Gods, Graves, Glyphs (alpha order)

Gods, Graves, Glyphs
Weekly Digest #133
Saturday, January 27, 2007

Climate

Sun's Fickle Heart May Leave Us Cold

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 01/25/2007 7:40:59 PM EST · 74 replies · 1,744+ views

New Scientist | 1-25-2007
Sun's fickle heart may leave us cold 25 January 2007 From New Scientist Print Edition.Stuart Clark There's a dimmer switch inside the sun that causes its brightness to rise and fall on timescales of around 100,000 years - exactly the same period as between ice ages on Earth. So says a physicist who has created a computer model of our star's core. Robert Ehrlich of George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia, modelled the effect of temperature fluctuations in the sun's interior. According to the standard view, the temperature of the sun's core is held constant by the opposing pressures of...

The sun may have a dimmer switch

Posted by DaveLoneRanger
On News/Activism 01/30/2007 8:41:49 AM EST · 61 replies · 1,251+ views

EurekAlert! News | January 24, 2007 | Staff
There's a dimmer switch inside the sun that causes its brightness to rise and fall on timescales of around 100,000 years ñ exactly the same period as between ice ages on Earth. So says a physicist who has created a computer model of our star's core. Robert Ehrlich of George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia, modelled the effect of temperature fluctuations in the sun's interior. According to the standard view, the temperature of the sun's core is held constant by the opposing pressures of gravity and nuclear fusion. However, Ehrlich believed that slight variations should be possible. He took as...

PreColumbian, Clovis, and PreClovis

Research Team Discovers Village (Ancient Bering Sea Island)

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 01/30/2007 7:04:22 PM EST · 13 replies · 283+ views

Gazette Times | 1-30-2007 | OSU News Service
Research team discovers village OSU News Service A team of researchers, led by Oregon State University anthropologist Deanna Kingston, has discovered a prehistoric village on a tiny island in the Bering Sea. The archaeological site, shown by carbon dating to be 800 to 900 years old, indicates that King Island, Alaska, was inhabited by Inupiat walrus hunters for at least a millennium. The effort is part of a four-year study of the plants, birds, place names, dialect and culture of King Island, supported by two grants from the National Science Foundation, one for $540,000 and another for $23,000. Kingston --...

First Americans Arrived Recently, Settled Pacific Coast, DNA Study Says

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 02/02/2007 7:52:13 PM EST · 35 replies · 621+ views

National Geographic | 2-2-2007 | Stefan Lovgren
First Americans Arrived Recently, Settled Pacific Coast, DNA Study Says Stefan Lovgren for National Geographic News February 2, 2007 A study of the oldest known sample of human DNA in the Americas suggests that humans arrived in the New World relatively recently, around 15,000 years ago. The DNA was extracted from a 10,300-year-old tooth found in a cave on Prince of Wales Island off southern Alaska in 1996. The sample represents a previously unknown lineage for the people who first arrived in the Americas. The findings, published last week in the American Journal of Physical Anthropology, shed light on how...

Make My Helix a Double

Bison Poop Reveals Two Distinct U.S. Populations [ Holy Feces!!! ]

Posted by SunkenCiv
On General/Chat 02/02/2007 12:39:53 AM EST · 29 replies · 275+ views

LiveScience | January 30, 2007 | Jeanna Bryner
Bison poop has more to offer than a field-clearing smell. Genetic analysis of the feces has revealed there are two breeding populations of bison in Yellowstone National Park, according to a new study. The discovery has implications for how to manage the roughly 4,000 bison (called Bison bison by scientists), which were previously considered one giant breeding population within the park's boundaries... The poop itself doesnít contain the DNA. When a bison chows down, the roughage scoots through the digestive tract before a less-recognizable chunk of it passes out of the gut. During the descent, cells lining the gut slough...

Ancient Europe

Mapping an Underwater World [ Neolithic riverscapes ]

Posted by SunkenCiv
On General/Chat 02/01/2007 11:59:25 PM EST · 17 replies · 232+ views

Archaeology | January/February 2006 | Mike Pitts
The map in front of me is 12 feet across, and glows in unfocused luminous orange. When I put on battery-operated polarizing glasses, it jumps sharply into three dimensions... Through the millennia that people have been in northern Europe, sea levels have risen and fallen as glaciers have retreated and advanced, periodically exposing land the size of California around Britain's shores. Often this land supported a variety of terrestrial life, from mammoths to people, in environments ranging from tundra to forest. Deep under the North Sea today are likely to be perfectly preserved plant and animal remains, human bones, and...

Africa

Hiking with Hannibal

Posted by SunkenCiv
On General/Chat 02/02/2007 12:08:30 AM EST · 7 replies · 87+ views

Archaeology | January/February 2006 | Ulrich Boser
Gazing at the surrounding mountains of stone and ice, I find it almost impossible to imagine that a large army could have crossed these peaks; so did the ancient Romans, who called the Alps the "Fence of Italy," and for centuries were unable to conquer the Celtic tribes who lived there. But in late October 218 B.C., battling snowstorms, rock avalanches, and bellicose tribes, the Carthaginian general Hannibal marched some 25,000 men, 37 elephants, and scores of pack animals over a narrow pass in the mountain range. Hailed as one of the boldest military maneuvers in history, Hannibal's invasion of...

Ancient Egypt

Gilded youth [ Temple of Mut in Luxor ]

Posted by SunkenCiv
On General/Chat 02/01/2007 7:03:42 PM EST · 5 replies · 84+ views

Al-Ahram Weekly | 1 - 7 February 2007, Issue No. 830 | Nevine El-Aref
Excavators from the Brooklyn Museum stumbled upon the unique lintel painted with five gilded deities during routine cleaning of the precinct enclosure wall of the temple. Topped with a cavetto cornice embellished with painted stripes, the lintel is well preserved. It is framed by rounded moulding and the decoration includes raised relief figures. The five gilded solar deities appear sitting on lotus blossoms against a blue backdrop, representing the sky, each with a finger in its mouth. The first and last are crowned with the sun disk, the second wears a double crown, the third a hem-hem crown and the...

Pyramids

Ancient mystery solved? Taft man says 'Murphy Mover' explains pyramids

Posted by SunkenCiv
On General/Chat 02/01/2007 6:57:30 PM EST · 30 replies · 448+ views

Taft Midway Driller Weekly | Friday, January 19, 2007 | Doug Keeler
James Murphy said his Apex Delivery and Lifting System - or Murphy Mover - is more than just an explanation. It's a nearly energy free way of lifting and moving large objects. It doesn't take much power and doesn't need any major outside energy - just gravity... While no one calls it an unqualified success, no one has laughed it off either... He's trying to get a scientific paper on the Murphy Mover published to attract the attention that could lead to a grant to demonstrate his theory and models. Murphy is looking for someone with an engineering or technical...

Sudan: The Land Of Pyramids

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 02/01/2007 5:56:41 PM EST · 24 replies · 574+ views

Kenya News Network | 1-31-2007 | Isaac Amke
Sudan: The Land of Pyramids Posted By: Isaac Amke Jan 31, 2007, 00:13 Email this article Printer friendly page There are probably more pyramids in Sudan than can be found in all of Egypt. Yet the wonders of ancient Egypt are known worldwide, while those of its southern neighbor stand forgotten on the banks of the Nile. The checkered political history of Sudan, combined with the country's rugged terrain and lack of modern conveniences, has kept tourists away from some of the most romantic archeological sites in the world, among them several whole fields of pyramids. The oldest Sudanese pyramids,...

Epigraphy and Language

Messages from the Dead [ Qatna's royal palace and cuneiform archive ]

Posted by SunkenCiv
On General/Chat 02/01/2007 11:39:48 PM EST · 3 replies · 1+ view

Archaeology | January/February 2006 | Marco Merola
Inscribed on the small, pillow-shaped tablet is a 3,000-year-old warning to Idanda, king of Qatna, from the Hittite general Hanutti, telling him to prepare for war. A small Bronze Age Syrian city-state, Qatna was once under Hittite control, but had been conquered by the Mitanni people from the north. The clay tablet, like others found with it, was fired twice--once just after it was written, to preserve it, and again when the ancient city was sacked and burned to the ground in 1340 B.C. by the Hittites, who ruled an empire that stretched from northern Turkey to Mesopotamia and Syria......

Greece

Alexander's Afghan Gold

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 02/01/2007 5:37:09 PM EST · 20 replies · 473+ views

Al-Ahram | 1-31-2007
Alexander's Afghan gold After establishing the Egyptian port city of Alexandria in 331 BC, Alexander the Great founded Greek garrison cities across Asia, including Afghanistan. His legacy is on show in a new Paris exhibition, writes David Tresilian "Sovereign and Dragon" pendant found at the Tillia Tepe treasure While not drawing quite the crowds making their way to the Grand Palais for Tresors engloutis d'Egypte, an exhibition of mostly Ptolemaic artefacts -- "submerged treasures" -- discovered off the coast of Alexandria and reviewed in Al-Ahram Weekly on 14 December, Afghanistan, les tresors retrouves across Paris at the Musee Guimet should...

Asia

Pollen Reveals (Chinese) Terracotta Army Origins

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 01/29/2007 7:29:00 PM EST · 19 replies · 462+ views

Discovery News | 1-29-2007 | Jennifer Viegas
Pollen Reveals Terracotta Army Origins Jennifer Viegas, Discovery News Pollen Found Inside Jan. 29, 2007 -- Chinaís Terracotta Army has mystified scholars since the 8,099 clay warriors and horses were first discovered in Emperor Qin Shihuangís mausoleum in 1974. The figures, meant to protect the emperor in the afterlife, were buried with him around 210-209 B.C. At least one mystery about the imposing faux army recently was solved. It is now known that the horses and warriors were constructed in different locations, based on analysis of pollen found in fragments of terracotta that were collected from the clay figures.Horses Made...

Roman Descendants Found In China?

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 02/01/2007 9:08:49 PM EST · 34 replies · 1,161+ views

The Telegraph (UK) | 2-2-2007 | Richard Spencer
Roman descendants found in China? By Richard Spencer in Liqian, north-west China Last Updated: 1:33am GMT 02/02/2007 Sound and vision: Richard Spencer visits the village of Liqian, China(Click at site) Residents of a remote Chinese village are hoping that DNA tests will prove one of history's most unlikely legends -- that they are descended from Roman legionaries lost in antiquity. Villager Cai Junnian with his green eyes and ruddy complexion Scientists have taken blood samples from 93 people living in and around Liqian, a settlement in north-western China on the fringes of the Gobi desert, more than 200 miles from...

Ancient Rome

Emperor's Treasures Found (Maxentius)

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 01/31/2007 5:21:08 PM EST · 8 replies · 719+ views

The Times Online | 1-31-2007 | Richard Owen
Emperor's treasures found Richard Owen ROME The lost treasure of Maxentius, the last preChristian Roman emperor, has been unearthed by archaeologists. Imperial standards, lances and glass spheres, right, were buried on the Palatine Hill by Maxentius before his battle with Constantine the Great in AD312. Archaeologists believe that he planned to retrieve the treasure if he won. In the event, he and his closest aides were killed, so that no one knew where it was hidden.

Nero's Golden Palace to partly reopen - Domus Aurea

Posted by NormsRevenge
On General/Chat 01/31/2007 10:17:00 PM EST · 13 replies · 144+ views

AP on Yahoo | 1/31/07 | Marta Falconi - ap
ROME - Nero's Golden Palace will partly reopen to visitors next week, offering rare insight into archaeologists' efforts to preserve the first-century imperial residence from decay and humidity. Visitors will have access to half of the palace, wandering through a maze of underground passageways, officials said Wednesday. They can also climb a 43-foot scaffolding and take a close look at the building's frescoed vaulted ceilings, as restorers and archaeologists work to clean the paint. "People will have the chance to get to know the monument itself and the efforts to maintain and preserve it," said archaeologist Irene Pignatelli, leading a...

Biology and Cryptobiology

Archaeologist digs for proof of Sasquatch

Posted by FLOutdoorsman
On News/Activism 01/29/2007 1:26:30 AM EST · 46 replies · 910+ views

The Union Democrat Online | 26 Jan 2007 | Chris Bateman
BY DAY SHE'S the Stanislaus National Forest's archaeologist. With a master's degree in anthropology, she makes sure prehistoric Native American sites in the woods are protected. She's also the forest's liaison with the Me-Wuk tribe. But it's what Kathy Strain does in her spare time that separates her from Forest Service colleagues. She's a Bigfooter. A student of Sasquatch. A yearner for Yeti. A true believer. "A strong case can be made that Bigfoot exists," said Strain, whose Jamestown-area home includes a room full of books, videos, cast footprints, notes and reports on the creature. "I've seen things I have...

Cultured Cousins? (Looking at apes, tools, and human evolution)

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 02/01/2007 5:30:10 PM EST · 14 replies · 306+ views

Archaeology Magazine | 1-31-2007 | Kirsten Vala
Cultured Cousins? January 31, 2007 by Kirsten Vala Looking at apes, tools, and human evolution Many animals have been observed using tools: Dolphins use sponges when fishing, crows use sticks to forage for insects in dead wood, capuchin monkeys use stones to break open nuts. A wild chimpanzee in a nest (or bed or sleeping platform), essentially a simple shelter. This is a constructed artifact, a simple example of elementary technology, which happens to be a great ape universal. (© W.C. McGrew) Apes use tools. So what? What does that tell us about human evolution? As it turns out, observing...

Bones Of Giant Birds Pose Mating Mystery

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 09/10/2003 6:39:39 PM EDT · 62 replies · 2,184+ views

Independent (UK) | 9-11-2003 | Steve Connor
Bones of giant birds pose mating mystery By Steve Connor 11 September 2003 A study of the fossilised bones of a giant bird which died out about 800 years ago has revealed that the female was three times the size of the male. Scientists discovered that the largest giant moa birds were not a separate species, as originally thought, but an extreme example of sexual dimorphism. A study of the DNA extracted from the bones of large and small moas revealed that the females were huge, weighing up to 250kg and standing up to three metres tall. The males were...

Australia and the Pacific

Anthropologist Confirms 'Hobbit' Indeed A Seperate (Human) Species

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 01/29/2007 7:13:17 PM EST · 39 replies · 925+ views

Science Daily | 1-29-2007 | Florida State University
Florida State University Date: January 29, 2007 Anthropologist Confirms 'Hobbit' Indeed A Separate Species Science Daily -- After the skeletal remains of an 18,000-year-old, Hobbit-sized human were discovered on the Indonesian island of Flores in 2003, some scientists thought that the specimen must have been a pygmy or a microcephalic -- a human with an abnormally small skull. Not so, said Dean Falk, a world-renowned paleoneurologist and chair of Florida State University's anthropology department, who along with an international team of experts created detailed maps of imprints left on the ancient hominid's braincase and concluded that the so-called Hobbit was...

Catastrophism and Astronomy

Life may lie deep below Martian surface

Posted by KevinDavis
On General/Chat 01/30/2007 10:23:36 PM EST · 13 replies · 113+ views

New Scientist | 01/30/07 | aggie McKee
Future missions may have to drill nearly 10 metres below the surface of Mars to find any life there, a new study concludes. The research suggests the best places to search for Martian life are blocks of water ice or gullies that show signs of recent water flow. Researchers have long known that the Red Planet's surface is a harsh environment for life ñ with high levels of ultraviolet light from the Sun and oxidising conditions that seem to make organic molecules unstable. Charged particles ñ both from the Sun and from violent sources such as supernovae within the galaxy...

Faith and Philosophy

This year Mahashivratri to be celebrated in Pak's Katasraj Temples too

Posted by SunkenCiv
On General/Chat 02/01/2007 11:49:33 AM EST · 3 replies · 17+ views

DailyIndia.com | Thursday, February 01, 2007 | unattributed (ANI)
The Katasraj Temples have huge significance for the Hindus living in the country... Plans to celebrate the festival in Pakistan are part of a development project for Hindu sites at Katasraj. Both India and Pakistan had in June 2005 agreed on the project during a visit by the then BJP president Lal Krishna Advani and Shivshankar Menon, the then Indian high commissioner, to Katasraj. It was also agreed that arrangements would be made to allow more Hindu pilgrims to visit Katasraj Temples in the near future. Then, in September 2005, president of the ruling party in Pakistan, PML, Ch. Shujaat...

India

Buddha statue villain shot dead

Posted by Valin
On News/Activism 01/27/2007 11:10:23 AM EST · 65 replies · 1,138+ views

The Scotsman | 1/27/07 | AMIR SHAH
KABUL A FORMER Taleban official who oversaw the destruction of the 1,500-year-old Bamiyan Buddhas in 2001 was assassinated in Afghanistan yesterday. Maulavi Mohammed Islam Mohammadi, who was the Taleban's governor of Bamiyan province when the giant fifth-century statues were blown up in March 2001, was killed on his way to Friday prayers in the capital, Kabul. A gunman dressed as a construction worker shot and killed him and wounded one of his two bodyguards with an AK47 assault rifle before fleeing. Mohammadi was elected in 2005 to represent the northern province of Samangan in Afghanistan's parliament. After that, Mohammadi said...

Middle Ages and Renaissance

Shackled Skeleton Found In Avila (Middle Ages - Spain)

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 01/31/2007 5:12:39 PM EST · 55 replies · 1,276+ views

Typically Spanish | 1-31-2007 | H.B.
Shackled skeleton found in Avila By h.b. Wed, 31 Jan 2007, 14:05 The famous Avila city walls in recent snow - Photo EFE A skeleton tied up with shackles and chains and thought to date from the Middle Ages has been found in an archaeological dig in Avila, behind the cityís Church of San Pedro. Itís the second such find in the city, although coming in a different place, and it has led experts to think that death occurred during some form of punishment. Tomorrow, Thursday the latest find will be taken to the Provincial Museum where the skeleton will...

Archaeoastronomy and Megaliths

Stonehenge Builders' Houses Found

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 01/30/2007 11:13:43 AM EST · 36 replies · 946+ views

BBC | 1-30-2007
Stonehenge builders' houses found The village would have housed hundreds of people (Image: National Geographic) Archaeologists say they have found a huge ancient settlement used by the people who built Stonehenge. Excavations at Durrington Walls, near the legendary Salisbury Plain monument, uncovered remains of ancient houses. People seem to have occupied the sites seasonally, using them for ritual feasting and funeral ceremonies. In ancient times, this settlement would have housed hundreds of people, making it the largest Neolithic village ever found in Britain. The dwellings date back to 2,600-2,500 BC, the same period that Stonehenge was built. "In what were...

Houses Found Buried Beneath Stonehenge Site

Posted by RDTF
On News/Activism 01/30/2007 3:55:42 PM EST · 32 replies · 1,084+ views

The Washington Post | January 30, 2007 | Marc Kaufman
New excavations near the mysterious circle at Stonehenge in South England have uncovered dozens of homes where hundreds of people lived -- at roughly the same time 4,600 years ago that the giant stone slabs were being erected. The finding strongly suggests that the monument and the settlement nearby were a center for ceremonial activities, with Stonehenge likely a burial site while other nearby circular earthen "henges" were areas for feasts and festivals. The houses found buried beneath the grounds of the Stonehenge World Heritage Site are the first of their kind from that late Stone Age period in Britain,...

Oh So Mysteriouso

Pagans celebrate Winter Solstice at Stonehenge on the wrong day...

Posted by DogByte6RER
On News/Activism 12/22/2006 12:27:14 PM EST · 72 replies · 1,918+ views

Monsters & Critics | Dec 22, 2006 | UPI
Religion News Solstice rite held early at Stonehenge Dec 22, 2006 LONDON, England (UPI) -- Around 60 people turned up to celebrate the Winter Solstice at Stonehenge Thursday - on the wrong day. After negotiating with site managers, the crowd performed traditional solstice activities and left peacefully. One reveller, who wished to remain anonymous, said: 'We formed a ring and held hands, and touched the stones. The man with the green cloak was there. But there were an awful lot of red faces,' she said. The Pagan Winter Solstice celebration is one of the oldest winter celebrations in the world....

Longer Perspectives

The Noble Savage is French Toast

Posted by Tolik
On News/Activism 01/30/2007 9:35:52 AM EST · 80 replies · 1,699+ views

The American Thinker | January 30, 2007 | James Lewis
Nicholas Wade is a science writer for the New York Times, who used to be as Politically Correct as anyone in that mob on 42nd Street. No longer. Wade has discovered the new anthropology, now informed by a radically improved understanding of the human genome. The new evidence is clearly explained in his recent book, Before the Dawn: Recovering the lost history of our ancestors. It looks at the deep human past --- tens to hundreds of thousands of years --- combining written records, archeology, anthropology and the human genome. The result is spectacular. If this book is any...

British Isles

Irish River Find May Be First Discovery Of Viking Ship

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 01/29/2007 12:25:44 PM EST · 29 replies · 879+ views

Yahoo News | 1-26-2007 | Andrew Bushe
Irish river find may be first discovery of Viking ship by Andrew Bushe Fri Jan 26, 5:29 PM ETAFP/Scanpix/File Photo: A replica of a Viking ship sails off Oslo in 2006. An ancient boat discovered... " DUBLIN (AFP) - An ancient boat discovered in a riverbed north of Dublin may be the first Viking longship found in the country, Environment and Heritage Minister Dick Roche said. The wreck in the River Boyne, close to the northeastern port of Drogheda, was described by Roche as potentially an "enormously exciting discovery". The vessel, nine metres (30 feet) wide by 16 metres long,...

Navigation

Oldest Maritime Artefacts Found (Egypt)

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 01/29/2007 12:37:27 PM EST · 12 replies · 587+ views

Egypt online | 1-28-2007
Sunday, January 28, 2007 Oldest maritime artefacts found A cave cut in the rock has been discovered in the Pharaonic Port of Marsa Gawasis in Safaga. In December-January, archaeologists found the timbers of sea-going vessels that were over 3,500 years old at Marsa Gawasis, which was a port on Egypt's Red Sea coast in Pharaonic times. The cedar planks, which were imported from Syria, were found in two man-made caves. Among the other finds were rigging and inscriptions about expeditions to the Land of Punt. Marsa Gawasis is located on a coral reef at the northern end of the Wadi...

Thoroughly Modern Miscellany

Trump Project Disrupts Historic Site

Posted by restornu
On News/Activism 01/28/2007 4:33:06 PM EST · 24 replies · 518+ views

Discovery.com | Jan 26 2007
Jan. 26, 2007 -- A proposed 45-story development spearheaded by real estate mogul Donald Trump has unearthed human remains that may belong to abolitionists from an abolitionist New York City church founded in 1811, according to an archaeological report recently filed with the city. Trump and project partners Bayrock/Sapir LLC were issued a "Stop Work Order" on December 12, 2006, when news of the remains came to light. "At that time, it was requested that the developers work with an archaeologist," NYC Department of Buildings spokesperson Kate Lindquist told Discovery News. She added, "They (the developers) keep submitting and resubmitting...

Part of archaeological site destroyed in Albuquerque

Posted by ApplegateRanch
On News/Activism 01/29/2007 7:50:15 PM EST · 8 replies · 313+ views

KFDA Ch 10 Amarillo TX | not listed | not listed
Part of archaeological site destroyed in Albuquerque ALBUQUERQUE Crews working on a waterline for a new high school on Albuquerque's west side have destroyed part of an archaeological site. A University of New Mexico archaeologist, Bruce Huckell, says the site is possibly up to ten-thousand-900 years old. He says the site was the first proof the presence of the Folsom culture in the Albuquerque basin. Pieces of tools, teeth and bone fragments have been found at the site, which was discovered by Huckell eight years ago. He says Albuquerque's public school district realized part of the site was damaged in...

Pomologists Bite Off More Than They Can Chew With 200-Year-Old Apple Mystery

Posted by blam
On Smoky Backroom 01/29/2007 9:40:07 PM EST · 112 replies · 2,481+ views

The Telegraph (UK) | 1-30-2007 | Richard Savill
Pomologists bite off more than they can chew with 200-year-old apple mystery By Richard Savill Last Updated: 2:01am GMT 30/01/2007 The identity of an apple variety that has been growing in Dorset for 200 years has left fruit specialists baffled. For generations, the family of Diana Toms has affectionately referred to the fruit as Granfer's Apple, after her great, great grandfather who planted the tree in 1803. The family has asked pomologists to help establish the cooking apple's identity but they have so far been unable to solve the mystery. Mrs Toms, 83, said: "I am rather pleased it is...

end of digest #133 20070203

Gods, Graves, Glyphs
Weekly Digest #134
Saturday, February 10, 2007

Navigation

Crystals 'helped Viking sailors' (For Viking fans....and others, of course).

Posted by Jedi Master Pikachu
On General/Chat 02/07/2007 5:04:03 PM EST · 33 replies · 396+ views

BBC | Wednesday, February 7, 2007
The sun was not necessary for Vikings to navigate, say researchers Vikings may have used a special crystal called a sunstone to help navigate the seas even when the sun was obscured by fog or cloud, a study has suggested. Researchers from Hungary ran a test with sunstones in the Arctic ocean, and found that the crystals can reveal the sun's position even in bad weather. This would have allowed the Vikings to navigate successfully, they say. The sunstone theory has been around for 40 years, but some academics have treated it with extreme scepticism. Researcher Gabor Horvath from...

Ancient Europe

Ten-Year Clean For Iron Age Boat

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 02/09/2007 1:54:17 PM EST · 21 replies · 863+ views

BBC | 2-9-2007
Ten-year clean for iron age boat The log boat has been dried after a decade soaked in sugar A 2,000-year-old log boat discovered buried in mud is to be put on display after a 10-year restoration project. The Iron Age vessel was found in 1964 during dredging work in Poole Harbour and members of York Archaeological Trust restored the water-logged timber. The log boat, which is thought to have been used for continental trade, is estimated to have weighed 14 tonnes. A glass case has been designed to house the ancient timber, which is due to be displayed in Poole...

Prehistory and Origins

Stone Age Camp Found In Germany

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 02/06/2007 5:46:50 PM EST · 30 replies · 774+ views

Spiegel | 2-6-2007
Stone Age Camp Found In Germany Archaeologists have discovered the remains of a 120,000-year-old Stone Age hunting camp in a coal mine in Germany. It is a find of great European importance, researchers say. Open-cast coal mines may get a bad press, but in Germany they're still big business -- the country is the world's largest producer of lignite, or brown coal. Now another advantage of open-cast mines has been discovered -- they can conceal a rich seam of archaeological sites. Archaeologists have found the remains of a 120,000-year-old Stone Age hunting camp in an open-cast lignite mine near Inden...

Africa

Yorkshire clan linked to Africa

Posted by Jedi Master Pikachu
On News/Activism 01/24/2007 6:19:12 AM EST · 8 replies · 425+ views

BBC | Wednesday, January 24, 2007
People of African origin have lived in Britain for centuries, according to genetic evidence. A Leicester University study found that seven men with a rare Yorkshire surname carry a genetic signature previously found only in people of African origin. The men seem to have shared a common ancestor in the 18th Century, but the African DNA lineage they carry may have reached Britain centuries earlier. The connection was found to date back many generations Details of the study appear in the European Journal of Human Genetics. The scientists declined to disclose the men's surname in order to protect their...

British Isles

The anatomy of an Iron-Age murder

Posted by aculeus
On News/Activism 02/03/2007 10:40:45 AM EST · 23 replies · 728+ views

Wilmslow Express | January 31, 2007 | by Betty Anderson
THE discovery of 2,000 year old human remains at Lindow Peat Bog more than 20 years ago sent shock waves through the Wilmslow community and sparked a murder hunt. A year later archaeologists swarmed to the peat farm to examine the relics of an iron age man whose well preserved body lay buried there for centuries. Lindow man, as he later became known, went on to become a national treasure at the British Museum. And for the past 20 years historians, archaeologists and mystics have all had their say on the gruesome discovery. Now, it is time for the public...

Scotland Yet

Stones Of Destiny Show Scotland's Ancient Faith

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 02/09/2007 1:44:51 PM EST · 10 replies · 509+ views

Scotsman | 2-8-2007
Stones of destiny show Scotland's ancient faith PETER YEOMAN The entrance to the revamped Whithorn Museum is eye-grabbing. Picture: Crown Copyright reproduced Courtesy of Historic Scotland MORE than 1,000 years ago three brief words were cut into the face of a beautiful carved cross. Standing at attention: Some of the standing stones on display at the Whithorn Museum. Picture: Crown Copyright reproduced Courtesy of Historic Scotland It is one of more than 60 early Christian grave markers and crosses, many decorated with elaborately carved patterns, that form the internationally important collection known as the Whithorn stones. For centuries the meaning of...

Question on European/British Isles history

Posted by ConservativeDude
On General/Chat 02/06/2007 3:52:22 PM EST · 14 replies · 214+ views

I don't understand the 1745 Jacobite uprising in Scotland

Middle Ages and Renaissance

Castle's secrets yet to be fully uncovered [ Bodiam Castle ]

Posted by SunkenCiv
On General/Chat 02/09/2007 1:48:18 AM EST · 15 replies · 322+ views

HastingsToday | Thursday, February 6, 2007 | unattributed
One of most beautiful and spectacular castles in the country, Bodiam was built by Sir Edward Dalyngrigge in 1385 and is now owned and managed by The National Trust. The exciting discovery happened on Friday February 2 [2007] when some earth was being cleared away in the Great Hall ruins. The ground was being made ready for a new gravel base when suddenly the mini-digger struck stone. As the earth was carefully cleared away, with an archaeologist on hand to observe the proceedings, more stonework appeared along with some clay tiles and pieces of rubble. It soon became apparent that...

Faith and Philosophy

Basilica Built on Martyrdom; a Caravaggio Rival

Posted by NYer
On Religion 02/09/2007 9:59:38 PM EST · 4 replies · 31+ views

Zenit News Agency | February 8, 2007 | Elizabeth Lev
The Return of Santo Stefano Rotundo By Elizabeth Lev ROME, FEB. 8, 2007 (Zenit.org).- Lorenzo the Magnificent famously cautioned his young son Giovanni, the future Pope Leo X, as he set off to Rome for the first time, "As you are now to reside in Rome, that pool of all iniquity, the difficulty of conducting yourself Ö will be increased." The wary sentiment of this canny Florentine resonates even today, where many people come to see the wonders of the city without expecting to find much spiritual bolstering. Fortunately, Rome's bad spiritual reputation often proves unwarranted. An example is the...

