herald


Archeologists Excited by Roman Treasure in Bulgaria

Bulgarian archeologists will start some researches into the history of the Roman treasure of a total of 800 golden Republican-period coins dated from the period of II-I century B.C. as well as some Roman denars dated from the I century B.C.

Novinite.com


Why breast may not have been best for Iron Age babies

ALL the experts agree breast is best for baby – but it may be less traditional than we think.

Yorkshire research suggests Iron Age infants were on the ancient equivalent of formula.

Yorkshire Post


Geophysics survey at Ring of Brodgar reveals massive settlement

Evidence of an extensive settlement to the north of the Ring of Brodgar stone circle in Orkney, Scotland, has been revealed by geophysics scans of the ground. Part of an ongoing project to investigate sub-surface archaeology at the World Heritage Site, the scans show a massive Bronze Age settlement.

In the past it was assumed that the area was purely a ritual one, as only the Barnhouse settlement discovered in 1984 and a settlement to the south of the circle pointed to habitation. Nick Card of Orkney Archaeological Trust said: "the new geophysics survey results are incredible and show an area of extensive settlement to the north of the Ring of Brodgar.

Stone Pages

Friday, February 20, 2004



an electronic seminar to be held on the HELPs discussion list from 23rd - 27th February

an electronic seminar to be held on the HELPs discussion list from 23rd - 27th February

The HELPs discussion list is hosting an e-Seminar on the theme of investigating the local heritage next week. This seminar will look at ways that individuals, local groups and societies can get involved with their local heritage through their own projects, or by working with their local Historic Environment Record, the Council for British Archaeology and others.

Further details


A taste for trouble

AN ARCHAEOLOGIST recently recreated a neolithic brew based on ingredients excavated in Perthshire. The resulting ale tasted unpleasant, but clearly those who drank it originally were not put off. Ever since, the production and consumption of alcohol has been central to Scotland’s culture.

The Scotsman


Feed the world: sharing knowledge via blogs and news feeds

An Article by Mike Heyworth

This short article looks at emerging options for sharing information in ways that are more 'active' from a user's point of view. Using appropriate software it is now possible to be sent automatic notification when new information appears, and this information is available to be shared to the extent that it can even be incorporated within other web pages, and customised to fit in with the look and feel of any web site. Examples of these new services have been established by the Council for British Archaeology and the article describes how these services can be accessed and fully used.

Internet Archaeology


Dietler discovers statue in France that reflects an Etruscan influence

A life-sized statue of a warrior discovered in southern France reflects a stronger cultural influence for the Etruscan civilization throughout the western Mediterranean region than previously appreciated.

University of Chicago Chronicle

Thursday, February 19, 2004



Murder in the Cathedral

Tuesday 6th April

The play will be held in Merton Priory Chapter House, under Merantun Way, behind the Savacentre, Colliers Wood. Tube - Colliers Wood

Arranged by the Friends of Merton Priory

Further Information


Museum loans its treasures

TREASURES from the Wiltshire Heritage Museum in Devizes are to be loaned to a museum in Germany for a prestigious exhibition.


Prehistoric items that were excavated at Bush Barrow near Stonehenge will go to the museum in Halle, Germany, for an exhibition running from October to April.

Gazette and Herald


Call For Volunteers

Alexandra Palace Theatre

Volunteers (over 16 years of age) are required to assist with the pit clearance, which will be supervised by a professional theatre specialist. The work will involve working in confined and cramped conditions and participants will be required to wear protective clothing and be reasonably fit. The project is likely to extend over a period of 2-3 weeks - which may be continuous or extend over a course of 'long weekends' - and expected to begin March/April 2004.

Further details available here


Work to start on bypass

WORK is about to begin in earnest on the long-awaited Baldock bypass.
If everything goes to plan, the road bringing relief to the market town – which has suffered from traffic congestion for decades – will be open in autumn 2006. ... Archaeological excavations were also carried out last year, revealing deposits and structures dating from 4000 BC to the post medieval period.


The Comet


Vicar in court over church revamp

A vicar has appeared before a Church of England court accused of relocating a font, laying a carpet and removing pews without permission of the diocese.

BBC News


Grant safeguards future of historic hall

THE future of a historic holiday house believed to be the inspiration for Charlotte Brontë's Jane Eyre appears to have been secured.

Yorkshire Post


Stonehenge tunnel inquiry gets under way

PLANS to build a road under Stonehenge are being examined at a public inquiry, which started in Salisbury on Tuesday.

The government scheme would take the A303 under the World Heritage Site as a way of reducing traffic congestion and noise around the ancient stones and improving visitor facilities.



This is Andover


Gruesome secret of Antonine wall

RESEARCH into the largest relic from the Roman Empire's invasion of Scotland has given historians a dramatic insight into the daily life of ordinary soldiers and the gruesome nature of ancient warfare.

The Herald


Roman remains uncovered in county

Part of a 2,000-year-old Roman Road has been unearthed in Hereford.
Archaeologists also found cremated human remains and luxury Roman pottery underneath an existing road in Stretton Sugwas.

BBC News


NEW MUSEUM IN ALCESTER OFFERS GUIDE TO SMALL TOWN ROMAN LIFE

A new museum, which explores everyday life in a small Roman town, is set to open later this week in Alcester, Warwickshire.

24 Hour Museum News


Vikings' barbaric bad rap beginning to fade

"Never before has such terror appeared in Britain as we have now suffered from a pagan race. … Behold, the church of St. Cuthbert, spattered with the blood of the priests of God, despoiled of all its ornaments; a place more venerable than all in Britain is given as a prey to pagan peoples."

