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Salt of the Alps: ancient Austrian mine holds Bronze Age secrets
Phys dot org ^
| Friday, August 24, 2018
| Philippe Schwab
Posted on 08/24/2018 3:21:31 PM PDT by SunkenCiv
All mines need regular reinforcement against collapse, and Hallstatt, the world's oldest salt mine perched in the Austrian Alps, is no exception. But Hallstatt isn't like other mines. Exploited for 7,000 years, the mine has yielded not only a steady supply of salt but also archaeological discoveries attesting to the existence of a rich civilisation dating back to the early part of the first millennium BC. So far less than two percent of the prehistoric tunnel network is thought to have been explored, with the new round of reinforcement work, which began this month, protecting the dig's achievements, according to chief archaeologist Hans Reschreiter... Hallstatt was recognised as a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1997 and the work aims to protect it for "future generations", said Thomas Stelzer, governor of Upper Austria state where the mine is located... The vast deposit of sea salt inside was left by the ocean that covered the region some 250 million years ago... Among the most striking archaeological discoveries was that of an eight-metre-long wooden staircase dating back to 1100 BC, the oldest such staircase found in Europe... Other items date back much further. Excavated in 1838, an axe made from staghorn dating from 5,000 BC showed that as early as then, miners "tried hard to extract salt from here," Reschreiter said... sword handles made of African ivory and Mediterranean wine bowls found at the site... As well as revealing wooden retaining structures more than 3,000 years old which were perfectly preserved by the salt, the excavation unearthed numerous tools, leather gloves and a rope -- thick as a fist -- as well as the remains of millions of wooden torches.
(Excerpt) Read more at phys.org ...
TOPICS: History; Science; Travel
KEYWORDS: alps; ancientautopsies; austria; bronzeage; chehrabad; godsgravesglyphs; hallstatt; hansreschreiter; mummies; neolithic; oetzi; otzi; salt; saltmine; thomasstelzer
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"Thousands of bodies have been excavated, almost all flaunting rich bronze ornaments, typically worn by only the wealthiest," Reschreiter said. "The remains bore the marks of hard physical labour... while also showing signs of unequalled prosperity"
1
posted on
08/24/2018 3:21:31 PM PDT
by
SunkenCiv
Exploited for 7,000 years, its excavation has yielded not only a steady supply of salt but also archaeological discoveries attesting to the existence of a rich civilisation dating back to the early part of the first millennium BC
2
posted on
08/24/2018 3:23:16 PM PDT
by
SunkenCiv
(www.tapatalk.com/groups/godsgravesglyphs/, forum.darwincentral.org, www.gopbriefingroom.com)
Along with wooden retaining structures more than 3,000 years old which were perfectly conserved by the salt, the excavation unearthed tools, leather gloves and a rope as well as the remains of millions of wooden torches
3
posted on
08/24/2018 3:23:24 PM PDT
by
SunkenCiv
(www.tapatalk.com/groups/godsgravesglyphs/, forum.darwincentral.org, www.gopbriefingroom.com)
Among the most striking archaeological discoveries was that of an eight-metre-long wooden staircase dating back to 1100 BC, the oldest such staircase found in Europe
4
posted on
08/24/2018 3:23:27 PM PDT
by
SunkenCiv
(www.tapatalk.com/groups/godsgravesglyphs/, forum.darwincentral.org, www.gopbriefingroom.com)
5
posted on
08/24/2018 3:23:56 PM PDT
by
SunkenCiv
(www.tapatalk.com/groups/godsgravesglyphs/, forum.darwincentral.org, www.gopbriefingroom.com)
related hits from the article page -- for later:
- Gene twist can make your blood pressure spike from salt [April 18, 2018]
- The oldest salt mine known to date located in Azerbaijan [November 29, 2010]
- Archaeologists uncover oldest prehistoric town in Europe [November 1, 2012]
- Found the oldest Neanderthal wooden tools in the Iberian Peninsula [April 4, 2018]
- By the skin of their teeth -- DNA traces reveal what kind of pigs lived in Bronze Age Hallstatt [June 12, 2018]
- Amber unveils evolution of ancient antlions [August 22, 2018]
- Archaeological evidence for glass industry in ninth-century city of Samarra [August 22, 2018]
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- M 8.2, Major quake, Fiji NOW! [Aug 19, 2018]
- Mag. 7 Indonesia Earthquake - 5th August 2018 [Aug 19, 2018]
- Water Vapor in the Atmosphere [Aug 23, 2018]
6
posted on
08/24/2018 3:24:19 PM PDT
by
SunkenCiv
(www.tapatalk.com/groups/godsgravesglyphs/, forum.darwincentral.org, www.gopbriefingroom.com)
To: StayAt HomeMother; Ernest_at_the_Beach; 1ofmanyfree; 21twelve; 24Karet; 2ndDivisionVet; 31R1O; ...
