ASIA, S. KOREA, WORLD

Dark secrets of Korea’s famous Wolseong palace complex are unearthed

Dark secrets of Korea’s famous Wolseong palace complex are unearthed

Korea JoongAng Daily reports that a young woman’s remains have been unearthed at the site of Wolseong, a Silla Dynasty (57 B.C.–A.D. 935) palace complex in eastern South Korea.

Remains of an adult female from 1,500 years ago were found in Gyeongju, North Gyeongsang, at the site of a palace complex known as Wolseong. Intact pottery was found next to the head.

Until 2017, the legend of Koreans’ practice of human sacrifice during large-scale construction to pray for the building to stand firm for a long time, remained a horrific myth. However, the archaeological discovery of human remains in Wolseong, a palace complex of the Silla Dynasty (57 B.C.-A.D. 935) located in Gyeongju, North Gyeongsang, turned this myth into fact.  
 
Remains from two people from the fifth century were discovered near the west entrance of Wolseong, throwing the nation into a state of shock. One was of a male and the other was a female. It was the country’s first archaeological evidence that proved that human sacrifice may have been a common practice for Silla people.  
 
Remains of another female adult have been discovered, just 50 centimetres (1.64 feet) above the area where the couple was found in 2017, the Gyeongju National Institute of Cultural Heritage announced on Tuesday.   
 
“Like the remains discovered in 2017, the recently discovered remains of a female adult showed no sign of struggle,” said Jang Ki-myeong, a researcher at Gyeongju National Research Institute of Cultural Heritage.
 
The woman, like the other two bodies, was laid to face the sky and is believed to have been in her 20s when she was sacrificed. The couple found in 2017 were in their 50s.  

An x-ray of the discovered pottery shows a smaller pot inside the larger one

“The first thing we do when we find human remains is figuring out the gender and age,” said Kim Heon-Seok, another researcher from the institute. “Though her remains were also in good condition, her pelvis, which we use to find out the gender, was damaged, so we had to look at other things like her physique and height to figure it out.”
 
Like the two Silla people discovered in 2017, researchers believe the sacrificed humans are probably from lower-ranking class as they were “all quite undersized and had nutrition imbalances as seen from their teeth.”  
 
Intact pottery was also discovered next to her head. Back in 2017, four pieces of pottery were found next to the feet of the sacrifices.  
 
“When we did an x-ray of the pottery, we found a smaller bowl inside the jar. It looks like the larger pottery carried alcohol or some kind of liquid. It was buried together with the body,” said Jang. “This is not a common feature you witness in ancient tombs, but something similar was found at the 2017 site.”  
 
When the remains of the two bodies were discovered, some raised the possibility that their deaths could have been accidental. But, the Cultural Heritage Administration concluded that the evidence — the remains showing no signs of struggle and the discoveries of animal bones and objects used for ancestral rites in the same area — clearly points that the pair died as part of a sacrificial ceremony.
 
“Now with the additional discovery, there’s no denying Silla’s practice of human sacrifice,” said Choi Byung-Heon, professor emeritus of archaeology at Soongsil University, adding that the specific location of where the remains were discovered is also important.  According to Choi, the remains of three Silla people were laid on top of the bottommost layer of the fortress’s west wall, right in front of where the west gate would have been located.  
 
“After finishing off the foundation and moving onto the next step of building the fortress, I guess it was necessary to really harden the ground for the fortress to stand strong. In that process, I think the Silla people held sacrificial rites, giving not only animals but also humans as sacrifices,” said Choi.  
 
Geology Professor Lee Seong-Joo of Kyungpook National University also said there are records of human sacrifices in neighbouring China, by people of the Shang Dynasty (1600-1046 B.C.) when constructing large buildings and these sacrifices were commonly found near entrances.  
 
“Historical records say such rituals were carried out before making the gates or just before engaging in the most important part of the construction process,” Lee said.  
 
“Samguksagi,” or “The Chronicles of the Three States” states that Wolseong was built in year 101 and was used for 800 years as the residence of Silla kings until Silla gave way to the Goryeo Dynasty (918-1392). But by studying the pieces of pottery unearthed from the fortress, researchers predicted the date of its construction to be somewhere between the fourth and fifth centuries.