National Geographic

Wednesday, February 18, 2004



"A tunnel is the only answer"

BUILDING a 2.1km tunnel near Stonehenge and widening the A303 is the only way of enhancing the experience of visiting the world heritage site and improving road safety, the Highways Agency argued on the first day of the public inquiry.

Salisbury Journal


UN delegation to inspect Meath incinerator site

A UNESCO spokeswoman said the main purpose of the mission was to review the impact of the planned incinerator on "the value and the integrity of the World Heritage property".

Irish Times


Repair bill could cost Rillington its church

A RYEDALE village could lose its 800-year-old church if funds are not found to repair it.

Ryedale Gazette & Herald


We must fight to keep Pickering Castle open'

ENGLISH HERITAGE is to be urged to re-think its decision to close Pickering Castle for five months during the autumn and winter months from next year.

Ryedale Gazette & Herald


Scheme for new dig at Roman site

THE Roman site in North Swindon will undergo a major excavation later this year.


Archaeologists want the help of local volunteers when they embark on a dig at the Groundwell Ridge site, in Abbey Meads.

This is Wiltshire


Deja vu as fog of argument engulfs Stonehenge tunnel inquiry

Fog buried Stonehenge yesterday. The nose-to-tail drivers grinding past one of the most famous prehistoric sites in the world could barely see the stones, lapped in grey Wiltshire mist. Just down the road in Salisbury, a fog of paper and arguments rose around the monument, as the public inquiry opened into one of the most bitterly contested road development plans in the country.

Guardian


Pilgrimage to raise church roof

A west Wales vicar is retracing the steps of a centuries-old pilgrimage to raise money to reopen a Carmarthen church that has been closed since part of the roof fell in.

BBC News


Viking scholars excited by possible burial boat finding

The discovery of a handful of ancient iron nails, a belt buckle and some silver coins in northeast England has sent a thrill through the world of Viking scholarship, hinting strongly that a Norse boat burial site may lie beneath the Yorkshire soil.

USA Today


Suspected Viking burial fills a hole in English history

One of the great missing pieces of Britain's archaeological jigsaw may finally have fallen into place with the discovery of swords, ship nails and a silver Baghdad coin in a Yorkshire field

Guardian


Feb 2004: Three New E-Theses Now Available

Three new theses have been added to the E-theses archive. These theses cover topics as diverse as 3-dimensional modelling of Scottish Early Medieval Stone Sculpture (Stuart Jeffrey University of Glasgow), Neolithic residence in the Cotswolds (Nick Snashall, University of Sheffield) and a re-examination of sheep as represented in zooarchaeological assemblages (Robert Hayward Symmons, University College London). The full texts of all three theses, as well as abstracts and data downloads, are available online.

Archaeological Data Service


St. Leonard's Hospital (York, UK)

14 June-5 September 2004. Informal but intensive excavation and finds training, designed for beginners upwards. The fourth and final season will concentrate on the defences of the Roman legionary fortress (a once in a lifetime chance!), the medieval infirmary, and a WW2 air raid shelter.

Further details

Tuesday, February 17, 2004



History under the car park?

THE remains of a Saxon town could be lying virtually untouched beneath the old cattle market in Barnstaple.

An archaeological report has shown defences of the Norman castle and much of the town’s Saxon heritage could be lying undisturbed under the car park.

North Devon Gazette


Plans for Stonehenge road tunnel outlined

The Highways Agency has started to outline controversial Government plans to reroute roads around Stonehenge.

Telegraph


Stonehenge Inquiry Underway

The Government's plans to build a tunnel under Stonehenge have come under scrutiny as a public inquiry is launched into the project.

Both sides agree that some form of new road is needed but the bone of contention surrounds its length, which some say is not long enough to preserve the site. Others view the plans as the best way forward for all.

Country Life


Blacklands, Upper Row Project, Frome, Somerset

Work will continue on a number of sites around Upper Row Farm in 2004 by the Bath and Camerton Archaeological Society. New areas in Blacklands will be investigated and will include both Romano-British and earlier sites. The excavation will run from 16 August until 24 September and will cost £90 per week. The programme of geophysics will continue with opportunities for both magnetic and resistance surveying for those taking part. We also have the need of two student supervisors. For more details of the programme contact:

Mrs Margaret Nuth
59 Vallis Road
Frome
Somerset
BA11 3EG

Email margaret@margaretnuth.freeserve.co.uk

Please include a large SAE if enquiring by post


Roman remains uncovered in county

Part of a 2,000-year-old Roman Road has been unearthed in Hereford.
Archaeologists also found cremated human remains and luxury Roman pottery underneath an existing road in Stretton Sugwas.

BBC News


Battle lines drawn over castle closure

ENGLISH HERITAGE is to be urged to rethink its decision to close Pickering Castle for five months during the autumn and winter months from next year.

Even royalty could be approached to back the effort to get the idea kicked out.

This is Rydale


Excitement over Viking Find

Viking experts were today anticipating one of the most important archaeological excavations in Britain following the discovery of what may turn out to be the site of a 9th century boat burial.

Scotsman


Archeologists Excited by Roman Treasure in Bulgaria

Bulgarian archeologists will start some researches into the history of the Roman treasure of a total of 800 golden Republican-period coins dated from the period of II-I century B.C. as well as some Roman denars dated from the I century B.C.

Vovinite.com


Treasure may be key Viking burial

A hoard of treasure found in a field in Yorkshire could be one of the most significant Viking discoveries yet made in Britain, experts say.