7
posted on
08/24/2018 3:24:31 PM PDT
by
SunkenCiv
(www.tapatalk.com/groups/godsgravesglyphs/, forum.darwincentral.org, www.gopbriefingroom.com)
To: SunkenCiv
Send the Thai soccer team in.
8
posted on
08/24/2018 3:25:37 PM PDT
by
2ndDivisionVet
(You cannot invade the mainland US. There'd be a rifle behind every blade of grass.)
To: SunkenCiv
They worked hard for the money.
So you better treat them right.
9
posted on
08/24/2018 3:27:13 PM PDT
by
BenLurkin
(The above is not a statement of fact. It is either satire or opinion. Or both.)
To: SunkenCiv
Job 28:1 “People know where to mine silver and how to refine gold.
Job 28:2 They know where to dig iron from the earth and how to smelt copper from rock.
Job 28:3 They know how to shine light in the darkness and explore the farthest regions of the earth as they search in the dark for ore.
Job 28:4 They sink a mine shaft into the earth far from where anyone lives. They descend on ropes, swinging back and forth.
I always found the above interesting. Mining has been around for a long time.
10
posted on
08/24/2018 3:28:02 PM PDT
by
PeterPrinciple
(Thinking Caps are no longer being issued but there must be a warehouse full of them somewhere.)
To: SunkenCiv
Take me to this place.
11
posted on
08/24/2018 3:35:39 PM PDT
by
central_va
(I won't be reconstructed and I do not give a damn)
To: SunkenCiv
Not that far from where they found Ötzi the ice man.
He was a miner 49er.
(3349 BC)
12
posted on
08/24/2018 3:39:13 PM PDT
by
MUDDOG
To: SunkenCiv
You see—hard work is the way to prosperity. NOT handouts! Even the Neanderthals knew that!
13
posted on
08/24/2018 3:47:00 PM PDT
by
EinNYC
To: EinNYC
Neanderthal privilege!
Snowflakes will be in an uproar over this.
14
posted on
08/24/2018 3:53:13 PM PDT
by
TomGuy
To: EinNYC
Bullying is another way to prosperity.
15
posted on
08/24/2018 4:43:38 PM PDT
by
SunkenCiv
(www.tapatalk.com/groups/godsgravesglyphs/, forum.darwincentral.org, www.gopbriefingroom.com)
To: SunkenCiv
The vast deposit of sea salt inside was left by the ocean that covered the region some 250 million years ago... So the oceans aren't really rising due to anthropogenic climate change so much as they are just returning to their previous levels.
16
posted on
08/24/2018 4:57:14 PM PDT
by
AlaskaErik
(I served and protected my country for 31 years. Progressives spent that time trying to destroy it.)
To: MUDDOG
He was a miner 49er....or maybe he was a miner 4-foot-9er :)
17
posted on
08/24/2018 6:06:58 PM PDT
by
Migraine
To: MUDDOG
Hallstatt is near Salzburg. I think it is probably upwards of 100 miles from there to where the Ice Man was found.
To: MUDDOG
The 1734 discovery of the Hallstatt Salt Man would have been a lot better in retrospect had his body not been reburied in a local churchyard. Based on what is known of his death, he died in around 350 BC, or about 3000 years after Otzi.
19
posted on
08/25/2018 6:54:25 AM PDT
by
SunkenCiv
(www.tapatalk.com/groups/godsgravesglyphs/, forum.darwincentral.org, www.gopbriefingroom.com)
To: AlaskaErik
The area used to not be mountainous.
20
posted on
08/25/2018 6:56:28 AM PDT
by
SunkenCiv
(www.tapatalk.com/groups/godsgravesglyphs/, forum.darwincentral.org, www.gopbriefingroom.com)
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