EUROPE, FRANCE, WORLD

For the first time, researchers discovered bioarchaeological evidence of familial embalming in early modern France

For the first time, researchers discovered bioarchaeological evidence of familial embalming in early modern France

For the first time, researchers discovered bioarchaeological evidence of familial embalming in early modern France

A unique discovery has revealed new insights into the burial rituals of early modern Western Europe: For the first time, researchers have been able to provide bioarchaeological evidence of the familial embalming of infants and adults in early modern France.

For a long time, embalming practices were considered exotic rituals associated primarily with the ancient Egyptians or cultures in South America.

New finds at the Château des Milandes in Castelnaud-la-Chapelle, Dordogne, France, now prove that these techniques were also used in Europe.

The remains of seven adults and five children discovered in a cellar, as well as the remains of a single mummified buried woman, all belonging to the aristocratic Caumont family, provide researchers at the Austrian Academy of  Sciences (ÖAW) with valuable information. About embalming practices in the 16th and 17th centuries.

‘These finds provide unique insights into embalming techniques,’ says Caroline Partiot from the Austrian Archaeological Institute of the Austrian Academy of Sciences.

‘Our examinations of a complete individual and the almost 2,000 fragments show a careful and highly standardized technical treatment of the deceased, which is similar for adults and children. This reveals expertise that has been handed down over two centuries,’ says Caroline Partiot from the Austrian Archaeological Institute of the Austrian Academy of Sciences.

Using the skeleton of the individuals in the crypt and the individual female body, which was buried alone, the researchers were able to examine the modus operandi of embalming based on the cut marks on the entire skeleton.

Particularly noteworthy is the precise skinning, which covered the entire body, including the upper and lower limbs down to the fingertips and toes.

Steps of the embalming procedure and selection of bone parts showing signs of the operation.

These methods are similar to the procedures described in 1708 by the then-leading French surgeon Pierre Dionis.

Research has now shown that this was used in an 18th-century autopsy in Marseille. “It is remarkable that the tradition has persisted for at least two centuries,” explains the archaeologist.

The discovery of the tomb and the analysis of the skeletons show that this practice was a deeply rooted tradition within the Caumont family, which enjoyed high social status at the time. Partiot explains: ‘The treatment indicates that embalming was not so much for long-term preservation, but rather to be able to display the corpse during funeral ceremonies.’

This is because multiple embalmings in one and the same family are rare, and the only known case in medieval Western Europe in which multiple embalmings were carried out in one and the same family with children is the Medici family in Italy in the 15th century. “The application to family members, regardless of age at death and gender, also reflects the acquisition of this status by birth,” emphasizes Partiot.

Partiot, C., Bessou, M., Kacki, S. et al. First bioarchaeological evidence of the familial practice of embalming of infant and adult relatives in Early Modern France. Sci Rep 14, 27075 (2024).

ENGLAND, EUROPE, WORLD

A section of one of Britain’s most important Roman roads unearthed under Old Kent Road in south-east London

A section of one of Britain’s most important Roman roads unearthed under Old Kent Road in south-east London

A section of one of Britain’s most important Roman roads unearthed under Old Kent Road in south-east London

Archaeologists have found a section of a Roman road under Old Kent Road in south-east London, part of one of the most important roads built during the Roman period. The 2,000-year-old road, known as Watling Street, was part of a route from the ancient Roman port at Dover through London to the West Midlands.

Considered one of Britain’s most important Roman roads, the accidental discovery was unearthed as a result of excavation work by Southwark Council and utilities company Veolia to install a low-carbon heat network.

Built shortly after the Roman invasion of Britain in 43AD, it proved very difficult for archaeologists to pinpoint evidence of the route it took, despite Roman roads typically being straight.

“In the planning for this project, we’d expected to solve this question but the extent of survival of the road is remarkable. We hope this project will answer some other archaeological questions in the borough,” explained Southwark Council’s in-house archaeology officer, Dr. Chris Constable, to BBC.