BBC News


Nail key to Viking burial

THIS rusty nail could be the key to one of the most exciting Viking finds made in England.

It is part of a hoard of treasures which have gone on show at the Yorkshire Museum, in York.

This is York


Viking burial boat found

THE first Viking boat burial site ever discovered in England has been found by a pair of amateur treasure hunters using a metal detector, British reports said.

The duo uncovered a hoard of silver coins, fragments of swords and shields and other items from the late ninth century, notably some iron "clinch nails" which experts think were used to construct a Viking longboat, The Times said

Townsville Bulletin


Find that clinched a Viking ship burial Nail tells tale of historic discovery

TWO metal detectorists who stumbled across a hoard of treasure in Yorkshire may have uncovered one of Britain's most significant Viking finds

Yorkshire Post


Suspected Viking burial fills a hole in English history

One of the great missing pieces of Britain's archaeological jigsaw may finally have fallen into place with the discovery of swords, ship nails and a silver Baghdad coin in a Yorkshire field.

Guardian


Did Neanderthals breed with humans?

Fossilised human faeces tens of thousands of years old are helping scientists answer one of the most intriguing questions in anthropology: did early humans interbreed with the Neanderthals?

Independent


Axehead takes its place in exhibition

Four years ago the chance discovery of a 700,000-year-old flint axehead on a Norfolk beach sent academics into a fluster.

EDP 24


Plan for road tunnel under Stonehenge

A public inquiry into the controversial re-routing of roads around Stonehenge is set to open.

The proposed scheme aims to resurrect the iconic ancient monument from its label as "a national disgrace" by removing a main road and boring a tunnel under the protected site instead.

Ananova


Stonehenge road tunnel inquiry to begin

A public inquiry into plans to build a road tunnel under Stonehenge is about to get under way.

ITV.com


Stonehenge tunnel row set for inquiry

A row over government plans to tunnel beneath the World Heritage site of Stonehenge is set to erupt at the opening of a public inquiry.

Express


Norse Map or German Hoax? Still No Rest for Vinland

When it surfaced in 1957, it was too good to be true: a purported 15th-century world map depicting an island to the far west labeled Vinilandia Insula -- the fabled Vinland -- proof positive, it seemed, that Norse explorers had reached North America long before Columbus.

Washington Post


Human evolution at the crossroads: Integrating genetics and paleontology

Advances in genetics during the last decade not only have influenced modern medicine, they also have changed how human evolution is studied, says an anthropologist from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

Eurek Alert

Monday, February 16, 2004



"AWESOME" TREASURE FIND COULD BE ENGLAND'S FIRST VIKING BOAT BURIAL

Archaeologists in York believe a hoard of treasure recently found by metal detectorists could lead to the first discovery of a Viking boat burial in England.

24 Hour Museum News


Darwin's Beagle may lie under Essex mud

LONDON (Reuters) - A group of marine archaeologists may have solved one of the world's most enduring maritime mysteries -- the final resting place of HMS Beagle in which Charles Darwin developed his landmark theory of evolution.

Reuters


Antrim landmark to compete for award

ONE of Antrim town's most historic landmarks - the Barbican Gate - is to compete in the local heat of the BBC Northern Ireland Restoration programme.

Belfast Telegraph


Why breast may not have been best for Iron Age babies

ALL the experts agree breast is best for baby – but it may be less traditional than we think.
Yorkshire research suggests Iron Age infants were on the ancient equivalent of formula.

Yorkshire Post


HOMES PUT CITY'S HERITAGE AT RISK

Historians fear the remains of Derby's Roman past could be lost forever if a housing development goes ahead.

This is Derbyshire


Unique Croatian wetlands thought to be full of rare Bronze-Age artefacts

Archaeologists have made what, they believe, may be one of the most significant archaeological finds of the last 50 years. Staff at the Institute for Archaeology and Antiquity, at the University of Birmingham in the United Kingdom, supported by the British and Slovene Academies, have identified the Valley of the River Cetina, in Croatia, as one of the most important archaeological wetlands in Europe.

Megalithic Portal


University scientists using seismic data to map lost land bridge

A team of university scientists is using earthquake data to map a prehistoric lost world deep under the North Sea where man once hunted animals and gathered plants. Archaeologists, geologists and engineers from the University of Birmingham said on Sunday that they have combined the latest computer techniques to devise a 3D reconstruction of 10,000-year-old plain.

Megalithic Portal


British Archaeologists Believe They Have Found Darwin's Ship

British archaeologists believe they have uncovered the remains of the ship Charles Darwin used to sail across the world.

Voice of America


Inquiry due on Stonehenge roads

A public inquiry into the planned redevelopment of roads around Stonehenge is due to open on Tuesday.

BBC News

Sunday, February 15, 2004



A new British Museum gallery provokes old questions

Feb. 16 issue - An elegant bust of Athena, the Greek goddess of wisdom, presides over the entrance to the British Museum's new permanent exhibit on the Enlightenment, offering a bold riposte to the unresolved question: Was this an age of discovery or of plunder?

Newsweek


Scientists discover lost world

A prehistoric lost world under the North Sea has been mapped by scientists from the University of Birmingham.

The team used earthquake data to devise a 3D reconstruction of the 10,000-year-old plain.

The area, part of a land mass that once joined Britain to northern Europe, disappeared about 8,000 years ago.

BBC News


Road project strikes tomb

A new road project on the outskirts of Volos in central Greece has revealed what appears to be an intact, unplundered Mycenaean royal tomb, a report said yesterday.

