Category Archives: WORLD

EUROPE, TURKEY, WORLD

Shattered Skeletons of Man and Dog From Eruption and Tsunami 3,600 Years Ago

Shattered Skeletons of Man and Dog From Eruption and Tsunami 3,600 Years Ago

The remains of a young man and a dog who were killed by a tsunami triggered by the eruption of the Thera volcano 3,600 years ago have been unearthed in Turkey. Archaeologists found the pair of skeletons during excavations at Çeşme-Bağlararası, a Late Bronze Age site near Çeşme Bay, on Turkey’s western coastline.

Despite the eruption of Thera being one of the largest natural disasters in recorded history, this is the first time the remains of victims of the event have been unearthed.

Moreover, the presence of the tsunami deposits at Çeşme-Bağlararası show that large and destructive waves did arrive in the northern Aegean after Thera went up.

Previously, based on the evidence available, it had been assumed that this area of the Mediterranean only received ash fallout from the eruption of Thera.

Instead, it now appears that the Çeşme Bay area was struck by a sequence of tsunamis, devastating local settlements and leading to rescue efforts.

Thera — now a caldera at the centre of the Greek island of Santorini — is famous for how its tsunamis are thought to have ended the Minoan civilisation on nearby Crete.

Based on radiocarbon dating of the tsunami deposits at Çeşme-Bağlararası, the team believe that the volcano’s eruption occurred no earlier than 1612 BC.

The remains of a young man (pictured) and a dog who were killed by a tsunami triggered by the eruption of the Thera volcano some 3,600 years ago have been unearthed in Turkey
Archaeologists found the pair of skeletons during excavations at Çeşme-Bağlararası, a Late Bronze Age site near Çeşme Bay, on Turkey’s western coastline
Despite the eruption of Thera is one of the largest natural disasters in recorded history, this is the first time remains of victims of the event have ever been found. Pictured: part of the fortifications at the Çeşme-Bağlararası. The remains of the dog can be seen on the wall, while beneath that can be seen a shell-rich muddy patch deposited by the first wave
The presence of the tsunami deposits at Çeşme-Bağlararası show that large and destructive waves did arrive in the northern Aegean after Thera went up. Previously, based on the evidence available, it had been assumed that this area of the Mediterranean only received ash fallout from the eruption of Thera. Pictured: a map of the dig site as seen in 2012, showing the location of the human and canine remians within the Late Bronze Age fortifications

The study was undertaken by archaeologist Vasıf Şahoğlu of the University of Ankara and his colleagues.

‘The Late Bronze Age Thera eruption was one of the largest natural disasters witnessed in human history,’ the researchers wrote in their paper.

‘Its impact, consequences, and timing have dominated the discourse of ancient Mediterranean studies for nearly a century.

‘Despite the eruption’s high intensity and tsunami-generating capabilities, few tsunami deposits [have been] reported.

‘In contrast, descriptions of pumice, ash, and tephra deposits are widely published.’

Amid stratified sediments at the Çeşme-Bağlararası site, the researchers found the remains of damaged walls — once part of a fortification of some kind —  alongside layers of rubble and chaotic sediments characteristic of tsunami deposits.

Within these were two layers of volcanic ash, the second thicker than the first, and a bone-rich layer containing charcoal and other charred remains. According to the team, the deposits represent at least four consecutive tsunami inundations, each separate but nevertheless resulting from the eruption at Thera.

Tsunami deposits associated with the eruption are relatively rare — with three found near the northern coastline of Crete and another three along Turkey’s coast, albeit much further south than Çeşme-Bağlararası.

Within these tsunami deposits (pictured) were two layers of volcanic ash, the second thicker than the first, and a bone-rich layer containing charcoal and other charred remains
According to the team, the deposits (H1a–d in the above) represent at least four consecutive tsunami inundations, each separate but nevertheless resulting from the eruption at Thera.
The young man’s skeleton — which shows the characteristic signatures of having been swept along by a debris flow — was found up against the most badly damaged portion of the fortification wall (pictured, centre), which the team believe failed during the tsunami

Traces of misshapen pits dug into the tsunami sediments at various places across the Çeşme-Bağlararası site represent, the researchers believe, an ‘effort to retrieve victims from the tsunami debris.’