Epigraphy and Language

Commentaries: Greek to Me: Wishing Ancient Greek Were His Mother Tongue

Posted by SunkenCiv
On General/Chat 02/07/2007 1:36:17 PM EST · 17 replies · 172+ views

Greek News | November 2006, Posted on Monday, December 4 | Tom Mueller
In English, verbs have a manageable four main forms: yodel, yodels, yodeled, yodeling. Spanish verbs have about 50. Classical Greek? Three hundred and fifty. "They might yodel (in the past) for themselves" (the first aorist middle optative third person plural) and "You are about to be having been yodeled" (the second person singular future perfect passive) are but two of the ways one can yodel in Greek. And just about the time you've memorized all the rules of verb formation, you discover that many Greek verbs are irregular anyway and recklessly break them... "Our love of what is beautiful does...

Greece

looking for a good translation of Plutarch's Lives

Posted by sharpink
On General/Chat 02/08/2007 3:45:41 PM EST · 10 replies · 66+ views

I am currently reading "The Dryden Translation" of Plutarch's Lives. Are there any better translations?

Let's Have Jerusalem

DNA Clears the Fog Over Latino Links to Judaism in New Mexico

Posted by Bella_Bru
On News/Activism 12/06/2004 10:57:38 PM EST · 56 replies · 3,257+ views

LA Times | 12/06/04 | By David Kelly, Times Staff Writer
Tests confirm what tradition and whispers have alluded to -- a Sephardic community often unbeknownst to many of its members. ALBUQUERQUE ó As a boy, Father William Sanchez sensed he was different. His Catholic family spun tops on Christmas, shunned pork and whispered of a past in medieval Spain. If anyone knew the secret, they weren't telling, and Sanchez stopped asking. Then three years ago, after watching a program on genealogy, Sanchez sent for a DNA kit that could help track a person's background through genetic footprinting. He soon got a call from Bennett Greenspan, owner of the Houston-based testing...

Archeologist: Ancient cistern proves location of Second Temple

Posted by Esther Ruth
On News/Activism 02/07/2007 11:20:27 PM EST · 43 replies · 898+ views

Jerusalem Post | Feb. 7, 2007 23:28 | Updated Feb. 7, 2007 23:45 | ETGAR LEFKOVITS
Feb. 7, 2007 23:28 | Updated Feb. 7, 2007 23:45 Archeologist: Ancient cistern proves location of Second Temple By ETGAR LEFKOVITS An Israeli archeologist said Wednesday that he has pinpointed the exact location of the Second Jewish Temple on the Temple Mount. The site identified by Hebrew University archeologist Prof. Joseph Patrich, based on the study of a large underground cistern on the Temple Mount and passages from the Mishna, places the Temple and its corresponding courtyards, chambers and gates in a more southeasterly and diagonal frame of reference compared to previous studies. Patrich based his research, which is about...

Thoroughly Modern Miscellany

Jerusalem Arabs Riot, Kassams Fired, After Old City Excavations

Posted by SmithL
On News/Activism 02/06/2007 12:25:13 PM EST · 32 replies · 638+ views

Arutz Sheva - IsraelNationalNews | 2/6/7 | Hillel Fendel
Four Kassam rockets were fired into Israel and Arabs rioted in Jerusalem - in protest of Antiquities Authority works at the Western Wall Plaza entrance to the Temple Mount. Restrictions were placed on Moslem worshipers allowed to the Temple Mount, and the police were out in force Tuesday morning at the excavation works site, in anticipation of a fierce Arab reaction to the work. Though less violent than expected, rock-throwers rioted in eastern and northern Jerusalem; 11 Arabs were arrested. In addition, terrorist groups fired four Kassam rockets, in two waves, claiming to retaliate for the excavation work. In...

Elam, Persia, Parthia, Iran

Fate of Iranian Tablets in Doubt

Posted by tarnak
On News/Activism 02/04/2007 7:27:58 PM EST · 32 replies · 579+ views

The fate of ancient Iranian tablets housed at the Oriental Institute remains unknown after a federal judge declined to rule immediately at a court hearing contesting their ownership. The Persepolis Fortification tablets, which are on loan to the University from the government of Iran, were to be confiscated and auctioned off to compensate the families of five American victims of a 1997 Hamas bombing at the Ben Yehuda shopping mall in Jerusalem. The families of the victims won a $251 million ruling against the Iranian government in 2003 after a U.S. federal court found that the country had directly funded...

Asia

Terracotta Army Sets Off To Conquer Britain

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 02/07/2007 8:46:51 PM EST · 6 replies · 157+ views

The Telegraph (UK) | 2-8-2007 | Nigel reynolds
Terracotta army sets off to conquer Britain By Nigel Reynolds, Arts Correrspondent Last Updated: 1:35am GMT 08/02/2007 In pictures: Terracotta Warriors collection China's "terracotta army" is marching on London to bring the capital its greatest exhibition for a generation. Some of the 8,000 terracotta warriors. A dozen will go on show at the British Museum in September In a spectacular deal with China, the British Museum is to display some of the famous life-size figures from the second century BC found in the west of the country in 1974. The Chinese have agreed to loan not only a dozen of...

PreColumbian, Clovis, and PreClovis

Forensic Photography Brings Color Back To Ancient Textiles

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 02/08/2007 6:06:04 PM EST · 16 replies · 483+ views

OHS | 2-7-2007
FORENSIC PHOTOGRAPHY BRINGS COLOR BACK TO ANCIENT TEXTILES COLUMBUS , Ohio -- Archaeologists are now turning to forensic crime lab techniques to hunt for dyes, paint, and other decoration in prehistoric textiles. Although ancient fabrics can offer clues about prehistoric cultures, often their colors are faded, patterns dissolved, and fibers crumbling. Forensic photography can be used as an inexpensive and non-destructive tool to analyze these artifacts more efficiently, according to new Ohio State University research. Kathryn Jakes Forensic photography helps researchers collect information from fragile artifacts before using expensive chemical tests, which cause damage during material sampling. The forensic method...

Archaeology trumps oil, gas

Posted by xcamel
On News/Activism 02/04/2007 7:50:17 PM EST · 15 replies · 469+ views

The Salt Lake Tribune | 02/02/2007 | Joe Baird
** Board shoots down BLM leasing of 14,000 acres on sensitive lands Environmentalists have won another round in challenging a series of Bureau of Land Management oil and gas lease sales in Utah. The Interior Department's Board of Land Appeals this week reversed the BLM's leasing of roughly 14,000 acres for energy development north of Nine Mile Canyon and just south of the Book Cliffs in central Utah. The leases, covering 16 parcels, have been suspended, effective immediately. The agency, the board ruled, failed to adequately identify sensitive archaeological sites before offering the lease parcels for sale in October 2003....

Bridge Stirs The Waters In Machu Picchu

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 02/04/2007 5:45:09 PM EST · 9 replies · 395+ views

BBC | 2-4-2007 | Dan Collyns
Bridge stirs the waters in Machu Picchu By Dan Collyns BBC News, Peru In the year that Peru is trying to get Machu Picchu voted one of the new Seven Wonders of the World, there are growing tensions over the country's greatest tourist attraction. Machu Picchu is located high in the Andes Mountains A former mayor has built a bridge which creates a new route to the World Heritage site, threatening to bring more tourists and, some say, open up a new route for drug traffickers. The 80-metre long Carilluchayoc bridge, which crosses the Vilcanota river near the base of...

Climate

New York Times: Continuing end of last ice-age, not human activity, cause of warming trend

Posted by nwrep
On News/Activism 02/03/2007 4:25:07 PM EST · 78 replies · 2,080+ views

The New York Times Archives | May 15, 1932 | SPECIAL SECTON SUPPLEMENT
From a bygone era when reasoned scientific analysis held sway: ************************************* NEXT GREAT DELUGE FORECAST BY SCIENCE WE still speak of "the Ice Age" as if it belonged to the remote geological past. Geologists have reached the conclusion that there were several ice ages. What is more, the last Ice Age, known as the Quaternary, is only about half over, despite our blistering Summers. Very slowly, the great ice sheets in the Arctic and the Antarctic regions are melting and pouring their torrents into the ocean. The earth must inevitably change its aspect and its climate. How the change is...

Mastodon Tooth Fossil Remains a Mystery

Posted by xcamel
On General/Chat 02/03/2007 8:57:20 PM EST · 6 replies · 196+ views

ap/myway | Feb 3 | BLAKE NICHOLSON
BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) - A mastodon tooth fossil found in an Ontario, Canada, attic remains a mystery, after a paleontologist concluded it does not belong with a skeleton here that is one of the world's most complete. John Hoganson with the North Dakota Geological Survey climbed a ladder about 10 feet this week to take measurements inside the jaw of the skeleton in the North Dakota Heritage Center on the state Capitol grounds. "The tooth at (the University of) Waterloo was larger than the ones ... here," he said. "The bottom line is it just would not fit." The Earth...

Australia and the Pacific

Hobbit Skeptics Split On What A Second Skull Would Mean

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 02/07/2007 6:47:50 PM EST · 7 replies · 301+ views

Scientific American | 2-6-2007 | JR Minkel
February 06, 2007 Hobbit Skeptics Split on What a Second Skull Would Mean Advocates of a human Hobbit reveal what--if anything--would make them soften their stance By JR Minkel Image: COURTESY OF KIRK E. SMITH/Electronic Radiology Laboratory, Mallinckrodt Institute of RadiologyDOUBLE TROUBLE? A second small Hobbit skull similar to the first [right] would convince some skepticsóbut not all of themóthat they are dealing with a new species, as opposed to a dwarf or a diseased human [left]. For three years researchers have feuded over the rightful classification of the Hobbit, a diminutive, 18,000-year-old specimen unearthed from the Indonesian island of...

Ooo Ooo Ooo Ahh Ahh Ahh

Study turns human genetics on its head (less monkey...more variations)

Posted by peyton randolph
On News/Activism 11/23/2006 7:02:06 AM EST · 71 replies · 1,689+ views

Globe and Mail (Canada) | 11/23/2006 | CAROLYN ABRAHAM
...Using new technology to study the genomes of 270 volunteers from four corners of the world, researchers have found that while people do indeed inherit one chromosome from each parent, they do not necessarily inherit one gene from mom and another from dad. One parent can pass down to a child three or more copies of a single gene. In some cases, people can inherit as many as eight or 10 copies....

Genetic Breakthrough that Reveals the Differences Between Humans

Posted by Hawthorn
On News/Activism 11/23/2006 4:14:57 PM EST · 32 replies · 1,618+ views

Link only, due to copyright restrictions: http://news.independent.co.uk

Human genome completed (again)

Posted by neverdem
On News/Activism 05/17/2006 5:10:02 PM EDT · 10 replies · 568+ views

news@nature.com | 17 May 2006 | Helen Pearson
Close window Published online: 17 May 2006; | doi:10.1038/news060515-12 Human genome completed (again)Scientists today publish the sequence of chromosome 1: the largest and last of the human chromosomes to be done and dusted. News@nature finds out what this latest milestone means.Helen Pearson Haven't scientists already announced the completion of the human genome? Well, yes. Twice. In 2000, two teams declared with great fanfare that they had produced a draft copy of the human genetic code, but there were many gaps and errors in this version. Another announcement, in 2003, marked the completion of a far more accurate 'finished' sequence...

Biology and Cryptobiology

Prehistoric Origins Of Stomach Ulcers Uncovered

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 02/08/2007 6:53:13 PM EST · 25 replies · 512+ views

Science Daily | 2-8-2007 | BBSRC
Source: Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council Date: February 8, 2007 Prehistoric Origins Of Stomach Ulcers Uncovered Science Daily ó An international team of scientists has discovered that the ubiquitous bacteria that causes most painful stomach ulcers has been present in the human digestive system since modern man migrated from Africa over 60,000 years ago. The research, published online (7 February) by the journal Nature, not only furthers our understanding of a disease causing bacteria but also offers a new way to study the migration and diversification of early humans. A cell of H.pylori, a bacterial pathogen of the human...

Make My Helix a Double

DNA Clue To Presidential Puzzle (Jefferson)

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 02/07/2007 6:23:30 PM EST · 20 replies · 1,046+ views

BBC | 2-7-2007 | Paul Rincon
DNA clue to presidential puzzle By Paul Rincon Science reporter, BBC News DNA results from Thomas Jefferson were a mystery DNA tests carried out on two British men have shed light on a mystery surrounding the ancestry of Thomas Jefferson, America's third president. In the 1990s, DNA was taken from male relatives of Jefferson to see if he fathered a son with one of his slaves. They found the president had a rare genetic signature found mainly in the Middle East and Africa, calling into question his claim of Welsh ancestry. But this DNA type has now been found in...

Catastrophism and Astronomy

"Korean Pompeii" Discovered on Jeju Island

Posted by SunkenCiv
On General/Chat 02/04/2007 7:37:27 PM EST · 20 replies · 230+ views

Chosun Ilbo | Updated Feb.5,2007 08:51 KST | unattributed
An archaeological site on Jeju Island is being called Korea's version of Pompeii after the ancient Roman city which was preserved by volcanic debris. Discovered in 2006, a human settlement at the Hamori 105 formation in Daejung-eup, Seogwipo-city was confirmed to have been smothered by a volcanic eruption more than 5,000 years ago. The Jeju Culture & Art Foundation collected volcanic materials that covered Hamori and sent it to an American research institute. The Foundation said Sunday that the U.S. researchers determined the debris to have come from an eruption at nearby Songak Mountain over 5,200 years ago. Local scientists...

Rome and Italy

First Pompeii Uncovered (3rd Century BC)

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 02/04/2007 5:34:35 PM EST · 6 replies · 314+ views

Ansa | 2-1-2007
First Pompeii uncoveredSamnites founded city in Third Century BC (ANSA) - Rome, February 1 - The origins of the famed buried city of Pompeii have emerged from years of excavations, an international conference in Rome was told Thursday. The first Pompeii was not built by the Romans or even by the Greeks who preceded them, but by an ancient people called the Samnites, Pompeii heritage Superintendent Piero Guzzo told a packed audience of archaeologists and scholars. Wielding photos of inscriptions, votive offerings and even entire buildings, Guzzo said "a new season of studies has begun". "For the first time we...

Rome subway planners try to avoid relics

Posted by NormsRevenge
On General/Chat 02/03/2007 9:50:16 PM EST · 3 replies · 67+ views

AP on Yahoo | 2/3/07 | Ariel David - ap
ROME - In a city where traffic rumbles past the Colosseum and soccer fans celebrate victories among the remains of the Circus Maximus, it comes as no surprise that relics of the glory that was Rome turn up almost every day, and sometimes get in the way of the modern city's needs. The perennial tug-of-war between preserving ancient treasures and developing much-needed infrastructure is moving underground, as the city mobilizes archaeologists to probe the bowels of the Eternal City in preparation for a new, 15-mile subway line. Eyesore yellow panels have sprung up over the past months to cordon off...

The Sweetness of Honey and the Sting of Bees

Eternal embrace? Couple still hugging 5,000 years on

Posted by NYer
On News/Activism 02/06/2007 4:37:45 PM EST · 78 replies · 2,726+ views

Yahhh News | February 6, 2007
Call it the eternal embrace.Archaeologists in Italy have discovered a couple buried 5,000 to 6,000 years ago, hugging each other."It's an extraordinary case," said Elena Menotti, who led the team on their dig near the northern city of Mantova."There has not been a double burial found in the Neolithic period, much less two people hugging -- and they really are hugging."Menotti said she believed the two, almost certainly a man and a woman although that needs to be confirmed, died young because their teeth were mostly intact and not worn down."I must say that when we discovered it, we all...

Longer Perspectives

Women Have Played Major Role In History - - From The Start

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 02/06/2007 5:52:02 PM EST · 65 replies · 836+ views

Eureka Alert | 2-5-2007 | Andrea Lynn
Public release date: 5-Feb-2007 Contact: Andrea Lynn andreal@uiuc.edu 217-333-2177 University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Women have played major role in history -- from the start, authors assert CHAMPAIGN, Ill. ó Hold on to your bearskin hats and your macrame snoods, readers: You are in for a wild verbal ride through your deep, deep past. The authors of a new book have fashioned a 16-chapter prehistory theme park worthy of Disney, but in their confection, lame, even egregious, past assumptions about our past are hunted down and slain, and stars -- in the form of womankind -- are born. "The Invisible...

Oh So Mysteriouso

US researcher hoping to discover body of Jesus in Kashmir tomb

Posted by aculeus
On News/Activism 03/11/2002 7:43:17 AM EST · 52 replies · 3,377+ views

Hindustan Times | Monday, March 11, 2002 | Izhar Wani (AFP)
An American researcher who believes she has found the final resting place of Jesus Christ is campaigning to exhume a body at a Muslim shrine in Kashmir for scientific tests. Suzanne Marie Olsson, a New York-based researcher is currently in Srinagar, studying the Muslim shrine of Rozabal. While Muslims say Rozabal houses the tomb of Yuza Asaf, a Muslim saint, many researchers believe it contains the body of Jesus Christ. To put an end to speculation Olsson has suggested exhuming the remains at Rozabal for DNA testing and carbon dating. quot;This will trace him (the saint) to his origin ......

Mystery of Napoleon's Death Said Solved

Posted by Vote 4 Nixon
On News/Activism 01/17/2007 1:18:06 PM EST · 21 replies · 927+ views

www.livescience.com | 16 January 2007 | Sara Goudarzi
Putting to rest a 200-year-old mystery, scientists say Napoleon Bonaparte died from an advanced case of gastric cancer and not arsenic poisoning as some had speculated. After being defeated by the British in 1815, the French Emperor was exiled to St. Helenaóan island in the South Atlantic Ocean. Six years later, at the age of 52, Bonaparte whispered his last words, ìHead of Army!î An autopsy at the time determined that stomach cancer was the cause of his death. But some arsenic found in 1961 in the rulerís hair sparked rumors of poisoning. Had Napoleon escaped exile, he could have...

Archaeoastronomy and Megaliths

Give us back our bones, pagans tell museums

Posted by SunkenCiv
On General/Chat 02/06/2007 9:59:52 AM EST · 13 replies · 122+ views

The Guardian | Monday February 5, 2007 | James Randerson
British museums have become used to requests that foreign treasures be repatriated... British pagan groups are increasingly asking for human remains and grave goods from pre-Christian burials to be returned to them as well. The presence of what they see as their ancestors in dusty drawers or under harsh display lights is an affront to their religion. To them, the bones are living beings, whose existence is bound up with their religious descendants and the sacred land... Many scientists counter that, because of numerous influxes of people into the British Isles, it is impossible to identify the cultural or genetic...

Ancient Egypt

Discovering the pharmacy of the pharaohs

Posted by aculeus
On News/Activism 02/03/2007 10:30:46 AM EST · 6 replies · 295+ views

University of Manchester | January 26, 2007 | by Aeron Haworth
Scientists at The University of Manchester have teamed up with colleagues in Egypt in a bid to discover what medicines were used by the ancient Egyptians. The KNH Centre for Biomedical Egyptology in the Faculty of Life Sciences and the Egyptian Medicinal Plant Conservation Project in St Katherine's, Sinai, have formed a partnership to research Egyptian pharmacy in the times of the pharaohs. The 'Pharmacy in Ancient Egypt' collaboration, which is funded by a grant from the Leverhulme Trust, will compare modern plant species common to the Sinai region with the remains of ancient plants found in tombs. Researcher Dr...

end of digest #134 20070210

Gods, Graves, Glyphs
Weekly Digest #135
Saturday, February 17, 2007

Ancient Egypt

Archaeologists find Akhenaten-era tomb (as a result of Dutch team excavation in the Sakkara area)

Posted by NormsRevenge
On General/Chat 02/14/2007 4:01:18 PM EST · 11 replies · 162+ views

Reuters on Yahoo | 2/14/07 | Reuters
CAIRO (Reuters) - Dutch archaeologists have discovered the tomb of the Pharaoh Akhenaten's seal bearer, decorated with paintings including scenes of monkeys picking and eating fruit, Egyptian antiquities officials said on Wednesday. The tomb belonged to the official named Ptahemwi and was discovered during a Dutch team's excavation in the Sakkara area, the burial ground for the city of Memphis, the state news agency MENA said, quoting chief antiquities official Zahi Hawass. Akhenaten, the 18th-dynasty pharaoh who ruled Egypt from 1379 to 1362 BC, abandoned most of the old gods and tried to imposed a monotheistic religion based on worship...

Japanese team finds ancient Egyptian coffins (from the Middle Kingdom, 2 are ~4000 years old)

Posted by NormsRevenge
On News/Activism 02/11/2007 2:37:43 AM EST · 28 replies · 686+ views

AFP on Yahoo | 2/10/07 | AFP
CAIRO (AFP) - A Japanese archeological team has discovered three painted wooden coffins in Egypt, including two from the little-known Middle Kingdom period dating back more than 4,000 years. The sarcophagi were found in tomb shafts in the vast Saqqara necropolis south of Cairo, Zahi Hawass, the director of Egypt's Supreme Council of Antiquities, said on Saturday. "It is significant because of the discovery of two sarcophagi from the Middle Kingdom," said Japanese team leader Sakuji Yoshimori. The Saqqara burial grounds which date back to 2,700 BC and are dominated by the massive bulk of King Zoser's step pyramid --...

Rome and Italy

On The Origin Of The Etruscan Civilisation

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 02/14/2007 11:39:18 AM EST · 12 replies · 650+ views

New Scientist | 2-14-2007 | Michael Day
On the origin of the Etruscan civilisation 00:01 14 February 2007 NewScientist.com news service Michael Day Etruscan cippus (grave marker) in the shape of a warrior head. Found in Orvieto, Italy One of anthropology's most enduring mysteries - the origins of the ancient Etruscan civilisation - may finally have been solved, with a study of cattle. This culturally distinct and technologically advanced civilisation inhabited central Italy from about the 8th century BC, until it was assimilated into Roman culture around the end of the 4th century BC. The origins of the Etruscans, with their own non-Indo-European language, have been debated...

Rome on HBO

Anybody following "Rome" on HBO?

Posted by Callahan
On General/Chat 10/10/2005 3:45:21 PM EDT · 27 replies · 720+ views

HBO | 10/10/2005 | Me
Episode 7: Pharsalus Synopsis As Caesar waits hopelessly for more of his soldiers to arrive from Italy, Pompey's camp prepares for their attack - and for the spoils of victory. Only Brutus appears apprehensive, conceding that while the Republic must be free of tyrants, he cannot celebrate Caesar's defeat. "He was as my father to me." For his part, Pompey suggests letting Caesar's cornered army "disintegrate and disappear," but the senators argue for a decisive attack. "You are Pompey Magnus," Scipio intones. "You conquer and crush your enemies like insects. People will be disappointed by anything less." This strikes a...

Ancient Greece

Ancient Greek Theater Discovered

Posted by SunkenCiv
On General/Chat 02/16/2007 3:04:50 PM EST · 12 replies · 97+ views

Discovery | February 16, 2007 | Nicholas Paphitis
Sections of an ancient Greek theater were discovered on Thursday during construction work in an Athens suburb... Until now, only two such buildings were known in the ancient city where western theater originated more than 2,500 years ago. Fifteen rows of concentric stone seats have been located so far in the northwestern suburb of Menidi, according to Vivi Vassilopoulou, Greece's general director of antiquities... The structure has not yet been dated, and further details are expected to emerge following a full excavation. Menidi is thought to be built over the ancient village of Acharnae, the largest of a string of...

Cleopatra Heads and Tails

Coin Shows Cleopatra's Ugly Truth

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 02/14/2007 11:59:15 AM EST · 131 replies · 3,270+ views

BBC | 2-14-2007
Coin shows Cleopatra's ugly truth The images of Antony and Cleopatra are less than flattering Antony and Cleopatra, one of history's most romantic couples, were not the great beauties that Hollywood would have us believe, academics have said. A study of a 2,000-year-old silver coin found the Egyptian queen, famously portrayed by Elizabeth Taylor, had a pointed chin, thin lips and sharp nose. Her Roman lover, played by Richard Burton, had bulging eyes, thick neck and a hook nose. The tiny coin was studied by experts at Newcastle University. The size of a modern 5p piece (18mm or 0.7in), the...

Ancient coin contradicts legend of Cleopatra's beauty (Oooof! She looked like Ed Koch)

Posted by dead
On News/Activism 02/14/2007 1:45:05 PM EST · 61 replies · 2,227+ views

AP
The image of Cleopatra on the silver denarius of dated to 32BC, being displayed t Newcastle University, Newcastle, England. Wednesday Feb. 14, 2007. So maybe Mark Antony loved Cleopatra for her mind. That is the conclusion drawn by academics at the University of Newcastle from a Roman denarius which depicts the celebrated queen of Egypt as a sharp-nosed, thin- lipped woman with a protruding chin. In short, a fair match for the hook-nosed, thick-necked Mark Antony on the obverse. (AP Photo/Scott Heppell)

Heads she's homely; tails he's ugly

Posted by Tolerance Sucks Rocks
On General/Chat 02/15/2007 7:12:51 PM EST · 13 replies · 516+ views

Washington Times Insider | February 15, 2007 | Al Webb
LONDON -- A couple of millennia after their steamy affair went scorching across the Roman Empire, Mark Antony and Cleopatra remain among history's most romanticized lovers. But in the looks department, they may both have left much to be desired.

British Isles

Roman burial ground is uncovered

Posted by SunkenCiv
On General/Chat 02/14/2007 2:56:13 AM EST · 3 replies · 100+ views

BBC | Tuesday, 13 February 2007 | unattributed
Skeletons dating back to the 1st Century have been discovered by archaeologists working at an Anglian Water site in Lincolnshire... The archaeologists found coins, pottery, tweezers and 30 skeletons at the site... Naomi Field, director of Lindsey Archaeological Services [said] "The biggest surprise was finding the cemetery itself. We weren't as surprised about the ditches we found as aerial photographs indicated there may be some. But we weren't prepared for the scale of the site as the ditches are very big and deep" ...She added they believed the site had been a burial ground for the Roman community living in...

Ancient Europe

Ancient footprints found on Welsh beach

Posted by aculeus
On News/Activism 02/12/2007 9:51:27 AM EST · 50 replies · 1,241+ views

IC Wales | Februrary 2, 2007 | Sally Williams, Western Mail
A BEACHCOMBER claims he has found ancient human footprints dating back 8,000 years, embedded in an ancient Welsh peat bed. Steve Maitland Thomas was walking on Kenfig Beach, Porthcawl, with his friend John Blundell, when they found a number of ancient size-eight footprints. He said, "We found the first on January 19, the day after storms had whipped up the sand revealing the bedrock below. The peat beds were formed from the floor of a vast forest, which once stretched right across the valley which now forms the Bristol Channel, until sea levels rose approximately 8,000 years ago." The next...

Agriculture

Red Hot Chili Pepper Research Spices Up Historical Record

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 02/16/2007 2:14:32 PM EST · 94 replies · 1,104+ views

Eureka Alert | 2-15-2007 | Gregory Harris - U Of Calgary
Contact: Gregory Harris gharris@ucalgary.ca 403-220-3506 University of Calgary Red hot chili pepper research spices up historical record Archaeologists trace domestication and dispersal of Capsicum species Next time you're shaking Tabasco sauce on your eggs or dried chili pepper flakes on your pizza, you might pause to thank the indigenous Latin American cultures of more than 6,100 years ago that made it possible. Three University of Calgary researchers, together with international colleagues, have traced the earliest known evidence for the domestication and spread of chili peppers by analysing starch microfossils recovered from grinding stones, sediments and charred ceramic cookware. In a...

Mummy's Amazing American Maize

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 02/14/2007 11:49:13 AM EST · 20 replies · 375+ views

Alpha Galileo | 2-14-2007 | U of M
Mummyís amazing American maize The far-reaching influence of Spanish and Portuguese colonisers appears not to have extended to South American agriculture, scientists studying Andean mummies up to 1,400 years old have found. The University of Manchester researchers working with colleagues in Buenos Aires compared the DNA of ancient maize found in the funerary offerings of the mummy and at other sites in northwest Argentina with that grown in the same region today. Surprisingly, they found both ancient and modern samples of the crop were genetically almost identical indicating that modern European influence has not been as great as previously...

Make My Helix a Double

Native American Populations Share Gene Signature

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 02/14/2007 1:58:14 PM EST · 40 replies · 856+ views

New Scientist | 2-14-2007 | Roxanne Khamsi
Native American populations share gene signature 00:01 14 February 2007 NewScientist.com news service Roxanne Khamsi A distinctive, repeating sequence of DNA found in people living at the eastern edge of Russia is also widespread among Native Americans, according to a new study. The finding lends support to the idea that Native Americans descended from a common founding population that lived near the Bering land bridge for some time. Kari Schroeder at the University of California in Davis, US, and colleagues sampled the genes from various populations around the globe, including two at the eastern edge of Siberia, 53 elsewhere in...

PreColumbian, Clovis, and PreClovis

Winds Ravage Neolithic Village In Chile

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 02/12/2007 1:35:49 PM EST · 14 replies · 448+ views

Sydney Morning Herald | 2-12-2007
Winds ravage Neolithic village in Chile February 12, 2007 - 12:39PM Deep within the wind-swept Atacama desert in northern Chile, the remnants of a forgotten civilisation rise from the sand. At first the ruins are barely visible, just small ridges that cast short shadows. But where the sand has been stripped away, circular clay structures can be clearly seen. These are the 3,000-year-old remains of Tulor, one of the oldest and best-preserved Neolithic villages in South America. The ruins consist of low two-room houses, a cemetery and stables. They were inhabited as far back as 800 BC, more than 2,000...

Anthropologists Back Native American Claims

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 02/15/2007 12:36:08 PM EST · 41 replies · 835+ views

University Of New Mexico | 2-14-2007
Anthropologists Back Native American Claims The case of Kennewick Man -- or the Ancient One -- as Native Americans refer to him, dragged through the courts for years before Judge John Jelderks found that he could not be defined Native American under the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act. A recent case regarding repatriation of even older remains and artifacts from Spirit Cave, Nev., suggests that the Kennewick Man case should be used as a legal precedent and that the remains of Spirit Cave Man are not Native American. Four University of New Mexico anthropologists have written an article...