The subterranean tholos tomb was found along with four or five small, box-like cist tombs during construction of a new Volos ring road, according to the Ethnos daily.

Kathimerini


Oxford scientists make grim discovery

English archaeologists report the grisly discovery of about 70 executed criminals buried from the 16th to 18th centuries in a medieval moat surrounding Oxford Castle. In the March/April issue of Archaeology magazine, Oxford University scholars report that hanging appears to have been the criminals' fate. The find uncovers how executed criminals were treated in the Tudor and Stuart eras. Many were buried face down, a mark of disgrace. Sawed skulls and neck bones indicate that many of the victims apparently served as anatomical specimens for the school's medical students. Under a royal license granted by the reigning monarch, four executed criminals a year were parceled out to the school for academic purposes. Executions in that time were carried out for crimes ranging from theft to murder.

About


English Heritage supports the Stonehenge Improvement Scheme

English Heritage has released a statement in support of the Highways Agency's A303 Stonehenge Improvement Scheme. A spokesperson said: "The scheme will bring a number of major benefits to the Stonehenge World Heritage Site by removing the roads and traffic from the immediate vicinity of the stone circle. This will improve the visitor experience, as well as achieving major objectives of the WHS management plan."

Stonepages


Neolithic remains found in Peterborough

Archaeologists have unearthed a series of exciting historic finds at a building site in Woodston, Peterborough (England). Origins of the medieval settlement – along with rare Neolithic remains from 2,500-3,000 BCE – were discovered during excavations at the George Wimpey East Midlands development.

The three-month dig was carried out by a team from the University of Leicester Archaeological Services (ULAS) before construction work got underway. The discovery of ancient pits and gullies from the prehistoric Neolithic period of around 2,500-3,000 BCE is extremely rare. These contained pottery, used by the first farming settlers 5,000 years ago, known as Peterborough Ware, plus discarded stone tools from the period.

Stonepages


Bronze Age dagger retrieved near proposed windfarm

The proposed site for seven huge wind turbines on Denshaw Moor (Saddleworth, England) is home to more than 200 archaeological remains, with many more still waiting to be discovered. Saddleworth Archaeological Trust has registered an objection to the windfarm application which will be discussed at a public meeting. An in-depth report has already been submitted to the borough planning department by honourary secretary of the trust David Chadderton, who claims that the area is an important archaeological site.

Stonepages


Lost world mapped by scientists

A prehistoric lost world deep under the North Sea where man once hunted animals has been mapped by scientists with the help of earthquake data.

A team of archaeologists, geologists and engineers from the University of Birmingham have combined the latest computer techniques to devise a 3D reconstruction of the 10,000-year-old plain.

Ananova


Undersea lost world mapped by scientists

A prehistoric lost world deep under the North Sea where man once hunted animals has been mapped by scientists with the help of earthquake data.

Breaking News ie


Do not destroy the Hill of Tara

THE Hill of Tara constitutes the heart and soul of Ireland. Its very name invokes the spirit and mystique of our people, and is instantly recognisable worldwide.

The plan approved recently by An Bord Pleanala for the M3 motorway to dissect the Tara-Skryne valley, Ireland's premier national monument, spells out a massive national and international tragedy that must be averted.

Click here to find out more and to sign the on-line petition


Mumien - die Enthüllung

Sonntag, 15.02.2004, 17.15 Uhr

In einem tschechischen Dorf, in Sedlec, vor den Toren Prags, steht eine schaurig-schöne Kapelle. Nicht nur der imposante Kronleuchter, die gesamte Innendekoration besteht aus menschlichen Knochen - aus Schädeln, Oberschenkelknochen, Rückenwirbeln. Wohin man auch sieht: Der Tod ist allgegenwärtig. Vor Hunderten von Jahren fielen hier 30.000 Menschen der Pest zum Opfer. Das Dorf hat die Tragödie nie verwunden und brachte seine Trauer auf diese einzigartige Weise zum Ausdruck.

N24 TV


Left-handedness common in Ice Age

The fraction of left-handed people today is about the same as it was during the Ice Age, according to data from prehistoric handprints.

BBC News

Saturday, February 14, 2004



Archaeologist sheds light on pyramid origin

Egypt's ancient pyramids are probably a byproduct of a decision to build walls around the tombs of kings, a leading expert on early Egyptian royal burials said on Wednesday.

CNN


Dig reveals child's skeleton

AN ARCHAEOLOGICAL dig at Wales' national shrine has uncovered the remains of a medieval child.

The complete skeleton was uncovered in St Davids Cathedral during test digs at the historic building.

I C Wales


Kennewick man ruling - politics or science?

Native Americans called him "The Ancient One", while anthropologists speculated he could reveal who first settled the Americas.

New Scientist


Fife Council archaeology funding cuts proposed

Proposals are in place to cut the funding of the archaeology service of Fife Council in eastern Scotland. The Labour Party-run council wants to cut the archaeology budget from £18,000 to £10,000. This is despite significant finds in Fife recently. Fife Council's archaeology service worked with Channel 4's Time Team to excavate "one of the most significant Bronze Age cemetery sites in Scotland" at Leven, and were also involved in the discovery of early Bronze Age axes and the Carpow log boat in the River Tay at Newburgh.

Stone Pages


Brits display 7th-century treasures

LONDON - Archaeologists are showing off a hoard of glass and copper jugs, ceremonial crosses and other Saxon artifacts this month, giving the public a first look at a rare find of a royal tomb from the seventh century.