The remains of adult females were discovered just 50 centimetres (1.64 feet) above the remains found in 2017.

There’s been a clear gap between the two, and debates among researchers. The Gyeongju National Research Institute of Cultural Heritage said it has managed to settle the debate by scientifically proving that the construction period began in the early fourth century and it took about 50 years to complete. 
 
“By analyzing the data collected through a newly adopted technology known as AMS [Accelerator Mass Spectrometer] and cross-checking with the existing data we have, we were able to provide a more reliable construction period,” said Jang from the institute.  
 
Does that mean there are factual errors in Korea’s historical documents?
 
Jang says it’s better to approach the issue as, “Why is it recorded as 101?”  
 
“We should further the research on Wolseong and try to find out what may have resulted in making such a record,” Jang added. “Wolseong is a vast research area not only in terms of its literal size but also academically and historically.”

Wolseong, Korea’s Historic Site No. 16 and a Unesco World Heritage Site, can be literally translated as “moon castle” in English.

The official excavation research of Wolseong began in December 2014. 
 
Literally translated as “moon castle” in English, Wolseong, which is also listed at Unesco World Heritage, measures more than 200,000 square meters and is considered one of the most important historical sites in Korea as it was the seat of the Silla Dynasty. Compared to its historical weight, the Wolseong area had been left largely unexplored.
 
The government previously conducted several different inspections and excavations, which resulted in the discovery of the remains of 20 Silla people, just 10 meters away from the site where the recent remains were discovered, during two separate inspections in 1985 and 1990. Researchers at the Gyeongju National Institute of Cultural Heritage believe the discoveries are of great significance but have yet to conclude if the remains were part of sacrificial rites. 
 
“As for the remains of the 20 people, only three people’s remains were in good condition while the rest were just scattered across a vast area with animal bones,” said Jang. “It is certain that they are related to Wolseong but we need to conduct more research to find out if they were human sacrifices.”
 
Researchers believe they may discover more human remains in Wolseong, but more importantly, “so much more about the unknown 1,000 years of Silla,” said Jang.  
 
“We’ve discovered the method of building Wolseong, which mainly used soil,” said Ahn So-Yeon, a researcher from the institute. “We’ve discovered how Silla people mixed stones, pieces of wood, seeds of fruits and grains with soil to make the fortress stronger.”  
 
Professor Lee from Kyungpook National University said Silla had built the strongest and highest fortress compared to Goguryeo and Baekje.  
 
“The fundamental power of unification can also be found in the fortress. A more specific time period and the revealed methodology are significant to the researchers of this field,” Lee said.  

ENGLAND, EUROPE, WORLD

A coffin that was found in a golf course pond contains a 4,000-year-old man buried with an axe

A coffin that was found in a golf course pond contains a 4,000-year-old man buried with an axe

Archaeologists in England have analyzed a half-ton coffin dating to the early Bronze Age that was found under a golf course in Lincolnshire county. The coffin, cut from a single oak tree and thought to be about 4,000 years old, contained human remains, a hafted axe, and a bed of plant material meant to cushion the body in its eternal slumber.

A coffin that was found in a golf course pond contains a 4,000-year-old man buried with an axe
Ian Panter, the head of conservation at the York Archaeological Trust, with the coffin.

Maintenance workers discovered the burial in July 2019 while tending to a water hazard at the Tetney Golf Club in Grimsby. The coffin was under a gravel mound, a special situation that indicates a certain amount of community involvement in the burial.

As is standard for objects of historical significance found in England and Wales, the find was reported to the Portable Antiquities Scheme, which processes such reports and ensures that the objects are properly handed.

Objects made of old wood (think shipwrecks, coffins, and even ship burials) are prone to disintegration when they are removed from water or soil after millennia and exposed to sunlight and air.

To prevent that from happening to the find, the excavated objects were immediately put in bags filled with groundwater, and the coffin was put in cold storage for a year. Afterwards, the coffin was moved to the York Archaeological Trust, where conservators have been working on it and the associated artefacts, including an axe.

Ian Panter works on the 4,000-year-old oak coffin.