The road was discovered by a team of archaeologists from the Museum of London Archaeology (MOLA), with Dr. Constable providing invaluable advice and assistance.

Southwark Council says the discovery reveals is the first physical proof that sections of it still survive directly beneath its modern counterpart the Old Kent Road.

The ancient route lies directly beneath the modern Old Kent Road. Image Credit: Southwark Council

The well-preserved road segment, which is located south of the intersection of Old Kent Road and Ilderton Road, is roughly 19 feet (5.8 meters) wide by nearly 5 feet (1.4 meters) high.

Southwark Council said distinct layers could be seen and showed a solid foundation of compacted gravel sealed by two layers of chalk, before it was topped with another layer of compacted sand and gravel.

The original surface of the road would likely have been made from the same material and sat at a similar level to the modern road, but this has been lost, says Southwark Council. The base of the modern road was built directly on the Roman fabric.

Gillian King, director of archaeology at RPS Consulting Ltd, described the discovery as “a key finding for archaeological research for London”.

“The discovery of an intact section of Roman Wating Street directly under the current Old Kent Road has redrawn the Roman road map for Southwark and informs on Roman construction techniques generally,” she said.

Dave Taylor, MOLA’s project manager, said: “It’s amazing this section of road has survived for almost 2,000 years.”

He added: “There has been so much activity here over the past few hundred years, from sewers to power cables, tramlines and of course the building of the modern road, so we’re really excited to find such a substantial chunk of Roman material remaining.”

The discovery will be marked by a sign on the nearby Old Kent Road bridge. Find out more about the renewal of Old Kent Road at www.oldkentroad.org.uk

Cover Image Credit: Layers of chalk, sand, and gravel can be visible on the road. Southwark Council

ASIA, TURKEY, WORLD

1500-year-old Stunning Pendant Amulet Depicting the Prophet Solomon Spearing the Devil on Horseback Found in Türkiye

1500-year-old Stunning Pendant Amulet Depicting the Prophet Solomon Spearing the Devil on Horseback Found in Türkiye

1500-year-old Stunning Pendant Amulet Depicting the Prophet Solomon Spearing the Devil on Horseback Found in Türkiye

During the excavations in the ancient city of Hadrianopolis in Eskipazar district of Karabük, Türkiye, an amulet from the 5th century A.D. depicting the Prophet Solomon spearing the devil on horseback was unearthed.

The ancient city, which served as a settlement in the late Chalcolithic, Roman, and early Byzantine eras, is still undergoing excavation and restoration work under the direction of associate professor Ersin Çelikbaş from the Department of Archaeology at Karabük University’s Faculty of Literature.

During excavations at the ancient city, known as the “Zeugma of the Black Sea,” an amulet pendant depicting the Prophet Solomon from the fifth century A.D. was discovered.

Çelikbaş explained that work on the project continues in the ancient city. Noting that significant finds were found, saying, “One of them was uncovered this week during the excavation of the structure we named ‘SDJ-3.’ We believe it is a significant artifact for Anatolian archaeology since no similar examples have been found in this region before. It is actually an amulet pendant.”

Karabuk University Faculty of Letters, Department of Archaeology Assoc. Prof. Dr. Ersin Çelikbaş stated that this artifact is a very important discovery for Anatolian archaeology,

“The depiction shows the Prophet Solomon on horseback, spearing a demon. Why this depiction? Because the Prophet Solomon is important in all three major religions. He is noted as a ruler in Judaism and the Bible and in Islam, he is recognized not only as a ruler but also as a prophet.

Therefore, the depiction of the Prophet Solomon, important in monotheistic religions, on this pendant both surprised us and showed us its importance for Anatolian archaeology.”

Çelikbaş noted that the inscription on the pendant reads “Our Lord has overcome evil” and said: “Why was this pendant, this amulet, found here? In fact, it has to do with the military character of Hadrianopolis. We have previously identified evidence of a cavalry unit here through archaeological finds.”