Azcentral.com


Nelson's Forgotten Heroes

Ancestors BBC 2

14 February 18:18

Radio Times


Viking settlement discovered in Cork city

Archaeologists have confirmed the discovery of a 1000 year-old Viking settlement off South Main Street in Cork.

UTV


Heaven and earth in conflict

In an unusual conflict of interests, archaeologists on the trail of a potentially rich ancient site in northern Greece have been thwarted by the sanctity of the confessional.

Kathimerini


Garden of Forgiveness offers up treasures of antiquity

As the initial phase of the ambitious Garden of Forgiveness project in the city center nears completion, most of the digging has been not for potting plants, but for archaeological excavation.
One of the most recent discoveries includes the remains of what is believed to be a Roman temple ­ more excavation will hopefully reveal its true history.

Daily Star


UNESCO to probe incinerator near Brú na Bóinne

A UNESCO fact-finding mission will arrive in Ireland next week to examine the impact of a planned municipal waste incinerator near Drogheda on the Brú na Bóinne World Heritage Site. The investigation team, which will include representatives of the International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS), was requested by UNESCO's World Heritage Committee at its 27th session in December.

Megalithic Portal


Left-handedness common in Ice Age

The percentage of left-handed people today is about the same as it was during the Ice Age, according to data from prehistoric handprints writes Dr David Whitehouse, the BBC News Online science editor. They were found in caves painted during the Upper Palaeolithic period, between 30,000 and 10,000 years ago.

Megalithic Portal

Friday, February 13, 2004



Discovery of Viking house remains in Cork ‘highly significant’

THE first and earliest known proof of extensive Viking settlement in Cork was uncovered in the heart of the city yesterday.

The 1,000-year-old remains of a rectangular Viking house just off the city’s South Main Street and close to the River Lee, prove conclusively that Vikings sailed up the Lee sometime in the 11th century to settled here.

Irish Examiner

(You will have to register with the Irish Examiner before you can read the story, but registration is free)



REDUNDANCIES ‘DON’T MEAN MUSEUM WILL CLOSE’


STAFF at Keswick museum have been handed their redundancy notices by Allerdale council.

Times and Star


Bid to unveil hidden treasure of Norfolk

It is a remarkable story that spans thousands of years and the changing face of a spectacular Broadland landscape.

Burgh Castle's stunning Roman fort has witnessed immense changes on its watery doorstep - and seen itself cast as a military garrison, Saxon monastery and Norman Castle.

EDP 24

Thursday, February 12, 2004



Treasures of a Saxon king at the Museum of London
Treasures of a Saxon king at the Museum of London
Late View Tuesday 17 February
6 - 8.30pm Admission Free

Don't miss your last chance in London to see the amazing finds from the burial chamber of an East Saxon king recently discovered by archaeologists at Southend. The discovery provides a fascinating glimpse into the life and death of the super-rich of the dark ages.

Further Information


Strange Powers:
Bog Bodies and Bog Lands


University of Bradford Gallery II

Open 10am - 4pm weekdays, 11am - 3pm weekends

"There is a strange power in bog water which prevents decay. Bodies have been found which must have lain in bogs for more than a thousand years, but which, though admittedly somewhat shrunken and brown, are in other respects unchanged."

University of Bradford Gallery II


Rare stone head moves to museum

AFTER 35 years in a Lancashire garden, a rare medieval stone head is to be displayed at the Ribchester Roman Museum.

This is Clitheroe


PUBLIC REJECTS MUSEUM CLOSURES AS COUNCILS LOOK TO TIGHTEN BELTS

Museum services across the UK are fighting cuts due to council tax-related budget pressures – but tax-payers are now starting to reject threatened closures.

24 Hour Museum News


British Museum Treasure Weekend

14 & 15 February 11.00-17.00

Have you ever found anything in the ground and wondered what it was? Bring it along to the British Museum this weekend and one of our curators will see if they can identify it for you! Would you like to meet a Roman soldier and find out how they lived? Re-enactors from the Colchester Roman Society will be on hand to demonstrate and explain.



Visit the Buried Treasure Microsite


Virtual reality brings past to life

Virtual museums could offer a way of travelling back in time to experience the past, say researchers.

BBC News


Historic Scotland is to remain Executive agency

See Government report


TIN SMELTING 'KETTLES' TO GO ON SHOW AT GARDENS

Giant tin smelting "kettles" and old granite ingot moulds are being exhibited at Trewidden Gardens, Buryas Bridge, when they open to the public from next Wednesday.

This is Cornwall


RARE RING DECLARED TREASURE TROVE

A RARE medieval silver ring unearthed by a metal detecting enthusiast at Havenstreet may have belonged to the lady of the manor, an inquest was told.

Isle of Wight County Press


More clues unearthed at Commandery

EXCAVATION work at the Commandery Museum in Worcester has unearthed more clues into the historic site’s past.

Archaeologists have discovered evidence of what they believe is the floor layer of the monastic hospital dating from the medieval period on which the 16th century Commandery was built.


Worcester Standard


Museums interested in medieval lord's ring

A medieval gold ring found in a Wiltshire field was declared treasure trove at an inquest in Chippenham yesterday

This is Wiltshire

Wednesday, February 11, 2004



British Archaeological Awards

The British Archaeological Awards are the most prestigious awards in British archaeology. Established in 1976, they have grown until they now encompass 15 Awards, covering every aspect of British archaeology. The Awards are presented every other year, with the next Awards ceremony being held in Belfast in October 2004.

Entries and nominations must relate to activities, events and achievements over the 2-year period between 1 June 2002 and 31 May 2004.