“The man buried at Tetney lived in a very different world to ours but like ours, it was a changing environment, rising sea levels and coastal flooding ultimately covered his grave and burial mound in a deep layer of silt that aided its preservation,” said Tim Allen, a Sheffield-based archaeologist for Historic England, in a York Archaeological Trust press release.

An interesting component of the work was the environmental analysis of the plant bedding. Hugh Willmott, an archaeologist at the University of Sheffield who participated in the excavations, said on Twitter that moss, yew or juniper, hazelnuts, and leaf buds were found in the coffin.

The types of floral remains indicated that the burial likely took place toward the end of spring some four millennia ago when a few woolly mammoths still survived. Willmott said in an email to Gizmodo that the hazelnuts may have been a food offering, while the moss could have been a sort of bed for the deceased.

Not much is currently known about the human remains, though the archaeological team suspects it was an individual of some social importance. Willmott said that initial attempts to extract DNA have been unsuccessful.

Dating the coffin is still ongoing—the archaeologists need to do a combination of dendrochronology and radiocarbon dating, which they can cross-reference to find out the year the tree was felled, give or take a couple of years.

The long-shafted axe found in the coffin has a small head.

A shockingly well-preserved axe was found with the person; the handle looks like it could have been varnished yesterday. The axe head is a combination of stone and fossilized coral.

Based on the object’s shape and size—the axe head is less than 4 inches across—the team believes it was a symbol of authority rather than a practical tool. There are very few of such axes known in Britain, perhaps only 12, according to York Archaeological Trust, making this one of the most eye-catching elements of the discovery.

The wooden coffin joins some 65-odd objects as it found around England. Preservationists said in the same release that the axe should be fully preserved within the year, but the coffin will take at least two years to fully treat, due to the object’s size.

This research comes on the heels of the University of Sheffield’s decision to close its archaeology department, as reported by the BBC in July, and the University of Worcester announcing the closure of its archaeology department, also reported by the BBC.

The Campaign to Save British Archaeology was launched in response to the closures. This trend is a troubling one. Had the Sheffield archaeological team not been close by when the Bronze Age coffin was unearthed, the cultural heritage could’ve quickly deteriorated.

Thanks to the quick thinking of the nearby archaeologists, the objects are being preserved and will be displayed at The Collection Museum in Lincolnshire.

EUROPE, WORLD

Discovery of “unique” burial containing 140 pieces of amber jewellery

Discovery of “unique” burial containing 140 pieces of amber jewellery

A team of archaeologists from Petrozavodsk State University in Russia have unearthed the burial site of a Copper Age “amber man” who was painted with ocher upon his death and laid to rest with more than 100 pieces of jewellery.

An archaeologist at the burial site.

The expedition took place on the western shore of Lake Onega, the second-largest lake in Europe, where archaeologist Alexander Zhulnikov led a team of students on the dig, according to a press release issued by the university.

The students discovered what a research paper describes as a “unique burial” surrounded by amber jewellery and flint objects.

Amber buttons were discovered at the burial site.

Inside the narrow chamber, the man was painted with ocher, a red pigment often used to mark a grave so it wouldn’t be disturbed, and surrounded by about 140 pieces of amber jewellery from the Baltic region.

The man buried in the chamber was almost certainly of high social standing and may have been a trader himself from the Eastern Baltic States.

The objects included pendants, discs, and amber buttons “arranged in rows face down” and sewn onto a covering made of leather and placed over the body. Another two tiers of amber buttons were found along the edges of the small grave.

Discovery of “unique” burial containing 140 pieces of amber jewellery
Amber buttons were discovered at the burial site.

The flint chips found are likely from tools placed over the body and “are clearly so-called votive items—offerings apparently symbolizing whole knives and arrowheads,” researchers said in their paper.

The unique aspect of this particular burial, they said, is that it is an individual grave. Other burials dating to the Mesolithic era and found in the forest belt of Europe are large cemeteries.

Burials with such a large number of jewels were previously unheard of in this area of Karelia, nor have they been uncovered in nearby northwestern regions.

The burial site.

Flint deposits are also unknown in the region, indicating that ancient people must have obtained them through the exchange.

