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Royal Goddesses of a Bronze Age State Volume 61 Number 1, January/February 2008 by Marco Merola Its arms arranged in a gesture of prayer, the figurine at right probably depicts a living queen worshipping the statuette of a dead royal, left. (Courtesy Maura Sala) It's been more than 30 years since Italian archaeologists found a vast archive of 17,000 cuneiform tablets at the Bronze Age site of Ebla in northern Syria. But the ancient city is still surprising those who work there. Last year archaeologist Paolo Matthiae's team discovered two almost perfectly preserved figurines that confirm textual evidence for a...

Treasure hunters find Bronze Age axes Last Updated: 2:06am GMT 22/01/2008 An amateur treasure hunter has unearthed a hoard of bronze age axe heads thought to be worth about £80,000. Tom Peirce started combing a field with his metal detector after dropping off a school coach party at a farm. Within a few minutes it began beeping and he found the first axe head fragment 10in into the soil. When he dug deeper, Mr Peirce found dozens more and, over the following two days, he and a colleague, Les Keith, uncovered nearly 500 bronze artefacts dating back 3,000 years. The...

Unknown persons destroy ancient bronze coffin discovered recently [17 January 2008] IBB, Jan. 17 (Saba) - Unknown persons devastated early morning on Thursday an ancient bronze coffin and stole another one completely were in an archaeological location in al-Asibia area in Dhefar valley of Ibb province. The director general of Antiques and Cultural Properties Protection in the General Authority for Antiquities and Museums Hesham al-Thawr held the director general of the security office in the al-Saddah district responsible for destroying the location and disinterring the bronze coffin. Al-Thawr said that the security official has ordered the military patrols, which have...

Ancient bronze coffin discovered in Ibb province [14 January 2008] Ancient bronze coffin discovered in Ibb province SANA'A, Jan. 14 (Saba) - The excavation operations at al-Asibia area of Ibb province have revealed a stone grave and bronze coffin in a marble-walled room dating back to the Sheba era. The discoveries were found out last Wednesday at Jabal Esam eastern of Raidan Fort which is considered as an extension to Dhafar city the capital of Sheba and Dhu Raidan Ancient Kingdom, director general of the antiques office at Ibb province Khalid al-Ansi was quoted as saying. The characteristics of the...

It was inevitable, the media and her vast army of consultants, aides and hired attack dogs assured us, Hillary Clinton would walk all the way to the presidency with easy victories over a slate of lackluster rivals in the primaries. To hear them tell it you would have thought her campaign was a powerful locomotive speeding down the rails to the White House, unstoppable. Thursday night it came off the tracks, derailed by the equivalent of the little train that wouldn’t say no. Barack Obama, a relative newcomer to national politics, a year ago largely unknown, not only defeated Hillary...

500-year-old bronze disc is found in fieldJul 3 2007 By Mark Davison A HORSE harness decoration thought to have belonged to a lord of the manor at Bletchingley more than 500 years ago has been unearthed in a field. Chris Andre, a member of the Reigate-based Weald and Downland Metal Detecting Club, handed the artefact to an archaeological expert for identification. David Williams, Surrey County Council's finds liaison officer, has revealed that the small circular bronze disc may have been a personal belonging of Henry Stafford, who held the manor of Bletchingley in the late 15th century, or one of...

Comets and disaster in the Bronze AgeCosmic impact is gaining ground as an explanation of the collapse of civilisations, writes Benny Peiser At some time around 2300BC, give or take a century or two, a large number of the major civilisations of the world collapsed. The Akkadian Empire in Mesopotamia, the Old Kingdom in Egypt, the Early Bronze Age societies in Israel, Anatolia and Greece, as well as the Indus Valley civilisation in India, the Hilmand civilisation in Afghanistan and the Hongshan Culture in China - the first urban civilisations in the world - all fell into ruin at more...

Boat provides historical insight The boat would have been powered by up to 12 men A Bronze Age logboat which had lain unseen in the River Tay for 3,000 years is being studied by archaeologists. It is hoped the find will yield important new information about how human ancestors lived. Although the boat, made from the trunk of a single oak, was found five years ago, it was only lifted out of the Tay during the summer. Repairs carried out on the 30ft vessel have already given experts an insight into Bronze Age technology. The boat, which would have been...

Gristhorpe Man 'was Bronze Age warrior chieftain' Reports by Roger Highfield and Nic Fleming (Filed: 07/09/2006) Gristhorpe Man, who was found buried in a tree trunk in the 19th century, has been identified as a Bronze Age warrior chieftain by archaeologists. The skeleton of Gristhorpe Man, excavated near Scarborough in 1834 Although a few examples of burial in a scooped-out oak tree have been found in Scotland and East Anglia, it was an unusual method and the example found near Scarborough, North Yorks, was the best preserved. The remains were discovered in 1834 by William Beswick, a local landowner, in...

Archaeologists working on a gas pipeline near Milford Haven in Pembrokeshire have unearthed what they believe to be a 3,400-year-old canoe. Work has stopped on a section of the pipeline near St Botolphs to allow the Bronze Age oak relic to be recovered. It is the first such discovery in Wales and only 150 exist across Europe. Senior archaeologist Neil Fairburn said: "You could never have expected to find anything like this in this small wetland area, it's just awesome." The team has also found evidence of a small settlement, a small amount of property and other items, such as...

WASHINGTON, Aug. 18, 2006 – The Army has authorized award of the Bronze Star Medal for Service to the living Canadian veterans of the 1st Special Services Force for their service to the U.S. Army during World War II. The unit was known as “the Devil’s Brigade” during the war and was one of the first U.S. special operations forces units in the war. The unit included U.S. Army soldiers and soldiers of the 2nd Canadian Parachute Battalion and 2nd Canadian Special Service Battalion of the Special Operations Group. From 1942 to 1944, about 2,500 soldiers served in the unit...