‘The human skeleton was located about a meter below such a pit, suggesting that it was too deep to be found and retrieved and therefore (probably unknowingly) left behind,’ they added.

‘It is also in the lowest part of the deposit, characterized throughout the debris field by the largest and heaviest stones (some larger than 40 cm [16 inches] diameter), further complicating any retrieval effort.’

The young man’s skeleton — which shows the characteristic signatures of having been swept along by a debris flow — was found up against the most badly damaged portion of the fortification wall, which the team believe failed during the tsunami. 

The full findings of the study were published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Tsunami deposits associated with the eruption of Thera are relatively rare — with three found near the northern coastline of Crete and another three along Turkey’s coast, albeit much further south than Çeşme-Bağlararası
EUROPE, GREECE, WORLD

Roman-Period Statue Unearthed in Southern Greece

Roman-Period Statue Unearthed in Southern Greece

On Thursday, December 16, an important find came to light at the market of ancient Epidaurus. This is a life-size marble female statue of very good quality.

The statue was found intact, with the exception of the arms, which were extra, and the head, which probably broke during its fall, leaving in its place the inserted mortar for fixing it.

This year the excavation period was over, but the heavy rainfall of the previous days, showed a small part of the back of the statue. in the area of ​​the precinct, where the works have not yet proceeded to deeper layers.

Roman-Period Statue Unearthed in Southern Greece
New find in Epidaurus: Statue of a woman in a tunic

In consultation with the Head of the Ephorate Alkisti Papadimitriou and with staff of the Ephorate of Antiquities of Argolida, the area was immediately excavated, under the supervision of the civil engineer of the Ephorate Ev. Kazolia and the excavator of the site V. Lambrinoudaki.

The statue represented a woman wearing a tunic and a robe.

The robe was fastened to the left shoulder and arm, from where it hung with rich folds.

One end of it passed behind the back, under the right armpit and was thrown sideways back, over the left shoulder.

In place of the right arm, surfaces that retain the ligaments from additional parts, indicate that the figure made the gesture of discovery , that is, the lifting of the robe with the right hand outwards and upwards, which was typical of married women in antiquity. , and with which the Health, wife or daughter of Asclepius was often depicted.

A first assessment places the work in imperial Roman times. The statue was transferred to a warehouse in the Asclepieion for storage, cleaning and maintenance.

A systematic excavation has been carried out at the site since 2015 by a research team of the University of Athens with the financial support of the Ioannis S. Latsis Public Benefit Foundation.

Near the theater of the ancient city (“small theater of Epidaurus” today), which was located in the ancient market, an important building of Krini has been discovered and connected to it an enclosure of the 4th BC. ai., which in Roman times acquired a new form with the addition of a portico on the west and a vaulted building on their north side.

Evidence has emerged that encourages the identification of this complex with the mosque of Asclepius mentioned by Pausanias in the city of Epidaurus.

COLOMBIA, SOUTH AMERICA, WORLD

Study Shows Head Lice Helped Preserve Ancient Human DNA

Study Shows Head Lice Helped Preserve Ancient Human DNA

Human DNA can be extracted from the ‘cement’ head lice used to glue their eggs to hairs thousands of years ago, scientists have found, which could provide an important new window into the past.

In a new study, scientists for the first time recovered DNA from cement on hairs taken from mummified remains that date back 1,500-2,000 years. This is possible because skin cells from the scalp become encased in the cement produced by female lice as they attach eggs, known as nits, to the hair.

Analysis of this newly-recovered ancient DNA – which was of better quality than that recovered through other methods – has revealed clues about pre-Columbian human migration patterns within South America.  This method could allow many more unique samples to be studied from human remains where bone and tooth samples are unavailable.

The research was led by the University of Reading, working in collaboration with the National University of San Juan, Argentina; Bangor University, Wales; the Oxford University Museum of Natural History; and the University of Copenhagen, Denmark. It is published in the journal Molecular Biology and Evolution.

Dr Alejandra Perotti, Associate Professor in Invertebrate Biology at the University of Reading, who led the research, said: “Like the fictional story of mosquitos encased in amber in the film Jurassic Park, carrying the DNA of the dinosaur host, we have shown that our genetic information can be preserved by the sticky substance produced by headlice on our hair.  In addition to genetics, lice biology can provide valuable clues about how people lived and died thousands of years ago.