Archaeoastronomy and Megaliths

Octagon Earthworks' Alignment With Moon Likely Is No Accident

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 02/13/2007 2:24:32 PM EST · 76 replies · 1,262+ views

Dispatch.com | 2-12-2007 | Bradley T Lepper
Octagon Earthworksí alignment with moon likely is no accident Tuesday, February 13, 2007 BRADLEY T. LEPPER The Octagon Earthworks in Newark is one remnant of the Newark Earthworks, recently listed by The Dispatch as one of the Seven Wonders of Ohio. Earlham College professors Ray Hively and Robert Horn demonstrated in 1982 that the walls of this 2,000-yearold circle and octagon were aligned to the points on the horizon, marking the limits of the rising and setting of the moon during an 18.6-year cycle. The implications of this argument for our understanding of the knowledge and abilities of the ancient...

Harebrained Hypotheses Prove Invaluable To Scientific Debate

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 12/19/2006 6:07:49 PM EST · 16 replies · 505+ views

The Columbus Dispatch | 12-19-2006 | Bradley T Lepper
Harebrained hypotheses prove invaluable to scientific debate Tuesday, December 19, 2006 BRADLEY T. LEPPER Archaeologist Richard Michael Gramly, in the current issue of Ohio Archaeologist, offers a startling explanation for the rise of the Hopewell culture in Ohio and neighboring regions 2,000 years ago. Archaeologists defined the Hopewell culture predominantly on the basis of gigantic earthen enclosures, such as the Great Circle and Octagon Earthworks preserved at Newark, as well as dazzling works of art crafted from materials, such as mica and obsidian, brought from distant lands. For Gramly, this remarkable florescence of art and architecture was the result of...

Stonehenge

A New Medieval View Of Stonehenge

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 02/13/2007 2:18:20 PM EST · 17 replies · 702+ views

British Archaeology | 2-13-2007 | Mike Pitts
A new Medieval view of Stonehenge For centuries we have known only two medieval depictions of Stonehenge. Now a third has been found, taking its place with Adam and Eve and other Christian stories in a history of the world. Christian Heck describes his discovery. Today our knowledge of Stonehenge is backed by a vast bibliography. This extraordinary monument figures prominently in the development of antiquarianism and archaeology, especially between the 16th and 18th centuries, as Stuart Piggott showed. It has been depicted by famous antiquarians and artists, from John Aubrey and William Stukeley, through Constable and Turner to Henry...

Asia

China To Measure The Great Wall

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 02/12/2007 1:42:13 PM EST · 29 replies · 549+ views

BBC | 2-12-2007
China to measure the Great Wall The structure is a series of walls first linked up over 2,000 years ago Researchers are to carry out the first detailed survey of the Great Wall of China to establish just how long the ancient barricade is, Xinhua reports. Along with checking its dimensions the four-year study, which starts in May, will map the wall's exact route. And it will check the condition of the fortification, built to protect the northern border of the Chinese Empire. The wall, the world's largest man-made structure, is estimated at over 5,000 kilometres (3,100 miles) in length....

India

The truth about Aurangzeb (medieval muslim emperor)

Posted by Arjun
On News/Activism 02/16/2007 6:44:59 PM EST · 14 replies · 419+ views

rediff.com
The truth about Aurangzeb FACT, the Trust which I head, is holding an exhibition on 'Aurangzeb as he was according to Mughal documents', from February 16 to 20 at New Delhi's Habitat Center, the Palm Court Gallery, from 10 am to 9 pm. Why an exhibition on Aurangzeb, some may ask. Firstly, I have been a close student of Indian history, and one of its most controversial figures has been Aurangzeb (1658-1707). It is true that under him the Mughal empire reached its zenith, but Aurangzeb was also a very cruel ruler -- some might even say monstrous. What are...

Elam, Persia, Parthia, Iran

Earthquake Victims Unearthed After 800 Years In Mazandaran (Iran)

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 02/12/2007 1:24:27 PM EST · 8 replies · 310+ views

Payvand | 2-11-2007 | SoudabehSadigh
Earthquake Victims Unearthed after 800 Years in Mazandaran By Soudabeh Sadigh Archeologists at the northern Iranian province of Mazandaran unearthed two skeletons in the vicinity of Resket tomb which further proves occurrence of a big earthquake in the region about a millennium ago. Resket Tower, Mazandaran province Tehran, 10 February 2007 (CHN) -- Recent discovery of two skeletons belonging to about 1000 years ago who were buried under piles of debris during their unsuccessful attempt to take shelter points to a massive earthquake which shook the region sometime during the Seljuk dynastic era (1037-1187 AD). The discovery was made by...

Near East

Archaeologists excavate Sabiyah site; Kuwaitis find burial mounds

Posted by SunkenCiv
On General/Chat 02/14/2007 2:33:47 AM EST · 6 replies · 16+ views

Arab Times | February 13, 2007 | Francis A. C. Cardozo
A team of Kuwaiti archaeologists excavating an archaeological site in Sabiyah on Monday discovered shards of pottery and two burial mounds -- all dating back to the Bronze Age, says Sultan Duwaish, Senior Archaeologist at the Kuwait Museum and Antiquities Department. This comes after archaeologists late last year discovered a number of burial mounds, a vast majority of them dating back to the Bronze Age. The mounds found in Kuwait are similar to those which have been found in some of the GCC countries, including Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Qatar... Archaeologists last year found human skeletal remains in three burial...

Let's Have Jerusalem

Israel Installs Jerusalem Excavations Webcams, Exposes Arab Incitement

Posted by IsraelBeach
On News/Activism 02/15/2007 6:03:56 PM EST · 13 replies · 636+ views

Israel News Agency | February 15, 2007 | Joel Leyden
Israel Installs Jerusalem Excavations Webcams, Exposes Arab Incitement By Joel Leyden Israel News Agency Jerusalem ----- February 15, 2007 .... In an effort to defuse Palestinian and Arab world incitement against Israel relating to excavations in Jerusalem next to Israel's Western Wall, the Israel Antiquities Authority has begun to broadcast live television coverage from the site. In a news release sent to the Israel News Agency, an Israel Antiquities Authority spokeswoman stated that work to install video cameras to enable on-line viewing of the Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA) Mugrabi Gate Reconstruction Project in the Old City of Jerusalem has been...

Temple Mount Bridge Dig Yielding Multiple Historical Finds [Jews and Christians once there]

Posted by SJackson
On News/Activism 02/13/2007 7:58:17 PM EST · 33 replies · 654+ views

Arutz Sheva | 2-13-07 | Nissan Ratzlav-Katz
An archaeologist from the Antiquities Authority said Tuesday that the dig underway at the site of the Rambam (Mughrabim) Gate bridge is yielding finds from multiple historical periods. The archaeologist, Yuval Baruch, expressed his estimation of the value of the preservation dig to a delegation of Knesset members from the National Union-National Religious Party faction. The MKs were on a tour of the site of the archaeological dig, which is being carried out alongside the women's section of the Western Wall Plaza. Digs initiated by the Antiquities Authority at the site have already turned up ruins from the Muslim Umayyad...

Australia and the Pacific

Vanuatu Cargo Cult Marks 50 Years

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 02/15/2007 1:05:54 PM EST · 15 replies · 373+ views

BBC | 2-15-2007
Vanuatu cargo cult marks 50 years By Phil Mercer BBC News, Tanna One of the world's last surviving cargo cults is celebrating its official 50th anniversary on Tanna island in Vanuatu. The John Frum Movement worships a mysterious spirit that urged them to reject the teachings of the Church and maintain their traditional customs. The cult was reinforced during WWII, when US forces landed with huge amounts of cargo - weapons, food and medicine. Villagers believe the spirit of John Frum sent the US military to their South Pacific home to help them. Devotees say that an apparition of John...

In John They Trust [on cargo cultism in Vanuatu]

Posted by snarks_when_bored
On News/Activism 02/09/2006 1:58:26 AM EST · 17 replies · 721+ views

Smithsonian Magazine | February, 2006 | Paul Raffaele
In John They TrustSouth Pacific villagers worship a mysterious American they call John Frum - believing he'll one day shower their remote island with riches By -- Paul Raffaele -- In the morning heat on a tropical island halfway across the world from the United States, several dark-skinned men -- clad in what look to be U.S. Army uniforms -- appear on a mound overlooking a bamboo-hut village. One reverently carries Old Glory, precisely folded to reveal only the stars. On the command of a bearded "drill sergeant," the flag is raised on a pole hacked from a tall tree trunk. As the huge banner...

Biology and Cryptobiology

Fossil Meat Found in 380-Million-Year-Old Fish

Posted by LibWhacker
On News/Activism 02/12/2007 6:05:44 PM EST · 141 replies · 1,806+ views

National Geographic News | 2/12/07 | Sean Markey
Australian scientists say they have found morsels of fossilized muscleóthe oldest vertebrate tissue ever knownóin the remains of two fish that lived 380 to 384 million years ago. Unearthed in western Australia 20 years ago, the specimens belong to two species of an extinct group of primitive, armored fish known as placoderms (map of Australia). The fish's remarkably well-preserved soft tissues include bundles of muscle cells, blood vessels, and nerve cells. They were found during recent electron microscope scans, the research team reported last week in the British journal Biology Letters. Fossilized muscle is quite rare, and the new finds...

Thoroughly Modern Miscellany

Human skin populated by veritable zoo of bacteria (Outnumber human cells 10-to-1)

Posted by VU4G10
On General/Chat 02/06/2007 10:57:12 AM EST · 11 replies · 314+ views

Reuters | Mon Feb 5, 5 | Will Dunham
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Researchers on a safari for microbes have found that human skin is populated by a veritable menagerie of bacteria -- 182 species -- some apparently living there permanently and others just dropping by for a visit. There's no need for alarm, said microbiologist Dr. Martin Blaser of New York University School of Medicine: the bacteria have been with us for quite a while and some are helpful. In research published on Monday in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Blaser and his colleagues took swabs from the forearms of six healthy people to study the...

end of digest #135 20070217

Gods, Graves, Glyphs
Weekly Digest #136
Saturday, February 24, 2007

Wild about Hairy

Study moves chimp-human split to 4 million years ago

Posted by Pharmboy
On News/Activism 02/24/2007 7:59:17 AM EST · 35 replies · 412+ views

Reuters via Yahoo! | Fri Feb 23, 2007 | Maggie Fox
A male chimpanzee feeds in Kibale National Park tropical rain forest, 354km southeast of Uganda's capital Kampala, December 2, 2006. A new study, certain to be controversial, maintains that chimpanzees and humans split from a common ancestor just 4 million years ago -- a much shorter time than current estimates of 5 million to 7 million years ago. (James Akena/Reuters) Chimpanzees and humans split from a common ancestor just 4 million years ago -- a much shorter time than current estimates of 5 million to 7 million years ago, according to a study published on Friday. The researchers compared...

'Original' great ape discovered [New genus "Missing Link" found!]

Posted by LibWhacker
On News/Activism 02/19/2007 2:40:54 AM EST · 147 replies · 2,595+ views

BBC | 2/18/07 | Paul Rincon
Scientists have unearthed remains of a primate that could have been ancestral not only to humans but to all great apes, including chimps and gorillas. The partial skeleton of this 13-million-year-old "missing link" was found by palaeontologists working at a dig site near Barcelona in Spain. Details of the sensational discovery appear in Science magazine. The new specimen was probably male, a fruit-eater and was slightly smaller than a chimpanzee, researchers say. Palaeontologists were just getting started at the dig when a bulldozer churned up a tooth. Further investigation yielded one of the most complete ape skeletons known from...

Killer Chimps Make Spears, Hunt Bushbabies

Posted by Sopater
On News/Activism 02/22/2007 3:58:08 PM EST · 78 replies · 1,535+ views

Fox News | Thursday, February 22, 2007 | Charles Q. Choi
Chimpanzees are capable of making spears to hunt other primates and have been seen using the weapons to apparently kill bushbabies for meat, scientists announced today. The researchers based their findings on observations of omnivorous chimpanzees that dwell in savannahs similar to those from which humanity's ancestors are thought to have emerged. "It is not adult males, but young chimpanzees, including adolescent females, who are exhibiting this behavior," Jill Pruetz, a primatologist at Iowa State University, told LiveScience. "This has important implications for how we think about the evolution of tool use in our own species," Pruetz added. "We have...

Spears are latest discovery in chimps' toolbox

Posted by VxH
On News/Activism 02/23/2007 12:32:22 AM EST · 40 replies · 683+ views

ABC Science Online, Australia | 2/23/2007 | Maggie Fox, Reuters
Chimpanzees have been seen using spears to hunt bushbabies, US researchers say in a study that demonstrates a whole new level of tool use and planning by our closest living relatives. Perhaps even more intriguing, it was only the females who made and used the wooden spears to hunt the tiny nocturnal primates, report Assistant Professor Jill Pruetz and Paco Bertolani of Iowa State University. Bertolani saw an adolescent female chimp use a spear to stab a bushbaby as it slept in a tree hollow, pull it out and eat it. Pruetz and Bertolani, now at the University of Cambridge,...

Spear-wielding chimps snack on skewered bushbabies [ chimps suck ]

Posted by SunkenCiv
On General/Chat 02/23/2007 3:41:24 AM EST · 22 replies · 300+ views

New Scientist | February 22, 2007 | Rowan Hooper
a population of savannah chimps (Pan troglodytes verus) living in the Fongoli area of south-east Senegal have been seen making spears from strong sticks that they sharpen with their teeth. The average spear length is 63 centimetres (25 inches)... And the method of procuring food with these tools is not simply extractive, as it is when harvesting insects. It is far more aggressive. They use the spears to hunt one of the cutest primates in Africa: bushbabies (Galago senegalensis). Bushbabies are nocturnal and curl up in hollows in trees during the day... Chimps were observed thrusting their spears into hollow...

Team: Chimps May Have Used Stone Hammers

Posted by kiriath_jearim
On News/Activism 02/12/2007 5:26:25 PM EST · 63 replies · 697+ views

Newsday | 2/12/07 | RANDOLPH E. SCHMID
WASHINGTON -- Chimpanzees may have been using stone "hammers" as long as 4,300 years ago. An international research team, led by archaeologist Julio Mercader of the University of Calgary, Canada, said Monday it had uncovered the hammers, dated to that time, in the West African country Ivory Coast. It would be the earliest known use of tools by chimpanzees. The hammers were used to crack nuts, a behavior still seen in chimps in that area, the researchers said in a paper in the online edition of Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. The finding may indicate that a "chimpanzee...

Asia

Discovery In North China Challenges Theory On Origin Of Man

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 11/12/2001 8:20:19 AM EST · 75 replies · 2,046+ views

Xinhuanet | 11-09-2001
Archaeological Discovery in N. China Challenges Theory on Origin of Man Xinhuanet 2001-11-09 16:32:39 SHIJIAZHUANG, November 9 (Xinhuanet) The latest archaeological discovery at the Old Stone Age ruins in Yangyuan County, north China's Hebei Province, proves that human activities began in east Asia some 2 million years ago, archaeological sources said. Chinese archaeologists unearthed more than 800 stone tools and animal skeletons left over by the ancients at historical ruins in a stratum dating back around 2 million years. Xie Fei, a research fellow with the Hebei Provincial Relics Research Institute, said that the latest discovery at the Majuangou ...

Ancient Europe

Freeze 'Condemned Neanderthals'

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 02/21/2007 11:59:59 AM EST · 59 replies · 1,239+ views

BBC | 2-21-2007
Freeze 'condemned Neanderthals' Small pockets of Neanderthals clung on in the south (Image: Gibraltar Museum) A sharp freeze could have dealt the killer blow that finished off our evolutionary cousins the Neanderthals, according to a new study. The ancient humans are thought to have died out in most parts of Europe by about 35,000 years ago. And now new data from their last known refuge in southern Iberia indicates the final population was probably beaten by a cold spell some 24,000 years ago. The research is reported by experts from the Gibraltar Museum and Spain. They say a climate downturn...

Neanderthals on the Hunt

Posted by SunkenCiv
On General/Chat 02/19/2007 12:48:42 AM EST · 10 replies · 171+ views

Archaeology | Volume 60 Number 2, March/April 2007 | unattributed (probably Mark Rose)
The Neanderthals didn't disappear because they were slouches when it came to hunting. According to a new study based on material from the Republic of Georgia, Neanderthals were as good at hunting as early modern humans. But it may have been gender equality that put them at a disadvantage to their Homo sapien neighbors. Anthropologists observed that Neanderthals focused primarily on large game for food, while the frequency of healed fractures present in both genders and all ages suggests everyone participated in the hunt. Neanderthal shelters lacked evidence of gathered foods, such as seeds, as well as signs of skilled...

'Post-Neanderthal Equality' (Where is the next feminist revolution?)

Posted by Mrs. Don-o
On News/Activism 12/15/2006 1:20:30 PM EST · 9 replies · 539+ views

Wall Street Journal | December 15, 2006 | NAOMI SCHAEFER RILEY
The December issue of the journal Current Anthropology offers a new hypothesis for how the Neanderthals died out 10,000 years ago. It happens that there was little or no division of labor in Neanderthal society. Unlike in early human communities, where the men hunted and the women gathered (or hunted small animals), male and female Neanderthals were both engaged in going after big game, at least if the evidence from their gravesites is to be believed. When there was no big game, there was no food at all. Betty Friedan is probably turning over in her own gravesite right now,...

Spread Of Modern Humans Occurred Later Than Previously Thought, Profs Say

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 02/20/2007 9:28:12 PM EST · 35 replies · 689+ views

Texas A&M University | 1-11-2007(2-20-2007) | Ted Goebel
Spread Of Modern Humans Occurred Later Than Previously Thought, Profs Say Thursday, January 11, 2007 The spread of modern humans out of Africa occurred 40,000 to 50,000 years later than previously thought, according to researchers including one Texas A&M University anthropologist. Ted Goebel, associate director of the Center for the Study of the First Americans at Texas A&M, is the author of the paper titled "The Missing Years for Modern Humans" that appears in the Jan. 12 (Friday) issue of Science. Goebel's paper is one of three published in the current issue of Science dealing with the origins and dispersals...

Near East

Scientific Team Finds On Of World's Oldest Cities

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 02/22/2007 1:52:14 PM EST · 19 replies · 647+ views

Expatica | 2-22-2007
Scientific team finds one of world's oldest cities 22 February 2007 MADRID - A Spanish scientific team found one of the world's oldest cities, thought to be about 5,500 years old, in Syria. The discovery, based on pottery fragments and other ceramics found at the site, was announced in Madrid by two of the scientists in charge of the investigation, Ignacio Marquez of Spain's CSIC scientific research council and Juan Luis Moreno of the Universidad de La CoruÒa. According to reports, the find is of "the highest level" of scientific importance because of its ramifications for the understanding of history...

Ancient city looks like first victim of urban war 6,000-YEAR-OLD TOWN SUCCUMBED TO FIRE,MISSILES

Posted by aculeus
On News/Activism 02/17/2007 2:31:13 PM EST · 16 replies · 924+ views

Lexington Herald-Reader | February 11, 2007 | By Ron Grossman, Chi cago Tribune
Archaeologists tend to uncover puzzling questions along with ancient artifacts, and so it was when a team from the University of Chicago discovered a long-vanished city, virtually 6,000 years old, in eastern Syria. The problem was the city wasn't where it should have been. "A hundred years of scholarship taught that urban life began further south, in Mesopotamia," said Clemens Reichel of the University of Chicago's Oriental Institute, referring to the name for ancient Iraq. And unlike the cities in that area, Hamoukar isn't on a waterway. Now Reichel thinks he's found a critical piece of the puzzle: obsidian. Though...

Elam, Persia, Parthia, Iran

The Ancient Girl With The Golden Eye: 5,000 Year Old Priestess Found

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 02/21/2007 5:40:41 PM EST · 27 replies · 943+ views

Daily Mail | 2-12-2007
The ancient girl with the golden eye: 5,000 year old priestess found Last updated at 14:21pm on 21st February 2007 The body of a strikingly tall 5,000-year-old woman with an artificial golden eye has been discovered in Iran. Archaeologists said the woman was a female soothsayer or priestess and would have transfixed those around her with her eyeball, making them believe she had occult powers and could see into the future. The 25-30-year old Persian woman, who was almost 6 feet tall, was also buried with an ornate bronze hand mirror so she could check her startling appearance. Italian and...

Ancient Egypt

Archaeologists Find Rare Wooden Statue In Egypt

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 02/19/2007 1:40:48 PM EST · 11 replies · 501+ views

Reuters | 2-19-2007
Archaeologists find rare wooden statue in Egypt Mon Feb 19, 2007 10:36AM EST Science News CAIRO (Reuters) - A rare double wooden statue of an ancient Egyptian scribe and his wife has been found in their tomb south of Cairo, Egypt's chief archaeologist said on Monday. The double statue, dating from around 2300 BC, was among a total of five wooden statues found at the tomb in Sakkara, the necropolis of the ancient Egyptian city of Memphis, said Zahi Hawass, chairman of the Supreme Council of Antiquities. The official was Ka-Hay, who kept divine records, and his wife, Spri-Ankh. They...

Three ancient Egyptian sarcophagi unearthed

Posted by aculeus
On News/Activism 02/17/2007 11:41:30 AM EST · 16 replies · 590+ views

The HIndu News | Februrary 10, 2007 | AP
Cairo, Feb. 10 (AP): Archaeologists have uncovered three wooden Pharaonic sarcophagi, dating back to the 20th century B.C., Egypt's Supreme Council of Antiquities said in a statement on Saturday. ``The three sarcophagi were found in a very well preserved condition inside three burial shafts,'' the statement said. The find took place early this week at a site south of the Saqqara pyramids, about 25 kilometers (16 miles) south of Cairo. According to the Council's chief, Zahi Hawass, the first sarcophagi dates back to Egypt's 1500 B.C.-1000 B.C. New Kingdom and is a black anthropoid. It carries paintings portraying the four...

Tombs of Pharaoh's butler, scribe discovered Egypt

Posted by Graybeard58
On General/Chat 02/21/2007 4:32:16 PM EST · 14 replies · 128+ views

Waterbury Republican-American | February 21, 2007 | Anna Johnson (A.P.)
SAQQARA, Egypt Archaeologists unveiled the tombs Tuesday of a pharaonic butler and a scribe that have been buried for more than 3,000 years -- proof, they say, that Egypt's sands still have secrets to reveal. Although archaeologists have been exploring Egypt intensively for more than 150 years, some estimate only one-third of what lies underground in Saqqara, site of the country's most ancient pyramid and burial site of kings, has been uncovered. "The sands of Saqqara reveal lots of secrets," said Egypt's antiquities chief, Zahi Hawass, as he showed reporters a 4,000-year-old mud brick tomb that belonged to a scribe...

Egyptian policeman arrested for trying to sell four ancient statues

Posted by SunkenCiv
On General/Chat 02/19/2007 1:24:51 PM EST · 2 replies · 38+ views

Monsters and Critics | Friday, February 9, 2007 | Deutsche Presse-Agentur
Antiquities police arrested a police guard in the Egyptian governorate of Qena who attempted to sell four pharaonic statues to a rich Arab for 4 million US dollars, a police source said Friday... One of the statues is ebony and the three others are golden. One is in the shape of a bird, another is a statue of a 16th dynasty (about 1600 BC) king, the third is of a pharaonic fighter and the fourth is of a noble.

Opening the Tomb of Petamenophis in Luxor: A First Look [Dec 2005]

Posted by SunkenCiv
On General/Chat 02/19/2007 12:25:28 AM EST · 6 replies · 31+ views

Tour Egypt | December 7, 2005 | Jane Akshar
The tomb is hugely significant, being, well huge. At this point, it is the largest tomb in Egypt and yet we really do not know why the owner of it was so blessed, but perhaps future work may reveal this secret. Indeed, he was a high official, describing himself as "Sealbearer and Sole Beloved Friend, Lector and Scribe of the Records in the Sight of the King". In this inscription the king is not named, but there is an inscription in the northern part of the great outer courtyard, discovered by Lepsius, with a cartouche containing the name of a...

Tomb of Egyptian Pharaoh Opened for VR Photographer [ Seti I in 2002 ]

Posted by SunkenCiv
On General/Chat 02/19/2007 1:34:06 PM EST · 7 replies · 113+ views

(Virtual Reality) VR Mag | issue 11 - Apr/May 2003 | Michelle Bienias
The tomb of pharaoh Seti I , who ruled Egypt for 13 years from 1291 to 1278 BC, was permanently closed to tourists in 1991. Dupret, whose personal mission is to photograph for posterity all the sites listed World Heritage Fund by UNESCO, was granted this once in a lifetime opportunity in November 2002, while visiting Egypt for a meeting with CULTNAT (National Center for the Documentation of Cultural and Natural Heritage) in Egypt. CULTNAT director Dr. Fatih Saleh offered Dupret the chance to photograph the tomb and share it with others on www.world-heritage-tour.org, where one can view an interactive...

Anatolia

Revealing Urla's underwater treasures

Posted by SunkenCiv
On General/Chat 02/17/2007 2:48:41 AM EST · 5 replies · 67+ views

Turkish Daily News | Friday, February 16, 2007 | unattributed
Liman Tepe is a major prehistoric settlement that was inhabited from the Neolithic Age until the end of the late Bronze Age, continuing into the Classical Age. Professor G¸ven Bakõr and Erkanal carried out the first archaeological digs at the site in 1979, and a team led by Erkanal under the auspices of Ankara University's Archaeology department is conducting the current excavations. Erkanal further noted that their underwater work indicates that Liman Tepe has the world's oldest breakwater, which was built to block the strong north winds and as a natural part of the city wall. He said their work...

Ancient Greece

Dig Unearths Ancient Theatre (Athens - Acharnae)

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 02/18/2007 6:36:33 PM EST · 23 replies · 463+ views

Kathimerini | 2-18-2007
Dig unearths ancient theater Excavation work at a site in a northern Athens suburb, where sections of an ancient Greek theater were discovered on Thursday, should prove whether the structure is the fabled ancient theater of Acharnae, archaeologists said yesterday. Modern Menidi, where the remains of the 4th century BC theater were found by construction workers, is believed to have been built upon the ancient village of Acharnae, the largest of a string of settlements outside Athens, according to chief excavator Maria Platonos-Yiota. If the theater is proven to be that of Acharnae -- which is referred to in the...

Rome And Italy

Call me Spatacus: the world's only gladiator school

Posted by Lorianne
On General/Chat 02/18/2007 6:48:23 PM EST · 15 replies · 208+ views

Daily Mail | MARTIN NEWLAND
It's the world's only gladiator school - where modern man can learn the savage arts of Roman combat. Let battle commence, says MARTIN NEWLAND Just outside the ancient walls of Rome, on the Via Appia Antica just opposite the place where the great slave warrior Spartacus was crucified, is a small, pot-holed road leading to the Scuola Gladiatori Roma, the world's only genuine gladiator school. Run by the Gruppo Storico Romano, a society dedicated to preserving the culture and history of ancient Rome, the school offers training in gladiatorial disciplines and Roman history to around 3,000 adults and children each...

Gladiators Fought To death In Chester (UK)

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 02/17/2007 2:13:57 PM EST · 22 replies · 550+ views

The Telegraph (UK) | 2-17-2007 | Nick Fleming
Gladiators fought to the death in Chester By Nic Fleming, Science Correspondent Last Updated: 2:09am GMT 17/02/2007 Gladiatorial contests took place at the largest amphitheatre in Roman Britain, according to new evidence unearthed by archaeologists. An artist's impression of Chester's ampitheatre Finds at an excavation of the arena in Chester provide the most conclusive proof yet that it played host to grisly fights to the death for public entertainment, and reinforce the view of the town's importance in the Roman Empire. A stone block with iron fittings was discovered at the centre of the two-storey amphitheatre, which dates back to...

India

German Indologist claims to have decoded Indus scripts

Posted by aculeus
On News/Activism 02/17/2007 9:31:24 AM EST · 55 replies · 1,191+ views

ZeeNews | February 7, 2007 | Unsigned
Panaji, Feb 07: Renowned German Indologist and scientist of religion, Egbert Richter Ushanas today claimed that he has unravelled the mystery of Indus Valley scripts by decoding major seals and tablets found during various archaeological excavations. "Already 1,000-odd seals are decoded and of them, 300-odd are printed in monography -- the message of Indus seals and tablets," stated Richter, who has also decoded tablets from Easter Island in Pacific Ocean and disc of Phaistos on Island of Crete in Meditarrenean Sea. "All the seals are based on Vedas -- Rig Veda and Atharva Veda," Richter told a news agency here....

Archaeoastronomy And Megaliths

Bulgaria-Unearthed Temples A Millenium Older than Egypt Pyramids

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 02/18/2007 6:17:14 PM EST · 20 replies · 1,038+ views

Novinite.com | 2-18-2007
Bulgaria-Unearthed Temples A Millenium Older than Egypt Pyramids Lifestyle: 18 February 2007, Sunday. Temples that archaeologists have unearthed in the eastern Rhodope Mountains in Bulgaria are about a thousand years older than the pyramids in Egypt and the Mesopotamian civilization, experts claim. Archaeologists Ana Raduncheva and Stefanka Ivanova said in an interview for BTA that the whole system of temples in the Rhodope region dated back to the Vth millenium B.C. This is almost 4,000 years before the Thracian people settled on these lands. At the end of the Chalcolithic Age, the rock temples were abandoned for a large period...

Maeshowe winter solstice as viewed by Neolithic man

Posted by aculeus
On News/Activism 02/17/2007 9:58:37 AM EST · 18 replies · 423+ views

Scotsman.com | February 9, 2007 | CAROLINE WICKHAM-JONES
THE GREAT mound of Maeshowe has dominated the skyline of Orkney for almost 5,000 years. It is a spectacular sight and a visit to the chambered tomb provides one of the highlights for visitors to the Orkney islands. Today, as we stoop to enter and walk down the low 11 metre passage to the chamber with its massive stonework, we are reminded of the ingenuity of those original builders. Its apparent uniformity masks a long and complex history of change. The story of Maeshowe began at midwinter around 3,000 BC and even today it is the winter solstice that really...

Stonehenge

Ritual Piece Of Stonehenge Discovered

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 02/20/2007 2:51:17 PM EST · 12 replies · 628+ views

IC Wales | 2-20-2007 | Sam Burson
Ritual piece of Stonehenge discoveredFeb 20 2007 Sam Burson, Western Mail A MISSING stone which could be an integral part of rituals at Stonehenge may have been discovered by a Welsh archaeologist. Dennis Price, who has done years of research on the mysterious stone structure, believes he has tracked down a previously lost altar stone, identified during one of the first studies of the site in the 17th century. He is convinced it is now in two pieces on either side of a road in a Wiltshire village, just a couple of miles from Stonehenge itself. Mr Price, who is...

