In Oman’s Al Sharqiyah Governorate archaeologists found an Iron Age settlement and 45 tombs.
In collaboration with Germany’s Heidelberg University, the Oman Ministry of Heritage and Culture founded a project to study the Iron Age settlements in North Al Sharqiyah. The ministry has said that the tombs are “very well maintained” and cover an area of 50-80 square metre area.
These tombstones are about 700 meters from a settlement that the team believes to have been the home of people who worked in copper mining since the early Iron Age.
A new archaeological site containing a burial consisting of 45 tombs and a settlement dating back to the beginning of the Iron Age has been discovered in North Al Sharqiyah
Copper mining was thought to take place during the Iron Age and continued until the early Islamic era.
“It is the most preserved sites of its components, where stone buildings and tombs resembling huts are retained by nature for more than 3,000 years, and reflect the method of burial,” the Ministry of Heritage and Culture said.
“It features the social status of the deceased through the length of the tomb and archaeological artefacts buried with him.”
Al Sharqiyah site is one of many archaeological finds discovered in Oman over the past decade. Many were discovered by a team from the archaeology department at Sultan Qaboos University, which works with the Ministry of Heritage and Culture to find, protect and preserve sites of interest.
Oman’s ancient sites have also been recognised by the UN. In 1988, Bat, Al Khutm and Al Ayn were certified as World Heritage Sites.
The three ancient settlements in Al Dhahira Governorate of north-west Oman are the most complete of their kind from the Iron Age.
In January 2018, the largest trove of Iron Age weapons in the region was discovered at Mudhmar East. It contained more than 3,000 arrows, daggers and axes.
Possible 1,300-Year-Old Chess Piece from Jordan Identified
The oldest piece of chess ever discovered was a carved rock found in 1991 by a Canadian scientist and archeologist.
In an abstract published in October, the University of Victoria professor John Oleson announced that a piece of carved sandstone that was found in southern Jordan at Humayma may be an ancient rook — a castle-shaped piece in the game.
The roughly 1,300-year-old stone is squat and rectangular, with “horn-like projections”.
A small, rectangular stone (right), previously excavated at the Jordanian site of Humayma (shown at left), maybe the oldest known chess piece, a rook dating to around 1,300 years ago.
Although Oleson mentions it does resemble other artifacts, such as a Nabataean butyl, which is an altar made out of a block of stone to evoke the gods of the ancient Arab nation, when he compared the rock carving to other early chess pieces, the parallels were “far more convincing.”
According to Oleson, the object has the same abstract shape that other early Islamic chess pieces had.
References to chess-playing can be found in Islamic texts as early as the seventh century AD, Oleson said, and the game was “very popular.”
The piece Oleson found is “nearly identical” to abstract rook pieces dating from later centuries that were found near or in Jordan.
“Since the Humayma object was found in a seventh-century context, if the identification as a chess piece is correct, it would be the earliest known physical example for the simplified, abstract design,” said Oleson, “and possibly the earliest known example of a chess piece altogether.”
The history of chess dates back around 1,500 years and is thought to have originated in India, although the names and rules have changed several times over the centuries.
Oleson theorized that the spread of chess occurred westward from India along merchant and diplomat routes and that it is “no surprise that early evidence for it should be found at a site on the busy Via Nova Traiana,” which is a Roman road that served as an important trading route.
A significant chunk of Oleson’s work has taken place in or around the Humayma site.
Between 1991 and 2000, he and his team excavated the settlement center over the course of seven field sessions.
In the process, they excavated two farmhouses, a Roman fort, four Byzantine churches, and “a Nabataean campground and three Nabataean and Late Roman houses.”
Amazing World’s Largest Mosaic Piece Made By 13 Different Ancient Civilizations discovered At Museum Hotel Antakya in Turkey.
Normally, modern architecture and archaeology do not go hand in hand. Nevertheless, the two mixed in an unprecedented way when ancient ruins were found beneath what was to become Turkey’s Antakya Museum Hotel.
The Venture started when Turkish entrepreneur Necmi Asfuroğlu set about constructing a luxurious hotel in downtown Antioch on nearly 200,000 square feet of land.