Study Shows Head Lice Helped Preserve Ancient Human DNA
A mummified adult man of the Ansilta culture, from the Andes of San Juan, Argentina, dating back approx 2,000 years.

“Demand for DNA samples from ancient human remains has grown in recent years as we seek to understand migration and diversity in ancient human populations. Headlice have accompanied humans throughout their entire existence, so this new method could open the door to a goldmine of information about our ancestors while preserving unique specimens.”

Until now, ancient DNA has preferably been extracted from dense bone from the skull or from inside teeth, as these provide the best quality samples. However, skull and teeth remains are not always available, as it can be unethical or against cultural beliefs to take samples from indigenous early remains, and due to the severe damage destructive sampling causes to the specimens which compromise future scientific analysis.

Recovering DNA from the cement delivered by lice is therefore a solution to the problem, especially as nits are commonly found on the hair and clothes of well preserved and mummified humans.

The research team extracted DNA from nit cement of specimens collected from a number of mummified remains from Argentina. The mummies were of people who 1,500-2,000 years ago reached the Andes mountains of the San Juan province, Central West Argentina. The team also studied ancient nits on human hair used in textile from Chile and nits from a shrunken head originating from the ancient Jivaroan people of Amazonian Ecuador.

The samples used for DNA studies of nit cement were found to contain the same concentration of DNA as a tooth, double that of bone remains, and four times that recovered from the blood inside far more recent lice specimens.

Dr Mikkel Winther Pedersen from the GLOBE institute at the University of Copenhagen, and first author, said: “The high amount of DNA yield from these nit cement really came as a surprise to us and it was striking to me that such small amounts could still give us all this information about who these people were, and how the lice related to other lice species but also giving us hints to possible viral diseases.

“There is a hunt out for alternative sources of ancient human DNA and nit cement might be one of those alternatives. I believe that future studies are needed before we really unravel this potential.”

As well as the DNA analysis, scientists are also able to draw conclusions about a person and the conditions in which they lived from the position of the nits on their hair and from the length of the cement tubes. Their health and even cause of death can be indicated by the interpretation of the biology of the nits.

Analysis of the recovered DNA from nit-cement revealed and confirmed:

The sex of each of the human hosts

  • A genetic link between three of the mummies and humans in Amazonia 2,000 years ago. This shows for the first time that the original population of the San Juan province migrated from the land and rainforests of the Amazon in the North of the continent (south of current Venezuela and Colombia).
  • All ancient human remains studied belong to the founding mitochondrial lineages in South America.
  • The earliest direct evidence of Merkel cell Polymavirus was found in the DNA trapped in nit cement from one of the mummies. The virus, discovered in 2008, is shed by healthy human skin and can on rare occasions get into the body and cause skin cancer. The discovery opens up the possibility that head lice could spread the virus.

Analysis of the DNA of the nits, confirmed the same migration pattern for the human lice, from the North Amazonian planes towards Central West Argentina (San Juan Andes)

Morphological analysis of the nits informed that:

  • The mummies were all likely exposed to extremely cold temperatures when they died, which could have been a factor in their deaths. This was indicated by the very small gap between the nits and scalp on the hairs shaft. Lice rely on the host’s head heat to keep their eggs warm and so lay them closer to the scalp in cold environments.
  • Shorter cement tubes on the hair correlated with older and/or less preserved specimens, due to the cement degrading over time.
EUROPE, TURKEY, WORLD

Died 3,600 years ago: the skeleton of a young man who became a victim of a tsunami found in Turkey

Died 3,600 years ago: the skeleton of a young man who became a victim of a tsunami found in Turkey

An international team of researchers has found and excavated the remains of a young man killed approximately 3,600 years ago by a tsunami created by the eruption of Thera—a volcano located on what is now the island of Santorini.

In their paper published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, the group describes how the remains were found and how they were identified as belonging to a victim of the Thera tsunami.

Prior research has shown that the eruption of Thera was a major event—so powerful that it has been blamed for the decline of the Minoan civilization on the island of Crete.