Agriculture

Practice Of Farming Reaches Back Farther Than Thought (Panama - 7,800YA)

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 02/20/2007 2:59:10 PM EST · 24 replies · 247+ views

Eureka Alert | 2-19-2007 | Gregory Harris (University Of Calgary)
Public release date: 19-Feb-2007 Contact: Gregory Harris gharris@ucalgary.ca 403-220-3506 University of Calgary Practice of farming reaches back farther than thoughtArchaeological findings from Panama show agriculture's roots run deep Ancient people living in Panama were processing and eating domesticated species of plants like maize, manioc, and arrowroot at least as far back as 7,800 years ago -- much earlier than previously thought -- according to new research by a University of Calgary archaeologist. One of the most hotly debated issues in the discipline of archaeology is how and why certain human societies switched from hunting and gathering to producing their own...

Ancient foodies liked it hot

Posted by neverdem
On News/Activism 02/21/2007 4:00:42 AM EST · 13 replies · 420+ views

news@nature.com | 15 February 2007 | Heidi Ledford
Published online: 15 February 2007; | doi:10.1038/news070212-11 -- Domesticated chillies may have seasoned cuisine more than 6,000 years ago.Heidi Ledford Hot stuff: chillies have been a part of our diets for longer than we thought.Linda Perry When it comes to cuisine, some traditions are sacred. A Thai curry, for example, should be spicy enough to make your eyes water and your nose run. The heat from Korean kim chi simply must sizzle your tastebuds and leave you gasping for relief. Now archaeologists have found that New World farmers may have established blistering traditions like...

Precolumbian, Clovis, And Preclovis

Archaeologists To Return To Allendale Site In May (Topper - 50,000 YO)

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 02/17/2007 1:59:54 PM EST · 21 replies · 561+ views

Island Packet | 2-17-2007 | Peter Frost
Archaeologists to return to Allendale site in May By PETER FROST pfrost@islandpacket.com 843-706-8169 Published Saturday, February 17, 2007 It was on the banks of the Savannah River in Allendale County where Al Goodyear in 2004 found the clues of an ancient civilization that could rewrite the history books. The University of South Carolina archaeologist and a group of volunteers unearthed artifacts estimated to be 50,000 years old, implying humans lived on this continent before the last Ice Age, far earlier than previously believed. They uncovered what appeared to be cutting tools and stone chisels used by humans that existed an...

Experts doubt Clovis people were first in Americas

Posted by george76
On News/Activism 02/23/2007 12:34:17 PM EST · 81 replies · 1,210+ views

yahoo...Reuters | Feb 22 | Will Dunham
The Clovis people, known for their distinctive spear points, likely were not the first humans in the Americas, according to research placing their presence as more recent than previously believed. Using advanced radiocarbon dating techniques, researchers writing in the journal Science on Thursday said the Clovis people, hunters of large Ice Age animals like mammoths and mastodons, dated from about 13,100 to 12,900 years ago. That would make the Clovis culture, known from artifacts discovered at various sites including the town of Clovis, New Mexico, both younger and shorter-lived than previously thought. Previous estimates had dated the culture to about...

Crude stone "tools" found in northern Minnesota may be at least 13,000 years old

Posted by TXnMA
On News/Activism 02/19/2007 8:31:38 AM EST · 70 replies · 1,095+ views

National Geographic website | February 15, 2007 | Stefan Lovgren
Ancient Stone "Tools" Found; May Be Among Americas' Oldest Stefan Lovgren for National Geographic News February 15, 2007 Crude stone "tools" found in northern Minnesota may be at least 13,000 years old, a team of archaeologists recently announced. The discovery, if confirmed, would put the objects among the oldest human artifacts ever found in the Americas. The team found about 50 such objects during a routine survey for road construction in the town of Walker, about 30 miles (48 kilometers) northeast of Park Rapids. The finds include what appear to be a large hammerstone, beveled scrapers, rudimentary choppers, a crude...

Climate

Fla. teen stumbles upon mammoth tooth

Posted by george76
On News/Activism 02/21/2007 11:03:15 PM EST · 55 replies · 1,374+ views

yahoo | Feb 20 | ap
archaeologists say could be the biggest fossil find in Pinellas County in nearly a century... The jaw and tooth weigh 65 pounds and are about a yard long. Sarti-Sweeney took the bones home and, after some online research with her older brother, determined the football-sized rock was actually the tooth of a long-extinct mammoth. Paleontology and archaeology experts have confirmed the find, and recent digging at the site has turned up teeth and bones from a second mammoth, giant sloths, camels, turtles with shells up to 6-feet-long, saber-toothed cats and giant armadillos the size of Volkswagen Beetles. Scientists believe the...

Biology and Cryptobiology

DNA Analysis Reveals Rapid Population Shift Among Pleistocene Cave Bears

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 02/20/2007 3:08:06 PM EST · 13 replies · 320+ views

Eureka Alert | 2-19-2007 | Erin Doonan
Public release date: 19-Feb-2007 Contact: Erin Doonan edoonan@cell.com 617-397-2802 Cell Press DNA analysis reveals rapid population shift among Pleistocene cave bears Studying DNA obtained from teeth of ancient cave bears, researchers have been able to identify a shift in a particular population of the bears inhabiting a European valley in the late Pleistocene era. The findings illustrate the ability of DNA sequence analysis to reveal aspects of animal population dynamics in the distant past and potentially illuminate the influence of human migrations in animal population changes. The new work, reported by a collaborative group of researchers including Michael Hofreiter of...

British Isles

Beach Hunt For Lost Jacobite Gold

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 02/19/2007 1:35:53 PM EST · 31 replies · 820+ views

BBC | 2-19-2007
Beach hunt for lost Jacobite gold The gold was intended for Bonnie Prince Charlie Archaeologists hope to find missing French gold sent to Scotland to help fund a Jacobite Rebellion buried under a remote Highland beach. A portion of the money was believed to have been hidden at Arisaig, near Mallaig, in the 1700s. Neil Oliver is leading the hunt for the gold for a new BBC Two series called History Detectives. The money did not arrive in Scotland until after the Jacobites' defeat at the Battle of Culloden in April 1746. It was intended to finance Charles Edward Stuart...

Beach hunt for lost Jacobite gold [ Scotland, "the Forty Five" ]

Posted by SunkenCiv
On General/Chat 02/19/2007 10:39:19 PM EST · 9 replies · 128+ views

BBC | Monday, February 19, 2007 | unattributed
Archaeologists hope to find missing French gold sent to Scotland to help fund a Jacobite Rebellion buried under a remote Highland beach. A portion of the money was believed to have been hidden at Arisaig, near Mallaig, in the 1700s... The money did not arrive in Scotland until after the Jacobites' defeat at the Battle of Culloden in April 1746. It was intended to finance Charles Edward Stuart - Bonnie Prince Charlie - and his efforts against the British monarch, George II, and put his father James Stuart on the throne. Mr Oliver, an archaeologist and co-presenter of TV programmes...

Let's Have Jerusalem

Muslim Prayer Room Found Near Holy Site (Israel)

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 02/18/2007 6:31:22 PM EST · 26 replies · 718+ views

Boston Herald | 2-18-2007
Muslim prayer room found near holy site By Associated Press Sunday, February 18, 2007 - Updated: 07:52 AM EST JERUSALEM - The site of an Israeli archaeological dig that has sparked angry Muslim reaction worldwide contains what could be a Muslim prayer room, an Israeli archaeologist said Sunday. Muslim leaders and critics of the work said the announcement of the find, three years after it was discovered, confirmed their fears that Israel's Antiquities Authority is intent on hiding Muslim attachment to the site. Israeli archaeologists began nearly two weeks ago a preparatory dig, prior to renovation work, on a ramp...

Down in the Bonebox

Sensation: Apostle Jacob's Coffin Made by Aliens

Posted by Alex Murphy
On Religion 12/19/2006 3:52:21 PM EST · 24 replies · 652+ views

UFO AREA.com | 2002-11-14 | Dmitry Sudakov
Scientists have discovered that the coffin of Jesus Christ's brother was made of an unknown material A sensation happened in the world of science. Specialists are certain that they found a stone of nonearthly origin hidden under the coffin of Jeasus Christ's brother. The news about the incredible discovery was reported by Western news agencies. They reported that that the coffin of Jacob was found, the brother of Jesus. According to the Bible, Apostle Jacob was the only step-brother of Jesus Christ. Jacob became the first bishop of Jerusalem. Specialists and archeologists who examined the finding affirmed that it is...

A Discovery That's Just Too Perfect [James brother of Jesus Ossuary is a hoax-my title]

Posted by Polycarp
On News/Activism 11/01/2002 1:45:35 PM EST · 429 replies · 751+ views

latimes.com | October 29, 2002 | Robert Eisenman
COMMENTARY A Discovery That's Just Too Perfect Claims that stone box held remains of Jesus' brother may be suspect. By Robert Eisenman Robert Eisenman is the author of "James the Brother of Jesus" (Penguin, 1998) and a professor of Middle East religions and archeology at Cal State Long Beach. October 29 2002 James, the brother of Jesus, was so well known and important as a Jerusalem religious leader, according to 1st century sources, that taking the brother relationship seriously was perhaps the best confirmation that there ever was a historical Jesus. Put another way, it was not whether Jesus had...

Ossuary was genuine, inscription was faked

Posted by Vince Ferrer
On News/Activism 11/01/2002 10:58:40 PM EST · 24 replies · 362+ views

Jewsweek | November 1, 2002 | Rochelle I. Altman
As an expert on scripts and an historian of writing systems, I was asked to examine this inscription and make a report. I did. The bone-box is original; the first inscription, which is in Aramaic, "Jacob son of Joseph," is authentic. The second half of the inscription, "brother of Jesus," is a poorly executed fake and a later addition. This report has already been distributed on at least two scholarly lists. Please note that the fraud is so blatant that I did not bother to go into extreme detail on whether the faked addition is supposed to be Hebrew or...

Scholars say Jesus box may be genuine (Scholars: Israel's labeling of the find as a fake premature)

Posted by presidio9
On News/Activism 11/25/2003 11:35:24 AM EST · 141 replies · 382+ views

AP | Tuesday, November 25, 2003
<p>A purported first-century inscription naming Jesus may or may not be the real thing, but Israel's labeling of the find as a fake is premature, scientists and scholars said at a panel discussion.</p> <p>At issue is a limestone burial box, or ossuary, with the inscription "James, son of Joseph, brother of Jesus," that emerged on Israel's antiquities market last year.</p>

Faith and Philosophy

Jesus' burial site found - film claims

Posted by Rb ver. 2.0
On News/Activism 02/23/2007 8:50:36 AM EST · 268 replies · 5,435+ views

ynetnews.com | 2/23/07 | Ariella Ringel-Hoffman
The cave in which Jesus Christ was buried has been found in Jerusalem, claim the makers of a new documentary film. If it proves true, the discovery, which will be revealed at a press conference in New York Monday, could shake up the Christian world as one of the most significant archeological finds in history. The coffins which, according to the filmmakers held the remains of Jesus of Nazareth, his mother Mary and Mary Magdalene will be displayed for the first time on Monday in New York. Jointly produced by Emmy award-winning documentary filmmaker Simcha Jacobovici and Oscar winning director...

Jesus' burial site found - film claims

Posted by John Philoponus
On Religion 02/23/2007 1:54:39 PM EST · 26 replies · 409+ views

YNET NEWS | 02.23.07 | Ariella Ringel-Hoffman
Jesus' burial site found - film claims New film documents discovery of Jerusalem cave containing ten caskets believed to hold remains of Jesus, Mary, Mary Magdalene and others Ariella Ringel-Hoffman Published: 02.23.07, 10:26 / Israel Culture The cave in which Jesus Christ was buried has been found in Jerusalem, claim the makers of a new documentary film. If it proves true, the discovery, which will be revealed at a press conference in New York Monday, could shake up the Christian world as one of the most significant archeological finds in history. The coffins which, according to the filmmakers held the...

World's Smallest Bible Found in a Boot

Posted by aculeus
On News/Activism 02/17/2007 9:36:06 AM EST · 15 replies · 737+ views

Descovery News | February 9, 2007 | Jennifer Viegas, Discovery News
Feb. 9, 2007 ó Around 106 years ago, someone slipped a copy of the world's smallest complete Bible in a child's boot and stuffed it into a cottage chimney cavity to ward off evil. Now British archaeologists have identified the book, which a renovator discovered while working on the cottage in central England's Ewerby. In addition to the rarity of the book, the find represents one of the most recent instances of anti-witchcraft using a shoe amulet, according to British Archaeology editor Mike Pitts, who reports on the discovery in his latest issue. The cottage also was part of the...

VIDEO: Medieval Christian cemetery smashed to dust by Muslim militias without world protest

Posted by Capitolium
On News/Activism 02/17/2007 12:21:10 AM EST · 36 replies · 1,178+ views

youtube.com
A video showing Muslim soldiers destroying an ancient Christian cemetery is posted at http://www.youtube.com The vandalism of Djulfa archaeological site was compared to the destruction of the Bamiyan Buddhas, but the world kept silence. Featuring a never-seen-before satellite image of a vandalized medieval cemetery at the Iranian-Azerbaijani border, "The New Tears of Araxes," a five-minute film, tells the tragic story of thousands of ancient Armenian headstones flattened to the ground by the Azerbaijani authorities in Djulfa (Jugha), Nakhichevan. On December 15, 2005, eyewitnesses across the River Araxes videotaped Azeri soldiers destroying Armenian burial monuments - khachkars (cross stones) - some...

Oh So Mysteriouso

Mediaeval Muslims made stunning math breakthrough

Posted by xcamel
On News/Activism 02/22/2007 9:15:51 PM EST · 294 replies · 3,820+ views

Scotsman | 22-Feb-07 | Will Dunham
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Magnificently sophisticated geometric patterns in mediaeval Islamic architecture indicate their designers achieved a mathematical breakthrough 500 years earlier than Western scholars, scientists said on Thursday. By the 15th century, decorative tile patterns on these masterpieces of Islamic architecture reached such complexity that a small number boasted what seem to be "quasicrystalline" designs, Harvard University's Peter Lu and Princeton University's Paul Steinhardt wrote in the journal Science. Only in the 1970s did British mathematician and cosmologist Roger Penrose become the first to describe these geometric designs in the West. Quasicrystalline patterns comprise a set of interlocking units whose...

Islamic tiles reveal sophisticated maths

Posted by neverdem
On News/Activism 02/22/2007 10:24:27 PM EST · 51 replies · 1,009+ views

news@nature.com | 22 February 2007 | Philip Ball
Close window Published online: 22 February 2007; | doi:10.1038/news070219-9 Islamic tiles reveal sophisticated mathsMuslim artists were 500 years ahead of western researchers.Philip Ball The pattern on the Darb-i Imam shrine, built in 1453, is almost identical to Penrose tilings, discovered in 1973. Click here for a larger image K. Dudley and M. Elliff The complex geometrical designs used centuries ago in Islamic art and architecture were planned with a tiling system that was not discovered in the West until five centuries later, two physicists have claimed. Islamic tiling patterns were put together not with a compass and ruler, as...

Arts and Flowers

Vatican receipt indicates Michelangelo lived there

Posted by NYer
On News/Activism 02/18/2007 7:40:29 AM EST · 20 replies · 587+ views

AP | February 18, 2007
VATICAN CITY - A 450-year-old receipt has provided proof that Michelangelo kept a private room in St. Peter's Basilica while working as the pope's chief architect, Vatican experts said. While going through the basilica archives for an exhibit on the 500th anniversary of the church, researchers recently came across an entry for a key to a chest "in the room in St. Peter's where Master Michelangelo retires."The Renaissance painter and sculptor whose frescoes adorn the ceiling of the Sistine chapel in the Vatican was put in charge of the restoration of St. Peter's basilica by Pope Paul III at age...

Middle Ages and Renaissance

The Mysterious Case Of Columbus's Silver Ore Libraries

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 02/20/2007 2:35:03 PM EST · 5 replies · 420+ views

Newswise | 2-19-2007 | University Of Arizona
University of Arizona Mon 19-Feb-2007, 17:00 ET The Mysterious Case of Columbus's Silver Ore Libraries What was thought to be the first evidence of successful prospecting for precious metals in the New World turns out to be something completely different. Silver-bearing ore found at the settlement founded by Christopher Columbus's second expedition was not mined in the Americas. Copyright 1998. James Quine, Florida Museum of Natural History, University of Florida. Co-authors Kathleen Deagan and Jose M. Cruxent standing by the foundations of La Isabela's royal storehouse, where metallurgical activities took place. Newswise ó Silver-bearing ore found at the settlement founded...

Thoroughly Modern Miscellany

Ruins from giant Nazi beach resort sold in Germany

Posted by martin_fierro
On General/Chat 09/23/2004 5:44:00 PM EDT · 14 replies · 1,964+ views

AFP/Yahoo | Thu Sep 23, 1:11 PM ET
Ruins from giant Nazi beach resort sold in Germany Thu Sep 23, 1:11 PM ET ROSTOCK, Germany (AFP) - Ruins from a massive vacation resort built by the Nazis on the Baltic island Ruegen were sold at auction to an anonymous buyer for 625,000 euros (768,000 dollars). The concrete-block lodgings, built in the 1930s to accommodate some 20,000 people under the Nazis' Kraft Durch Freude (Strength Through Joy) leisure program, stretches 4.5 kilometers (2.8 miles) along one of Germany's most beautiful sandy beaches. The federal government had been trying to unload the structure, known as the Colossus of the Baltic...

end of digest #136 20070224

Gods, Graves, Glyphs
Extra Edition
Tuesday, February 27, 2007

JesusTomb keyword, chrono sort

Jesusí burial site found - film claims

Posted by Rb ver. 2.0
On News/Activism 02/23/2007 8:50:36 AM EST · 310 replies · 8,509+ views

ynetnews.com | 2/23/07 | Ariella Ringel-Hoffman
The cave in which Jesus Christ was buried has been found in Jerusalem, claim the makers of a new documentary film. If it proves true, the discovery, which will be revealed at a press conference in New York Monday, could shake up the Christian world as one of the most significant archeological finds in history. The coffins which, according to the filmmakers held the remains of Jesus of Nazareth, his mother Mary and Mary Magdalene will be displayed for the first time on Monday in New York. Jointly produced by Emmy award-winning documentary filmmaker Simcha Jacobovici and Oscar winning director...

Jesusí burial site found - film claims

Posted by John Philoponus
On Religion 02/23/2007 1:54:39 PM EST · 28 replies · 1,453+ views

YNET NEWS | 02.23.07 | Ariella Ringel-Hoffman
Jesusí burial site found - film claims New film documents discovery of Jerusalem cave containing ten caskets believed to hold remains of Jesus, Mary, Mary Magdalene and others Ariella Ringel-Hoffman Published: 02.23.07, 10:26 / Israel Culture The cave in which Jesus Christ was buried has been found in Jerusalem, claim the makers of a new documentary film. If it proves true, the discovery, which will be revealed at a press conference in New York Monday, could shake up the Christian world as one of the most significant archeological finds in history. The coffins which, according to the filmmakers held the...

Mysterious bones of Jesus, Joseph and Mary

Posted by aculeus
On News/Activism 02/24/2007 12:14:06 PM EST · 278 replies · 5,391+ views

The Daily Telegraph (UK) | February 24, 2007 | By Tim Butcher in Jerusalem
In a scene worthy of a Dan Brown novel, archaeologists a quarter of a century ago unearthed a burial chamber near Jerusalem. Inside they found ossuaries, or boxes of bones, marked with the names of Jesus, Joseph and Mary. Then one of the ossuaries went missing. The human remains inside were destroyed before any DNA testing could be carried out. While Middle East academics doubt that the relics belong to the Holy Family, the issue is about to be exposed to a blaze of publicity with the publication next week of a book. Entitled The Jesus Tomb and co-written by...

Jesus: Tales From The Crypt

Posted by Roberts
On Religion 02/24/2007 4:36:08 PM EST · 34 replies · 911+ views

time-blog.com | 2/23/07 | Tim McGirk
Brace yourself. James Cameron, the man who brought you 'The Titanic' is back with another blockbuster. This time, the ship he's sinking is Christianity. In a new documentary, Producer Cameron and his director, Simcha Jacobovici, make the starting claim that Jesus wasn't resurrected --the cornerstone of Christian faith--and that his burial cave was discovered near Jerusalem. And, get this, Jesus sired a son with Mary Magdelene. No, it's not a re-make of "The Da Vinci Codes'. It's supposed to be true. Let's go back 27 years, when Israeli construction workers were gouging out the foundations for a new building in...

Jesus: Tales from the Crypt

Posted by Havok
On General/Chat 02/24/2007 5:25:18 PM EST · 21 replies · 906+ views

Time | February 23, 2007 6:55 | Tim McGirk
Brace yourself. James Cameron, the man who brought you 'The Titanic' is back with another blockbuster. This time, the ship he's sinking is Christianity. In a new documentary, Producer Cameron and his director, Simcha Jacobovici, make the starting claim that Jesus wasn't resurrected --the cornerstone of Christian faith-- and that his burial cave was discovered near Jerusalem. And, get this, Jesus sired a son with Mary Magdelene. No, it's not a re-make of "The Da Vinci Codes'. It's supposed to be true. Let's go back 27 years, when Israeli construction workers were gouging out the foundations for a new building...

James Cameron Tries to Kill Jesus

Posted by Flavius
On General/Chat 02/25/2007 7:41:22 AM EST · 42 replies · 1,234+ views

laist | 2/24/07 | na
r at least he's trying to kill the story of Jesus' resurrection. An upcoming 90-minute documentary directed by Jewish Canadian filmmaker Simcha Jacobovici and produced by Titanic director James Cameron makes the startling assertion that Jesus was never resurrected -- a cornerstone of Christian faith -- and that his burial cave was discovered in the Jerusalem suburb of Talpiyot some 27 years ago. One more thing, Jesus fathered a son with Mary Magdelene. Cameron and Jacobovici claim they have DNA tests, archeological evidence and Biblical studies on their side. And on Monday, Cameron will hold a press conference in...

Jesus: Tales from the Crypt

Posted by alice_in_bubbaland
On News/Activism 02/25/2007 10:51:06 AM EST · 19 replies · 1,250+ views

Time Blog/ Middle East | 2/23/07 | Tim McGirk
Brace yourself. James Cameron, the man who brought you 'The Titanic' is back with another blockbuster. This time, the ship he's sinking is Christianity. In a new documentary, Producer Cameron and his director, Simcha Jacobovici, make the starting claim that Jesus wasn't resurrected --the cornerstone of Christian faith-- and that his burial cave was discovered near Jerusalem. And, get this, Jesus sired a son with Mary Magdelene. No, it's not a re-make of "The Da Vinci Codes'. It's supposed to be true.

Jesus Family Tomb Believed Found

Posted by steadfastconservative
On Religion 02/25/2007 1:33:09 PM EST · 50 replies · 718+ views

Discover News | Feb. 25, 2007 | Jennifer Viegas
New scientific evidence, including DNA analysis conducted at one of the world's foremost molecular genetic laboratories, as well as studies by leading scholars, suggests a 2,000-year-old Jerusalem tomb could have once held the remains of Jesus of Nazareth and his family. The findings also suggest that Jesus and Mary Magdalene might have produced a son named Jonah. The DNA findings, alongside statistical conclusions made about the artifacts--originally excavated in 1980--open a potentially signficant chapter in Biblical archaeological history. A documentary presenting the evidence, "The Lost Tomb of Jesus," will premiere on the Discovery Channel on March 4 at 9 pm...

New film claims Jesus buried in Talpiot [Chief Archeologist says it's "nonsense"]

Posted by Mount Athos
On News/Activism 02/26/2007 6:59:41 AM EST · 42 replies · 1,176+ views

Jerusalem Post | Feb. 25, 2007 | DAVID HOROVITZ
The Israeli-born, Canadian-based filmmaker Simcha Jacobovici is reigniting claims, first made over a decade ago, that a burial cave uncovered 27 years ago in Talpiot, Jerusalem, is the tomb of Jesus of Nazareth and his family. [...] But Bar-Ilan University Prof. Amos Kloner, the Jerusalem District archeologist who officially oversaw the work at the tomb in 1980 and has published detailed findings on its contents, on Saturday night dismissed the claims. "It makes a great story for a TV film," he told The Jerusalem Post. "But it's impossible. It's nonsense." Kloner, who said he was interviewed for the new film...

Jesus Family Tomb Talking Points

Posted by Gamecock
On Religion 02/26/2007 7:15:48 AM EST · 142 replies · 1,167+ views

Gamecock
I'm sure that by now all of you have heard about the claim that the ossuary of Christ's family has been found. I would like to open a thread that will help us develop answers to friends, both Christians and atheists who might come to us with questions about it all. Please feel free to post your rebuttals for others to use! Biblical, rational, scientific, philosophical, whatever you can come up with is more than welcome!

Titanic Blasphemy

Posted by Keli Kilohana
On News/Activism 02/26/2007 8:14:37 AM EST · 23 replies · 1,462+ views

Charleston Gazette Forums | 2/26/2007 | Pastor Terry Hagedorn
James Cameron and Simcha Jacobivici claim to have raided the lost tomb of Jesus. Proof? There are related people in a graveyard with the uncommon names Joshua, Mary and Martha! Oi vey! Despite the faith of a millions of people in the Gospel (I Corinthians 15:3,4 -- the death, burial and resurrection of Christ for our salvation) and despite the fact that the resurrected Christ was seen and touched by his disciples, all twelve Apostles, over 500 hundred witnesses -- at one time; and, despite the fact that devout Jews changed the day of worship from the seventh day to the first day of...

Scholars, clergy slam Jesus documentary

Posted by Mr. Brightside
On News/Activism 02/26/2007 10:39:12 AM EST · 50 replies · 1,149+ views

Yahoo | 2/26/07
Scholars, clergy slam Jesus documentary By MARSHALL THOMPSON, Associated Press Writer 35 minutes ago JERUSALEM - Archaeologists and clergymen in the Holy Land derided claims in a new documentary produced by the Oscar-winning director James Cameron that contradict major Christian tenets. "The Lost Tomb of Christ," which the Discovery Channel will run on March 4, argues that 10 ancient ossuaries -- small caskets used to store bones -- discovered in a suburb of Jerusalem in 1980 may have contained the bones of Jesus and his family, according to a press release issued by the Discovery Channel. One of the caskets...

Tomb of Jesus doc uproar

Posted by Clive
On News/Activism 02/26/2007 11:07:03 AM EST · 50 replies · 1,435+ views

AP via Sun Media | 2007-02-26 | Marshall Thompson
JERUSALEM (AP) ‚Äî Archaeologists and clergymen in the Holy Land derided claims in a new documentary produced by the Oscar-winning director James Cameron that contradict major Christian tenets. ‚ÄúThe Lost Tomb of Christ,‚Äù which the Discovery Channel will run on March 4, argues that 10 ancient ossuaries ‚Äî small caskets used to store bones ‚Äî discovered in a suburb of Jerusalem in 1980 may have contained the bones of Jesus and his family, according to a press release issued by the Discovery Channel. One of the caskets even bears the title, ‚ÄúJudah, son of Jesus,‚Äù hinting that Jesus may have...

Cameron defends Jesus tomb documentary

Posted by Clive
On News/Activism 02/26/2007 11:41:03 AM EST · 113 replies · 2,363+ views

CTV News | 2007-02-26 | (staff)
Oscar-winning director James Cameron defended on Monday his controversial new documentary, which claims that Jesus may have been buried with a wife and son, against charges the film was trying to undermine Christianity. Instead, the documentary that claims the discovery of the tomb of Jesus Christ and his family celebrates their existence, Cameron said at a press conference announcing the documentary "The Lost Tomb of Jesus." The message that Jesus delivered 2,000 years ago resounds even today, Cameron said. "My feeling is that his message of compassion, humility, love and forgiveness is every bit as much needed now in this...

I've found the coffin of Jesus, says film director

Posted by Anti-Bubba182
On News/Activism 02/26/2007 3:47:38 PM EST · 75 replies · 1,723+ views

This Is London | 25.02.07 | Staff
The Lost Tomb of Jesus, made for the Discovery Channel, will be shown in the U.S. this week and later in Britain by Channel 4. Today, Cameron is holding a press conference on what he describes as 'one of the greatest archaeological finds of all time'. Crucially, he is not denying the resurrection - as there were no bones in the caskets. But the £2million film still strikes at the foundation of Christianity in the same manner as the novel The Da Vinci Code, by Dan Brown, in claiming that Jesus married and had a family. His theory, which has...

Scorn poured on James Cameron's 'coffin of Christ' theory (Archeologists/Scholars Dispute Finding)

Posted by SirLinksalot
On News/Activism 02/26/2007 5:03:46 PM EST · 60 replies · 1,128+ views

Evening Standard | 02/25/2007
Scorn poured on James Cameron's 'coffin of Christ' theory Archaeologists and biblical scholars have poured scorn on a Hollywood film director's sensational claim that he has discovered the coffin of Jesus Christ. Oscar-winning 'Titanic' director James Cameron's assertion that the bones of Jesus and his family were hidden for centuries in a Jerusalem tomb caused an outcry in the Holy Land. Even a British archeologist who worked with Cameron, Dr. Shimon Gibson, admitted he's "sceptical" about the claims that challenge some of the central tenets of Christianity. The very fact that Jesus had a grave would contradict the Christian belief...

Archaeologists, Scholars Dispute Jesus Documentary

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 02/26/2007 6:05:33 PM EST · 15 replies · 320+ views

CNN | 2-26-2007
Archaeologists, scholars dispute Jesus documentary POSTED: 2151 GMT (0551 HKT), February 26, 2007Filmakers and researchers claim these stone boxes may have once contained the remains of Jesus and Mary Magdalene. JERUSALEM (AP) -- Filmmakers and researchers on Monday unveiled two ancient stone boxes they said may have once contained the remains of Jesus and Mary Magdalene, but several scholars derided the claims made in a new documentary as unfounded and contradictory to basic Christian beliefs. "The Lost Tomb of Jesus," produced by Oscar-winning director James Cameron and scheduled to air March 4 on the Discovery Channel, argues that 10 small...

The Lost Tomb Of ChristñBelievable or Baloney?