In a statement, Zhulnikov said the discovery “testifies to the strong ties of the ancient population of Karelia with the tribes that lived on the southern coast of the Baltic Sea” and to the “formation of the so-called ‘prestigious’ primitive economy” among those living in Northern Europe, where high-value objects like jewellery and tools helped create and maintain social hierarchies.

ENGLAND, EUROPE, WORLD

‘Anglo-Saxon church’ in Stoke Mandeville discovered by HS2 archaeologists

‘Anglo-Saxon church’ in Stoke Mandeville discovered by HS2 archaeologists

Archaeologists working on the HS2 project has discovered evidence of an Anglo-Saxon church, located at St Mary’s Old Church in Stoke Mandeville, England.

Excavations were conducted by LP-Archaeology in conjunction with Fusion-JV, to examine a Norman church that was built in AD 1080 and an associated churchyard.

Beneath the Norman levels, the team discovered flint walls forming a square structure, enclosed by a circular boundary and burials. The foundations of the structure are around 1 metre in width and have similarities to the Saxon Church in Barton-upon-Humber, St Peter’s.

'Anglo-Saxon church' in Stoke Mandeville discovered by HS2 archaeologists
Beneath the Norman levels, the team discovered flint walls forming a square structure, enclosed by a circular boundary and burials.

Within the foundations is evidence of Roman roof tiles, suggesting that the Saxons constructed the early church using recycled Roman material from a nearby Roman settlement.

Dr Rachel Wood from Fusion JV said: “The work undertaken at Old St Mary’s is a unique archaeological opportunity to excavate a medieval parish church with over 900 years of meaning to the local community.

It also gives us the opportunity to learn more about the community that used the church and to understand the lives they lived.

Woods added: “To have so much of it remaining, including the walls and even some flooring, will provide a great deal of information about the site prior to the construction of the Norman church in AD 1080.

The discovery of this pre-Norman, possible Saxon Church is a once career opportunity for archaeologists and will provide a much greater understanding of the history of Stoke Mandeville.

Helen Wass, HS2’s Head of Heritage, said: “Once again, our vast archaeology programme has given us the ability to reveal more about the history of Britain.

The discovery of a pre-Norman church in Stoke Mandeville allows us to build a clearer picture of what the landscape of Buckinghamshire would have been like over 1000 years ago.

EUROPE, TURKEY, WORLD

Study Estimates Life Expectancy in Bronze Age Turkey is 35 to 40 Years

Study Estimates Life Expectancy in Bronze Age Turkey is 35 to 40 Years

Analysis of the remains of more than 40 people suggests that 35 to 40 years of age was the average life span in central Anatolia some 5,000 years ago, according to a Hurriyet Daily News report. 

Archaeological excavations at the Küllüoba Mound, which dates back to the first Bronze Age in the Seyitgazi district of the Central Anatolian province of Eskişehir, have unearthed more than 40 burial sites, including women and children, and research has found that people lived there an average life of 40 years 5,000 years ago.

The mound is believed to be the first urbanization structure of 5,000 years ago in Anatolia.

Hacettepe University Anthropology Department lecturer Professor Yılmaz Selim Erdal said the examinations on the skeletons revealed that people lived to 40 years of age 5,000 years ago.

“The life expectancy of the Early Bronze Age and its contemporaries is around 35-40 years. Infant and child mortality is very high. The limited food sources and the infectious diseases were important factors,” he added.

Excavations in Küllüoba were initiated in 1996. In the past, objects revealing the cultural characteristics of the Early Bronze Age, as well as animal bones and settlements, were found in the excavation area. During the excavations, sarcophaguses and potteries dating back to 3,000 B.C. were found.

A team of 35 faculty members and students from Batman and Hacettepe universities, led by Bilecik Şeyh Edebali University, that have been carrying out works at the Küllüoba Mound have discovered a new cemetery area.

Believed to date back 5,000 years, some 40 tombs were unearthed in the area. Inside the tombs were the skeletons of children with their knees pulled to the abdomen, which is often referred to as the position in the mother’s womb. Seals, hair rings and jewelry, known as gifts to the dead, were also found in the tombs.