His south-eastern land is rooted in history and is located close to St. Peter’s church, the iconic pilgrimage site.
As his team started digging for a cellar, a number of archeological remains were discovered below the site dating back to the 3rd century B.C. and included traces from 13 different civilizations.
Asfuroğlu still wanted to build his hotel but could not compromise the ruins he had discovered, so he brought in Emre Arolat Architecture (EAA) and the firm’s New York director, Özge Ertoptamış.
Through the glass reveals in the hotel lobby, visitors can glimpse rubbled walls and an ancient streambed in addition to the mosaics.
“We were excited by the opportunity to do something that has never been done before,” said Ertoptamış. “But we also had our doubts whether something could actually be done around the exquisite findings.”
Site after the archaeological excavation
EAA’s outlook changed when the firm discovered an area within the site where there were no ruins. That’s because it was the former location of the Parmenius Creek riverbed.
“That is the point where we had the idea, that we could build something, not in it, but above it, by supporting the structure on minimal points where there are no ruins,” said Ertoptamış.
EAA now had a plan to marry two different typologies — a public museum where archaeological preservation could continue and a private hotel.
Ertoptamış explained, however, the design was constantly evolving and took about three years. She told BBC about an incredible discovery when they were digging for a well, which forced her team to rework their calculations.
The excavations site
“There are 66 columns that the building is rising on, and each point is calculated to be on a spot with no ruins, and there are wells to support each of the 66 pillars that are dug underground by hand,” said Ertoptamış.
“At one point, however, there was a discovery of a great mosaic in a location where we were going to place a column.”
The mosaic they found dates all the way back to the second century A.D. and includes exquisite panels with a myriad of mythological figures.
Well and discovery of the mosaic.
“We had to redo all of our calculations and find a new place for the pillar, but it was worth it because it is one of the most exquisite pieces in the collection,” said Ertoptamış.
Ertoptamış explained that while her team ran into challenges, the project and history inspired her.
“The building is a product of today, a product of the present, but within it, you are always living together with history in an unprecedented way, and that is the most challenging and rewarding part of this project,” said Ertoptamış.
The volunteer tested dirt excavated in 2013 from beneath Robinson’s Arch, at the foundations of the western wall, discovered a seal with a Hebrew name, 2,600 years old.
A 2,600-year-old seal bearing the Hebrew name and title “Adenyahu Asher Al Habayit” discovered in dirt excavated in 2013 at the Western Wall in Jerusalem.
The seal is inscribed with the name of an individual with the most prominent role in the king’s court in the kingdom of Judea.
The Bulla (seal), which was used to sign documents, bears the Hebrew name and title: “Adenyahu Asher Al Habayit” which literally translates as “Adenyahu by Appointment of the House”- a term used throughout the Bible to describe the most senior minister serving under a kings of Judea or Israel.
According to archaeologist Eli Shukron, who conducted the initial excavations on behalf of the Israel Antiquities Authority just north of the City of David at the Foundation Stones of the Western Wall: “This is the first time this kind of archaeological discovery has been made in Jerusalem.
A view of the City of David and the Mount of Olives in Jerusalem.
The Biblical title “Asher Al Habayit” was the highest-ranking ministerial position beneath the king during reigns of the Kings of Judea and Israel, it is undoubtedly of great significance.”
“This tiny bulla has immense meaning to billions of people worldwide. The personal signet of a senior official to a Biblical King from the First Temple Period.
This is another link in the long chain of Jewish history in Jerusalem that is being uncovered and preserved at the City of David on a daily basis.” Said Doron Spielman, Vice-President of the City of David Foundation which operates the site in which the bulla was discovered and the Archeological Experience where it was uncovered.
The bulla is approximately one-centimeter-wide, and according to the type of writing that appears on it, it dates to the seventh century BCE – the period of the Kingdom of Judea. The term “Asher Al Habayit” describes the most senior role in the royal hierarchy in the kingdom of Judah and Israel and it appears for the first time on the list of ministers of Solomon.
This role is mentioned in the Bible in reference to a number of figures that have a considerable influence in the kingdom and it describes a senior minister who was very close to the king.