Further details can be found at http://www.britarch.ac.uk/awards/

The closing date for entries is 31 May 2004


St Mary, Ickleton, Cambridgeshire

A fire which destroyed much of the roof and transept of this church revealed a complete set of rare 12th-century paintings on the nave walls

Country Life


New homes an echo of the past

When families move into a new housing development they will be following in the footsteps of their ancestors from 5,000 years ago. Archaeologists have unearthed a series of exciting historic finds at a building site in Woodston, Peterborough.

Megalithic Portal


Fife archaeology service cuts plan to be opposed

Labour proposals to cut Fife Council’s archaeology service by almost 50% are to be opposed by the Liberal Democrats tomorrow, writes Michael Alexander.

Evening Telegraph


Fountain's Abbey Gets Makeover

Fountain's Abbey in Yorkshire, a World Heritage Site owned by the National Trust, has been undergoing new restoration, thanks to English Heritage.

Country Life


When the Viking boat comes in

DECORATING a Viking longboat is just one of the challenges being issued to children this half-term.

This is York


Bronze Age may halt modern fad for wind power

THE PROPOSED site for seven huge wind turbines on Denshaw Moor is home to more than 200 archaeological remains, with many more, including a Roman road, still waiting to be discovered.

Oldham Advertiser


German Archaeologist Throws Light on Pyramid Origin

Egypt's ancient pyramids are probably a byproduct of a decision to build walls around the tombs of kings, a leading expert on early Egyptian royal burials said Wednesday.

Reuters


FIELD SCHOOL IN HISTORICAL ARCHAEOLOGY

ST GEORGE, BERMUDA
10-31 July 2004

The Department of Archaeology
University of Bristol

Further details


Greens Object Stonehenge Road Plans

Proposed road cutting would dominate World Heritage Site, say Salisbury Greens. If the A303 proposals were approved, the new road cutting would become the most prominent monument within the Stonehenge World. Heritage Site: the 21st century monument to the car, a kind of inverted Cursus, rivalling the original Cursus in size."

That's the warning Salisbury Green Party will present to the public inquiry that begins on Tuesday (17th February).

Green Party Home Page


Copper Age village found in Bulgaria

A village from the Copper Age was found in northern Bulgaria. The village is situated just 800 metes away from the place where the bridge Vidin-Kalafat was planned to be built.

Stone Pages


Ethiopian obelisk needs ride back home from Italy

ROME -- Wanted: An airplane strong enough to carry the 70-ton pieces of an ancient obelisk back to Ethiopia, nearly seven decades after Italian Fascist forces hauled the monument out of Africa.

Chicago Sun Times


Ancient stone circle has madeus ill, say ghost detectives

A PAIR of psychic investigators looking at the healing properties of an ancient stone circle claim it has made them seriously ill.

IC Wales

Tuesday, February 10, 2004



The Battle for Britain's Soul

Starting this Saturday (14th February 2004) on BBC2 at 7.15pm (GMT), the Reverend Peter Owen-Jones traces the spread of Christianity throughout the British Isles. Accoding to an article by the BBC the programme looks at how Christianity first came to Britain, when the country was in turmoil with a superstitious population worshipping its own set of Gods, both Roman and Pagan. With Iron Age Britons at the mercy of the natural world, people felt beholden to their local Gods, making sacrifices in the hope of staving off famine and disease.

Megalithic Portal


Harnessing fire on Bronze Age Thera

Recent findings brought to light during the excavation of foundations for a new roof at the archaeological site at Akrotiri on Thera (Greece) have provided more information on daily life during the Early and Middle Bronze Ages. Of particular interest are the various ways in which inhabitants harnessed the power of fire to serve a variety of day-to-day needs, ranging from the domestic to the ceremonial. At a recent Archaeological Society gathering Professor Christos Doumas explained the use of fire in the home, in the preparation of food, in the economy and in ritual acts.

Stone Pages


Stone Age artefacts found at site of new supermarket

ARCHAEOLOGISTS working at the site of a new supermarket in Ballymoney have found remains which date back to 7000 BC.

Belfast Telegraph


Items 9,000 Years Past Use-By Date

Archaeologists working for Tesco have dug up more than they bargained for at the site of the company's planned new supermarket in Ballymoney,Co Antrim. Hoping to discover traces of a medieval castle, believed to have once occupied the site, the archaeologists were amazed when they unearthed remains which date back some 9,000 years.

Megalithic Portal

Monday, February 09, 2004



Out of the industrial archives

Items from the archives of Yorkshire's first industrial museum will be put on display to mark its 30th anniv-ersary this year.

The spare keys to Buckingham Palace and a lock which baffled Houdini are just some of the items included in the exhibition at Bradford Industrial Museum.


Telegraph and Argus


Copper Age Village Found in Northern Bulgaria

A village from the Copper Age was found in northern Bulgaria. The village is situated just 800 metes away from the place where the bridge Vidin -Kalafat is to be built.

Novinite.com


A Monumental Enquiry for Stonehenge

Heritage Link reports that the cost of man-hours spent on the Stonehenge Inquiry could well equal the cost of the road proposals itself given the huge commitment of numerous organisations including many voluntary groups which have been working on the proposals for over two years.

Megalithic Portal


Mysteries of the Etruscans revealed

THEY built Europe’s first cities and may have eaten Italy’s first pasta. The original inhabitants of Chiantishire, circa 5th century BC, are coming to Edinburgh this summer.

The "long-nosed, sensitive-footed, subtly-smiling Etruscans", as one enthusiast, DH Lawrence, described them, are at the heart of the Royal Museum’s headline summer exhibition.