Prior research has also shown that the eruption occurred sometime during the 1500s to 1600s B.C.

Santorini is located in the eastern Mediterranean, north of Crete, between southern Greece and southern Turkey. And while evidence of the ash that fell from the skies in areas all around the eruption site has been plentiful, there has been scant evidence of the tsunami.

This is because tsunamis tend to pull debris and bodies back into the sea, rather than leave covered evidence onshore. And because of that, the remains of the victims of the Thera tsunami have never been found—not one single body—until now.

Died 3,600 years ago: the skeleton of a young man who became a victim of a tsunami found in Turkey
The excavated skeleton of a tsunami victim.

The remains of the young man were found at a dig site known as Çeşme-Bağlararası. It sits along a shoreline on Çeşme Bay in western Turkey.

The dig site has been yielding Late Bronze Age artefacts for several years but it was only recently that the digging uncovered evidence of a tsunami—layers of ash and debris that were prevented from being washed back into the sea by a retaining wall.

In addition to the remains of the young man, the researchers also found the remains of a dog.

The evidence also showed that the area had been struck by several tsunamis related to the Thera eruption. Radiocarbon dating of materials surrounding the remains showed them to be from a time no earlier than 1612 BC.

The researchers also found damaged walls, rubble, sediment and ash, all evidence of multiple tsunamis. They also found evidence of what they describe as misshapen pits—likely created by people looking for victims shortly after the tsunamis struck.

The remains of the young man were found pushed up against a retaining wall, positioned in a way familiar to those who have worked on tsunami search efforts in modern times.

ASIA, INDIA, WORLD

The real utopia: This ancient civilisation thrived without war

The real utopia: This ancient civilisation thrived without war

Many believe the idea of a utopian society is an impossible fantasy. But there may have been one mysterious, ancient group of people that was able to fulfil the dream of life without conflict or rulers.

Remains of the Indus civilisation, which flourished from 2600 to 1900 BC, show no clear signs of weapons, war or inequality. Many believe the idea of a utopian society is an impossible fantasy.

But there may have been one mysterious, ancient group of people that was able to fulfil the dream of life without conflict or rulers.

Many people believe that one mysterious, ancient society may have led a Utopian life. The Indus civilisation flourished from 2600 to 1900 BC, and it has been suggested that they lived in a real, functioning utopia

Remains of the Indus civilisation, which flourished from 2600 to 1900 BC, show no clear signs of weapons, war or inequality.

Robinson points out that archaeologists have uncovered just one depiction of humans fighting, and it is a partly mythical scene showing a female goddess with the horns of a goat and the body of a tiger.

There is also no evidence of horses – an animal that late became common in the region – suggesting they were not use to raid other towns and cities.

In the almost 100 years since the Indus civilisation was discovered, not a single royal palace or grand temple has been uncovered.

Mohenjo-daro – an archaeological site in the province of Sindh, Pakistan – is 400 metres long, and five metres tall, and would have required a huge amount of man power to build

Speaking to Robinson, Neil MacGregor, former director of the British Museum, said: ‘What’s left of these great Indus cities gives us no indication of a society engaged with, or threatened by, war.

‘Is it going too far to see these Indus cities as an early, urban Utopia?’.

While Mr MacGregor sees the utopian theory as credible, others cast doubt on the total absence of war.

Richard Meadow, Director of the Zooarchaeology Laboratory at the Peabody Museum of Harvard University, said: ‘There has never been a society without conflict of greater or lesser scale.’

He argues that until the Indus script is deciphered, we cannot really know whether they lived this idyllic life. Large societies are usually overseen by a central government, yet findings suggest otherwise for the Indus civilisation.

So far, the only sculpture that might depict a ruler is of a bearded man, dubbed the ‘priest-king’ – due to his resemblance to Buddhist monks and Hindu priests.

Many of the structures and buildings, however, would have taken the coordination of tens of thousands of men, which some argue would have required a leader of sorts.

For example, Mohenjo-Daro – an archaeological site in the province of Sindh, Pakistan – required a huge amount of manpower to build. 