For example, “Abdihu Asher Al Habayit,” in the Book of Kings I, is mentioned as having served in that role in the Kingdom of Israel, under the reign of King Ahab during times of Elijah the Prophet.
As part of his tenure, Abedihu acted against Isabel in administering the kingdom and even saved a hundred of the prophets of the Lord after hiding them in a cave. Also in this role in the Kingdom of Judea during the reign of King Hezekiah was “Elyakim son of Partiah Asher Al Habayit”.
According to the book of Isaiah, Elyakim negotiated with Rabshka, one of the ministers of King Sennacherib King of Assyria, who threatened to conquer Jerusalem. The name Adenayahu that appears on the bulla appears throughout the Bible:
This name belonged to one of King David’s sons as mentioned in the Book of Kings. Another individual with that name is mentioned as one of the Levites in the days of Jehoshaphat. Lastly, in the days of Nehemiah, he is mentioned as one of the “Heads of, the people…(Nehemiah, 9:16).
It should be noted that some 150 years ago, French archeologist Charles Clermont-Ganneau discovered a burial cave with the inscription: “Tomb of …..yahu Asher Al Habayit.”
The beginning of the name had been erased, but the burial site, on the outskirts of the City of David was also dated to the seventh century BCE, much like the recent bulla.
Although discovered by Clermont-Ganneau, the inscription was only deciphered by Prof. Nachman Avigad some eighty years later.
The bulla was covered in dirt that was excavated in 2013, until three weeks ago, when it was uncovered as part of the City of David’s volunteer Archeological Experience, by an Israeli teenager named Batya Howen, who described the moments of the discovery: “I began sifting through the bucket of dirt by washing it under a stream of water, and suddenly I recognized a small piece of black colored piece of metal.
To hold such a significant find from 2600 years ago, from the time of the Kingdom of Judah, is an amazing thing.”
The bullae stamps – were small pieces of tin used in ancient times to sign documents, and were meant to keep the letters closed en route to their destination.
Rogue Metal Detectorists Stole $3.6 Million Treasure
During the years, metal detectorists make numerous remarkable finds in Britain, with a large crowd of 2,600 coins discovered a few months ago.
Yet archeological discoveries by detectorists are subject to stringent rules. Currently, four people are being held guilty of conspiring to disguise and illegally sell a treasure with metal detectors by the British courts.
Two metal detectorists have been jailed for stealing the “emblematic” Viking-era Leominster Hoard of coins and priceless jewellery worth up to £12 million – much of which is still missing.
George Powell, 38, and Layton Davies, 51, failed to declare an “invaluable” collection of buried treasure dating back 1,100 years to the birth of a united English kingdom, during the time of Alfred the Great.
The items, many of which were Anglo Saxon but are typical of a Viking burial hoard, were dug up on Herefordshire farmland on June 2, 2015.
(L-R) George Powell, Simon Wicks, and Layton Davies were jailed on Friday
It is thought the trove was buried by someone within the Great Viking Army in either 878 or 879, which by then was being forced back east by an alliance of Saxon forces.
Powell, who was described as having the “leading” role, was jailed for 10 years while caretaker Davies received eight-and-a-half years.
A coin which was part of the £3 million Viking hoard
Both were also convicted alongside two other men, 60-year-old Paul Wells and Simon Wicks, 57, with conspiring to conceal the find. Sentencing at Worcester Crown Court on Friday, Judge Nicholas Cartwright said they had “cheated” not only the landowner but the public of “exceptionally rare and significant” coins.
He said: “90% of the coins or thereabouts remain hidden to this day.
“All four defendants played their respective parts.
“You, Simon Wicks, were part of a conspiracy to conceal the stolen treasure and to sell it.
“Paul Wells, who will be sentenced an on a future occasion, was part of a conspiracy to conceal part of the stolen treasure.”
He added: “The irony in this case is if you, George Powell, and you, Layton Davies, had obtained the permissions and agreements which responsible metal detectorists are advised to obtain, if you had gone on to act within the law after you found this treasure, you could have expected to have either a half share, or at very worst a third share of over £3 million to share between the two of you.
“But you wanted more.”