Scotsman


When History Met Monty

Today BBC2 8.p.m.

It was a time, apparently, when women were happily horny, knights were anything but chivalrous and bishops ran brothels … but then what sort of medieval history did you expect from a former Python? Ahead of his new TV series, Lesley McDowell meets Terry Jones

Sunday Herald


Blazing a Roman trail underneath fire station

A team of archaeologists is to dig for Roman remains - on the site of a Tyneside fire station.

The excavations in Newcastle are planned around Westgate Fire Station, on the junction of Westgate Road and Wingrove Road, which is in the Hadrian's Wall corridor.

I C Newcastle


Saxons and Normans in Eastern England

Saturday, 20 March 2004

a 1-day field trip organised by EMAS

for further details click here




Shipwreck off Boynton becomes undersea museum

Moreover Archaeological News


Lessons to be learned from Navan experience

Billy Bell, chair of Stormont’s watchdog public accounts committee, has welcomed the Northern Ireland Audit Office’s (NIAO) findings on the £20m Navan Centre project.

The historical centre, just outside Armagh, was forced to close in 2001, having received £5.2m in public funding during eight years of operation.

Leisure Opportunities


SITS VAC: SKILLED YOUNGSTERS REQUIRED TO RESTORE OLD RELICS

Some of the region's most important historic buildings could crumble away because of a recruitment crisis in the niche area of restoration amongst construction workers.

Unless new recruits are properly trained in specialist areas such as stone masonry and carpentry, campaigners claim architectural gems could be left to rot. The Government is now being called on to fund on-the-job training for apprentices in restoration and conservation.

The Sentinel


New peatlands awareness website

A NEW educational website centring on Northern Ireland's peatlands, along with an accompanying CD-Rom, has been launched in Co Londonderry.


The website address is www.peatlandsni.gov.uk.

Belfast Telegraph


'Recent Archaeological Work at Salisbury Cathedral'

Royal Archaeological Institute lecture by Tim Tatton-Brown
Wednesday, 11 February 2004 at 5.00 p.m.
The Society of Antiquaries of London, Burlington House, Piccadilly


Forging on with Roman discoveries

A mighty workshop which helped power the Roman Empire on these shores has been discovered under a farmer's field.

The remains include civilian buildings, industrial sites and a major cemetery.

Evening Chronicle


Museums fight to keep tax loophole

Chancellor's clampdown on gift aid concession spells financial disaster for many small heritage sites which ask for entry by donation

At Fishbourne Roman Palace in Sussex, John Manley has some of the finest mosaic floors in Britain and £14,000 worth of new computer programmed tills which would be the envy of any museum in the country - except that they are about to become completely useless.

Guardian

Sunday, February 08, 2004



Vikingkvinne funnet i Russland

Russiske arkeologer har funnet en skandinavisk kvinne i et gravkammer fra 900-tallet i Pskov i Nordvest-Russland.

Aftenposten


Tests reveal Amesbury Archer ‘King of Stonehenge’ was a settler from the Alps

The man who may have helped organise the building of Stonehenge was a settler from continental Europe, archaeologists say.

Popular Science


Amesbury archer was a settler from the Alps

The latest tests on the Amesbury Archer, whose grave was found three miles from Stonehenge and it astonished archaeologists last year with the richness of its contents, show he was originally from the Alps region, probably Switzerland, Austria or Germany. The tests also show that the gold hair tresses found in the grave are the earliest gold objects found in Britain.

Stone Pages


High cost for Meath monuments

The cost of work to preserve ancient monuments in the path of a new motorway running through Co Meath could be up to 20 million euros.

UTV Internet


Catapult Makers: Rock Stars of Antiquity

Ancient catapults were state-of-the-art weapons of unequalled power—but how powerful were the military engineers who created them?

National Geographic


Is this the oldest hole in Britain?

It looks like any ordinary hole made by roadworks. But this hole pre-dates Gloucestershire as we know it because it is a relic of the last Ice Age which ended 14,000 years ago!

Megalithic Portal


http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/3467195.stm

Work to preserve ancient monuments in the path of a new motorway running through Co Meath could cost up to €20m.

Archaeological work is being carried out on the 32-mile stretch of road between Clonee and Kells.

Online ie


New light shed on SA cave art

A huge collection of rock paintings in South Africa is far older than previously thought, research has found.
Archaeologists using the latest radio-carbon dating technology found that the Ukhahlamba-Drakensberg paintings are 3,000 years old.

BBC News


Expert carves out a past for himself

Probing the role of rock art in the lives of prehistoric man is the mission for Tyneside-based archaeologist Aron Mazel.

The Journal


The really old rock masters

Experts from Newcastle have helped show some of the world's finest rock paintings are 3,000 years old.

The new study, by archaeologists from the University of Newcastle and the Australian National University in Canberra, used the latest radio-carbon dating technology on the art, in South Africa's uKhahlamba-Drakensberg National Park.

Evening Chronicle


Newcastle’s link with South Africa's rock art

Experts from Newcastle have helped show some of the world's finest rock paintings are 3,000 years old.

Megalithic Portal


The loss of another archaeological site

In the past two months, the Maltese Islands have once
more suffered the loss of an archaeological site. A
cave by the name of Ghar Qasrana, in the limits of
Mgarr, has been covered, probably destroyed, by
material dumped in what was until recently a
cultivated field.