Posted by Billy Jacks blog
On News/Activism 02/26/2007 6:11:23 PM EST · 48 replies · 884+ views

Yahoo News & Associated Press | February 26, 2007 | Marshall Thompson
JERUSALEM - Archaeologists and clergymen in the Holy Land derided claims in a new documentary produced by the Oscar-winning director James Cameron that contradict major Christian tenets. "The Lost Tomb of Christ," which the Discovery Channel will run on March 4, argues that 10 ancient ossuaries -- small caskets used to store bones -- discovered in a suburb of Jerusalem in 1980 may have contained the bones of Jesus and his family, according to a press release issued by the Discovery Channel.

Documentary Shows Possible Jesus Tomb (Did They Attack Islamic Belief, Too?

Posted by Laissez-faire capitalist
On News/Activism 02/26/2007 6:50:03 PM EST · 67 replies · 998+ views

CBS News | 2/26/07 | Karen Matthews
Filmakers and researchers on Monday unveiled two ancient stone boxes they said may have once contained the remains of Jesus and Mary Magdalene, but several scholars derided the claims made in a new documentary as unfounded... ...Stephen Pfann, a biblical scholar at the University of the Holy Land in Jerusalem who was interviewed in the documentary, said the film's hypotheses holds little weight... Pfann is even unsure that the name "Jesus" on the caskets was read correctly. He thinks it's more likely the name "Hanun." Ancient semitic script is notoriously difficult to decipher... William Dever, an expert on near eastern...

Cameron the Infidel

Posted by .cnI redruM
On News/Activism 02/27/2007 9:23:45 AM EST · 25 replies · 664+ views

Redstate.com | 27 February, 2007 | .cnI redruM
James Cameron has truly moved beyond making sappy movies about ocean liner wrecks. He can now lay claim to being an idolater of the rankest order. Relying upon Pope Benedict to turn the other check in accordance with misinterpreted scripture, Cameron has accused the Gospels of inventing the resurrection the way Michael Moore does documentaries. 'TITANIC' director James Cameron and Simcha Jacobovici, a filmmaker-archaeologist, are set to unveil three coffins this week that they say are those of Jesus, Mary and Mary Magdalene. In an coming documentary, Cameron and Jacobovici cite "scientific evidence" that the resurrection of Jesus never happened...

end of Extra 20070227

Gods, Graves, Glyphs
Weekly Digest #137
Saturday, March 3, 2007

Agriculture

Science Traces Roots Of 'Traditional English' Apple Back To Central Asia

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 02/24/2007 10:38:25 PM EST · 38 replies · 518+ views

The Telegraph (UK) | 2-25-2007 | Richard Gray
Science traces roots of 'traditional English' apple back to central Asia By Richard Gray, Sunday Telegraph Last Updated: 12:30am GMT 25/02/2007 It is a taste of the English countryside, but the origins of the apple lie far from our shady orchards. English apples can be traced back over 7,000 years English apples are direct descendants of fruit trees growing in an inhospitable mountainous region of central Asia, plant scientists at Oxford University have discovered. The DNA of England's famous apple varieties is almost identical to that of fruit found in the Tian Shan forest which lies on the border of...

Early Europeans Unable To Stomach Milk

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 02/26/2007 6:28:35 PM EST · 60 replies · 833+ views

New Scientist | 2-26-2007 | Roxanne Khamsi
Early Europeans unable to stomach milk 22:00 26 February 2007 NewScientist.com news service Roxanne Khamsi Researchers analysing the DNA in Neolithic human remains claim to have uncovered the first direct evidence that modern humans have evolved changes in response to natural selection. Just 7000 years ago, Europeans were unable to digest milk, according to a new analysis of fossilised bone samples -- nowadays more than 90% of this population can. Europeans must have incurred a rapid change in their genetic make-up because it held an evolutionary advantage for them to be able to digest milk, says Mark Thomas at University...

Anatolia

Earliest Horse Figures Of Anatolia In Eski?ehir

Posted by blam
On General/Chat 02/27/2007 5:18:28 PM EST · 2 replies · 81+ views

Turkish Daily News | 2-27-2007
Earliest horse figures of Anatolia in Eski?ehir Tuesday, February 27, 2007 ANKARA -- Turkish Daily News Horse figures painted on rock formations in Eski?ehir are the oldest in Anatolia, according to new archaeological research. The research revealed that the first known horse figures date back to 6,000 B.C. and that the area was settled in the early Neolithic period. The excavation and studies of Anatolia in Eski?ehir's Sivrihisar district were conducted jointly by Eski?ehir-based Anadolu University and the Eski?ehir Archaeology Museum. The Eski?ehir province lies directly to the west of Ankara.Ali Umut T¸rkcan of Anadolu University said rock paintings featuring...

Ancient Europe

Bulgaria's Perperikon - Metallurgical Centre 13 Centuries BC (Thracians)

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 02/24/2007 6:41:40 PM EST · 6 replies · 210+ views

Novinite.com | 23-23-2007
Bulgaria's Perperikon - Metallurgical Centre 13 Centuries BC Weekend Guide: 23 February 2007, Friday. Bulgarian archaeologists announce on Thursday they have made an incredible discovery in the Perperikon area, an ancient living region of Thracians. The archaeologists said last summer they discovered the missing link in Thracian's history. They have found evidence for the transition from the late Bronze epoch to the early Iron epoch. At the end of the Bronze epoch, as a result of cataclysms a global system is destroyed. Scientists call the system "East Mediterranean Civilization". After its end, there came the so called "dark ages" -...

Ancient Egypt

Art museum to focus on ancient Egypt

Posted by SunkenCiv
On General/Chat 03/02/2007 2:58:37 AM EST · 2 replies · 2+ views

The Republican | Thursday, March 1, 2007 | Ronni Gordon
Excavating Egypt: Great Discoveries from the Petrie Museum of Egyptian Archaeology, boasts treasures galore. They include one of the world's oldest surviving dresses from about 2400 B.C., royal art from the palace-city of the "heretic pharaoh" Akhenaten and his wife, Nefertiti, a gold mummy mask, jewelry, stone sculpture and objects of daily life ranging from copper tweezers to a ceramic rat trap. The exhibit is on view through July 22 at the Mount Holyoke College Museum of Art in South Hadley, and in connection with it, the museum is hosting a series of events relating to ancient Egypt. Today at...

Elam, Persia, Parthia, Iran

French team finds Persian-era oasis temple in Egypt

Posted by SunkenCiv
On General/Chat 02/26/2007 12:04:50 AM EST · 3 replies · 4+ views

Reuters S Africa | Wednesday, February 21, 2007 | unattributed
French archaeologists have found a temple dating from the middle of the 1st millennium BC in Kharga oasis in Egypt's Western Desert, the Egyptian state news agency MENA said on Wednesday. The temple is at Dush in the southernmost edge of the oasis and dates from the Persian period, it said. The Persians were active in the Kharga area when they controlled Egypt between 525 and 404 BC and they rebuilt another well-known temple which survives near the main town Kharga... MENA quoted the local director of antiquities as saying the irrigation works dated back to about 500 BC and...

Ancient Greece

300 - FRANK MILLER'S STORY

Posted by 7thson
On General/Chat 01/16/2007 8:11:53 AM EST · 77 replies · 1,682+ views

I just watched a trailer of the new movie coming out - 300. It looks fairly decent. Anyone have anything to say about the movie? There are scenes where the talk about freedom and being free. I do not know the history of back then, but watching the trailer, I seemed to get a connection with what is going on in the world right now concerning the WOT and the storyline of the movie. They go against Persia - modern day Iran. 300 against one million - the United States against the world. Am I reading too much into this?...

MOLON LABE(Come and get 'em)

Posted by Freemeorkillme
On News/Activism 08/14/2002 10:11:57 PM EDT · 47 replies · 4,614+ views

Multiple instances | Unknown, though thought to be shortly after 500BC | Historical
MOLON LABE (mo-lone lah-veh) In 480 BC, Xerxes (son of Darius, King of Persia) was in full preparation to invade Athens, the leader of the Greek city-states. King Leonidas of Sparta (Left), another city-state, had agreed to help stop the invading Persians, and marched with 300 hand-picked troops to Thermopylae on the north coast of Greece. Thermopylae was the best of three possible defensive areas in which Xerxes' invading army had to advance. This mountain gap along the coast was about 60 feet wide, and was the best location for a blocking action. When Leonidas was preparing to make his...

Forgotten Necropolis (Greece)

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 03/02/2007 6:43:51 PM EST · 7 replies · 226+ views

Kathimerini | 3-2-2007 | Iota Myrtsioti
Forgotten necropolisAn unknown lakeside civilization reveals its hidden treasures The graves, set in concentric circles, contain artifacts including clothing and jewelry that tell us much about the inhabitantsí way of life. By Iota Myrtsioti - Kathimerini An unknown civilization around four lakes that lasted from 6000 BC to 60 BC has been uncovered in two important excavations of a Neolithic and an Iron Age settlement in the Amyntaio district of Florina, northern Greece. A 7,300-year-old home with a timber floor, remnants of food supplies and blackberry seeds are among the findings in a Neolithic settlement near the lakes of Vegoritis,...

British Isles

Skeleton Crew Digs Up Past

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 02/26/2007 12:49:23 AM EST · 24 replies · 596+ views

The Evening Telegraph | 2-25-2007
Skeleton crew digs up the past The skeleton of an Anglo-Saxon lord has been recovered as the hunt for buried treasure continues at a city allotment site. The removal of the seventh Century body follows the discovery of a rare ceremonial brass bowl on the site at Palmerston Road, Woodston, Peterborough. The priceless Coptic bowl, which was made more than 1,300 years ago in the Mediterranean, has led historical experts to conclude they had discovered the grave of an extremely wealthy Anglo-Saxon -- probably a prince or a powerful warlord from the ancient kingdom of Mercia. Excavation by archaeologists from...

Find Of Roman Coins Shows Ancient Britons In A New Light

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 02/25/2007 9:07:08 PM EST · 40 replies · 1,425+ views

The Telegraph (UK) | 2-26-2007
Find of Roman coin shows ancient Britons in a new light By Daily Telegraph Reporter Last Updated: 1:34am GMT 26/02/2007 Experts are excited about a rare coin unearthed by an amateur treasure hunter which could change the accepted ancient history of Britain. The silver denarius which dates back to the Roman Republic -- before Julius Caesar made Rome an empire -- was unearthed near Fowey in Cornwall. Dating from 146 BC, it shows how ancient Britons were trading with the Romans well before the country was conquered in AD 43. "It proves that there was a lot more going on...

Rome And Italy

Sceptre from Roman emperor exhibited

Posted by dbehsman
On News/Activism 02/27/2007 3:34:23 AM EST · 26 replies · 818+ views

The Telegraph | 2-27-07 | Malcolm Moore
The only Roman emperor's sceptre to have been found has gone on public display in Rome for the first time. The sceptre, which is topped by a blue orb that represents the earth, was discovered at the end of last year and is believed to have been held by Emperor Maxentius, who ruled for six years until 312AD. The Roman emperor's sceptre found at the Palatine hill Maxentius, who was known for his vices and his incapacity, drowned in the Tiber while fighting forces loyal to his brother-in-law, Constantine, at the battle of the Milvian bridge. Archaeologists believe that Maxentius'...

Ancient Autopsies

Which is the true face of 12,000 years BC?(face of a stone age woman revealed)

Posted by TigerLikesRooster
On News/Activism 02/27/2007 10:57:14 PM EST · 50 replies · 1,471+ views

Scotman | 02/28/07 | NICK PISA
Which is the true face of 12,000 years BC? NICK PISA IN ROME "TRAVEL back through time and space to the edge of man's beginnings... discover a savage world whose only law was lust!" ran the tagline for One Million Years BC, the "caveman" film starring Raquel Welch. One can only hope that ancient ideals of feminine beauty were somewhat different, after scientists revealed for the first time what Stone Age women really looked like. Thea, who lived more than 14,000 years ago, was reconstructed by sculptors working with anthropologists using computer technology. Experts have recreated the faces of men...

'First' Sicilian Woman Gets Face (14,000 YO)

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 02/27/2007 5:12:25 PM EST · 40 replies · 1,167+ views

Ansa | 2-26-2007
'First' Sicilian woman gets faceShe lived 14, 000 yrs ago in a cave near Messina PALERMO (ANSA) - The face of a late Stone Age woman who lived in Sicily has been reconstructed by a sculptor working with anthropologists at Palermo University. The skeleton of the woman, who lived 14,000 years ago, was discovered in a cave near Messina in 1937, along with the incomplete skeletons of six other humans, presumably her family. The face was reproduced using reconstruction techniques that calculate the appearance of features from the form of the cranium. The same techniques have been used recently to...

Asia

Ancient Kingdom Ogf Gojoseon Turned From Myth Into History (Korea)

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 02/24/2007 6:53:17 PM EST · 21 replies · 350+ views

Donga | 2-24-2007
Ancient Kingdom of Gojoseon Turned from Myth into History FEBRUARY 24, 2007 07:15 The founding of Koreaís ancient kingdom of Gojoseon will be officially written as part of national history in high school history textbooks. In addition, the Bronze Age on the Korean peninsula will be described to date back 1,000 years earlier than was previously thought. The Ministry of Education and Human Resources Development announced yesterday its plan to deliver the revised history books to schools nationwide for the class of 2007. Academic and political circles have demanded that the founding of Koreaís first kingdom, currently depicted as a...

Faith and Philosophy

Gift of the Gospels

Posted by Condor 63
On Religion 03/02/2007 6:20:52 AM EST · 4 replies · 49+ views

The Birmingham News | Friday, March 02, 2007 | GREG GARRISON
It wasn't exactly "The DaVinci Code," but a Birmingham priest recently jetted around the world and helped deliver one of the most important documents in Christian history to the pope. "It contains the oldest copy of the Lord's Prayer in the world," said St. Paul's Cathedral Pastor Richard Donohoe. Donohoe assisted in the Vatican Library's acquisition of two rare pieces of papyrus, including the oldest surviving copy of the Gospel of Luke and one of the two oldest copies of the Gospel of John. They were handwritten by a scribe about 200 A.D. and found in Egypt in the 1950s....

Biology and Cryptobiology

New DNA Study Helps Explain Unique Diversity Among Melanesians

Posted by blam
On General/Chat 02/28/2007 4:34:33 PM EST · 29 replies · 291+ views

Eureka Alert | 2-28-2007 | Temple University - Preston Moretz
Contact: Preston M. Moretz pmoretz@temple.edu 215-204-7476 Temple University New DNA study helps explain unique diversity among Melanesians Small populations of Melanesians -- among the most genetically diverse people on the planet -- have significant differences in their mitochondrial DNA that can be linked to where they live, the size of their home island and the language they speak, according to a study being published in the new online journal, Public Library of Science ONE (http://www.plosone.org). The study, "Melanesian mtDNA complexity," was lead by Jonathan Friedlaender, emeritus professor of anthropology at Temple University. The study appears in the Feb. 28 issue....

Precolumbian, Clovis, And Preclovis

Towers Point To Ancient Sun Cult (Peru)

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 03/01/2007 4:16:57 PM EST · 13 replies · 361+ views

BBC | 3-1-2007
Towers point to ancient Sun cult The Thirteen Towers constitute an ancient solar observatory The oldest solar observatory in the Americas has been found, suggesting the existence of early, sophisticated Sun cults, scientists report. It comprises of a group of 2,300-year-old structures, known as the Thirteen Towers, which are found in the Chankillo archaeological site, Peru. The towers span the annual rising and setting arcs of the Sun, providing a solar calendar to mark special dates. The study is published in the journal Science. Clive Ruggles, professor of archaeoastronomy at Leicester University, UK, said: "These towers have been known to...

Climate

Far below the Gulf's surface, experts in sub will seek signs of early man in North America

Posted by Cincinatus' Wife
On News/Activism 03/02/2007 5:08:29 AM EST · 27 replies · 545+ views

Houston Chronicle | March 2, 2007 | HARVEY RICE
GALVESTON -- A U.S. Navy submarine that can roll on wheels across the ocean floor will leave Pier 40 today on a weeklong expedition to search the deep for evidence of ancient human habitation. The Navy's only nuclear-power research vessel, the NR-1, will carry scientists looking for signs of early humans who may have lived on a coast that 19,000 years ago extended 100 miles farther into the Gulf of Mexico than it does today. If scientists on the expedition, dubbed "Secrets of the Gulf," find evidence that humans roamed those ancient shores, it would push back the earliest known...

Middle Ages and Renaissance

Artifacts Could Be From Early Galleon (Baja)

Posted by blam
On General/Chat 02/27/2007 5:24:07 PM EST · 5 replies · 88+ views

Yahoo News | 2-26-2007
Artifacts could be from early galleon Mon Feb 26, 11:42 PM ET MEXICO CITY - Archeologists said Monday that porcelain plates and other artifacts found along the Baja California coast could be from the wreckage of a Spanish galleon that sailed between the Philippines and Mexico hundreds of years ago. Seals and other markings on some of the estimated 1,000 fragments of porcelain plates found at the site indicate they were made in China in the late 1500s, said archaeologist Luz Maria Mejia of the National Institute of Anthropology and History. The site, near the port of Ensenada about 50...

Thoroughly Modern Miscellany

Genes and genius: Researchers confirm association between gene and intelligence

Posted by Pharmboy
On News/Activism 02/27/2007 9:33:10 AM EST · 33 replies · 733+ views

Washington University School of Medicine | 26-Feb-2007 | Jim Dryden
If you're particularly good with puzzles or chess, the reason may be in your genes. A team of scientists, led by psychiatric geneticists at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, has gathered the most extensive evidence to date that a gene that activates signaling pathways in the brain influences one kind of intelligence. They have confirmed a link between the gene, CHRM2, and performance IQ, which involves a person's ability to organize things logically. "This is not a gene FOR intelligence," says Danielle M. Dick, Ph.D., assistant professor of psychiatry and lead author on the study. "It's a...

Down in the Bonebox

Jesus: Tales from the Crypt

Posted by Havok
On General/Chat 02/24/2007 5:25:18 PM EST · 21 replies · 906+ views

Time | February 23, 2007 6:55 | Tim McGirk
Brace yourself. James Cameron, the man who brought you 'The Titanic' is back with another blockbuster. This time, the ship he's sinking is Christianity. In a new documentary, Producer Cameron and his director, Simcha Jacobovici, make the starting claim that Jesus wasn't resurrected -- the cornerstone of Christian faith -- and that his burial cave was discovered near Jerusalem. And, get this, Jesus sired a son with Mary Magdelene. No, it's not a re-make of "The Da Vinci Codes'. It's supposed to be true. Let's go back 27 years, when Israeli construction workers were gouging out the foundations for a new building...

James Cameron Tries to Kill Jesus

Posted by Flavius
On General/Chat 02/25/2007 7:41:22 AM EST · 44 replies · 1,797+ views

laist | 2/24/07 | na
r at least he's trying to kill the story of Jesus' resurrection. An upcoming 90-minute documentary directed by Jewish Canadian filmmaker Simcha Jacobovici and produced by Titanic director James Cameron makes the startling assertion that Jesus was never resurrected -- a cornerstone of Christian faith -- and that his burial cave was discovered in the Jerusalem suburb of Talpiyot some 27 years ago. One more thing, Jesus fathered a son with Mary Magdelene. Cameron and Jacobovici claim they have DNA tests, archeological evidence and Biblical studies on their side. And on Monday, Cameron will hold a press conference in...

Mysterious bones of Jesus, Joseph and Mary

Posted by aculeus
On News/Activism 02/24/2007 12:14:06 PM EST · 278 replies · 5,391+ views

The Daily Telegraph (UK) | February 24, 2007 | By Tim Butcher in Jerusalem
In a scene worthy of a Dan Brown novel, archaeologists a quarter of a century ago unearthed a burial chamber near Jerusalem. Inside they found ossuaries, or boxes of bones, marked with the names of Jesus, Joseph and Mary. Then one of the ossuaries went missing. The human remains inside were destroyed before any DNA testing could be carried out. While Middle East academics doubt that the relics belong to the Holy Family, the issue is about to be exposed to a blaze of publicity with the publication next week of a book. Entitled The Jesus Tomb and co-written by...

Jesus: Tales from the Crypt

Posted by alice_in_bubbaland
On News/Activism 02/25/2007 10:51:06 AM EST · 20 replies · 1,285+ views

Time Blog/ Middle East | 2/23/07 | Tim McGirk
Brace yourself. James Cameron, the man who brought you 'The Titanic' is back with another blockbuster. This time, the ship he's sinking is Christianity. In a new documentary, Producer Cameron and his director, Simcha Jacobovici, make the starting claim that Jesus wasn't resurrected -- the cornerstone of Christian faith -- and that his burial cave was discovered near Jerusalem. And, get this, Jesus sired a son with Mary Magdelene. No, it's not a re-make of "The Da Vinci Codes'. It's supposed to be true.

Jesus: Tales From The Crypt

Posted by Roberts
On Religion 02/24/2007 4:36:08 PM EST · 34 replies · 911+ views

time-blog.com | 2/23/07 | Tim McGirk
Brace yourself. James Cameron, the man who brought you 'The Titanic' is back with another blockbuster. This time, the ship he's sinking is Christianity. In a new documentary, Producer Cameron and his director, Simcha Jacobovici, make the starting claim that Jesus wasn't resurrected -- the cornerstone of Christian faith -- and that his burial cave was discovered near Jerusalem. And, get this, Jesus sired a son with Mary Magdelene. No, it's not a re-make of "The Da Vinci Codes'. It's supposed to be true. Let's go back 27 years, when Israeli construction workers were gouging out the foundations for a new building in...

Jesus Family Tomb Believed Found

Posted by steadfastconservative
On Religion 02/25/2007 1:33:09 PM EST · 50 replies · 718+ views

Discover News | Feb. 25, 2007 | Jennifer Viegas
New scientific evidence, including DNA analysis conducted at one of the world's foremost molecular genetic laboratories, as well as studies by leading scholars, suggests a 2,000-year-old Jerusalem tomb could have once held the remains of Jesus of Nazareth and his family. The findings also suggest that Jesus and Mary Magdalene might have produced a son named Jonah. The DNA findings, alongside statistical conclusions made about the artifacts -- originally excavated in 1980 -- open a potentially signficant chapter in Biblical archaeological history. A documentary presenting the evidence, "The Lost Tomb of Jesus," will premiere on the Discovery Channel on March 4 at 9 pm...

New film claims Jesus buried in Talpiot [Chief Archeologist says it's "nonsense"]

Posted by Mount Athos
On News/Activism 02/26/2007 6:59:41 AM EST · 43 replies · 1,268+ views

Jerusalem Post | Feb. 25, 2007 | DAVID HOROVITZ
The Israeli-born, Canadian-based filmmaker Simcha Jacobovici is reigniting claims, first made over a decade ago, that a burial cave uncovered 27 years ago in Talpiot, Jerusalem, is the tomb of Jesus of Nazareth and his family. [...] But Bar-Ilan University Prof. Amos Kloner, the Jerusalem District archeologist who officially oversaw the work at the tomb in 1980 and has published detailed findings on its contents, on Saturday night dismissed the claims. "It makes a great story for a TV film," he told The Jerusalem Post. "But it's impossible. It's nonsense." Kloner, who said he was interviewed for the new film...

Jesus Family Tomb Talking Points

Posted by Gamecock
On Religion 02/26/2007 7:15:48 AM EST · 147 replies · 1,568+ views

Gamecock
I'm sure that by now all of you have heard about the claim that the ossuary of Christ's family has been found. I would like to open a thread that will help us develop answers to friends, both Christians and atheists who might come to us with questions about it all. Please feel free to post your rebuttals for others to use! Biblical, rational, scientific, philosophical, whatever you can come up with is more than welcome!

Titanic Blasphemy

Posted by Keli Kilohana
On News/Activism 02/26/2007 8:14:37 AM EST · 25 replies · 1,597+ views

Charleston Gazette Forums | 2/26/2007 | Pastor Terry Hagedorn
James Cameron and Simcha Jacobivici claim to have raided the lost tomb of Jesus. Proof? There are related people in a graveyard with the uncommon names Joshua, Mary and Martha! Oi vey! Despite the faith of a millions of people in the Gospel (I Corinthians 15:3,4 -- the death, burial and resurrection of Christ for our salvation) and despite the fact that the resurrected Christ was seen and touched by his disciples, all twelve Apostles, over 500 hundred witnesses -- at one time; and, despite the fact that devout Jews changed the day of worship from the seventh day to the first day of...

THE JESUS TOMB? 'TITANIC' TALPIOT TOMB THEORY SUNK FROM THE START

Posted by NYer
On Religion 02/27/2007 3:40:42 PM EST · 31 replies · 478+ views

BenWitherington | February 27, 2007 | Ben Witherington
Talpiot tomb Remember the tale of the Titanic? How it was supposed to be impregnable, and nothing could poke holes in it? How it would never be sunk? Well all I can say is that human hubris knows no bounds, and that hasn't changed in the last century. On April 15th 1912 the supposedly leak proof Titanic rammed into an iceberg and sank -- sank like a giant stone. Sank quickly, with great loss of life. Why do I bring this up? Because in one of the interesting ironies in recent memory, James Cameron the movie director who made the enormously successful...

Scholars, clergy slam Jesus documentary

Posted by Mr. Brightside
On News/Activism 02/26/2007 10:39:12 AM EST · 50 replies · 1,149+ views

Yahoo | 2/26/07
Scholars, clergy slam Jesus documentary By MARSHALL THOMPSON, Associated Press Writer 35 minutes ago JERUSALEM - Archaeologists and clergymen in the Holy Land derided claims in a new documentary produced by the Oscar-winning director James Cameron that contradict major Christian tenets. "The Lost Tomb of Christ," which the Discovery Channel will run on March 4, argues that 10 ancient ossuaries -- small caskets used to store bones -- discovered in a suburb of Jerusalem in 1980 may have contained the bones of Jesus and his family, according to a press release issued by the Discovery Channel. One of the caskets...

Tomb of Jesus doc uproar

Posted by Clive
On News/Activism 02/26/2007 11:07:03 AM EST · 50 replies · 1,435+ views

AP via Sun Media | 2007-02-26 | Marshall Thompson
JERUSALEM (AP) -- Archaeologists and clergymen in the Holy Land derided claims in a new documentary produced by the Oscar-winning director James Cameron that contradict major Christian tenets. ‚ÄúThe Lost Tomb of Christ,‚Äù which the Discovery Channel will run on March 4, argues that 10 ancient ossuaries -- small caskets used to store bones -- discovered in a suburb of Jerusalem in 1980 may have contained the bones of Jesus and his family, according to a press release issued by the Discovery Channel. One of the caskets even bears the title, ‚ÄúJudah, son of Jesus,‚Äù hinting that Jesus may have...

Cameron defends Jesus tomb documentary

Posted by Clive
On News/Activism 02/26/2007 11:41:03 AM EST · 113 replies · 2,363+ views

CTV News | 2007-02-26 | (staff)
Oscar-winning director James Cameron defended on Monday his controversial new documentary, which claims that Jesus may have been buried with a wife and son, against charges the film was trying to undermine Christianity. Instead, the documentary that claims the discovery of the tomb of Jesus Christ and his family celebrates their existence, Cameron said at a press conference announcing the documentary "The Lost Tomb of Jesus." The message that Jesus delivered 2,000 years ago resounds even today, Cameron said. "My feeling is that his message of compassion, humility, love and forgiveness is every bit as much needed now in this...

I've found the coffin of Jesus, says film director

Posted by Anti-Bubba182
On News/Activism 02/26/2007 3:47:38 PM EST · 78 replies · 1,902+ views

This Is London | 25.02.07 | Staff
The Lost Tomb of Jesus, made for the Discovery Channel, will be shown in the U.S. this week and later in Britain by Channel 4. Today, Cameron is holding a press conference on what he describes as 'one of the greatest archaeological finds of all time'. Crucially, he is not denying the resurrection - as there were no bones in the caskets. But the £2million film still strikes at the foundation of Christianity in the same manner as the novel The Da Vinci Code, by Dan Brown, in claiming that Jesus married and had a family. His theory, which has...

Scorn poured on James Cameron's 'coffin of Christ' theory (Archeologists/Scholars Dispute Finding)

Posted by SirLinksalot
On News/Activism 02/26/2007 5:03:46 PM EST · 78 replies · 1,449+ views

Evening Standard | 02/25/2007
Scorn poured on James Cameron's 'coffin of Christ' theory Archaeologists and biblical scholars have poured scorn on a Hollywood film director's sensational claim that he has discovered the coffin of Jesus Christ. Oscar-winning 'Titanic' director James Cameron's assertion that the bones of Jesus and his family were hidden for centuries in a Jerusalem tomb caused an outcry in the Holy Land. Even a British archeologist who worked with Cameron, Dr. Shimon Gibson, admitted he's "sceptical" about the claims that challenge some of the central tenets of Christianity. The very fact that Jesus had a grave would contradict the Christian belief...

Archaeologists, Scholars Dispute Jesus Documentary

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 02/26/2007 6:05:33 PM EST · 19 replies · 390+ views

CNN | 2-26-2007
Archaeologists, scholars dispute Jesus documentary POSTED: 2151 GMT (0551 HKT), February 26, 2007Filmakers and researchers claim these stone boxes may have once contained the remains of Jesus and Mary Magdalene. JERUSALEM (AP) -- Filmmakers and researchers on Monday unveiled two ancient stone boxes they said may have once contained the remains of Jesus and Mary Magdalene, but several scholars derided the claims made in a new documentary as unfounded and contradictory to basic Christian beliefs. "The Lost Tomb of Jesus," produced by Oscar-winning director James Cameron and scheduled to air March 4 on the Discovery Channel, argues that 10 small...

The Lost Tomb Of Christ -- Believable or Baloney?

Posted by Billy Jacks blog
On News/Activism 02/26/2007 6:11:23 PM EST · 50 replies · 934+ views

Yahoo News & Associated Press | February 26, 2007 | Marshall Thompson
JERUSALEM - Archaeologists and clergymen in the Holy Land derided claims in a new documentary produced by the Oscar-winning director James Cameron that contradict major Christian tenets. "The Lost Tomb of Christ," which the Discovery Channel will run on March 4, argues that 10 ancient ossuaries -- small caskets used to store bones -- discovered in a suburb of Jerusalem in 1980 may have contained the bones of Jesus and his family, according to a press release issued by the Discovery Channel.

Documentary Shows Possible Jesus Tomb (Did They Attack Islamic Belief, Too?