Among the priceless hoard was a ninth-century gold ring, a dragon’s head bracelet, a silver ingot, a crystal rock pendant dating to the fifth century and up to 300 coins, some dating to the reign of King Alfred.
The treasure hoard included a crystal pendant that dates to around 600 AD.
Only 31 of the coins have been recovered, although mobile phone photographs on Davies’s phone – later deleted, but recovered by police – showed the larger hoard, still intact, in a freshly dug hole.
Only 30 coins have been recovered by the police.
Five of the coins are examples of the exceptionally rare Two Emperors penny, valued at up to £50,000 apiece, and so-called as they depict King Alfred and a lesser-known monarch, Ceolwulf II, who reigned in the old kingdom of Mercia, sitting together.
Expert analysis of all the jewellery and coinage recovered to date and now held at the British Museum returned a valuation of at least £581,000.
Wicks, Powell, and Davies were also found guilty of converting their ill-gotten gains into cash, after police traced several coins that had been sold on to private collectors, hidden away or left with expert valuers.
Powell, of Kirby Lane, Newport; Davies, of Cardiff Road, Pontypridd; Wells, of Newport Road, Cardiff, and Wicks, of Hawks Road, Hailsham, East Sussex, were also convicted after trial of ignoring the law stating such finds must be properly declared.
A New Tomb From 10,000 BC Discovered in turkey – Amazing connection with queen Nefertiti.
Only because of this simple fact of being situated in Turkey can this discovery seem historical and remarkable.
And to show that Queen Nefertiti came back with a group of followers fleeing from her husband’s fate that was in the hands of the corrupt Amun Priesthood.
However, there are more secrets to reveal in this historical discovery.
These artifact tests show statistics showing that carbon has made aging these artifacts to around 10,000 BC, which sheds new light on the age of the imperial lineage of their ruling Amarna family.
Akhenaten Discovery Changes History Forever!
Within this shocking episode full of historical and changing revelations.
Daniel Liszt and the pyramid expert Dr. Carmen Boulter discuss the shocking discovery of a hidden site located in Turkey of an Egyptian room that broadcasts a Strong resemblance to the tomb of King Tut.
And has an abundance of Egyptian treasures along with realistic sculptures of this heretic pharaoh Akhenaton and exotic antiquities from the Amarna period.
Unique images provided in this event to demonstrate that the claim causes this Dark Journalist event more essential so far and represents an earthquake to our understanding of the early years ago, rewriting history!
These royals include Nefertiti, Akhenaton, Amenhotep, Hatshepsut, and Tutankhamen.
There are many essential questions concerning our ancient inheritance and it strongly implies that this strange lineage of Amarna may have already been a blood inheritance displaced by the Royal Atlantis and may be related to the spiritual understanding of the high level and the incredible psychic abilities.
Gigantic Roman mosaic discovered under a farmer’s field in Turkey
In southern Turkey, a huge pool mosaic with complex geometric patterns was discovered, which reveals the Roman Empire’s far-reaching impact on its peak.
Michael Hoff of the Nebraska University, an art historian from Lincoln and director of mosaic excavations, said the mosaic, which once adorned the floor of a bath complex, abuts a 25-foot (7-meter)-long pool, which would have been open to the air
Hoff said the discovery was possibly from the third or fourth centuries. The mosaic is an incredible 1,600 square feet (149 square meters) the size of a small family home (149 square meters).
Amazing Roman mosaic discovered in Southern Turkey
“To be honest, I have completely bowled over that the mosaic is that big,” Hoff told BBC.
The first hint that something stunning lay underground in southern Turkey came in 2002 when Purdue University classics professor Nick Rauh walked through a freshly plowed farmer’s field near the ancient city of Antiochia ad Cragum. The plow had churned up bits of mosaic tile, Hoff said.
Rauh consulted other archaeologists, including experts at the local museum in Alanya, Turkey. The museum did not have funds to excavate more than a sliver of the mosaic, so archaeologists left the site alone.
Last year, with a new archaeological permit for the site in hand, museum archaeologists invited Hoff and his team to complete the dig.
So far, the researchers have revealed about 40 percent of the mosaic. The floor is in “pristine” condition, Hoff said in a university video about the dig. It would have fronted an open-air marble swimming pool flanked by porticos.
