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Archaeologists from the Institute of Archaeology, University of Warsaw discovered evidence of destruction and capture of the ancient city of Metsamor, one of the most famous archaeological sites in the vicinity of Yerevan. "In the entire area of research we found layers of burning and ash. The city was probably captured by the army of Argishti I, the ruler of Urartu," told PAP Krzysztof Jakubiak, head of the project. Argishti I was the king of Urartu, the biblical Kingdom of Ararat in the Armenian Highlands. During his reign, the boundaries of the state expanded to the Caucasus, the area of...

Physical evidence found in caves in Laos helps tell a story about a connection between the end of the Green Sahara, when once heavily vegetated Northern Africa became a hyper-arid landscape, and a previously unknown megadrought that crippled Southeast Asia 4,000 to 5,000 years ago. In a paper published in Nature Communications, scientists at the University of California, Irvine, University of Pennsylvania, William Paterson University of New Jersey, and other international institutions explain how this major climate transformation led to a shift in human settlement patterns in Southeast Asia, which is now inhabited by more than 600 million people... To...

In Heaven + Earth (Global Warming: The Missing Science), Ian Plimer, Professor of Mining Geology at The University of Adelaide, Australia, asks us to embrace big-picture science views; for to recognize our limits is a sign of maturity. "Climate science lacks scientific discipline," says the pro-amalgamation Professor, and in order to see more clearly we need to adopt an interdisciplinary approach. This requires humbleness. In Chapter 2: History, Plimer travels back in time, thousands of years, in fact, to debunk Gore's catastrophic global warming myths. I particularly like his research on the ancient Greeks. For Plato (427-347 BC) advanced the...

The Urartians established a kingdom around Lake Van in eastern Anatolia but failed to deal with severe winter conditions, especially snow, in an effective way, said Professor Veli Sevin on Wednesday, according to archaeological findings... Urartu was an ancient kingdom in eastern Anatolia centered in the mountainous region around Lake Van that existed from about 1,000 B.C. until 585 B.C. It stretched from northern Mesopotamia through the southern Caucasus, including parts of present-day Armenia up to Lake Sevan. The name Urartu is actually Assyrian, a dialect of Akkadian, and was given to the kingdom by its chief rivals to the...

A handful of tree ring samples stored in an old cigar box have shed unexpected light on the ancient world, thanks to research by archaeologist Sturt Manning and collaborators at Cornell, Arizona, Chicago, Oxford and Vienna, forthcoming in the June issue of the Journal of Archaeological Science. The samples were taken from an Egyptian coffin; Manning also examined wood from funeral boats buried near the pyramid of Sesostris III. He used a technique called “dendro radiocarbon wiggle matching,” which calibrates radiocarbon isotopes found in the sample tree rings with patterns known from other places in the world that have already...

The Ghost Empire - Climate Change, Global Warming, Drought and Desertification Commodities / Climate Change June 08, 2013 - 07:29 PM GMT By: Richard Mills Drought is a normal recurring feature of the climate in most parts of the world. It doesn’t get the attention of a tornado, hurricane or flood. Instead, it’s a slower and less obvious, a much quieter disaster creeping up on us unawares. Climate change is currently warming many regions, overall warmer temperatures increase the frequency and intensity of heat waves and droughts. We can prepare for some climate change consequences with public education, water conservation...

It is not certain when the reign of Ishpuini, who succeeded Sarduri, began. According to information gained from cuneiform inscriptions on tablets found near Zivistan Castle (now Elmal?), which is 15 km to the south of Van, Ishpuini was Sarduri's son. Thus it is probable that he ascended the throne in 825 or 824 B.C. One of the most important inscriptions made by King Ishpuini is the one describing the acquisition of the city of Musasir by the Urartu at Kelishin (Kel-i Shin). According to the information provided by the bilingual inscription on the Kelishin Stele, King Ishpuini had...