U.S. Marine Corps Sgt. Mirza Fejzic Sergeant Receives Bronze Star for Heroism By Lance Cpl. Christopher J. Zahn 2nd Marine Division CAMP LEJEUNE, N.C., June 30, 2006 — A Marine from 2nd Battalion, 6th Marine Regiment was awarded the fourth highest military award within the Department of Defense. Sgt. Mirza Fejzic, a 22-year-old native of Hackettstown, N.J., was awarded the Bronze Star with combat distinguishing device in a ceremony here, June 22. He was presented with the award for heroic actions while serving as a squad leader for 3rd Platoon, Company G. On Oct. 26, 2005, Fejzic and a...

Expedition seeks clues to lost Bronze Age culture By Richard C. Lewis Thu Jun 1, 4:11 PM ETReuters Photo: Deep-sea explorer Robert Ballard speaks at the National Geographic Society in an undated file photo.... PROVIDENCE, Rhode Island (Reuters) - An underwater explorer who found the Titanic and a team of international scientists will soon survey waters off the Greek island of Crete for clues to a once-powerful Bronze Age-era civilization. The expedition about 75 miles northwest of Crete aims to learn more about the Minoans, who flourished during the Bronze Age, and seeks to better understand seafaring four millennia ago,...

PENSACOLA, Fla. (NNS) -- Secretary of the Navy Donald Winter presented the Bronze Star to Senior Chief Hospital Corpsman (SW/SCW) Reginald Dean at Naval Hospital Pensacola June 1, for his heroic life-saving actions following a suicide-bomb explosion near Fort Tal-Afar in Iraq. Winter presented the Bronze Star medal to the Naval Branch Health Clinic Whiting Field, Fla., corpsman before a specially-chosen, six-person ‘Honor Formation,’ and another full contingent of previously-deployed Naval Hospital personnel. "This award is unique in and of itself," Winter said. "It is a noteworthy statement of what this individual has done for his country." Following the presentation,...

NORFOLK, Va. (NNS) -- Members of Explosive Ordnance Disposal Mobile Unit (EODMU) 2 were recognized for their bravery and dedication while supporting the global war on terrorism during a ceremony at Naval Amphibious Base Little Creek, Va., May 26. Rear Adm. Donald Bullard, commander, Navy Expeditionary Combat Command, presented 14 members of EODMU 2 with Bronze Stars with Combat Distinguishing Device and presented the Silver Star to Senior Chief Aviation Ordnanceman (EOD) William A. Bastable. During Operation Enduring Freedom, although wounded, the Joint Task Force lead navigator refused to abandon his team after the group came under enemy fire, June...

MARINE CORPS BASE CAMP LEJEUNE, N.C. (May 25, 2006) -- A Milwaukee native was awarded the Bronze Star May 19 for his loyal devotion to duty during times of danger and distress while deployed to Iraq. Master Gunnery Sgt. James G. Apriesnig was acting as communications chief for Headquarters Company, Regimental Combat Team-8, 2nd Marine Division, in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom from March 2005 to February 2006 in Fallujah, Iraq. Apriesnig planned and supervised the installation, operation and maintenance of a communications architecture that provided connectivity between the headquarter element, a reconnaissance battalion, three infantry battalions and three military...

MARINE CORPS BASE CAMP LEJEUNE, N.C. (May 25, 2006) -- Marines from 8th Marine Regiment, 2nd Marine Division gathered in front of the regiment’s headquarters as four Bronze Stars were awarded May 19. Lt. Col. Richard O. Miles Jr., executive officer for Regimental Combat Team 8, 2nd Marine Division, received his award for meritorious achievement in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom from February 2005 to February 2006 in Fallujah, Iraq. The Bronze Star is given for valor and meritorious service and is the nation’s fourth highest distinction. “As the executive officer I see and hear almost everything that goes on....

MARINE CORPS BASE CAMP LEJEUNE, N.C. (May 25, 2006) -- Marines from 8th Marine Regiment, 2nd Marine Division gathered in front of the regiment’s headquarters as four Bronze Stars were awarded, May 19. Maj. Toby G. Dyer, logistics officer for Regimental Combat Team-8, 2nd Marine Division, received his award for meritorious achievement in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom from July 2005 to February 2006 in Fallujah, Iraq. “It’s an honor to receive something that commemorates the hard work of my Marines,” said Dyer, a Seattle native. The Bronze Star is given for valor and meritorious service and is the nation’s...

MARINE CORPS AIR STATION NEW RIVER, N.C. (May 4, 2006) -- Lieutenant Colonels Jay A. Van Der Werff and Thomas R. McCarthy received Bronze Stars at an award ceremony April 24. Both gentlemen were awarded for their efforts during a six-month Iraq deployment. “I feel I just did my job,” said Van Der Werff, Marine Aircraft Group-26 executive officer. “The Marines that worked for me, both officers and enlisted, did a great job while we were in Iraq. This is a reflection on the work that they did as well.” During the deployment, Van Der Werff served as an operations...

April 28, 2006Cornell study of ancient volcano, seeds and tree rings, suggests rewriting Late Bronze Age Mediterranean history By Alex Kwan Separated in history by 100 years, the seafaring Minoans of Crete and the mercantile Canaanites of northern Egypt and the Levant (a large area of the Middle East) at the eastern end of the Mediterranean were never considered trading partners at the start of the Late Bronze Age. Until now. Trenchmaster Vronwy Hankey and foreman Antonis Zidianakis excavate storage jars from the Minoan settlement Myrtos-Pyrgos. The jars were analyzed in the Cornell study using radiocarbon analyses. Cultural links between...