The Indus covered more than 1,000 settlements across at least 800,000 square kilometres of what is now Pakistan, India and Afghanistan. Its remains were only discovered in the 1920s, yet it is now regarded as the beginning of Indian civilisation
Andrew Robinson, author of several books about the Indus, believes the key in understanding this civilisation, is cracking their script
The bust of the king or priest found in Mohenjo-Daro is shown on the left. The right image shows the lower town of the Mohenjo Daro archaeological site

While the Indus might sound like they lived a utopian fantasy, the civilisation mysteriously came to an end in around 1900 BC. Robinson believes the key in understanding this civilisation, is deciphering their script.

In an article published in Nature last year, he said: ‘More than 100 attempts at decipherment have been published by professional scholars and others since the 1920s.

‘Now – as a result of increased collaboration between archaeologists, linguists and experts in the digital humanities – it looks possible that the Indus script may yield some of its secrets.’

A board game was discovered from the Indus Valley Civilisation. Along with Ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia, it was one of three early civilisations of the Old World
ASIA, CHINA, WORLD

2,700-year-old leather armour proves technology transfer happened in antiquity

2,700-year-old leather armor proves technology transfer happened in antiquity

Researchers at the University of Zurich have investigated a unique leather scale armour found in the tomb of a horse rider in Northwest China. Design and construction details of the armour indicate that it originated in the Neo-Assyrian Empire between the 6th and 8th centuries BCE before being brought to China.

In 2013, a nearly complete leather scale armour was found in the tomb of an approx. 30-year-old male near the modern-day city of Turfan in Northwest China.

This unprecedented find, which survived the millennia thanks to the area’s extremely arid climate, provided the international team led by Patrick Wertmann from the Institute of Asian and Oriental Studies of the University of Zurich with new insights on the spread of military technology during the first millennium BCE.

2,700-year-old leather armor proves technology transfer happened in antiquity
The ancient leather shed armour could be dated to the period between 786 and 543 BC.

Scale armours protect the vital organs of fighters like an extra layer of the skin without restricting their mobility. The armours were made of small shield-shaped plates arranged in horizontal rows and sewn onto a backing.

Due to the costly materials and laborious manufacturing process, armours were very precious, and wearing them was considered a privilege of the elite. It was rare for them to be buried with the owner. However, the emergence of powerful states with large armies in the ancient world led to the development of less precious but nevertheless effective armours made of leather, bronze or iron for ordinary soldiers.

Standard military equipment for horsemen

The researchers used radiocarbon dating to determine the age of the armour to between 786 and 543 BCE.

It was originally made of about 5,444 smaller scales and 140 larger scales, which together with leather laces and lining weighed between 4 and 5kg.

The armour resembles a waistcoat that protects the front of the torso, hips, sides and the lower back of the body. It can be put on quickly without the help of another person and fits people of different statures.

“The armour was professionally produced in large numbers,” says Patrick Wertmann. With the increasing use of chariots in Middle Eastern warfare, a special armour for horsemen was developed from the 9th century BCE.

These armours later became part of the standardized equipment of military forces of the Neo-Assyrian Empire, which extended from parts of present-day Iraq to Iran, Syria, Turkey and Egypt.

Two armors, distinct units

While there is no direct parallel to the 2,700-year-old armour in the whole of Northwest China, there are some stylistic and functional similarities to a second contemporary armour of unknown origin held by the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York (the Met).

It is possible that the two armours were intended as outfits for distinct units of the same army, i.e. the Yanghai armour for cavalry and the armour in the Met for infantry.

It is unclear whether the Yanghai armour belonged to a foreign soldier working for the Assyrian forces who brought it back home with him, or whether the armour was captured from someone else who had been to the region.

“Even though we can’t trace the exact path of the scale armour from Assyria to Northwest China, the find is one of the rare actual proofs of West-East technology transfer across the Eurasian continent during the early first millennium BCE,” says Wertmann.

AFRICA, EGYPT, WORLD

Egyptian pharaoh’s 3,500-year-old mummy gets unwrapped digitally for the first time

Egyptian pharaoh’s 3,500-year-old mummy gets unwrapped digitally for first time

A CT scan reveals Amenhotep I’s skull

The mummified body of an ancient Egyptian pharaoh has been studied for the first time in millennia after being digitally “unwrapped”.