The mosaic itself is composed of large squares, each sporting a unique geometric design on a white background, from starburst patterns to intertwined loops.
It’s the largest Roman mosaic ever found in southern Turkey, which was thought to be rather peripheral to the Roman Empire, according to Hoff.
The existence of the mosaic suggests that Antiochia ad Cragum was far more influenced by the Romans than believed, Hoff said.
The city of Antiochia ad Cragum, founded in the first century, has a number of Roman features, including bathhouses and markets.
Hoff’s team has also been excavating a third-century Roman temple in the city and a street lined with colonnades and shops.
The team will return with students and volunteers to complete the mosaic excavations.
Ultimately, Hoff said, the plan is to construct a wooden shelter over the entire mosaic and open the site to public visits.
Brainless Tourists Slaughter 5,000-Year-Old Sacred Scottish Tree
Trees are a natural sight, and for a long time certain species can live. Nevertheless, one particular tree is of great importance and is considered to be holy at its home country of Scotland, and it is believed to be up to 5,000 years old.
This ancient Scottish tree, The Fortingall Yew, is located on the Glenlyon Estate in Perthshire, and could possibly well be the oldest tree in Europe.
While this may sound impressive, it’s status and media presence may also be its downfall. Scientists have released a claim that this sacred tree could die in less than 50 years’ time due to brainless tourists tearing off its branches for souvenirs, which is causing it to weaken.
This amazing yew tree is the oldest one left in the UK and potentially even Europe. However, despite it being even caged inside the Fortingall Churchyard in Perthshire, it has been left in increasingly bad health due to obnoxious tourists.
Tourists are taking it upon themselves to chop the branches off to keep as a souvenir. The tree is under stress from being attacked by so many people.
The tree warden for Fortingall, Neil Hooper, has said in a statement that a metal plaque had been forced down and twisted flat.
Those metal plaques aren’t very pliable and so to bend it in such a way would have taken considerable force, presumably by someone climbing into the enclosure.
In addition to taking parts of the tree and ripping it to shreds, visitors also think it’s alright to climb over the clearly marked boundaries so they can tie beads and ribbons to the tree’s branches.
The Fortingall Yew then and now: partying with Victorian dandies in 1822 on the left, and switching gender at present time on the right.
An Awe-Inspiring Tree
So, what makes this tree so special? Well, apart from the age of it, it is actually an incredibly important tree. For centuries, it has been part of a Christian pilgrimage.
Many pilgrims hold the tree as a landmark of early Christianity – believing that this is the tree that provided shade at the birth of Pontius Pilate, who is said to have been born in the village during the Roman occupation and played beneath the Yew as a boy, before he grew up and ordered the crucifixion of Jesus Christ.
Therefore the tree has quite a bit of religious significance. However, some skeptics have doubted the truthfulness of this story.
Ignoring the potential myths though, this tree is still a miracle of nature. Why? Four years ago, scientists in Scotland announced that the sacred tree was undergoing a sex change.
The Fortingall Yew had always been recorded as a male tree. However, in 2015 someone spotted that it had started sprouting berries, which is something only female yew trees do.
While it isn’t uncommon for yew trees to change sex as they often do it to increase chances of survival, the odd thing here is that a tree of this age and stature would do such a thing now, it’s completely unheard of!
Can it be saved?
Plenty of people will probably be wondering; why can’t everyone just stop destroying the tree and it will be fine? While this would work in a perfect world, it simply isn’t that simple.
Due to it’s worsening poor health, the tree could keel over at any moment, no one is sure when though. It may happen in 50 or 300 years, no one can say.
The Fortingall Yew sits in the corner of the churchyard and is surrounded by a wall and railings, which are there to protect it.
Despite the bleak outlook, there is still hope! The Church Yew Tree project is a 10-year program that is working in partnership with the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh.
A cutting of the Fortingall Yew at Kindrogan Field Studies Centre.
It plans to plant seedlings from the Fortingall Yew at various Churches in and around Perthshire and Angus, and also at the Royal Botanic Garden. They hope to have successfully identified around 20 churchyards which will accept new saplings by next year, 2020.