Study Estimates Life Expectancy in Bronze Age Turkey is 35 to 40 Years

Erdal said that they saw the traces of the transition from the Late Chalcolithic to the Early Bronze Age in great detail during the excavations in Küllüoba, which means a historical transition.

Stating that different types of tombs were found in the mound, Erdal said, “The most important element we see here is an area where human communities from different regions coexist and there is a variety of burial traditions due to the coexistence of different cultures, perhaps different ethnic groups. We can say that it is the only settlement where different burials are seen all together.”

People died at 40

Stating that the skeletons provided important data on the historical transition, Erdal explained that the skeletons dating back to the 3rd millennium B.C. showed that people lived only 40 years of age at that time, and then lost their lives.

Explaining that the significant part of the skeletons were children and women, Erdal said, “Most of the skeletons are of infants, children and young individuals. Of course, if we consider that the life expectancy of the people of this period was extremely limited, that is, they lived an average of 35-40 years, we can actually say how painful this transformation was. Wars and fights were also effective in this.

The life expectancy of the Early Bronze Age and its contemporaries is around 35-40 years. People died at a very young age. Infant and child mortality was very high. The limited food resources and infectious diseases were also factors, too.”

A Bilecik Şeyh Edebali University academic and the head of the excavations, Murat Türkteki said that during the Küllüoba excavations, the first urbanization structure in Anatolia 5,000 years ago was unearthed.

Stating that this year’s works, mostly structures and tombs dating back to 3,000 B.C. were unearthed, he said, “We work in two areas. There was an important breaking point in Anatolia 5,000 years ago, especially in terms of the beginning of urbanization. Küllüoba also gives us important information on this subject.

The excavations this year help us to understand the changes at this stage; we see that the boundaries are wider and larger. We started working in the cemetery area in previous years.

We reached more than 40 graves. Especially the fact that different types of tombs are seen together makes Küllüoba different and special in this sense.

The skeletons were sent to Hacettepe University Ancient DNA Laboratory for examination. It will provide data such as diseases, causes of death and living conditions. Ancient DNA studies will reveal kinship relationships more clearly.”

EUROPE, ITALY, WORLD

A tall story! Famous artist Michelangelo was surprisingly SHORT, measuring just 5ft 3in

A tall story! Famous artist Michelangelo was surprisingly SHORT, measuring just 5ft 3in

As an artist, the legendary Michelangelo Buonarroti left behind some big shoes to fill. But in real life, the great painter’s shoes weren’t big at all — and neither was Michelangelo. 

Italian researchers recently examined three shoes that were found in Michelangelo’s home after his death and are thought to have belonged to the Renaissance artist: a pair of leather shoes and a single leather slipper (the companion was stolen in 1873), in the collection of the Casa Buonarroti Museum in Florence, Italy.

The researchers’ analysis is the first to estimate the physical characteristics of the artist based on measurements of personal objects such as footwear, and they found that Michelangelo, while still an artistic giant, stood no more than 5 feet 2 inches (1.6 meters) tall.

While this is relatively short for a European adult man by today’s standards, at the time Michelangelo was alive (1475 to 1564) that height would not have been unusual, said scientists with the Forensic Anthropology, Paleopathology and Bioarchaeology Research Center (FAPAB) in Avola, Italy.

FAPAB researchers Francesco Galassi, a paleopathologist, and Elena Varotto, a forensic anthropologist, measured the shoes and then calculated the wearer’s foot dimensions and height, and their results aligned with a description of Michelangelo by the 16th-century artist and writer Giorgio Vasari.

Vasari wrote that Michelangelo was “broad in the shoulders” but the rest of his body was “somewhat slender in proportion” and his stature was average, according to the study.

The shoes were all similar in size, suggesting that both pairs (when the slipper pair was complete) were worn by the same person.

However, even though the shoes have long been attributed to Michelangelo, it’s also possible that they belonged to another man in the artist’s household, such as a family member or one of Michelangelo’s descendants, the scientists wrote. 

Michelangelo may have been in poor health toward the end of his life, and likely had gout and lead poisoning as well as severe arthritis in his hands, according to clues found in Michelangelo’s own writings and in painted portraits of the artist, Live Science previously reported.