Çelikbaş noted that the inscription on the pendant reads “Our Lord has overcome evil” and said: “Why was this pendant, this amulet, found here? In fact, it has to do with the military character of Hadrianopolis. We have previously identified evidence of a cavalry unit here through archaeological finds.

Solomon is also known as the commander of armies. We understand that he was also considered as a protective figure for the Roman and Byzantine cavalry at Hadrianopolis.”

Çelikbaş said: “The front depicts the Prophet Solomon and mentions God’s triumph over evil, while the back bears the names of our four holy angels: Azrael, Gabriel, Michael, and Israfil.

This is also very significant. No similar artifact has been found in Anatolian archaeology to date. Only one comparable example in terms of depiction has been found in Jerusalem.

The appearance of two similar artifacts over such great distances indicates that this area was an important religious center in antiquity. Based on the fonts of the inscriptions and stratigraphic data from our studies, we date the artifact to the fifth century A.D.”

According to the static graphic analyses, the amulet was dated to the 5th century AD. It was stated that this discovery once again reveals the historical and religious importance of Anatolia.

AFRICA, MOROCCO, WORLD

Researchers found evidence of the use of medicinal herbs in the Grotte des Pigeons Cave in Morocco dating back 15,000 years

Researchers found evidence of the use of medicinal herbs in the Grotte des Pigeons Cave in Morocco dating back 15,000 years

Morocco’s National Institute of Archaeology and Heritage has announced an important discovery that will enhance our understanding of ancient healing practices and shed light on humanity’s medical history.

Researchers have found evidence of the use of  medicinal herbs in the  Grotte des Pigeons Cave in Tafoughalt, dating back 15,000 years.

Since the cave of Taforalt, also known as the Grotte des Pigeons, discovered in 1908, there has been an ongoing series of excavations and researches at the site, which has provided archaeologists with new perspectives on the lives in prehistoric North Africa.

The site, which is regarded as North Africa’s oldest cemetery, was home to at least 34 Iberomaurusian skeletons from the later Stone Age (approximately 15,000 calendar years ago).

This new discovery highlights our ancestors’ inventiveness in using natural resources and deepens our understanding of ancient healing practices. The results of this important study were published in the journal Nature. The discovered herbs, particularly the “Ephedra” plant, form the cornerstone of this research.

In their study, the researchers investigated the presence and possible uses of Ephedra during the Late Pleistocene, based on the analysis of extraordinarily preserved plant macrofossils from archaeological deposits of about 15 thousand years old in a cave in northeastern Morocco.

Ephedra is a well-known medicinal plant, and the macro-remains of this plant associated with human activity discovered in this cave are the oldest ever recorded.

Ephedra plant’s fruits were found in a specific area of the cave, which was used for burial according to special funerary rituals. Direct radiocarbon dates on both Ephedra and the human remains indicate that they were contemporaneous.

Drawing showing location of in situ bones of Individual 14 (in blue), Barbary sheep horn core (in grey), stone with ochre (in dark grey and red), animal bones (in yellow), Ephedra cone bracts (as red spots), shell (as large green spot), limits of the burial pit (dotted line). Photo on the right side shows an archaeological Ephedra pair of cone bracts (author A. Freyne and J. Morales). Nature https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-77785

The researchers also interpreted the presence of Ephedra and its deposition at the burial site as evidence that this plant played an important role during funerary activities.

Studies indicate that human communities during that period relied on these herbs for therapeutic purposes, including treating colds and reducing bleeding.

It challenges accepted beliefs about the medical prowess of prehistoric people by proving that humans had comprehensive knowledge of how to benefit from plants 15,000 years ago.

Evidence of the oldest known surgical procedure was discovered in the same cave by earlier research, which found traces of surgery on a human skull. This suggests that the person who had the procedure survived and bore their suffering because of those herbs.

Research indicates that this procedure was carried out using sophisticated methods, suggesting a high level of medical knowledge.