Posted by Laissez-faire capitalist
On News/Activism 02/26/2007 6:50:03 PM EST · 72 replies · 1,067+ views

CBS News | 2/26/07 | Karen Matthews
Filmakers and researchers on Monday unveiled two ancient stone boxes they said may have once contained the remains of Jesus and Mary Magdalene, but several scholars derided the claims made in a new documentary as unfounded... ...Stephen Pfann, a biblical scholar at the University of the Holy Land in Jerusalem who was interviewed in the documentary, said the film's hypotheses holds little weight... Pfann is even unsure that the name "Jesus" on the caskets was read correctly. He thinks it's more likely the name "Hanun." Ancient semitic script is notoriously difficult to decipher... William Dever, an expert on near eastern...

Cameron the Infidel

Posted by .cnI redruM
On News/Activism 02/27/2007 9:23:45 AM EST · 31 replies · 923+ views

Redstate.com | 27 February, 2007 | .cnI redruM
James Cameron has truly moved beyond making sappy movies about ocean liner wrecks. He can now lay claim to being an idolater of the rankest order. Relying upon Pope Benedict to turn the other check in accordance with misinterpreted scripture, Cameron has accused the Gospels of inventing the resurrection the way Michael Moore does documentaries. 'TITANIC' director James Cameron and Simcha Jacobovici, a filmmaker-archaeologist, are set to unveil three coffins this week that they say are those of Jesus, Mary and Mary Magdalene. In an coming documentary, Cameron and Jacobovici cite "scientific evidence" that the resurrection of Jesus never happened...

Discovery Channel's 2002 "James' Bones" Story Was Hoax

Posted by Blogrighter
On News/Activism 02/27/2007 5:24:58 PM EST · 25 replies · 985+ views

www.CNSNews.com | Feb. 27, 2007 | Nathan Burchfiel
Christian groups are calling Discovery Channel's upcoming documentary by James Cameron claiming to have found the bones of Jesus just one more example of TV's annual Lenten assault on Christianity. In 2002, for example, the Discovery Channel promoted the discovery of a similar bone box some believed belonged to Jesus' brother James. The Israeli Antiquities Authority later determined the box to be a forgery when it found that the inscription "James son of Joseph, Brother of Jesus" had been recently added to the artifact. In 2006, NBC aired a special about a man claiming that the crucifixion was "rigged," and...

Unintentionally HILARIOUS Quote By Larry King About "The Lost Tomb Of Jesus"

Posted by PJ-Comix
On News/Activism 02/27/2007 7:56:55 PM EST · 49 replies · 1,615+ views

Larry King Show | February 26, 2007 | Larry King
"Simcha, if what you're purporting here is true, not as a pun, is this the end of the Easter Bunny?"

The "Jesus Family Tomb" story: Old News, No News

Posted by truthfinder9
On Religion 02/28/2007 9:26:10 AM EST · 11 replies · 198+ views

str.typepad.com
Every Easter season the anti-Jesus crowd comes out of the woodwork creating some "controversy" about Jesus. This latest one, like many, is years old and was dusted off for the latest round of baseless attacks on Jesus' historicity. Historian Paul L. Maier explains further: Thanks for the profusion of e-mails I've received over the last two days regarding the Talpiot tombs discovery in Jerusalem, a.k.a., "the Jesus Family Tomb" story. Some of you also suggested that "life seemed to be following art" so far as my A Skeleton in God's Closet was concerned. Believe me, this is not the way...

'Cameron's Coffin' is 2007 Easter Attack(Anti-Christianity: The last safe bigotry!)

Posted by kellynla
On News/Activism 02/28/2007 11:35:47 PM EST · 28 replies · 534+ views

worldnetdaily.com | February 28, 2007 | staff
The Discovery Channel should cancel a scheduled airing of a film about a purported Jerusalem grave of Jesus Christ, and should apologize for presenting such "an unsubstantiated claim," according to family values organizations. Robert Knight, director of the Media Research Center's Culture and Media Institute, told WND that the film, "The Lost Tomb of Jesus," is just the 2007 version of an annual attack on Christianity right around the time of Easter, the time at which the Christian church remembers Jesus' Resurrection. "It always seems to happen just before Easter," he said. "It's as if there's a script going around,...

end of digest #137 20070303

Gods, Graves, Glyphs
Weekly Digest #138
Saturday, March 10, 2007

Ancient Europe

First-Ever Dwelling Mound Found In Germany

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 03/06/2007 1:13:49 PM EST · 17 replies · 890+ views

Spiegel | 3-6-2007
First-Ever Dwelling Mound Found in Germany A 7,000-year-old dwelling mound has been found in Germany, causing a stir among archaeologists. It is the first find of its kind in Western Europe. A room with a view has always been a coveted thing. Over the millennia, humans discovered that it could be achieved by simply staying put over generations and not picking up the garbage. By building and rebuilding on the rubble of their own architectural remains, sedentary humans managed to achieve an impressive height. Photo Gallery: Prehistoric Dwelling Mound Discovered in Germany Click on a picture to launch the image...

Prehistory and Origins

'Stone Age' called insult (PC Alert)

Posted by BJClinton
On News/Activism 03/08/2007 1:12:04 PM EST · 217 replies · 3,535+ views

Washington Times | March 8, 2007 | Jennifer Harper
Attention Fred Flintstone and the Geico cave guys: "Stone Age" is no longer acceptable, joining the list of other words and terms deemed offensive in polite society.

Climate

Britain's Drowned Landscapes (Ice Age Melt)

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 09/21/2003 7:05:04 PM EDT · 6 replies · 2,161+ views

The Guardian (UK) | 9-21-2003 | Robin McKie
Britain's drowned landscapes New underwater technology to reveal an age when the UK was linked to Europe by plains and forests Robin McKie, science editor Sunday September 21, 2003 The Observer (UK) Herds of reindeer and horses migrated across its plains, huge forests covered much of the countryside and men and women made their homes by rivers and lakes. Then came the deluge, and this ancient Arcadia - which stretched across the North Sea, and covered the Channel - was inundated. All signs of human and animal activity were covered by several hundred feet of water. Only the occasional stone...

Catastrophism and Astronomy

No archaeological studies to support existence of Ram Sethu

Posted by SunkenCiv
On General/Chat 03/07/2007 12:16:43 PM EST · 8 replies · 127+ views

Zee News | Wednesday, March 7, 2007 | Bureau Report
Government on Tuesday said there are no archaeological studies that reveal the existence of a Ram Sethu bridge between India and Sri Lanka. However, a NASA satellite picture has shown the existence of a stretch of land bridge in the Palk Strait between the countries, Minister of Tourism and Culture Ambika Soni said in a written reply to the Rajya Sabha today. She informed the house that as there are no archaeological studies to confirm the fact, the government was not planning to take any preservation initiative in this direction.

Rare copy of Koran found in India

Posted by Jedi Master Pikachu
On General/Chat 03/08/2007 2:36:07 PM EST · 12 replies · 158+ views

BBC | Thursday, March 8, 2007
The rare Koran and the painting Police in the Indian city of Bangalore have seized a copy of the Koran they believe may have belonged to Mughal emperor Aurangzeb over 300 years ago.The book was discovered after a raid on a hotel in the city. Police arrested a man who was trying to sell it and an antique painting for more than $1m. The gold-embroidered Koran, written in Persian, has more than 1,000 pages. Experts are checking if a signature on the back belongs to Aurangzeb, who ruled India from 1658 to 1707. 'Fragrant' The Mughal ruler was a...

Treasuring Brunei's Past

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 03/04/2007 1:49:01 PM EST · 10 replies · 143+ views

Bornco Bulletin Weekend | 3-3-2007 | Jon Tampoi
Treasuring Brunei's past By Jon Tampoi The tomb of the 5th Sultan of Brunei Darussalam, a historical monument situated at Kota Batu's hillside. - Photos: Jason LeongShards of pottery from business activities with China in the past. Brunei has a rich history of trade, and often received tribute. Many of the great civilisations in our world's history had marine origins, whether they evolved in Europe, the Americas or Asia. The kingdom of Brunei Darussalam is no exception, as historical evidence lends veracity to this claim. Relics of Bruneian culture have been found around river estuaries and ancient settlements, as proven...

Asia

Genetic Testing Reveals Awkard Truth About Xinjiang's Famous (Red-Headed) Mummies

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 03/06/2007 11:01:58 PM EST · 48 replies · 1,422+ views

Khalee Times | 4-19-2005 | AFP
Genetic testing reveals awkward truth about Xinjiang's famous mummies (AFP) 19 April 2005 URUMQI, China - After years of controversy and political intrigue, archaeologists using genetic testing have proven that Caucasians roamed China's Tarim Basin 1,000 years before East Asian people arrived. The research, which the Chinese government has appeared to have delayed making public out of concerns of fueling Uighur Muslim separatism in its western-most Xinjiang region, is based on a cache of ancient dried-out corpses that have been found around the Tarim Basin in recent decades. ìIt is unfortunate that the issue has been so politicized because it...

Australia and the Pacific

Surviving The Hobbit Wars

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 03/05/2007 6:18:25 PM EST · 21 replies · 396+ views

Canberra Times | 3-5-2007 | Simon Grose
Monday, 5 March 2007 Author Mike Morwood. THE DIG: The bones in Liang Bua cave, Flores, where the hobbits were found. Surviving the Hobbit Wars Simon Grose Dr Mike Gagan will be getting into more than one of the world's most exciting archaeological digs when he abseils down to an ancient graveyard on the Indonesian island of Flores in June. The Australian National University palaeoclimatologist will also be entering a drama that has a reputation for fierce personal and ideological rivalries, international intrigue, stolen goods of priceless value, broken and mended agreements, intense media interest, and a central theme which...

Biology and Cryptobiology

Gorillas Gave Humans 'The Crabs'

Posted by presidio9
On News/Activism 03/07/2007 12:48:12 PM EST · 95 replies · 1,418+ views

Live Science | 03/07/07 | Charles Q. Choi
Humans caught pubic lice, aka "the crabs," from gorillas roughly three million years ago, scientists now report. ADVERTISEMENT Rather than close encounters of the intimate kind, researchers explained humans most likely got the lice, which most commonly live in pubic hair, from sleeping in gorilla nests or eating the apes. "It certainly wouldn't have to be what many people are going to immediately assume it might have been, and that is sexual intercourse occurring between humans and gorillas," explained researcher David Reed of the Florida Museum of Natural History. "Instead of something sordid, it could easily have stemmed from an...

In Lice, Clues to Human Origin and Attire

Posted by neverdem
On News/Activism 03/08/2007 2:44:13 AM EST · 29 replies · 688+ views

NY Times | March 8, 2007 | NICHOLAS WADE
One of the more embarrassing mysteries of human evolution is that people are host to no fewer than three kinds of louse while most species have just one. Even bleaker for the human reputation, the pubic louse, which gets its dates and residence-swapping opportunities when its hosts are locked in intimate embrace, does not seem to be a true native of the human body. Its closest relative is the gorilla louse. (Don't even think about it.) Louse specialists now seem at last to have solved the question of how people came by their superabundance of fellow travelers. And in doing...

Ancient Autopsies

Unbrushed Teeth Reveal Ancient Diets

Posted by SunkenCiv
On General/Chat 03/07/2007 12:57:13 PM EST · 13 replies · 200+ views

Discovery News | March 2, 2007 | Jennifer Viegas
[A]ncient tartar-encrusted teeth may be a biological gold mine for scientists, thanks to a new technique for extracting food particles from teeth that once belonged to prehistoric humans. The method already has solved a mystery surrounding what early coastal Brazilians ate. In the future, similar studies may reveal clues about other ancient diets, particularly in areas with little plant preservation from earlier times... Eggers explained that ancient tartar could reveal what an individual ate in the days or weeks before death. Evidence suggests some prehistoric populations cleaned their teeth -- using fibrous foods and shell fragments as natural abrasives --...

Agriculture

Paper challenges 1491 Amazonian population theories

Posted by SunkenCiv
On General/Chat 03/07/2007 12:48:27 PM EST · 19 replies · 223+ views

Florida Institute of Technology (via EurekAlert) | Tuesday, March 6, 2007 | Karen Rhine
"These data are directly relevant to the resilience of Amazonian conservation, as they do not support the contention that all of Amazonia is a 'built landscape' and therefore a product of past human land use," Bush says. "Most archaeologists are buying into the argument that you had big populations that transformed the landscape en masse. Another group of archaeologists say that transformation was very much limited to river corridors, and if you went away from the river corridors there wasn't that much impact. That's what our findings tend to support." Bush doesn't expect that his new findings will settle the...

Precolumbian, Clovis, And Preclovis

Walker 'Stone Tools' Weren't Made By Humans, State Archaeologist Says

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 03/05/2007 7:32:27 PM EST · 24 replies · 568+ views

Star Tribune | 3-5-2007 | Robert Franklin
Walker 'stone tools' weren't made by humans, state archaeologist says By Robert Franklin, Star Tribune Materials found on a hill above Walker, Minn., were not clearly stone tools dating back 13,000 to 14,000 years, the state archaeologist has concluded. Several experienced archaeologists have concluded that "the great majority of the collection was produced by natural processes," State Archaeologist Scott Anfinson said. "There were a few 'maybe' flakes [of stone], and there were clearly no stone tools of obvious human manufacture or use." Nor is it likely that people lived in the "very uninviting environment" of the Late Glacial age in...

Builders Discover 46 Ancient Tombs In Colombia

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 03/05/2007 1:09:23 PM EST · 15 replies · 306+ views

CRI English.com | 2-22-2007 | Xinhua
Builders Discover 46 Ancient Tombs in Colombia 2007-02-22 11:06:18 Xinhua A group of construction workers stumbled upon 46 ancient tombs, between 1,500 and 2,500 years old while digging to build a new soccer stadium in Deportivo Cali in southwestern Colombia, an archaeologist team said on Wednesday. The tombs were found in Malagana, on the basin of the Cauca River. Anthropologist Jose Rodriguez, who headed a team from Colombia's National University, said that the tombs showed evidence of cannibalism and warrior activities. On the building site, experts found human bones, primarily radius and ulna bones. Rodriguez said that this indicates ritual...

Megaliths and Archaeoastronomy

Towers in Peru Called Solar Observatory

Posted by ameribbean expat
On News/Activism 03/04/2007 1:00:49 PM EST · 8 replies · 434+ views

South Florida Sun-Sentinel | 02 March 07 | Thomas Maugh

Ancient Solar Observatory Discovered

Posted by uglybiker
On General/Chat 03/06/2007 11:55:04 PM EST · 5 replies · 29+ views

SPACE.com | 1 March 2007 | http://www.space.com/php/contactus/feedback.php?r=sg
The oldest solar observatory in the Americas has been discovered in coastal Peru, archeologists announced today. The 2,300-year-old ceremonial complex featured the Towers of Chankillo, 13 towers running north to south along a low ridge and spread across 980 feet (300 meters) to form a toothed horizon that was used for solar observations. Researchers excavated the solar observatory between 2000 and 2003. They found buildings -- in exact mirror position of each other -- to the east and west of the towers with observation points for watching the Sun rise and set over the toothed horizon. How it works In addition to the daily...

Stonehenge

Stonehenge Secrets May Lie By Side Of The Road

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 03/03/2007 2:57:35 PM EST · 15 replies · 754+ views

Salisbury Journal | 3-3-2007 | Chris Hooper
Stonehenge secrets may lie by side of the road By Chris Hooper The stones at Berwick St James which are believed to be the altar stone from Stonehenge. DB1860P2 AN archaeological expert has claimed that two innocuous-looking stones at the side of a road in Berwick St James could hold clues to the secrets of Stonehenge. Dennis Price, who is a renowned expert on the site and used to work with Wessex Archaeology, believes the two large stones standing at the side of a lane next to the B3083 could be parts of Stonehenge's mysterious altar stone. The altar stone,...

Pyramids

The Pyramid mystery

Posted by aculeus
On News/Activism 03/03/2007 11:11:43 AM EST · 81 replies · 1,788+ views

Al-Ahram Weekly | October 2002 | Unsigned
There is much speculation about the Great Pyramid and why its design followed such an elaborate pattern. Nevine El-Aref studies the options The Great Pyramid of Khufu at Giza has been in the limelight again. This time attention is focusing on one of its lingering questions: why were small shafts built into its structure, and what is behind the so-called "blocking stone"? While probing last month with a pint-sized robot inside the southern shaft leading from the Pyramid's Queen's Chamber -- broadcast live on television -- the National Geographic mission found a second sealed chamber behind the door discovered in...

Ancient Egypt

'Israelites didn't build the pyramids'

Posted by aculeus
On News/Activism 03/03/2007 11:23:58 AM EST · 32 replies · 877+ views

Ynetnews.com | February 27, 2007 | by Smadar Perry
Head of Egyptian antiquity council files complaint against high school: 'Ancient Egyptians built pyramids. Why do they teach otherwise?' "It is well known that the ancient Egyptians built the pyramids; they regarded these structures as a national project for ancient Egypt," said Dr. Zahi Hawass, Secretary General of Egypt's Supreme Council of Antiquities. Hawass filed an official complaint to the Egyptian attorney general of Egypt against a Cairo high school for teaching the students that it was the Israelites who built the pyramids. Hawass, prominent figure in Egyptian culture and around the Arab world, criticized the school curriculum for "insisting...

Navigation

Crystal Amulet Poses Question On Early Christianity (Denmark - 100AD)

Posted by blam
On Religion 03/09/2007 2:37:30 PM EST · 74 replies · 1,367+ views

Denmark DK | 3-9-2007
9 March 2007 Crystal amulet poses question on early Christianity An overlooked crystal amulet in the National Museum suggests new understandings about Christianity's origins in Denmark King Harold Bluetooth brought Christianity to Denmark roughly 1100 years ago. At least that's what he declared on the Jelling Stone located in Jutland: 'King Haraldr ordered this monument made in memory of Gormr, his father, and in memory of ThyrvÈ, his mother; that Haraldr who won for himself all of Denmark and Norway and made the Danes Christian.' A tiny crystal amulet in the National Museum's archives suggests something quite different though, that...

Epigraphy and Language

'Indus Valley Civilization Was More Varied And Wider'

Posted by blam
On General/Chat 03/06/2007 12:57:57 PM EST · 11 replies · 177+ views

Express India | 3-5-2007 | Abhay Mishra
'Indus Valley civilization was more varied and wider' Abhay Mishra New Delhi, March 5: Indus Valley civilization was much more varied and wider than historians believed till date,î said Professor of Archaeology and Heritage Management, Boston University, Mohammed Rafique Mughal on Monday. "Extensive exploration and excavation of sites in the upper Indus Valley and the lower Sindh have revealed a widespread cultural phenomena which existed at that time," said Mughal, delivering the Dr I H Qureshi Memorial Lecture, the Harappan civilization, at St Stephen's College. Claiming that field researches at Harappan sites -- both in India and Pakistan -- are leading to fresh...

British Isles

A United Kingdom? Maybe

Posted by neverdem
On News/Activism 03/05/2007 10:44:25 PM EST · 43 replies · 842+ views

NY Times | March 6, 2007 | NICHOLAS WADE
Britain and Ireland are so thoroughly divided in their histories that there is no single word to refer to the inhabitants of both islands. Historians teach that they are mostly descended from different peoples: the Irish from the Celts and the English from the Anglo-Saxons who invaded from northern Europe and drove the Celts to the country's western and northern fringes. But geneticists who have tested DNA throughout the British Isles are edging toward a different conclusion. Many are struck by the overall genetic similarities, leading some to claim that both Britain and Ireland have been inhabited for thousands of...

Middle Ages and Renaissance

Henry V's Payroll Cuts Agincourt Myth Down to Size (French/English ratio wildly exaggerated)

Posted by quidnunc
On News/Activism 05/28/2005 8:51:42 PM EDT · 59 replies · 1,294+ views

The Sunday Times | May 29, 2005 | Richard Brooks
The scale of Henry V's triumph at Agincourt, which has been feted as one of the greatest victories in British military history, has been exaggerated for almost six centuries, a new book is to reveal. The English and Welsh were still outnumbered, according to Anne Curry, professor of medieval history at Southampton University -- but only by a factor of three to two. For the last 50 years historians have believed the odds were at least four to one. Curry is the first academic to untangle the true scale of Henry's victory in 1415 by sifting through original enrolment records...

The True Beauty Of Lady Jane Grey

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 03/04/2007 9:02:01 PM EST · 29 replies · 797+ views

The Telegraph (UK) | 3-5-2007 | Nigel Reynolds
The true beauty of Lady Jane Grey By Nigel Reynolds, Arts Correpondent Last Updated: 1:38am GMT 05/03/2007 The great unsolved mystery of what Lady Jane Grey, England's shortest reigning monarch, looked like may finally have been cracked, thanks to a piece of jewellery, a flower related to the cabbage and the historian David Starkey. Dr Starkey, a Tudor specialist, claimed yesterday that he was "90 per cent certain" that he had succeeded in identifying the first contemporary portrait of Jane Grey, the pious Protestant pawn who was queen for nine days in 1553 before being beheaded at the Tower of...

Napoleon

Ship Excavation Sheds Light On Napoleon's Attack On Holy Land

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 03/05/2007 6:26:18 PM EST · 8 replies · 356+ views

Newswise | 3-5-2007 | University Of Haifa
Source: University of Haifa Released: Mon 05-Mar-2007, 08:45 ET Ship Excavation Sheds Light on Napoleon's Attack on the Holy Land A ship that sunk off the coast of Acre during the battles between Napoleon and the British Royal navy is still shrouded in mystery. Marine archaeologists from the University of Haifa are analyzing the hull and the finds in an effort to solve the mystery. Steve Breitstein Marine archaeology excavations off the coast of Acre Newswise -- Which navy commissioned the boat that sunk off the coast of Acre 200 years ago, which battles was it involved in and how...

Stomach cancer likely killed Napoleon (not poison)

Posted by NormsRevenge
On News/Activism 01/18/2007 1:51:00 AM EST · 13 replies · 401+ views

AP on Yahoo | 1/17/07 | Matt Crenson - ap
NEW YORK - Napoleon Bonaparte died a more prosaic death than some people would like to think, succumbing to stomach cancer rather than arsenic poisoning, according to new research into what killed the French emperor. Theories that Napoleon was poisoned with arsenic have abounded since 1961, when an analysis of his hair showed elevated levels of the toxic element. But the latest review of the 1821 autopsy report just after he died concludes the official cause of death -- stomach cancer -- is correct. The autopsy describes a tumor in his stomach that was 4 inches long. Comparing that description...

Ancient Greece

Ruins in Athens May Be an Ancient Market

Posted by SunkenCiv
On General/Chat 03/03/2007 1:31:32 AM EST · 16 replies · 111+ views

WTOP | Friday, March 2, 2007 | unattributed
Archaeologists have discovered extensive remains of what is believed to be an ancient marketplace with shops and a religious center at the southern edge of Athens, the Culture Ministry said Friday. The finds, in the coastal neighborhood of Voula, date from the 4th or 5th century B.C... Marketplaces -- or agoras -- teemed with shops, open-air stalls and administrative buildings, and were the financial, political and social center of ancient Greek life. Archaeologists believe the complex belonged to the municipality of Aexonides Halai, among the largest settlements surrounding ancient Athens... Finds included large quantities of pottery, coins and lead weights...

That Film's Real Message? It Could Be: 'Buy a Ticket' (Liberals upset about 300 movie)

Posted by Proud_USA_Republican
On News/Activism 03/05/2007 11:57:24 AM EST · 235 replies · 6,121+ views

New York Slimes | 3/5/2007 | MICHAEL CIEPLY
LOS ANGELES, March 4 -- Three weeks ago a handful of reporters at an international press junket here for the Warner Brothers movie ì300,î about the battle of Thermopylae some 2,500 years ago, cornered the director Zack Snyder with an unanticipated question. ìIs George Bush Leonidas or Xerxes?î one of them asked. The questioner, by Mr. Snyder's recollection, insisted that Mr. Bush was Xerxes, the Persian emperor who led his force against Greek's city states in 480 B.C., unleashing an army on a small country guarded by fanatical guerilla fighters so he could finish a job his father had left...

Elam, Persia, Parthia, Iran

Hand Dug Corridors Discovered in Nooshabad Underground City [Iran]

Posted by aculeus
On News/Activism 03/03/2007 11:17:44 AM EST · 9 replies · 326+ views

Payvand's Iran News ... | February 26, 2007 | By Soudabeh Sadigh
During their third season of excavations, archeologists succeeded in discovering some more corridors in the underground city of Nooshabad, 13 meters below the ground. Nooshabad underground city Tehran, 25 February 2007 (CHN) -- Continuation of archeological excavations in Nooshabad underground city in Isfahan province resulted in the discovery of some more corridors and chambers at a depth of 11 to 13 meters from the ground surface. "We were trying to get access to the lower stories of Nooshabad underground city through digging a corridor at the back part of the ancient water reservoir of the city when we came across...

Iran's Rich Architecture And Rare Treasures Threatened By Possible US Strikes

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 03/05/2007 7:11:33 PM EST · 81 replies · 921+ views

The Guardian (UK) | 3-5-2007 | Maev Kennedy
Iran's rich architecture and rare treasures threatened by possible US strikes Many ancient remains are close to nuclear plants Archaeologists anxious to avoid repeat of Iraq chaos Maev Kennedy Monday March 5, 2007 The Guardian (UK) Tourists visit Persepolis, which lies within 50 miles of the Ardakan and Fasa uranium processing plants. Photograph: Vahid Salemi/AP In his quiet office at the British Museum, among the portraits of long-dead explorers and copies of 3,000-year-old inscriptions, one of the greatest experts on the archaeology of the Middle East has a series of maps of Iranian nuclear installations spread out across...

Shiver Me Timbers

Blackbeard's Ship to Be Fully Excavated

Posted by Mr. Brightside
On General/Chat 03/03/2007 10:52:10 AM EST · 14 replies · 228+ views

AP | 3/3/07
Today: March 03, 2007 at 7:0:7 PST Blackbeard's Ship to Be Fully Excavated By STEVE HARTSOE ASSOCIATED PRESS RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) - A shipwreck off the North Carolina coast believed to be that of notorious pirate Blackbeard could be fully excavated in three years, officials working on the project said. "That's really our target," Steve Claggett, the state archaeologist, said Friday while discussing 10 years of research that has been conducted since the shipwreck was found just off Atlantic Beach. The ship ran aground in 1718, and some researchers believe it was a French slave ship Blackbeard captured in 1717...

Oh So Mysteriouso

Tuscany's Excalibur Is The Real Thing, Say Scientists

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 09/24/2001 10:46:55 PM EDT · 48 replies · 1,152+ views

The Observer | 9-16-2001 | Rory Carroll
Tuscany's Excalibur is the real thing, say scientists Rory Carroll in Rome Sunday September 16, 2001 The Observer The sword of St Galgano, said to have been plunged into a rock by a medieval Tuscan knight, has been authenticated, bolstering Italy's version of the Excalibur legend. Galgano Guidotti, a noble from Chiusdano, near Siena, allegedly split the stone with his sword in 1180 after renouncing war to become a hermit. For centuries the sword was assumed to be a fake. but research revealed last week has dated its metal to the twelfth century. Only the hilt, wooden grip and ...

Arts and Flowers

What is your Dark Ages Character?

Posted by dynachrome
On General/Chat 03/04/2007 8:35:51 PM EST · 33 replies · 522+ views

Historychannel.com | 3-4-07 | The History Channel
What's Your Dark Ages Character?

Faith and Philosophy

American Thinker Eric Hoffer

Posted by Kitten Festival
On News/Activism 03/03/2006 4:54:45 PM EST · 15 replies · 697+ views

Investor's Business Daily | 3 March 2006 | Staff
As the scent of burning electrical wire and the pulverized dust settled over Manhattan in the wake of the 2001 World Trade Center attack, a certain book disappeared from New York City bookstore shelves. Within a week, that book rocketed from No. 8,000 to No. 125 on Amazon.com rankings. It described the nature of fanatics, offering a powerful window of understanding into the people capable of blowing up those two towers. "The True Believer" was published in 1951. Its author, Eric Hoffer, was a self-educated longshoreman born in New York City to a German cabinetmaker and his wife. His keen...

Let's Have Jerusalem

Extremist rabbis call for return of animal sacrifice

Posted by DaveLoneRanger
On News/Activism 03/03/2007 1:10:13 PM EST · 68 replies · 833+ views

CNN | February 28, 2007 | Staff
A fringe group of extremist rabbis wants to resume the biblical practice of animal sacrifice at an explosive religious site in Jerusalem, members said Wednesday. The request defied centuries of religious bans and triggered a stiff protest from a Muslim leader. When the Jewish Temples stood in the Old City of Jerusalem more than 2,000 year ago, animal sacrifice was a centerpiece of the religion. After the destruction of the Temples, sacrifices were banned and rabbinical teachings took their place as the focus of Judaism. Now a group, called the "Re-established Sanhedrin" after the Temple-era religious high court, has decided...

Longer Perspectives

Five Urban Legends of American Beer History

Posted by toddlintown
On General/Chat 03/02/2007 2:33:33 PM EST · 17 replies · 317+ views

PRWeb | 03-02-2007 | Bob Skilnik
Five Urban Legends of American Beer History "Brewing trade organizations of the Repeal-era 'enhanced' beer's history to stimulate its sales," says beer historian. (PRWEB) March 2, 2007 -- Bob Skilnik, author of the recently-released Beer & Food: An American History (ISBN 0977808610, Jefferson Press, Hardcover, $24.95), argues that industry embellishments and poor research have distorted much of the history of U.S. beer. While his latest work traces the centuries-long courtship and ultimate marriage of beer and food in American kitchens, it also details popular misconceptions about beer that linger on. "As the exuberance surrounding legal beer began to fade in...

Thoroughly Modern Miscellany

'Celebration' banned for Jamestown's 400th--You can't celebrate an invasion

Posted by SJackson
On News/Activism 03/08/2007 8:24:52 AM EST · 129 replies · 2,152+ views

Worldnetdaily | 3-8-07 | Bob Unruh
'Celebration' banned for Jamestown's 400thEvents marking settlement's anniversary condemn its 'holocaust' Posted: March 8, 20071:00 a.m. Eastern By Bob Unruh©†2007†WorldNetDaily.com This year is the 400th anniversary of the arrival of settlers in Jamestown, 13 years before the Plymouth Pilgrims appeared on America's shores. And there will be discussions on the environmental impact of the settlement and its impact on African-Americans and Native Americans. But there will be no celebration. "You can't celebrate an invasion," Mary Wade, a member of Jamestown 2007 organizing committee, has stated. After all, Indian tribes "were pushed back off of their land, even killed. Whole tribes...