A circa 1540 portrait of Michelangelo by Italian painter Jacopino del Conte (1513–1598). Not surprisingly, the portrait doesn’t focus on Michelangelo’s height but on his face and hand instead.

As Michelangelo’s remains have never been exhumed and analyzed, it’s difficult for scientists to be certain about the artist’s condition when he died at the age of 88.

However, studies such as this can help to fill in some of the physical details about Michelangelo toward the end of his lifetime, the authors reported.

The findings were published in the September 2021 issue of the journal Anthropologie.

DENMARK, EUROPE, WORLD

Huge and exquisite gold hoard from Iron Age discovered in Denmark

Huge and exquisite gold hoard from Iron Age discovered in Denmark

Huge and exquisite gold hoard from Iron Age discovered in Denmark
The treasure consisted of a special type of medallion called bracteate and heavy Roman gold coins that had been turned into jewellery.

A huge gold treasure of almost 1 kilogram consisting of medallions the size of small saucers and Roman coins made into jewellery, has now seen the light of day. Amateur archaeologist Ole Ginnerup Schytz had just acquired a metal detector and was allowed to walk in the field with his old classmate. After a few hours, the detector buzzed, and then Danish history was a marked gold find richer.

“It really is a unique find. It’s something you don’t see very often, maybe every 50 years, “exclaims Mads Ravn, head of research at the Vejlemuseerne. Two days before Christmas Eve, Mads Ravn received an SMS from Ole Ginnerup Schytz, who sent a picture of the unique gold find, and asked if it was anything special?

“I replied immediately that: ‘I probably think it is,’ remembers Mads Ravn.  The find was made on a field 8 kilometres from Jelling. So far, the exact location of the find is kept secret so that it is not run over by amateur archaeologists looking for gold. 

“There is no more gold,” emphasizes Mads Ravn. 

Since it was found in the winter of 2020, the gold treasure has been studied by researchers at the Vejlemuseerne and the Nationalmuseet

Large medallions are completely unique

The treasure has since been examined and is dated to have been buried in the 500s. Especially the medallions as large as small saucers stand out in the eyes. These are some of the largest found in Denmark. 

“The size is spectacular because they are usually the size of a 5 kroner,” says Mads Kähler Holst, who is an adjunct professor of archaeology at Aarhus University and who has not been involved in the gold discovery. 

“But the pictorial world and the inscription on them are also really interesting,” he adds. 

The medallions are decorated and are known as a special type of medallions called bracteate. It was a kind of medallion that was given away to alliance partners, explains Lisbeth Imer, museum inspector and senior researcher at the National Museum:

“It was a kind of piece of jewellery that you wore around your neck, and in that way, you could show who you were in alliance with,” explains Lisbeth Imer, who researches runes.

The so-called bracteates are some of the largest that have been found in Denmark.

Early signs of Norse mythology

The medallions are just decorated with runic inscriptions and motifs that possibly refer to the rulers and nobles of the time, which is very common. One of the finds stands out, however, as it brings to mind Nordic mythology.  On the medallion is printed a man’s head with a braid and some runes. Under the head is seen a horse and in front of a bird with which the man communicates. There is a runic inscription between the horse’s muzzle and forelegs, which according to the preliminary interpretations says ‘houaʀ’; ‘the tall’. 

‘The High’ may refer to the ruler who abolished the find but is also in later mythological contexts associated with the god Odin. The high is one of the names by which Odin is later known. But typically we only see it many hundreds of years later. We know it, among other things, from the Icelandic Edda poems, which perhaps in oral form date back to the 9th century, “says Lisbeth Imer.

“It may be a sign that Nordic mythology and the way of thinking in the later Viking Age was more widespread than we already thought around the year 500, which is 300 years before the Viking Age,” adds Mads Ravn from Vejlemuseerne.  

The man with the beautiful braids here is believed to be an Odin. If this is true, it is one of the earliest signs of Norse mythology in Denmark.

Insanely heavy Roman coins

In addition to the medallions, the treasure also consists of a handful of Roman coins that have been turned into jewellery. The coins are insanely valuable (expression of how large a part of a metal mixture is made up of a precious metal, ed.). They are wildly heavy and have almost 24 carats. These are some that you have picked up in Rome or served in the Roman army, “says Mads Ravn. 