This discovery is more than just an archaeological find; it provides a better understanding of human abilities to use herbs for medicine, reshaping our perspectives on ancestral traditions. Understanding how these people lived in harmony with nature and developed new ways to treat diseases demonstrates humanity’s adaptability and creativity.

Source: Morales, J., Carrión Marco, Y., Cooper, J.H. et al. Late Pleistocene exploitation of Ephedra in a funerary context in Morocco. Sci Rep 14, 26443 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-77785

EUROPE, TURKEY, WORLD

1800 Years Old Roman Milestone Used as Seat at Turkish Mosque

1800 Years Old Roman Milestone Used as Seat at Turkish Mosque

1800 Years Old Roman Milestone Used as Seat at Turkish Mosque

A milestone from the Roman Emperor Gordianus III period, which dates to 239 AD, was discovered in the Fatsa district of Ordu province in northeastern Türkiye.

Roman milestones, or “milliarium,” were significant landmarks along the extensive road system of the Roman Empire. These stone markers made it easier for travelers to find their way through the extensive and intricate network of Roman roads by showing the distance to the closest town or city.

These milestones, which were typically placed one Roman mile apart (1,480 meters or 4,850 feet), were marked with details like the road’s name, the distance to the next destination, and occasionally the name of the emperor or the official in charge of building it. Many of these milestones have survived and provide valuable insights into the engineering, culture, and history of ancient Rome.

It was determined that the 1800-year-old milestone was used as a seat by the mosque congregation and citizens for years.

The stone discovered near the Laleli Central Mosque in the Bolaman neighborhood of Fatsa district was noticed by Aydın Bal, a literature teacher at Fatsa Cahit Zarifoğlu High School.

The authorities who took action upon Bal’s notification were Fatsa Municipality Culture Director Cevat Erbil and Ordu University Art History Department Faculty Member Assoc. Prof. Dr. Seçkin Evcim examined the stone and determined that it was a milestone from the Roman period.

The inscription on the stone was translated by Prof. Dr. Hüseyin Sami Öztürk, an epigraphy and linguistics expert from Marmara University. The emperor’s name was honored and this road was rebuilt by him, according to the translated stone inscription.

Assoc. Prof. Dr. Seçkin Evcim stated that they think that the stone was erected for the construction of a natural harbor road between Bolaman and Yalıköy during the Roman period and said, “The stone found in the second mile of this road was erected for the construction of a natural harbor road between Bolaman and Yalıköy. Unfortunately, the stone was not in its original place; it was found in the 1970s while the mosque’s foundation was being laid and then it was tilted on its side and used for seating.”

Assoc. Prof. Dr. Evcim stated that a milestone was discovered for the first time in Ordu and that the stone was taken to the Ordu Museum with the support of Fatsa Municipality. Since the stone is not in its original position, additional research will be evaluated in the future.

The history of Fatsa goes back to antiquity, when the coast was settled by Cimmerians, and Pontic Greeks in the centuries B.C. Under Nero, the kingdom became a Roman province in A.D. 62.

In about 295, Diocletian (r. 284–305) divided the province into three smaller provinces, one of which was Pontus Polemoniacus, called after the Roman client-king Polemonium I, which was its administrative capital.

EUROPE, WORLD

2,300-year-old Punic tomb complex found during works on car park for staff

2,300-year-old Punic tomb complex found during works on car park for staff

2,300-year-old Punic tomb complex found during works on car park for staff

A 2,300-year-old Punic tomb was discovered during work in a car park near Mater Dei Hospital in Msida, Malta.

The archaeological discovery was made during trenching works near Mater Dei Hospital while preparing the site for the installation of a new potable water line.

The Superintendence of Cultural Heritage (SCH) has been overseeing the site since the start of the project, ensuring the protection and study of any potential discoveries during development works.

An excavation revealed a chamber hewn out of solid natural rock. After additional examination by the SCH’s on-site archaeology monitors, it was found that the chamber was a component of a larger burial complex.