History Buff Thinks He Has Found 1585 English Fort - Tract Predates Lost Colony

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 03/03/2007 7:39:51 PM EST · 17 replies · 856+ views

News Observer | 3-3-2007 | Jerry Allegood
History buff thinks he has found 1585 English fort Tract predates Lost Colony Jerry Allegood, Staff Writer MANTEO - Amateur historian Scott Dawson thinks he has found what archaeologists and historians have sought for decades -- the site of an English fort on Roanoke Island linked to the legendary Lost Colony. Dawson, a Civil War buff, said that documents written centuries apart led him to an overgrown tract where he believes explorer Ralph Lane established a settlement in 1585. The site, on the northern end of the island about 200 miles east of Raleigh, is on National Park Service property...

World War II

Polish PM: Any revision of Germany's role in WWII poses a "danger"

Posted by lizol
On News/Activism 03/05/2007 7:02:21 PM EST · 31 replies · 436+ views

M&C | Mar 5, 2007
Polish PM: Any revision of Germany's role in WWII poses a "danger" Mar 5, 2007, 17:19 GMT Warsaw - Polish conservative Prime Minister Jaroslaw Kaczynski warned Monday that 'any type of revision' of Germany's role in World War II posed a danger to Poland and Europe. 'We hope that this type of process, if it is to begin, and unfortunately there are symptoms of it, will be halted in Germany,' Kacyznski said. The comments came on the heels of a film aired by Germany's ARD television station Sunday detailing the fate of Germans who fled Prussian territories in 1945, now...

end of digest #138 20070310

Gods, Graves, Glyphs
Weekly Digest #139
Saturday, March 17, 2007

Arts and Flowers

Women With Bigger Behinds Were All the Stone Age Rage, Scientists Say

Posted by devane617
On General/Chat 03/10/2007 9:30:56 AM EST · 98 replies · 1,959+ views

Daily Express | 03/10/2007 | Martin Evans
THERE are a few exceptions which will always stand out, but most female stars yearn for a diminutive derriere. However, it appears that the small and slender bottom is very much a recent trend after an archaeological discovery revealed how Stone Age pin-ups were far from size zero. Ancient carvings depicting the female form 15,000 years ago reveal that prehistoric women were revered for their curvaceous bodies and prominent buttocks. The most popular were the cave-dwellers' equivalents of Kylie Minogue (pictured), whose renowned behind is the world's most popular posterior. Historians claim that the carvings ñ found at a site...

Why cavemen liked curvy cavewomen...like Kylie

Posted by madison10
On News/Activism 03/10/2007 3:55:45 PM EST · 86 replies · 3,250+ views

Daily Express | March, 7, 2007 | Martin Evans
Why cavemen liked curvy cavewomen...like Kylie 09/03/07 By Martin Evans THERE are a few exceptions which will always stand out, but most female stars yearn for a diminutive derriere. However, it appears that the small and slender bottom is very much a recent trend after an archaeological discovery revealed how Stone Age pin-ups were far from size zero. Ancient carvings depicting the female form 15,000 years ago reveal that prehistoric women were revered for their curvaceous bodies and prominent buttocks. The most popular were the cave-dwellers' equivalents of Kylie Minogue (pictured), whose renowned behind is the world's most popular posterior....

Africa

Humans in North Africa earlier than thought

Posted by DaveLoneRanger
On News/Activism 03/13/2007 11:27:25 AM EDT · 35 replies · 630+ views

Middle East Online | March 13, 2007 | Staff
WASHINGTON - Man may have emerged on the south shore of the Mediterranean 35,000 years earlier than previously thought, said a study out Monday. That would push the appearance of Homo sapiens in northern Africa back to 160,000 years ago, according to scientists who studied the remains of a three-year-old found in Morocco in 1968. Using microscopic and X-ray examination of tooth growth, which stores information as tree rings do, scientists said the date Homo sapiens arrived in the north of Africa may have been earlier than previously believed. "The researchers found that the Moroccan juvenile displays many of the...

Biology and Cryptobiology

Epic of Human Migration Is Carved in Parasites' DNA

Posted by neverdem
On News/Activism 03/13/2007 1:40:55 AM EDT · 10 replies · 381+ views

NY Times | March 13, 2007 | NICHOLAS WADE
A human body is not the individual organism its proud owner may suppose but rather a walking zoo of microbes and parasites, each exploiting a special ecological niche in its comfortable, temperature-controlled conveyance. Some of these fellow travelers live so intimately with their hosts, biologists are finding, that they accompany them not just in space but also in time, passing from generation to generation for thousands of years. The latest organism to be identified as a longtime member of the human biota club is Streptococcus mutans, the bacterium that causes tooth decay. From samples collected around the world, Dr. Page...

Prehistory and Origins

These Legs Were Made For Fighting: Human Ancestors Had Short Legs For Combat

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 03/12/2007 9:25:00 PM EDT · 73 replies · 1,208+ views

Science Daily | 3-12-2007 | University Of Utah
Source: University of Utah Date: March 12, 2007 These Legs Were Made For Fighting: Human Ancestors Had Short Legs For Combat, Not Just Climbing Science Daily -- Ape-like human ancestors known as australopiths maintained short legs for 2 million years because a squat physique and stance helped the males fight over access to females, a University of Utah study concludes. This drawing of a male gorilla skeleton illustrates their very short legs. Male gorillas fight to gain access to reproductively mature females. Relatively short legs increase the stability and strength of great apes, and should therefore increase fighting performance. A...

Longer Perspectives

The Patriarchal Family in History

Posted by Askel5
On News/Activism 10/18/2002 7:18:48 PM EDT · 52 replies · 3,249+ views

The Dynamics of History | 1933 | Christopher Dawson
THE PATRIARCHAL FAMILY IN HISTORY Christopher Dawson | 1933 The traditional view of the family was founded on a somewhat naive and one-sided conception of history. The knowledge of the past was confined to the history of classical civilization and to that of the Jews, in both of which the patriarchal family reigned supreme. But when the European horizon was widened by the geographical discoveries of modern times, men suddenly realized the existence of societies whose social organization was utterly different to anything that they bad imagined. The discovery of totemism and exogamy, of matrilinear institutions, of polyandry, and...

Near East

What if the Persians would have conquered Arabia? [Vanity]

Posted by freedom44
On General/Chat 03/14/2007 4:04:50 PM EDT · 50 replies · 338+ views

me | 3/14/07 | me
What if instead of invading Greece the Persians would have invaded and conquered Arabia? At the time Arabia was real weak so it would have been an easy victory. Freeper CarrotandStick poised this question in another thread. Lets hear your predictions history buffs. No Islam? A Zoroastrian Middle East? How would it have played out? The Persian Empire. Notice how accessible Arabia was. Until the sixth century BC, they were a people shrouded in mystery. Living in the area east of the Mesopotamian region, the Persians were a disparate group of Indo-European tribes, some nomadic, some settled, that were developing...

Elam, Persia, Parthia, Iran

Persepolis: Center of the Persian Empire in 3D

Posted by freedom44
On General/Chat 03/15/2007 2:07:07 PM EDT · 20 replies · 221+ views

Persepolis3D | 3/15/07 | Persepolis3D
Persepolis ( Parsa), the spiritual center of the first world power in recorded history, was the vision of the emperor Darius (Dariush) the Great who set forth his plan of a multi-cultural state in which a diversity of ideas took precedence over dictatorial oppression. The spirit of Achemaenid rule from which Cyrus (Kourosh) the Great founded the Persian Empire (from approximately 559 B.C.) is best conveyed through the words of Darius : ì... I will not tolerate that the weak shall suffer injustices brought upon them by the mighty. What is just pleases me. ... You, my subjects , must...

Let's Have Jerusalem

Notes on the Jews of Persia Under Mohammed Shah [Dhimmitude in old Persia]

Posted by Alouette
On News/Activism 03/14/2007 12:04:10 PM EDT · 7 replies · 332+ views

The Occident | June, 1850 | Abraham De Sola
Occupations and Intercourse with Mohammedans Under Mahommed Shah and Baba Khan Shah -- Fanaticism of the Mullahs!= -- Shah's Tax and Mode of Collection -- Fearful Bigotry and Ignorance of the Mahommedans Exemplified -- Their Attempts at Conversion. A people persecuted with all the relentlessness of which cruel, demi-civilized and powerful masters are capable, can have but few channels in which their spirit of enterprise and industry may find scope, -- but few chances of becoming wealthy. The slave, with the sweat of his brow, the wear of his frame, and the risk of his life, may produce, even from the bowels of the earth, riches of incalculable worth;...

Epigraphy and Language

Lost in the translation - Bible Translation Questions

Posted by Brookhaven
On News/Activism 01/24/2003 10:34:07 AM EST · 183 replies · 763+ views

world magazine | 1-24-03 | Joel Belz
Lost in the translation A literature scholar says words, more than meanings, are important By Joel Belz Since it's still January, I know it won't impress you much to say that The Word of God in English by Leland Ryken is the most important book I've read this year. Even to call it my most important read of the century -- or, for that matter, of the millennium -- may be, in the year 2003, to damn it with faint praise. But you get the point. If the Bible itself is the most important book ever to confront the human race, I will argue that...

Faith and Philosophy

Odds of 'Lost Tomb' Being Jesus' Family Rest on Assumptions

Posted by CutePuppy
On News/Activism 03/11/2007 3:07:30 AM EDT · 12 replies · 560+ views

Wall Street Journal | March 09, 2007 | Carl Bialik
Odds of 'Lost Tomb' Being Jesus' Family Rest on Assumptions Until two weeks ago, University of Toronto statistician Andrey Feuerverger's body of research encompassed uncontroversial topics such as medical scanning and correcting for camera blurring. ... Prof. Feuerverger calculated there is just a one-in-600 chance that those same names would have come together in a family that didn't belong to Jesus of Nazareth. ... But the one-in-600 calculation is based on many assumptions about the prevalence of the names and their biblical significance. For purposes of his calculations, Prof. Feuerverger relied on new scholarly research that links the inscription "Mariamene...

Scholar: 'Jesus Tomb' Makers Mistaken (Ossuary's inscription does not say Mary Magdalene)

Posted by DaveLoneRanger
On News/Activism 03/14/2007 10:50:29 AM EDT · 39 replies · 1,255+ views

PhysOrg | March 13, 2007 | MATTI FRIEDMAN
A scholar looking into the factual basis of a popular but widely criticized documentary that claims to have located the tomb of Jesus said Tuesday that a crucial piece of evidence filmmakers used to support their claim is a mistake. Stephen Pfann, a textual scholar and paleographer at the University of the Holy Land in Jerusalem, said he has released a paper claiming the makers of "The Lost Tomb of Jesus" were mistaken when they identified an ancient ossuary from the cave as belonging to the New Testament's Mary Magdalene. The film's director, Simcha Jacobovici, responded that other researchers agreed...

India

Controversial documentary troubles Mumbai Catholic group [Cameron's "Jesus Tomb" in India, again]

Posted by Alex Murphy
On Religion 03/13/2007 11:50:08 AM EDT · 2 replies · 45+ views

The Indian Catholic | March 13,2007
MUMBAI, India (UCAN): A Catholic group's claim that its protest forced a television channel from broadcasting a controversial documentary on Jesus' tomb has resulted in the channel threatening to take legal action. Catholic Secular Forum (CSF), a Catholic group based in Bombay archdiocese in western India, said in a March 2 press release that following its protests, the Discovery Channel had agreed not to broadcast the documentary. Bombay is the old name for Mumbai. The Discovery Channel on March 4 broadcast the documentary internationally, but not in India. However, it said the protest was not the reason for the non-broadcast,...

Asia

Climate Change Ended Angkor - Report

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 03/14/2007 8:52:02 PM EDT · 25 replies · 549+ views

The Age | 3-14-2007
Climate change ended Angkor - report Was Angkor Wat abandoned because of climate change? March 14, 2007 Climate change was one of the key factors in the abandonment of Cambodia's ancient city of Angkor, Australian archaeologists said today. The centuries-old city, home to more than 700,000 people and capital of the Khmer empire from about 900AD, was mysteriously abandoned about 500 years ago. It has long been believed the Khmers deserted the city after a Thai army ransacked it, but University of Sydney archaeologists working the site say a water crisis was the real reason it was left to crumble....

Climate

500,000 Years Of Climate History Stored Year By Year

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 03/14/2007 8:58:04 PM EDT · 61 replies · 1,462+ views

Alpha Galileo | 3-14-2007
500,000 Years of Climate History Stored Year by Year3-14-2007 The bottom of Turkey's Lake Van is covered by a layer of mud several hundreds of metres deep. For climatologists this unprepossessing slime is worth its weight in gold: summer by summer pollen has been deposited from times long past. From it they can detect right down to a specific year what climatic conditions prevailed at the time of the Neanderthals, for example. These archives may go back as much as half a million years. An international team of researchers headed by the University of Bonn now wants to tap this...

Catastrophism and Astronomy

Secrets Revealed Behind Supervolcano Eruption

Posted by aculeus
On News/Activism 03/10/2007 11:19:17 AM EST · 55 replies · 1,346+ views

Red Orbit | March 5, 2007 | Unsigned
Researchers at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute have discovered what likely triggered the eruption of a "supervolcano" that coated much of the western half of the United States with ash fallout 760,000 years ago. Using a new technique developed at Rensselaer, the team determined that there was a massive injection of hot magma underneath the surface of what is now the Long Valley Caldera in California some time within 100 years of the gigantic volcano's eruption. The findings suggest that this introduction of hot melt led to the immense eruption that formed one of the world's largest volcanic craters or calderas. The...

Yellowstone Supervolcano Making Strange Rumblings

Posted by edcoil
On News/Activism 03/14/2007 4:49:40 PM EDT · 196 replies · 5,110+ views

www.Fox News.com | 3-14-2007 | EDCOIL
Yellowstone Supervolcano Making Strange Rumblings Steam rises from hot springs in Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming, in a 2002 file photo. Supervolcanoes can sleep for centuries or millennia before producing incredibly massive eruptions that can drop ash across an entire continent. One of the largest supervolcanoes in the world lies beneath Yellowstone National Park, which spans parts of Wyoming, Montana and Idaho.

Precolumbian, Clovis, And Preclovis

Undersea Expedition Finds 'Promising Data' (Archaeology)

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 03/11/2007 7:29:20 PM EDT · 22 replies · 745+ views

Science Daily | 3-11-2007
Undersea expedition finds 'promising' data GALVESTON, Texas, March 11 (UPI) -- A submarine expedition to the floor of the Gulf of Mexico has returned with "promising" clues regarding an ancient undersea shoreline there. Anthropologist David Robinson told the Houston Chronicle that the expedition at the Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary yielded some significant data, yet was hesitant to say the area was 20,000 years old. "We found an area that looks like a promising place to do further research," he said of the 6-mile-long studied area. The study also marked the first use of some new vital undersea technology...

Bones Found Near Indian Beach (Sarasota, Fl)

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 03/10/2007 6:27:25 PM EST · 15 replies · 366+ views

Herald Tribune | 3-10-2007 | Latisha R Gray
Bones found near Indian BeachBuilders unearth remains, but excavation of site is unlikely By LATISHA R. GRAY 3-10-2007 latisha.gray@heraldtribune.comSTAFF PHOTO / DAN WAGNER Construction was halted on this waterfront property in Sarasota after human remains were found. SARASOTA -- The remains of what appears to be an American Indian have at least one local archeologist both excited and dismayed. Palmetto archaeologist Bill Burger said the rib, femur and vertebrae unearthed this month by construction workers building a luxury home along the bayfront could offer clues of a tribe from long gone. But it is impossible to determine just what else...

Australia and the Pacific

Headless Bodies Hold Secret To Pacific Migration

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 03/15/2007 5:52:10 PM EDT · 19 replies · 541+ views

Yahoo News | 3-15-2007 | Heather Whipps
Headless Bodies Hold Secrets to Pacific Migration Heather Whipps Special to LiveScience LiveScience.com Thu Mar 15, 10:15 AM ET Archaeologists working on the Pacific islands of Vanuatu have found the region's oldest cemetery, and it's filled with a slew of headless bodies. The peculiar 3,000-year-old skeletons belong to the Lapita people, the earliest known inhabitants of the Pacific Islands. Their DNA could shed light on how the many remote island specks surrounding Vanuatu were colonized, the researchers say. "Both Vanuatu and Western Polynesia were first settled by the Lapita culture but their populations are somewhat different genetically and this has...

Navigation

Pig study forces rethink of Pacific colonisation

Posted by Lorianne
On News/Activism 03/13/2007 3:17:21 AM EDT · 6 replies · 441+ views

Eureka Alert | 12 March 2007
A survey of wild and domestic pigs has caused archaeologists to reconsider both the origins of the first Pacific colonists and the migration routes humans travelled to reach the remote Pacific. Scientists from Durham University and the University of Oxford, studying DNA and tooth shape in modern and ancient pigs, have revealed that, in direct contradiction to longstanding ideas, ancient human colonists may have originated in Vietnam and travelled between numerous islands before first reaching New Guinea, and later landing on Hawaii and French Polynesia. Using mitochondrial DNA obtained from modern and ancient pigs across East Asia and the Pacific,...

Pig Study Forces Rethink Of Pacific Colonisation

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 03/13/2007 2:22:38 PM EDT · 12 replies · 446+ views

Science Daily | 3-13-2007 | Durham University
Source: Durham University Date: March 13, 2007 Pig Study Forces Rethink Of Pacific Colonisation Science Daily -- A survey of wild and domestic pigs has caused archaeologists to reconsider both the origins of the first Pacific colonists and the migration routes humans travelled to reach the remote Pacific. Scientists from Durham University and the University of Oxford, studying DNA and tooth shape in modern and ancient pigs, have revealed that, in direct contradiction to longstanding ideas, ancient human colonists may have originated in Vietnam and travelled between numerous islands before first reaching New Guinea, and later landing on Hawaii and...

Oh So Mysteriouso

Burglar 'suffered from Maori sickness' (Slice of Life DownUnder New Zealand)

Posted by DieHard the Hunter
On News/Activism 03/10/2007 4:14:45 AM EST · 34 replies · 541+ views

The Dominion Post (New Zealand) | 10 March 2007 | Staff Reporter
Burglar 'suffered from Maori sickness' The Dominion PostSaturday, 10 March 2007 A man who smashed his way into a suburban Christchurch house after threatening a woman occupant was suffering from "Maori sickness" at the time, a minister says. The Rev Whare Kawa Kaa told Christchurch District Court judge Colin Doherty yesterday that after he diagnosed Adam Daniel Cooper's problem, and took action, the young man was cured. "He's now got his memory back, got his mind back," said Mr Kaa, minister at the Phillipstown church, who has known Cooper for many years. Mr Kaa said that the problem stemmed from...

Ancient Europe

Ancient walrus bone discovered in south Iceland

Posted by Kimmers
On News/Activism 03/12/2007 4:05:38 PM EDT · 65 replies · 1,036+ views

Iceland Revies- Online
A bone which came from the penis of a walrus (Os penis) and is believed to be 10,000 to 12,000 years old, was discovered in a gravel mine by Lambafell in ÷lfuss in south Iceland a few weeks ago. Sigurdur Sigurdsson, a veterinarian, handed the bone over to the Museum in Thorl·kshˆfn at a special ceremony last weekend, R/V reports. The bone was found at an altitude of 285 meters above sea level. Sigurdsson said it is unprecedented that a bone from a sea animal is discovered at such a high altitude. Barbara GudnadÛttir, the cultural representative of ÷lfuss, told...

British Isles

Experts Reveal 'Ancient Massacre' (UK - 3590BC)

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 03/12/2007 2:15:11 PM EDT · 32 replies · 1,058+ views

BBC | 3-12-2007
Experts reveal 'ancient massacre' The Neolithic bones were discovered at Wayland's Smithy Bones found at a prehistoric burial site indicate they belonged to victims of an ancient massacre, say scientists. Remains of 14 people were discovered at Wayland's Smithy, near Uffington White Horse, Oxfordshire, in the 1960s. Latest techniques date the bones at between 3590 BC and 3560 BC, and have led experts to believe the people may have died in a Neolithic Age massacre. English Heritage carried out the work with the help of Cardiff University and the University of Central Lancashire. Flint arrowhead Michael Wysocki of the University...

Agriculture

Ancients Mashed Grapes Found In Greece (6,500 YA)

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 03/16/2007 6:58:20 PM EDT · 11 replies · 315+ views

Discovery News | 3-16-2007 | Jennifer Viegas
Ancient Mashed Grapes Found in Greece Jennifer Viegas, Discovery NewsAncient Grapes March 16, 2007 -- Either the ancient Greeks loved grape juice, or they were making wine nearly 6,500 years ago, according to a new study that describes what could be the world's earliest evidence of crushed grapes. If the charred 2,460 grape seeds and 300 empty grape skins were used to make wine, as the researchers suspect, the remains might have belonged to the second oldest known grape wine in the world, edged out only by a residue-covered Iranian wine jug dating to the sixth millennium B.C. Since the...

Rome and Italy

Roman clues found at ancient hill (UK).

Posted by Jedi Master Pikachu
On General/Chat 03/10/2007 10:42:54 AM EST · 18 replies · 175+ views

BBC | Saturday, March 10, 2007
English Heritage is conducting stabilisation work at the site Archaeologists have found traces of a Roman settlement at a 5,000-year-old landmark man-made hill in Wiltshire.English Heritage believes there was a Roman community at Silbury Hill about 2,000 years ago. The 130ft Neolithic mound near Avebury - one of Europe's largest prehistoric monuments - is thought to have been created some 3,000 years earlier. Experts carrying out a project to stabilise the hill say the site may have been a sacred place of pilgrimage. Human activity English Heritage geophysicist Dr Neil Linford said: "We are really excited by this discovery...

Roman Holiday___Barbarians week on the History Channel

Posted by Lorianne
On General/Chat 03/10/2007 9:07:00 PM EST · 11 replies · 181+ views

Slate | 09 March 2007 | Troy Patterson
The other night on the History Channel, the amethyst sunsets and lilac jazz of a Cialis commercial gave way to an advertisement for one of the network's own potency-restoring products. A hirsute fellow sat in a shadowy room. Before him was a hearty meal -- a goblet of mead and a goose leg the size of a moose haunch -- and yet, despite this bounty, he wept. A friend rushed in, his voice heavy with concern and piquant with an I, Claudius accent. "What's wrong?" "We sack. We pillage. But for what? In a thousand years, who will care? No one -- that's who." "Oh, but...

Middle Ages and Renaissance

Centuries-Old Watchtower Found In Trondheim

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 03/13/2007 7:00:41 PM EDT · 24 replies · 703+ views

Afterposten | 3-13-2007 | Cato Guhnfeldt
Centuries-old watchtower found in Trondheim Archaeologists in Trondheim have found the remains of what they believe was a watchtower made of stone, probably dating from the time of King Sverre in the 1100s.Here's a drawing of the tower believed to have been at least five stories tall. Archaeologist Ian Reed says the tower's floor is in good shape. The tower was located near the mouth of the river Nidelv, at lower left. The tower, which may have been more than 20 meters high, is being called an "incredibly rare discovery" that can shed new light on Trondheim's history. Preservation experts...

World War II

WW II Sub Found Off Hawaii

Posted by paudio
On News/Activism 03/21/2005 9:27:32 AM EST · 35 replies · 3,206+ views

Fox News | Sunday, March 20, 2005
HONOLULU -- The wreckage of a large World War II-era Japanese submarine has been found by researchers in waters off Hawaii (search). A research team from the University of Hawaii (search) discovered the I-401 submarine Thursday during test dives off Oahu. "We thought it was rocks at first, it was so huge," said Terry Kerby, pilot of the research craft that found the vessel. "But the sides of it kept going up and up and up, three and four stories tall. It's a leviathan down there, a monster." The submarine is from the I-400 Sensuikan Toku (search) class of subs,...

Thoroughly Modern Miscellany

Linnaeus at 300

Posted by neverdem
On News/Activism 03/14/2007 11:41:59 PM EDT · 11 replies · 276+ views

Nature | 15 March 2007 | NA
Carl Linnaeus introduced the systematic classification upon which all subsequent natural history has been built. This Nature web focus brings together a range of material celebrating the tercentenary of his birth in 1707, including features on how the explosion of genetic data changes the way we look at taxonomy, and the conflict between professionals and amateurs when naming species. There are also commentaries by leading taxonomists on the future of their field, articles on Linnaeus's global network of contacts and even his lost and lamented pet raccoon, original research on the origin of flowering plants and a review on speciation...

end of digest #139 20070317

Gods, Graves, Glyphs
Weekly Digest #140
Saturday, March 24, 2007

Catastrophism and Astronomy

Sea floor records ancient Earth

Posted by Ernest_at_the_Beach
On News/Activism 03/24/2007 2:06:03 AM EDT · 8 replies · 106+ views

BBC | Friday, 23 March 2007, 09:09 GMT | Jonathan Fildes Science and technology reporter, BBC News
The ancient sea floor was discovered in southwest Greenland A sliver of four-billion-year-old sea floor has offered a glimpse into the inner workings of an adolescent Earth.The baked and twisted rocks, now part of Greenland, show the earliest evidence of plate tectonics, colossal movements of the planet's outer shell. Until now, researchers were unable to say when the process, which explains how oceans and continents form, began. The unique find, described in the journal Science, shows the movements started soon after the planet formed. "Since the plate tectonic paradigm is the framework in which we interpret all modern-day geology,...

Climate

NASA Finds Sun-Climate Connection in Old Nile Records

Posted by jsh3180
On News/Activism 03/21/2007 6:01:05 PM EDT · 49 replies · 1,154+ views

NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory | March 19, 2007 | NASA press release
NASA Finds Sun-Climate Connection in Old Nile Records March 19, 2007 Long-term climate records are a key to understanding how Earth's climate changed in the past and how it may change in the future. Direct measurements of light energy emitted by the sun, taken by satellites and other modern scientific techniques, suggest variations in the sun's activity influence Earth's long-term climate. However, there were no measured climate records of this type until the relatively recent scientific past. Scientists have traditionally relied upon indirect data gathering methods to study climate in the Earth's past, such as drilling ice cores in Greenland...

Africa

Mysterious Migrations

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 03/23/2007 6:38:50 PM EDT · 17 replies · 560+ views

Science News | 3-23-2007 | Bruce Bower
Mysterious Migrations Our prehistoric ancestors journeyed out of Africa on contested roads Bruce Bower It was the most momentous immigration ever, a population realignment that marked a startling departure for our species, Homo sapiens. After emerging in eastern Africa close to 200,000 years ago, anatomically modern people stayed on one continent for roughly 140,000 years before spreading out in force around the world. Then, from 40,000 to 35,000 years ago, our forerunners advanced into areas stretching from what is now France to southeastern Asia and Australia. DIGGING THE PAST. Workers excavate deep into a site near the Russian village of Kostenki,...

Biology and Cryptobiology

Tooth Decay Analysis Supports 'Out Of Africa' Theory Of Human Evolution

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 03/17/2007 8:08:24 PM EDT · 16 replies · 491+ views

Science Daily | 3-16-2007 | New York University
Source: New York University Date: March 16, 2007 Tooth Decay Analysis Supports 'Out Of Africa' Theory Of Human Evolution Science Daily -- A New York University College of Dentistry (NYUCD) research team has found the first oral bacterial evidence supporting the dispersal of modern Homo sapiens out of Africa to Asia. The team, led by Page Caufield, a professor of cariology and comprehensive care at NYUCD, discovered that Streptoccocus mutans, a bacterium associated with dental caries, has evolved along with its human hosts in a clear line that can be traced back to a single common ancestor who lived in...

Neanderthals / Neandertals

Neanderthals among us?

Posted by Soothesayer
On News/Activism 02/06/2007 10:07:15 PM EST · 89 replies · 2,465+ views

latimes.com
DID ANATOMICALLY modern humans interbreed with Neanderthals, the muscle-bound, big-browed and possibly mute cave dwellers who disappeared from Europe and the Middle East about 30,000 years ago? The answer may be less interesting than the fact that so many Homo sapiens are fixated on the question. The debate about whether there's a Neanderthal skeleton in our collective closet was revived last week when two groups of scientists reported that they had deciphered DNA from the thigh bone of a Neanderthal man who lived in Croatia 38,000 years ago. From their analysis of genetic material in the bone, the scientists estimated...

Agriculture

Origin of Irish potato famine discovered

Posted by nypokerface
On General/Chat 03/05/2007 12:46:07 PM EST · 36 replies · 658+ views

UPI | 03/05/07
RALEIGH, N.C., March 5 (UPI) -- U.S. scientists have determined the fungus-like pathogen that caused the 1840s Irish potato famine originated in the South American Andes. Professor Jean Beagle Ristaino and colleagues at North Carolina State University compared the sequences of the nuclear and the cellular mitochondria of nearly 100 pathogen samples from South America, Central America, North America and Europe. The researchers say they created "gene genealogies" that point the finger at an Andean point of origin for the pathogen, which is known as Phytophthora infestans. The study, funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the National Science Foundation...

The Legend Of The Lamb Plant (Scythian Lamb)

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 03/22/2007 11:30:07 PM EDT · 22 replies · 390+ views

USDA | 3-23-2007 | Judith J Ho
Legend of the Lamb-Plant Judith J. Ho Library Technician Special Collections National Agricultural Library, USDA Beltsville, MD Through history, science has crystallized from many divergent paths. From Roger Bacon (1214-94) until well into the present century, discoveries were made and lost and made again.1 The word "biology" was not even coined until 1802. It has been said that if there is a moment at which biology began, it must have been 1615, when William Harvey, then the Court physician of Charles I of England, conceived of the heart as a pump, circulating the blood. The idea that a living body...

India

Pillars with inscriptions of Pallava, Chola kings found

Posted by SunkenCiv
On General/Chat 03/21/2007 2:55:38 PM EDT · 10 replies · 111+ views

The Hindu | March 17, 2007 | T.S. Subramanian
The inscriptions on the pillars belong to the Pallava period of 8th century A.D. when Thirukin Kizhavar was the local chieftain, the Pallava period of early 9th century A.D. when Nripatunga Varman was the ruler, and 998 A.D. when Raja Raja Chola was in his 13th regnal year. The inscriptions, in Tamil, are about the donation of gold and land for the temple and the maintenance of its perpetual lamp at Thiruvizhchil, which is present-day Salavankuppam. There is an inscription of Raja Raja Chola on the floor near the entrance to the Shore Temple. He built the Brihadisvara temple in...