It is not uncommon for Roman gold at that time to end up in dark northern Europe. It is popularly said that the downfall of the Roman Empire began around the year 395. Since then, the city was plundered by Germans. 

“We are back at the time of the migration. The Roman Empire has fallen and they are pumping huge amounts of gold into the rest of Europe. Much of that gold ends up in Scandinavia, “says Mads Kähler Holst and continues:

‘The great change of power in Europe between Romans and Germans took place at that time. As a result of these upheavals, a new elite emerges in the 5th century. That is the story that the find is based on, “he explains. The gold treasure is so valuable that it has no doubt been dug down by a powerful great man or warlord at that time. But scientists do not yet know who the powerful Iron Age persona was.  

A Roman coin transformed into a jewel. The fascinating journey of gold tells us about a European continent that was already closely connected by trade and war in the Iron Age.

The find may be connected to the Jelling Kings

This week, however, they got a little wiser. Although the treasure was found last winter, archaeologists from the Vejlemuseerne have only had the opportunity to excavate the site this summer. In this connection, they have now found out that the treasure has been buried in a longhouse, located in a village consisting of 3-4 farms, as it looks so far. 

That the treasure was found in a house is interesting for several reasons. This indicates that the rich and powerful lord has been established in the area and is not only driven past the area, which is only 8 kilometres from Jelling. 

Jelling is known as a centre of power in the Viking Age, which broke through in the 10th century when first Gorm the Old ruled over Jutland, and Harald Bluetooth later raised the Jelling stones and ‘made the Danes Christian’.

However, we know very little about what the area looked like before that time. Large royal seats such as Lejre and Uppsala have roots from around the 5th century. But we do not know Jelling’s history from before the 10th century very well, «says Mads Kähler Holst.

Jelling was a definite centre of power in Viking-era Northern Europe. Today it is a station town in South Jutland with 3,607 inhabitants.

Thus, there is a significant part of the story of how Denmark came to be, which we do not quite understand yet. Here, the new gold treasure may play a role. It raises a discussion about whether the gold find here has a connection to the Jelling kings from the 10th century, points out Mads Kähler Holst. He emphasizes, however, that there is still a large black hole of 400 years from the year 500 to the 900s, but it is likely that there has already been a local power foundation for centuries before Jelling really became a central part of the map of Denmark.

We have enough knowledge to conclude that there has lived an important little king or warlord who has been involved in the struggle for a united Denmark, long before we thought. The discovery of the enormous amount of gold shows that the site has been a centre of power in the late Iron Age, “emphasizes Mads Ravn.  Several other small villages have also been found in the area around Jelling from that time, says the head of research. 

The gold treasure will be exhibited next year

Mads Ravn and his colleagues from the Vejlemuseerne obviously want to dig further in the secret place near Jelling, so they can find out more about who was behind the burial of such a precious treasure.  The initial analyzes from the area show that the tax was buried, in roughly the same period as the houses were used. However, archaeologists have planned to make carbon-14 datings at the site so they can get even more accurate knowledge of when the houses are from.

However, the excavation work is over, as there is a lack of time and funds to continue digging in the area, Mads Ravn announces. If you have become curious about the new gold find, you can be happy that the Vejlemuseerne is exhibiting the treasure in a large Viking exhibition that opens on 3 February 2022.  

The exhibition tells the story of Harald Blåtand’s eastern connections and of the early state formation that created the foundation for the Jelling dynasty. The Viking exhibition is made in collaboration with the Moesgaard Museum, which also has an exhibition that tells about other aspects of the Vikings’ travels to the east.

AUSTRALIA, WORLD

Did the Ancient Egyptians reach Australia? Archaeologists claim a MAN-MADE structure was built under this mountain 5,000 years ago

Did the Ancient Egyptians reach Australia? Archaeologists claim a MAN-MADE structure was built under this mountain 5,000 years ago

An archaeologist believes that there’s a MASSIVE 900-meter tall pyramid hidden in plain sight beneath thick layers of vegetation and soil in Australia. The structure is believed to date back some 5,000 years.