The discovery consists of three burial chambers, each accessed through a central shaft, characteristic of Punic and Roman tombs. It is thought to have been used for multiple inhumations during the Punic and Roman periods. Remarkably, the entrance to each chamber was sealed with original slabs, and the contents inside included human remains and grave goods.

The burial chambers were meticulously excavated over two weeks by a committed team of SCH archaeologists and osteologists. The human remains were primarily inhumations, with some cremated remains stored in urns.

The fact that many of the bones were arranged in a methodical manner raises the possibility that earlier remains were moved to make room for later burials. There were several inhumations in each chamber, with at least six in Chambers 2 and 3 and at least two in Chamber 1. A small collection of grave goods and cremation urns were also discovered, offering important new information about the burial customs of the time.

A team of experts, has been working on site to excavate, document, and interpret the remains, some of which have been transferred to the laboratory of the superintendence for further analysis.

Researchers will examine the remains for evidence of the age, sex, and health of the individuals, and conduct DNA analysis.

“The findings, which include skeletal remains, cremation urns, and other funerary artifacts, provide valuable insight into the ancient community that once inhabited the region.

Preliminary analysis indicates a Punic timeline, although some artifacts suggest an extended period of use into the early Roman era,” the Foundation for Medical Services and SCH said.

Efforts are underway to ensure the tomb is retained in its entirety, with plans for permanent controlled access to allow for continued study and preservation of this significant archaeological site.

MEXICO, NORTH AMERICA, WORLD

Lidar Technology Reveals a 3,000-year-old Secret Mayan City with Full of Pyramids and Plazas

Lidar Technology Reveals a 3,000-year-old Secret Mayan City with Full of Pyramids and Plazas

Lidar Technology Reveals a 3,000-year-old Secret Mayan City with Full of Pyramids and Plazas

Tulane University researchers used laser-guided imaging to uncover vast unexplored Maya settlements in  Campeche, Mexico, revealing more than 6,500 pre-Hispanic structures, including a previously unknown large city with stone pyramids.

The ability to examine large regions from the comfort of a laboratory thanks to Light Detection and Ranging (Lidar) technology has revolutionized the way archaic researchers study ancient civilizations in recent years.

The research project, led by doctoral student Luke Auld-Thomas alongside his advisor, Professor Marcello A. Canuto, both affiliated with Tulane’s Middle American Research Institute (MARI), used Lidar technology to study an area of 130 square kilometers in Campeche.

As part of a “non-archaeological” survey, the 50-square-mile area was mapped in 2013 using lidar, a remote-sensing technology, according to a study published today in the journal Antiquity. Examining this “found” dataset, the researchers discovered the ancient city concealed in plain sight in a region teeming with Maya settlements. They found evidence of over 6,500 structures in all.

The research focuses on a part of Campeche that had previously been overlooked in traditional archaeological research.

The core of the Valeriana site contained a ballcourt and an architectural arrangement that indicated a construction date before 150 C.E.

“The government never knew about it; the  scientific community never knew about it,” says lead author Luke Auld-Thomas, an archaeologist at Tulane University, in a statement.

Researchers found not only rural areas and small communities but also a large city with pyramids, close to the only road in the area, near a village where farmers have been working among the ruins without the government or scientific community being previously aware of its existence.

The larger of the two “monumental precincts” that comprised the city “has all the hallmarks of a Classic Maya political capital,” according to the researchers. It included temple pyramids, a freshwater reservoir, several enclosed plazas that were connected, and a ball court where the Maya played games with rubber balls.

According to the study, Valeriana’s architectural layout indicates that some of the town was constructed before 150 C.E. It thrived during the Classic era, which roughly spanned 250–900 C.E. and was the Maya Empire’s golden age.

This discovery is particularly striking, as it underscores how much remains unknown about the Maya and that there is still much to uncover.

An annotated scan of Valeriana shows ruined platforms in purple and other ruined structures in black.