Ghar Qasrana was one of a series of sites documented
by amateur archaeologists in the mid-twentieth
century. A wider specialist appreciation of its nature
was provided two years ago through a scholarly
contribution in Melita Historica by Professor Mario
Buhagiar and publication of the only available plan
made by Keith Buhagiar. A description of the cave was
also given by Professor Buhagiar and Professor Anhony
Bonanno in an international conference relating to
Byzantine Archaeology in Sicily.

The cave contained at least one Roman or early
Byzantine burial chamber. Although the finishing of
such burials is not as elaborate as the better known
examples in the Rabat area, such cave burials are a
rare archaeological heritage to be found in our
countryside. Documentary evidence suggests a later use
of the cave for habitation purposes, while other
internal features point towards the possible use of
the cave as a rock-cut chapel.

The Maltese Islands have not only lost another site,
but also the opportunity for scientific research of
the Roman, Byzantine and Medieval periods. This loss
has occurred even though all precautions have been
taken by the authorities to safeguard this site.
Although the cave was identified as a site of
archaeological value through an Environmental Impact
Assessment exercise, dumping in the area was still
undertaken, even though development permits have not
yet been approved for the area.

In view of these circumstances and the Cultural
Heritage Act 2002, the Grupp Arkeologiku Malti appeals
to the authorities to take immediate action to rescue
the remains of the cave and to hold the perpetrators
of this event responsible for their actions.

Press Release from Anton Bugeja archmalta@yahoo.com

Saturday, February 07, 2004




500-year-old monastery dug up on site of science park


A 500-year-old monastery has been discovered by archaeologists in the heart of Glasgow.

The medieval ruins of the Francisan Friary just off the High Street is being described by experts as one of the most important finds in Scotland.

Evening Times


Rare 7th-century Saxon artifacts go on display

A hoard of glass and copper jugs, ceremonial crosses and other Saxon artifacts has gone on display, giving the public a first look at a rare find of a royal tomb from the seventh century.

Beaufort Gazette


Dr. Marie Soressi erhält den Förderpreis für Ältere Urgeschichte und Quartärökologie

Preisträgerin des Tübinger Förderpreises für Ältere Urgeschichte und Quartärökologie ist dieses Jahr die Französin Dr. Marie Soressi vom renommierten "Institut de Préhistoire et de Géologie du Quaternaire" der Universität Bordeaux.Der Preis ist mit 5.000 Euro dotiert und wird nun zum sechsten Mal verliehen.

Archäologie


History right on tap

There was a surprise in the pipeline for archaeologists on a Roman fort dig at Vindolanda in Northumberland.

They unearthed 30 yards of wooden mains which fed the fort with water from nearby springs.

And to their amazement, the mains were still working and carrying water - almost 2,000 years after they were first installed.

I C Newcastle


Search for Saxon relics at graveyard

A DIG to search for Saxon remains is to be carried out on land which has been earmarked as a much-needed graveyard in Havant.

The News Hampshire


EH Statement on the impact of the Stonehenge A303 Road Scheme

English Heritage released the following statement yesterday regarding the impact of the A303 Stonehenge Improvement Road Scheme on the Archaeology of the World Heritage Site: English Heritage supports the Highways Agency's proposal for the A303 at Stonehenge, which will bring a number of major benefits to the Stonehenge World Heritage Site (WHS) by removing the roads and traffic from the immediate vicinity of the Stone Circle. This will improve the visitor experience as well as achieving major objectives of the WHS management plan.

Megalithic Portal


Roman water still on tap

Archaeologists have discovered a 2,000-year-old water main built by the Romans - which is still working.

BBC News


Archaeologists find 1,400-year-old tomb of Anglo-Saxon king

A tiny piece of bronze poking out of the mud was the first clue that something extraordinary lay beneath the surface in Prittlewell.

The subsequent discovery of an Anglo-Saxon king's burial chamber complete with a lavish collection of treasures was more than any archaeologist would hope to find beneath a verge in the Southend suburb.

Pakistan Tribune


The ancient astronomers of Newgrange

A New web site on the ancient astronomy of the Prehistoric monuments of Ireland.

The ancient astronomers of Newgrange


Gold Cape will be focus of visitor attraction

A visitor centre highlighting the Bronze Age and Celtic culture of north east Wales could attract up to 150,000 tourists a year. At the core of the new visitor attraction, drawing on Arthurian connections, would be the famous gold Bronze Age Mold Cape, currently held in The British Museum.

Megalithic Portal

Friday, February 06, 2004



Treasures of a Saxon King of Essex

Probably the most exciting and important archaeological discovery made in this country in the last fifty years! Archaeologists have discovered the burial of a Saxon king in Southend, and an exhibition of some of the wonderful treasures found in his tomb is going to open at Southend’s Central Museum on Saturday 21 February.

Southend Museum


Videos from the Anglo-Saxon Burial at Prittlewell

Three videos available here



Pictures from the Anglo-Saxon Burial at Prittlewell

You can find the pictures here


Archaeologists find 1,400-year-old tomb of Anglo-Saxon king

A tiny piece of bronze poking out of the mud was the first clue that something extraordinary lay beneath the surface in Prittlewell.
The subsequent discovery of an Anglo-Saxon king's burial chamber complete with a lavish collection of treasures was more than any archaeologist would hope to find beneath a verge in the Southend suburb.

Guardian


Discovery of a Saxon King

The burial site of an East Saxon King has been uncovered, illuminating our knowledge of the lives of the super-rich in the Dark Ages.

The Museum of London and English Heritage archaeologists have discovered the most important Saxon burial site since Sutton Hoo was uncovered in 1939.

Country Life