Pyramids are scattered all across the globe. No matter where we look, ancient cultures built marvellous ancient structures across the planet, with the most notorious monument being the Great Pyramid of Giza, an ancient wonder of engineering still standing today after thousands of years.

Now, a group of amateur archaeologists from Australia claims that before Australia was visited by the Europeans—in fact, thousands of years before that, I might add—the ancient Egyptians visited the mainland of Australia and even built Pyramids there.

According to a set of Hieroglyphs found in Gosford, there are TWO pyramids in Australia – one at Gympie (pictured) here, which has been demolished, and another one which still stands today.

As outrageous as this may sound to many, according to the group of researchers, more than 5000 years after ancient Egyptians made their way to Australia, it is believed that a Pyramid built under a mountain in North Queensland has been discovered.

According to a set of Hieroglyphs found in Gosford, there are TWO pyramids in Australia – one at Gympie (pictured) here, which has been demolished, and another one which still stands today. The group claims how ‘Walsh’s Pyramid’, located some 30 minutes west of the popular Australian coastal city, stands a staggering 922 meters in height.

The Pyramid is said to be the final resting place of Egyptian Royal Lord Nefer-ti-ru, according to the group. And exactly where most people see only a massive Pyramid-shaped hill is where the vivid group of archaeologists sees more than what initially meets the eye.

Evidence of their claims is supported by the curious “Gosford Glyphs,” a set of strange carvings that according to many researchers are Egyptian in nature.

Located in the vicinity of Sydney, the intricate carvings are believed to be thousands of years old and were allegedly carved by ancient Egyptian sailors when they discovered the Australian continent, some 5,000 years ago.

These are the Gosford Glyphs.

These are the Gosford Glyphs.

These curious sets of hieroglyphs are referred to as the Kariong Hieroglyphs due to the fact they are located in the Brisbane Water National Park, Kariong, and also called the Gosford Glyphs due to the nearby community of Gosford can be seen in New South Wales.

But countless controversies surround the alleged hieroglyphs. Numerous archaeologists have made it clear that the Gosford Glyphs are nothing more than a modern forgery, and how it’s IMPOSSIBLE that the ancient Egyptians made their way to Australia and carved the curious set of symbols on the side of a massive rock, let alone build pyramids.

As we wrote previously, is said that amateur archaeologist Ray Johnson supposedly translated the alleged glyphs for the Museum of Antiquities in Cairo and was successful in documenting and translating the two facing walls of Egyptian characters.

The translation of the Gosford Glyphs supposedly records the story of a tragic saga of ancient Egyptian explorers that shipwrecked in a strange and hostile land—now known as Australia.

Anyway, returning back to the Pyramid in Australia, Ray Johnson is convinced how the enigmatic set of hieroglyphs at Gosford undoubtedly point how Lord Nefer-ti-ru, a former member of the ancient Egyptian Royal Family is buried at the site. Furthermore, Johnson is convinced how the Gosford Glyphs tell the story of how ancient Egyptian sailors built TWO Pyramids in Australia, one of which was said to be found at Gympie, in central Queensland.

This is the alleged Pyramid in Australia, rising a staggering 900 meters in the air. The Pyramid (pictured), is located outside Cairns in north Queensland.

This is the alleged Pyramid in Australia, rising a staggering 900 meters in the air. The Pyramid (pictured), is located outside Cairns in north Queensland. It was eventually demolished leaving the whereabouts of the other Pyramid an enigma all until now.

Mr Johnson believes that the second Pyramid is in fact located beneath thick layers of soil, hidden away from sight, remaining unperceived for thousands of years. Despite the fact that the “hieroglyphs” point to the existence of a Pyramid located in the Area, the site in question—located at the Wooroonooran National Park—has never been researched.

This is mostly due to the fact that experts consider the location where Johnson believes the Pyramid is located a Natural granite peak. However, archaeologists are convinced that this pyramid could be similar to the one discovered buried beneath thick layers of soil and vegetation in Visoko, Bosnia and Herzegovina.

However, mainstream scholars reject the notion there’s a Pyramid in Australia—let alone two—and that the mountain where said structure is supposedly located, only ‘appears to be the shape of a pyramidal structure’.

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