The mummy of Amenhotep I, who ruled from 1525 to 1504 BC, was found at a site in Deir el-Bahari 140 years ago. But archaeologists have refrained from opening it in order to preserve the exquisite face mask and bandages.

Computed tomography (CT) scans have now revealed previously unknown information about the pharaoh and his burial.

“We got to see the face of the king that has been wrapped for more than 3,000 years,” Dr Sahar Saleem, professor of radiology at Cairo University’s Faculty of Medicine and lead author of the study published in the journal Frontiers in Medicine, told the BBC.

Egyptian pharaoh’s 3,500-year-old mummy gets unwrapped digitally for first time
Dr Saleem says the scans of the body did not show any wounds or disfigurement due to disease

She said the first thing that had struck her was how Amenhotep I‘s facial features resembled those of his father Ahmose I, the first pharaoh of ancient Egypt’s 18th Dynasty, with a narrow chin, a small narrow nose, curly hair, and mildly protruding upper teeth.

The researchers also established that Amenhotep I was approximately 169cm (5ft 6in) tall and that he was about 35 years old when he died.

Dr Saleem said the scans showed he was in the very good physical condition and in good health at the time of his death, with no signs of any wounds or disfigurement due to disease. That suggested he died as a result of an infection or a virus.

The researchers were able to gain insights about the mummification and burial of Amenhotep I, including that he was the first pharaoh to have his forearms folded across his chest and that, unusually, his brain was not removed.

They also concluded that his mummy was “lovingly repaired” by priests of the 21st Dynasty, which ruled about four centuries after this death.

Amenhotep I’s mummy was twice reburied by priests of the 21st Dynasty

The scans showed that the mummy suffered from multiple post-mortem injuries that were likely to have been inflicted by grave robbers.

They also showed that the priests fixed the detached head and neck to the body with a resin-treated linen band, covered a defect in the abdominal wall with a band and placed two amulets beneath, and wrapped the detached left arm to the body.

Dr Saleem said the 30 amulets and “unique” golden girdle with gold beads that Amenhotep I was wearing disproved theories that the priests might have removed his jewellery for use by later pharaohs.

The mummy of Amenhotep I was reburied by the priests in the Deir el-Bahari Royal Cache, a complex of tombs and temples near Luxor, to keep them safe.

EUROPE, ITALY, WORLD

Possible World War II Wreckage Uncovered in Sicily

Possible World War II Wreckage Uncovered in Sicily

An archaeological dig in Sicily has uncovered traces of a lost World War II American heavy bomber shot down in 1943, and possible human remains that could lead to the identification of five airmen whose bodies were never recovered.

Possible World War II Wreckage Uncovered in Sicily
American B-25 bombers flying over southern France in 1943

The six-week dig that ended this week was carried out by a team from the Pentagon’s Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency, which locates and identifies missing U.S. military personnel around the world.

The site near Sciacca was identified in 2017 by investigators using historical records and metal detectors.

This year’s dig uncovered wreckage “consistent only to a B-25 aircraft,” said archaeologist Clive Vella, the scientific director of the expedition, contributing to hopes that any confirmed remains would be linked to the missing crew.

“We owe (their) families accurate answers,” Vella told the Associated Press Thursday.

The North American B-25 Mitchell heavy bomber with a crew of six was one of 52 air losses with missing personnel in the area during WWII, mostly during 1943 as the Allies pushed into southeastern Sicily.

It was shot down as it targeted a camouflaged German airstrip amid olive groves and pastureland on July 10, 1943. A German military report documented the crash of a U.S. aircraft about two kilometres (just over a mile) from the Sciacca airport, Vella said.

One crew member was located immediately and buried in the town’s cemetery. The body was claimed in 1944 by U.S. military officials, but the other five airmen remained missing.

In the intervening decades, the crash site “like most others in the Mediterranean region, was scavenged for metal, the land restored to its original use,” Vella said. “The scars of a crash were mostly gone.”

The evidence, which includes possible human bones as well as potential remnants of the aircraft, has been transported to a laboratory in the U.S. for examination.

Worldwide, there are more than 81,600 missing U.S. military personnel, including 72,350 from World War II, 7,550 from the Korean War and 1,584 from the Vietnam War.

Over 41,000 of the total are presumed lost at sea.