Elam, Persia, Parthia, Iran

Alexander and the tomb of Cyrus the Great [Deep Respect]

Posted by freedom44
On General/Chat 03/21/2007 12:13:50 PM EDT · 11 replies · 247+ views

Livius | 3/21/07 | Livius
Within the enclosure, by the way which led up to the tomb, a small building had been constructed for the Magi who guarded it, a duty which had been handed down from father to son ever since the time of Cyrus' son, Cambyses. They had a grant from the King of a sheep a day, with an allowance of meal and wine, and one horse a month to sacrifice to Cyrus. There was an inscription on the tomb in Persian, signifying: O man, I am Cyrus son of Cambyses, who founded the empire of Persia and ruled over Asia. Do...

Greece

Spartans Overwhelmed At Thermopylae, Again

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 03/22/2007 5:34:14 PM EDT · 35 replies · 981+ views

Archaeology Magazine | 3-22-2007 | Eugene Borza
Spartans Overwhelmed at Thermopylae, Again March 22, 2007 by Eugene Borza A technically exciting videogame of a film, 300 loses touch with a critical and moving event in Greek history. Herodotus, the ?Father of History,? told many good stories, but there are few tales in his repertoire that surpass his narrative of the last-ditch stand of the Greeks against numerically superior forces at the pass of Thermopylae in August, 480 B.C. A huge military force led by Xerxes, the Persian King of Kings, crossed the Hellespont from Asia into Europe, intent on the subjugation of Greece. Whether Xerxes intended this...

The Truth Behind '300' [Persian view]

Posted by freedom44
On News/Activism 03/18/2007 12:32:41 PM EDT · 134 replies · 2,282+ views

Spenta Productions | 3/18/07 | Cyrus Kar
The Battle of Thermopylae was of course written by the classical Greek author, Herodotus, who lived in the Persian city of Halicarnassus. His book, 'The Histories' became part of Western folklore only recently. It was not until about 1850 that America embraced Herodotus as the leading authority on Persian history. Before 1850, however, the West had a very favorable impression of the Persian Empire. That's because the West's main source for Persian history was the Bible and the 'Cyropaedia,' written by another Greek author named Xenophon. But the Cyropaedia glorified the monarchy of Cyrus The Great, and in the wake...

Arts and Flowers

Ancient Perfume Found On Venus' Island (Cyprus)

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 03/17/2007 2:13:20 PM EDT · 24 replies · 663+ views

UPI | 3-16-2007
Published: March 16, 2007 at 2:24 PM Ancient perfume found on Venus' island ROME, March 16 (UPI) -- Archaeologists exploring Cyprus, said to be home to Venus, the goddess of love, have stumbled upon the world's oldest known perfume factory. A display of the prehistoric scents and 60 objects from the Cyprus discovery can be seen at Rome's Capitoline Museums, ANSA reported. The distilling equipment is believed to be 4,000 years old. "We were astonished at how big the place was ... Perfumes must have been produced on an industrial scale. No wonder the island got its reputation for possessing...

Rome and Italy

Bosnian archeologists discover Illyrian ships

Posted by SunkenCiv
On General/Chat 03/22/2007 3:29:55 AM EDT · 6 replies · 135+ views

Monsters and Critics | March 20, 2007 | Deutsche Presse-Agentur
A team of Bosnia-Herzegovina's archaeologists have discovered for the first time the remnants of fabled Illyrian ships in a marshland in southern Herzegovina... some eight metres under the water of Hutovo blato, a marshland near the southern town of Capljina. The Illyrian ships, believed to be more than 2,200 years old, had been known to historians only through Greek and Roman myths and legends... The Hutovo blato marshland... became their final destination after they sailed in from the Adriatic Sea which is connected with the marshland by the Neretva River... [T]he experts there also discovered some 80 amphoras lids and...

Navigation

Captain Cook Is Scuppered By Book

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 03/20/2007 8:28:36 PM EDT · 51 replies · 804+ views

The Telegraph (UK) | 3-20-2007 | Nick Squires
Captain Cook is scuppered by book By Nick Squires in Sydney Last Updated: 9:02am GMT 20/03/2007 The image of Captain Cook stepping onto the shores of Botany Bay has been a staple of British history books for generations but now it seems the explorer may have been beaten to Australia by the Portuguese, who arrived 250 years earlier. A new appraisal of 16th century maps offers evidence that a small Portuguese fleet charted much of Australia's coast as early as 1522. It has long been known that Cook was preceded by Dutch navigators, whose ships were wrecked on the coast...

Australia and the Pacific

Book lays out how Portuguese found Australia

Posted by xcamel
On News/Activism 03/21/2007 8:11:29 PM EDT · 21 replies · 324+ views

MSNBC | March 21, 2007 | Michael Perry
SYDNEY, Australia - A 16th-century maritime map shows that Portuguese adventurers, not the British or the Dutch, were the first Europeans to find Australia, according to a new book that details the story of the secret discovery. The book "Beyond Capricorn" says the map, which accurately marks geographical sites along Australia's east coast in Portuguese, proves that Portuguese seafarer Christopher de Mendonca led a fleet of four ships into Botany Bay in 1522, almost 250 years before Britain's Captain James Cook.

Prehistory and Origins

Let the evidence speak at the Walker Hill Site [rejoinder]

Posted by SunkenCiv
On General/Chat 03/18/2007 12:26:49 AM EDT · 15 replies · 149+ views

Pilot-Independent | Wednesday, March 14th, 2007 | Thor Olmanson, program director, and Colleen Wells, field director
Due to the recent inundation of misinformation regarding the Walker Hill Site, we are compelled to clarify some issues. First, neither the Office of the State Archaeologist (OSA) nor the Department of Finance has any jurisdiction regarding determinations of the validity or significance of archaeological resources. That is the responsibility of the State Historic Preservation Officer (SHPO). The SHPO has been to the site, seen the artifacts and obtained professional opinions from other researchers around the state. Based on his (Scott Anfinson, Minnesota State Archaeologist) observations and the observations of these other researchers, he concurred with our interpretation that the...

Precolumbian, Clovis, And Preclovis

Modern Technology reveals Ancient Footpaths Buried In 2,500 Years Worth Of Volcanic Ash

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 03/19/2007 10:24:21 PM EDT · 16 replies · 514+ views

Infozine | 3-19-2007
Monday, March 19, 2007 Modern Technology Reveals Ancient Footpaths Buried in 2,500 Years Worth of Volcanic AshCentral-American villagers created sacred burial customs despite volcanic eruptions Washington, D.C. - infoZine - More than 20 years ago, volcano scientists Payson Sheets and Tom Sever teamed up to solve a mystery. While flying over the active Arenal volcano in the mountains of Costa Rica, infrared imaging technology on board their research plane picked up a steady trail--one with a beginning and an ending--concealed deep within the earth. The trail showed a clear path away from what Sheets and Sever knew to be ancient...

New Archaeological Findings On Political Power In Peru

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 03/22/2007 5:43:45 PM EDT · 4 replies · 138+ views

Eureka Alert | 3-22-2007 | Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona
Contact: Pedro Castro Pedro.Castro@uab.es 34-935-814-336 Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona New archaeological findings on political power in Peru A team from the Universitat Aut?noma de Barcelona and the University of Almer?a has completed its second part of the "Proyecto La Puntilla", an archaeological expedition to the Peruvian province of Nazca, where last year it discovered a new type of construction. The latest findings show that a new political power based on the exercise of violence emerged on the south coast of Peru two thousand years ago. There was a State in which an aristocracy, based in Cahuachi, exercised its dominion on...

Egypt

Sudan archeology flourishes before the flood

Posted by SunkenCiv
On General/Chat 03/22/2007 3:46:22 AM EDT · 3 replies · 29+ views

Yahoo! | March 18, 2007 | Jean-Marc Mojon
The Merowe dam is a controversial hydro-electric project -- one of the largest in Africa -- being erected on the Nile's fourth cataract and due to start flooding the valley over more than 100 miles (160 kilometres) within months... One more thing will haunt some archaeologists however when the water covers the area: the thought that sitting under the dam's millions of tons of water and concrete may be a Sudanese Rosetta stone. However unlikely, a discovery similar to that made by the French in northern Egypt in 1799 would help unlock the mystery of Meroitic, one of the world's...

Oh So Mysteriouso

Pyramid's Secret Doors to Be Opened

Posted by SunkenCiv
On General/Chat 03/22/2007 3:55:25 AM EDT · 31 replies · 428+ views

Discovery News | March 20, 2007 | Rossella Lorenzi
Doors will soon open to reveal one of the mysteries of the Great Pyramid in Giza, Dr. Zahi Hawass, chief of Egypt's Supreme Council of Antiquities, told Discovery News in an exclusive interview... "Finally, people all over the world will know what is behind the second door in the southern shaft and the third door in the northern shaft," Hawass said... [T]hese 8-inch square shafts remained unexplored until 1993, when German engineer Rudolf Gantenbrink sent a robot through the southern shaft. Nine years later, Hawass performed an investigation of the southern shaft on live television. As the world held its...

Architecture

Great cathedrals are 'catechism in stone', says architect

Posted by NYer
On Religion 03/17/2007 7:00:13 PM EDT · 24 replies · 267+ views

Catholic News Agency | March 16, 2007
Madison, WI, Mar 16, 2007 / 10:41 am (CNA).- Cathedrals should be a "catechism in stone that represents the whole diocese," said architect Duncan Stroik at a recent lecture on church architecture. The associate professor of architecture at the University of Notre Dame spoke at the Bishop O'Connor Catholic Pastoral Center in Madison March 8th, as part of the St. Therese of Lisieux Lecture Series. His talk addressed an imminent concern for the diocese. St. Raphael Cathedral in Madison was destroyed by fire in March 2005 and the diocese is currently discussing plans for a new cathedral. According to the...

British Isles

Norman House Find (UK)

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 03/23/2007 4:37:02 PM EDT · 10 replies · 277+ views

Shrewsbury Chronicle | 3-23-2007
Norman House find Contractors working on the ¬£12 million revamp of Shrewsbury‚Äôs Music Hall have made a startling discovery after uncovering a Norman house within its structure. An archaeological evaluation of the site has revealed that Vaughan‚Äôs Mansion, which was originally thought to date back to Tudor times, is actually a defensive house which could be 800 years old. Councillor Charles Armstrong, portfolio holder for leisure, said the Music Hall was a ‚Äútime capsule of history‚Äù and said the shock discovery would lead to the Mansion becoming a key focal point for the whole scheme. Dominic Wallace, partnerships and development...

Middle Ages and Renaissance

Turning Back Time To York 1300 (England)

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 03/23/2007 4:30:51 PM EDT · 13 replies · 595+ views

York Press | 3-23-2007
Turning back time to York 1300 By Press reporter RESEARCHERS from York Archaeological Trust have identified a remarkable artefact which shows that in 1300, York was at the forefront of science and engineering. The object, a small circular copper-alloy disc, was discovered during excavations on the site of the former York College For Girls in Low Petergate. It has been cleaned to reveal an abbreviated Latin inscription around its edge - SIGNUM ROBERTI HOROLOGIARII - which translates as "The seal of Robert the clockmaker". What makes the discovery exceptional is the fact that early historical records indicate that the first...

Let's Have Jerusalem

Tourists help excavate ancient caves near Jerusalem

Posted by SunkenCiv
On General/Chat 03/19/2007 1:23:39 AM EDT · 8 replies · 86+ views

Atlanta Journal-Constitution | March 12, 2007 | Marshall Thompson (AP)
Different "excavation vacations" exist around the world, from a medieval graveyard in Poland to plantation ruins in the Caribbean. Stern says the Holy Land dig, drawing all kinds of tourists in Israel, has been especially popular with Christian tourists and Jewish youths visiting Israel for the first time on the "Birthright" program. "We've provided more people with a personal contact with archaeology than anybody else in the world," Stern said. "It helps them connect to their roots." For Reynaldo Villarreal, a Christian tourist from Texas, the connection had special meaning. He recently learned that his ancestors were Sephardic Jews who...

Faith and Philosophy

St. Patrick (Erin Go Bragh!)

Posted by kellynla
On General/Chat 03/17/2007 10:06:14 AM EDT · 10 replies · 217+ views

newadvent.org | 3/17.2007 | staff
Apostle of Ireland, born at Kilpatrick, near Dumbarton, in Scotland, in the year 387; died at Saul, Downpatrick, Ireland, 17 March, 493. Other sources say 460 or 461 --Ed. He had for his parents Calphurnius and Conchessa. The former belonged to a Roman family of high rank and held the office of decurio in Gaul or Britain. Conchessa was a near relative of the great patron of Gaul, St. Martin of Tours. Kilpatrick still retains many memorials of Saint Patrick, and frequent pilgrimages continued far into the Middle Ages to perpetuate there the fame of his sanctity and miracles. In...

Longer Perspectives

Tiny, Spontaneous Gene Mutations May Boost Autism Risk

Posted by neverdem
On News/Activism 03/19/2007 9:16:11 PM EDT · 17 replies · 331+ views

www.nih.gov/news | March 15, 2007 | NA
¬† ¬† ¬†National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) EMBARGOED FOR RELEASE Thursday, March 15, 2007 2:00 p.m. DST Subscribe ¬† CONTACT: Jules AsherNIMH press office 301-443-4536 Tiny, Spontaneous Gene Mutations May Boost Autism RiskTiny gene mutations, each individually rare, pose more risk for autism than had been previously thought, suggests a study funded in part by the National Institute of Mental Health, a component of the National Institutes of Health.These spontaneous deletions and duplications of genetic material were found to be ten times more prevalent in sporadic cases of autism spectrum disorders (http://www.nimh.nih.gov/healthinformati than in healthy control subjects ‚Äî...

Thoroughly Modern Miscellany

Hunley Crewmen Search Leads To Old World

Posted by blam
On News/Activism 03/23/2007 4:25:42 PM EDT · 11 replies · 523+ views

Yahoo News | 3-22-2007 | Bruce Smith
Hunley crewmen search leads to Old World By BRUCE SMITH, Associated Press Writer Thu Mar 22, 7:30 PM ET CHARLESTON, S.C. - The story of the Confederate submarine H.L. Hunley, the first sub to sink an enemy warship, is leading back to the Old World as researchers plan to spend weeks trying to discover the roots of four European crewmen. Scientists also said Thursday they have recovered a second coin from the hand-cranked sub -- a silver dime to go along with a $20 gold piece recovered in 2001. With a mint date of 1841, the dime shows Lady Liberty...

Rest in peace, Sundance Kid

Posted by Condor 63
On General/Chat 03/18/2007 7:45:31 PM EDT · 19 replies · 678+ views

MiamiHerald.com | Sun, Mar. 18, 2007 | TYLER BRIDGES
SAN VICENTE, Bolivia --On a November afternoon 99 years ago, two American outlaws straggled into this forlorn mining town, 14,500 feet above sea level, and sought lodging in an adobe hut. They didn't know that a posse in hot pursuit had already settled in another hut and soon would get word of the Americans' arrival. A shootout ensued. It ended when the wounded Americans made a desperate dash out of their hiding place, guns blazing, only to run into volleys of gunfire from Bolivian troops lying in wait. That, at any rate, is how Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid...

end of digest #140 20070324

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Gods, Graves, Glyphs Extra Edition Tuesday, February 27, 2007
JesusTomb keyword, chrono sort
Jesusí burial site found - film claims
	Posted by Rb ver. 2.0 On News/Activism 02/23/2007 8:50:36 AM EST · 310 replies · 8,509+ views ynetnews.com \| 2/23/07 \| Ariella Ringel-Hoffman The cave in which Jesus Christ was buried has been found in Jerusalem, claim the makers of a new documentary film. If it proves true, the discovery, which will be revealed at a press conference in New York Monday, could shake up the Christian world as one of the most significant archeological finds in history. The coffins which, according to the filmmakers held the remains of Jesus of Nazareth, his mother Mary and Mary Magdalene will be displayed for the first time on Monday in New York. Jointly produced by Emmy award-winning documentary filmmaker Simcha Jacobovici and Oscar winning director...

Jesusí burial site found - film claims
	Posted by John Philoponus On Religion 02/23/2007 1:54:39 PM EST · 28 replies · 1,453+ views YNET NEWS \| 02.23.07 \| Ariella Ringel-Hoffman Jesusí burial site found - film claims New film documents discovery of Jerusalem cave containing ten caskets believed to hold remains of Jesus, Mary, Mary Magdalene and others Ariella Ringel-Hoffman Published: 02.23.07, 10:26 / Israel Culture The cave in which Jesus Christ was buried has been found in Jerusalem, claim the makers of a new documentary film. If it proves true, the discovery, which will be revealed at a press conference in New York Monday, could shake up the Christian world as one of the most significant archeological finds in history. The coffins which, according to the filmmakers held the...

Mysterious bones of Jesus, Joseph and Mary
	Posted by aculeus On News/Activism 02/24/2007 12:14:06 PM EST · 278 replies · 5,391+ views The Daily Telegraph (UK) \| February 24, 2007 \| By Tim Butcher in Jerusalem In a scene worthy of a Dan Brown novel, archaeologists a quarter of a century ago unearthed a burial chamber near Jerusalem. Inside they found ossuaries, or boxes of bones, marked with the names of Jesus, Joseph and Mary. Then one of the ossuaries went missing. The human remains inside were destroyed before any DNA testing could be carried out. While Middle East academics doubt that the relics belong to the Holy Family, the issue is about to be exposed to a blaze of publicity with the publication next week of a book. Entitled The Jesus Tomb and co-written by...

Jesus: Tales From The Crypt
	Posted by Roberts On Religion 02/24/2007 4:36:08 PM EST · 34 replies · 911+ views time-blog.com \| 2/23/07 \| Tim McGirk Brace yourself. James Cameron, the man who brought you 'The Titanic' is back with another blockbuster. This time, the ship he's sinking is Christianity. In a new documentary, Producer Cameron and his director, Simcha Jacobovici, make the starting claim that Jesus wasn't resurrected --the cornerstone of Christian faith--and that his burial cave was discovered near Jerusalem. And, get this, Jesus sired a son with Mary Magdelene. No, it's not a re-make of "The Da Vinci Codes'. It's supposed to be true. Let's go back 27 years, when Israeli construction workers were gouging out the foundations for a new building in...

Jesus: Tales from the Crypt
	Posted by Havok On General/Chat 02/24/2007 5:25:18 PM EST · 21 replies · 906+ views Time \| February 23, 2007 6:55 \| Tim McGirk Brace yourself. James Cameron, the man who brought you 'The Titanic' is back with another blockbuster. This time, the ship he's sinking is Christianity. In a new documentary, Producer Cameron and his director, Simcha Jacobovici, make the starting claim that Jesus wasn't resurrected --the cornerstone of Christian faith-- and that his burial cave was discovered near Jerusalem. And, get this, Jesus sired a son with Mary Magdelene. No, it's not a re-make of "The Da Vinci Codes'. It's supposed to be true. Let's go back 27 years, when Israeli construction workers were gouging out the foundations for a new building...

James Cameron Tries to Kill Jesus
	Posted by Flavius On General/Chat 02/25/2007 7:41:22 AM EST · 42 replies · 1,234+ views laist \| 2/24/07 \| na r at least he's trying to kill the story of Jesus' resurrection. An upcoming 90-minute documentary directed by Jewish Canadian filmmaker Simcha Jacobovici and produced by Titanic director James Cameron makes the startling assertion that Jesus was never resurrected -- a cornerstone of Christian faith -- and that his burial cave was discovered in the Jerusalem suburb of Talpiyot some 27 years ago. One more thing, Jesus fathered a son with Mary Magdelene. Cameron and Jacobovici claim they have DNA tests, archeological evidence and Biblical studies on their side. And on Monday, Cameron will hold a press conference in...

Jesus: Tales from the Crypt
	Posted by alice_in_bubbaland On News/Activism 02/25/2007 10:51:06 AM EST · 19 replies · 1,250+ views Time Blog/ Middle East \| 2/23/07 \| Tim McGirk Brace yourself. James Cameron, the man who brought you 'The Titanic' is back with another blockbuster. This time, the ship he's sinking is Christianity. In a new documentary, Producer Cameron and his director, Simcha Jacobovici, make the starting claim that Jesus wasn't resurrected --the cornerstone of Christian faith-- and that his burial cave was discovered near Jerusalem. And, get this, Jesus sired a son with Mary Magdelene. No, it's not a re-make of "The Da Vinci Codes'. It's supposed to be true.

Jesus Family Tomb Believed Found
	Posted by steadfastconservative On Religion 02/25/2007 1:33:09 PM EST · 50 replies · 718+ views Discover News \| Feb. 25, 2007 \| Jennifer Viegas New scientific evidence, including DNA analysis conducted at one of the world's foremost molecular genetic laboratories, as well as studies by leading scholars, suggests a 2,000-year-old Jerusalem tomb could have once held the remains of Jesus of Nazareth and his family. The findings also suggest that Jesus and Mary Magdalene might have produced a son named Jonah. The DNA findings, alongside statistical conclusions made about the artifacts--originally excavated in 1980--open a potentially signficant chapter in Biblical archaeological history. A documentary presenting the evidence, "The Lost Tomb of Jesus," will premiere on the Discovery Channel on March 4 at 9 pm...

New film claims Jesus buried in Talpiot [Chief Archeologist says it's "nonsense"]
	Posted by Mount Athos On News/Activism 02/26/2007 6:59:41 AM EST · 42 replies · 1,176+ views Jerusalem Post \| Feb. 25, 2007 \| DAVID HOROVITZ The Israeli-born, Canadian-based filmmaker Simcha Jacobovici is reigniting claims, first made over a decade ago, that a burial cave uncovered 27 years ago in Talpiot, Jerusalem, is the tomb of Jesus of Nazareth and his family. [...] But Bar-Ilan University Prof. Amos Kloner, the Jerusalem District archeologist who officially oversaw the work at the tomb in 1980 and has published detailed findings on its contents, on Saturday night dismissed the claims. "It makes a great story for a TV film," he told The Jerusalem Post. "But it's impossible. It's nonsense." Kloner, who said he was interviewed for the new film...

Jesus Family Tomb Talking Points
	Posted by Gamecock On Religion 02/26/2007 7:15:48 AM EST · 142 replies · 1,167+ views Gamecock I'm sure that by now all of you have heard about the claim that the ossuary of Christ's family has been found. I would like to open a thread that will help us develop answers to friends, both Christians and atheists who might come to us with questions about it all. Please feel free to post your rebuttals for others to use! Biblical, rational, scientific, philosophical, whatever you can come up with is more than welcome!

Titanic Blasphemy
	Posted by Keli Kilohana On News/Activism 02/26/2007 8:14:37 AM EST · 23 replies · 1,462+ views Charleston Gazette Forums \| 2/26/2007 \| Pastor Terry Hagedorn James Cameron and Simcha Jacobivici claim to have raided the lost tomb of Jesus. Proof? There are related people in a graveyard with the uncommon names Joshua, Mary and Martha! Oi vey! Despite the faith of a millions of people in the Gospel (I Corinthians 15:3,4 -- the death, burial and resurrection of Christ for our salvation) and despite the fact that the resurrected Christ was seen and touched by his disciples, all twelve Apostles, over 500 hundred witnesses -- at one time; and, despite the fact that devout Jews changed the day of worship from the seventh day to the first day of...

Scholars, clergy slam Jesus documentary
	Posted by Mr. Brightside On News/Activism 02/26/2007 10:39:12 AM EST · 50 replies · 1,149+ views Yahoo \| 2/26/07 Scholars, clergy slam Jesus documentary By MARSHALL THOMPSON, Associated Press Writer 35 minutes ago JERUSALEM - Archaeologists and clergymen in the Holy Land derided claims in a new documentary produced by the Oscar-winning director James Cameron that contradict major Christian tenets. "The Lost Tomb of Christ," which the Discovery Channel will run on March 4, argues that 10 ancient ossuaries -- small caskets used to store bones -- discovered in a suburb of Jerusalem in 1980 may have contained the bones of Jesus and his family, according to a press release issued by the Discovery Channel. One of the caskets...

Tomb of Jesus doc uproar
	Posted by Clive On News/Activism 02/26/2007 11:07:03 AM EST · 50 replies · 1,435+ views AP via Sun Media \| 2007-02-26 \| Marshall Thompson JERUSALEM (AP) ‚Äî Archaeologists and clergymen in the Holy Land derided claims in a new documentary produced by the Oscar-winning director James Cameron that contradict major Christian tenets. ‚ÄúThe Lost Tomb of Christ,‚Äù which the Discovery Channel will run on March 4, argues that 10 ancient ossuaries ‚Äî small caskets used to store bones ‚Äî discovered in a suburb of Jerusalem in 1980 may have contained the bones of Jesus and his family, according to a press release issued by the Discovery Channel. One of the caskets even bears the title, ‚ÄúJudah, son of Jesus,‚Äù hinting that Jesus may have...

Cameron defends Jesus tomb documentary
	Posted by Clive On News/Activism 02/26/2007 11:41:03 AM EST · 113 replies · 2,363+ views CTV News \| 2007-02-26 \| (staff) Oscar-winning director James Cameron defended on Monday his controversial new documentary, which claims that Jesus may have been buried with a wife and son, against charges the film was trying to undermine Christianity. Instead, the documentary that claims the discovery of the tomb of Jesus Christ and his family celebrates their existence, Cameron said at a press conference announcing the documentary "The Lost Tomb of Jesus." The message that Jesus delivered 2,000 years ago resounds even today, Cameron said. "My feeling is that his message of compassion, humility, love and forgiveness is every bit as much needed now in this...

I've found the coffin of Jesus, says film director
	Posted by Anti-Bubba182 On News/Activism 02/26/2007 3:47:38 PM EST · 75 replies · 1,723+ views This Is London \| 25.02.07 \| Staff The Lost Tomb of Jesus, made for the Discovery Channel, will be shown in the U.S. this week and later in Britain by Channel 4. Today, Cameron is holding a press conference on what he describes as 'one of the greatest archaeological finds of all time'. Crucially, he is not denying the resurrection - as there were no bones in the caskets. But the £2million film still strikes at the foundation of Christianity in the same manner as the novel The Da Vinci Code, by Dan Brown, in claiming that Jesus married and had a family. His theory, which has...

Scorn poured on James Cameron's 'coffin of Christ' theory (Archeologists/Scholars Dispute Finding)
	Posted by SirLinksalot On News/Activism 02/26/2007 5:03:46 PM EST · 60 replies · 1,128+ views Evening Standard \| 02/25/2007 Scorn poured on James Cameron's 'coffin of Christ' theory Archaeologists and biblical scholars have poured scorn on a Hollywood film director's sensational claim that he has discovered the coffin of Jesus Christ. Oscar-winning 'Titanic' director James Cameron's assertion that the bones of Jesus and his family were hidden for centuries in a Jerusalem tomb caused an outcry in the Holy Land. Even a British archeologist who worked with Cameron, Dr. Shimon Gibson, admitted he's "sceptical" about the claims that challenge some of the central tenets of Christianity. The very fact that Jesus had a grave would contradict the Christian belief...

Archaeologists, Scholars Dispute Jesus Documentary
	Posted by blam On News/Activism 02/26/2007 6:05:33 PM EST · 15 replies · 320+ views CNN \| 2-26-2007 Archaeologists, scholars dispute Jesus documentary POSTED: 2151 GMT (0551 HKT), February 26, 2007Filmakers and researchers claim these stone boxes may have once contained the remains of Jesus and Mary Magdalene. JERUSALEM (AP) -- Filmmakers and researchers on Monday unveiled two ancient stone boxes they said may have once contained the remains of Jesus and Mary Magdalene, but several scholars derided the claims made in a new documentary as unfounded and contradictory to basic Christian beliefs. "The Lost Tomb of Jesus," produced by Oscar-winning director James Cameron and scheduled to air March 4 on the Discovery Channel, argues that 10 small...

The Lost Tomb Of ChristñBelievable or Baloney?
	Posted by Billy Jacks blog On News/Activism 02/26/2007 6:11:23 PM EST · 48 replies · 884+ views Yahoo News & Associated Press \| February 26, 2007 \| Marshall Thompson JERUSALEM - Archaeologists and clergymen in the Holy Land derided claims in a new documentary produced by the Oscar-winning director James Cameron that contradict major Christian tenets. "The Lost Tomb of Christ," which the Discovery Channel will run on March 4, argues that 10 ancient ossuaries -- small caskets used to store bones -- discovered in a suburb of Jerusalem in 1980 may have contained the bones of Jesus and his family, according to a press release issued by the Discovery Channel.

Documentary Shows Possible Jesus Tomb (Did They Attack Islamic Belief, Too?
	Posted by Laissez-faire capitalist On News/Activism 02/26/2007 6:50:03 PM EST · 67 replies · 998+ views CBS News \| 2/26/07 \| Karen Matthews Filmakers and researchers on Monday unveiled two ancient stone boxes they said may have once contained the remains of Jesus and Mary Magdalene, but several scholars derided the claims made in a new documentary as unfounded... ...Stephen Pfann, a biblical scholar at the University of the Holy Land in Jerusalem who was interviewed in the documentary, said the film's hypotheses holds little weight... Pfann is even unsure that the name "Jesus" on the caskets was read correctly. He thinks it's more likely the name "Hanun." Ancient semitic script is notoriously difficult to decipher... William Dever, an expert on near eastern...

Cameron the Infidel
	Posted by .cnI redruM On News/Activism 02/27/2007 9:23:45 AM EST · 25 replies · 664+ views Redstate.com \| 27 February, 2007 \| .cnI redruM James Cameron has truly moved beyond making sappy movies about ocean liner wrecks. He can now lay claim to being an idolater of the rankest order. Relying upon Pope Benedict to turn the other check in accordance with misinterpreted scripture, Cameron has accused the Gospels of inventing the resurrection the way Michael Moore does documentaries. 'TITANIC' director James Cameron and Simcha Jacobovici, a filmmaker-archaeologist, are set to unveil three coffins this week that they say are those of Jesus, Mary and Mary Magdalene. In an coming documentary, Cameron and Jacobovici cite "scientific evidence" that the resurrection of Jesus never happened...
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