The researchers intend to visit Valeriana and the surrounding settlements in person to learn more about the ancient rural population of the Maya lowlands.

This study not only reveals previously unknown cities, but it also contributes to ongoing debates about the true extent of Maya settlements and their population density.

It has been contended, that prior research has mostly concentrated on sizable, well-known locations like Tikal, which may have skewed impressions of the Maya lowlands.

According to some critics, the majority of the Maya region may have been rural, with big settlements being the exception rather than the rule.

This perspective is called into question by the discoveries made in Campeche, which demonstrate how the Maya civilization created a network of communities in a vast tropical environment that varied in size and complexity.

“Lidar is teaching us that, like many other ancient civilizations, the lowland Maya built a diverse tapestry of towns and communities over their tropical landscape,” Canuto said. “While some areas are replete with vast agricultural patches and dense populations, others have only small communities. Nonetheless, we can now see how much the ancient Maya changed their environment to support a long-lived complex society.”

ASIA, WORLD

Mystery of the World’s Oldest Map on a Nearly 3,000-year-old Babylonian Tablet Finally Solved

Mystery of the World’s Oldest Map on a Nearly 3,000-year-old Babylonian Tablet Finally Solved

Mystery of the World’s Oldest Map on a Nearly 3,000-year-old Babylonian Tablet Finally Solved

A recent British Museum video reveals that the “oldest map of the world in the world” on a clay tablet from Babylon was deciphered to reveal a surprisingly familiar story.

The oldest globe ever found is the Imago Mundi, a Babylonian map of the world.  This map is a Babylonian clay tablet with a schematic world map and two inscriptions written in the Akkadian language.

The probably seventh century BC is when this map was created. It shows a small part of the world as the ancient Babylonians knew it, and it was found in the southern Iraqi city of Abu Habba (Sippar).

The ancient artifact was acquired by the British Museum in 1882 but remained a mystery for centuries until curators found a missing part and transcribed its cuneiform.

The cuneiform tablet from the 6th century BC shows an aerial view map of Mesopotamia — the land “between the rivers” in modern-day Iraq— and what the Babylonians believed lay beyond the known world at the time.

After centuries of deciphering, the ancient tablet provides insight into the Babylonians’ beliefs about the known world at the time.

The tablet has several paragraphs of the cuneiform on its backside and above the map diagram describing the creation of the Earth and what its writer believed existed beyond it.

Researchers confirm the circle around Mesopotamia suggests that Babylonians believed the area was the center of the world. There also shows the river Euphrates cutting through ancient Mesopotamia.

The map depicts a double ring encircling Mesopotamia, which the ancient scribe called the “bitter river.” This river formed the boundaries of the Babylonians‘ known world.

Small circles and rectangles inside the Bitter River stand in for various Mesopotamian cities and tribes, such as Babylon, while another rectangle symbolizes the Euphrates River.

“You have encapsulated in this circular diagram the whole of the known world in which people lived, flourished, and died,” British Museum curator and cuneiform expert Dr. Irving Finkel said in the video. “However, there’s more to this map than that.”

“When it comes to operating beyond the limits of the known world into the world of imagination, [the tablet] is indispensable,” Finkel added.

Aside from mapping out what they thought existed outside of their world, the Babylonian scribe also included references to a well-known story (basically the Babylonian version of the biblical story of Noah’s Ark) and mythical animals and lands.

The ancient Babylonians thought that the remains of the enormous ark that their version of Noah, named Utnapishtim, had constructed in 1800 BC at God’s command were located on the backside of a mountain, the same mountain that the Bible says Noah’s Ark crashed on, beyond the bitter river.

“That’s quite a meaty thing, quite an interesting thing to think about because it shows that the story was the same, and of course, that one led to the other,” Finkel concluded.

The tablet also confirms the Babylonian’s belief in the God of creation Marduk and other mythical monsters such as scorpion-man and a lion-headed bird called Anzu.

All In One Magazine