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Sept. 5 (UPI) -- Chinese authorities have arrested two construction workers accused of using an excavator to dig a hole through the Great Wall in central Shanxi province, according to local reports. The Shanxi Cultural Relics Bureau said Monday that the two people used the excavator to dig a shortcut through the 32nd Great Wall, which dates back to the Ming Dynasty of 1368-1644, in Youyu county, Shanxi province, state-run China Daily reported. The suspects have been identified by local police as a 38-year-old man and a 55-year-old woman, according to Sina. Local police were notified of the damage at...

A nearly 200-year-old West Point time capsule that appeared to yield little more than dust when it was opened during a disappointing livestream contained hidden treasure after all, the U.S. Military Academy said Wednesday. It was just more hidden than expected. The lead box believed to have been placed by cadets in the base of a monument actually contained six silver American coins dating from 1795 to 1828 and a commemorative medal, West Point said in a news release. All were discovered in the sediment of the box, which at Monday’s ceremonial opening at the New York academy appeared to...

DENTS RUN, Pa.—Dennis Parada points to a weedy spot where he believes the Federal Bureau of Investigation dug up nine tons of Civil War-era gold, worth more than $500 million, and made off with it in the middle of the night. The patch of ground halfway up a mountain in western Pennsylvania lies at the heart of the treasure hunter’s quest to recover the trove and prove it was snatched from under his nose. The matter is now playing out in federal court. At 70, he has been chasing the Dents Run gold for more than 40 years. “It’s definitely...

Ruins,Of,The,Ancient,Mayan,City,Of,Kabah,In,The Shutterstock/Yucatan Peninsula A team of archaeologists discovered a long-lost Mayan city beneath the jungle in Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula in June, filled with pyramids, palaces and even a sports complex. The ancient Mayan ruins, currently named Ocomtun, were identified in the Balamku ecological reserve, which is more than 50 hectares in size, big enough to hide pyramids that rise some 50 feet into the sky, according to a news release from Mexico’s National Institute of Anthropology and History. The site is believed to have been built and in use sometime around 250-1,000 A.D. and contained a number of large buildings,...

(Last Updated On: July 11, 2023) NATIONAL CAVIAR DAY | JULY 18 On July 18, National Caviar Day recognizes a seafood delicacy with roe on toast. The day also raises awareness about the survival of the sturgeon. #NationalCaviarDay In simple terms, caviar is Sturgeon fish eggs. There are several species of Sturgeon fish. As a result, the caviar produced varies in colors depending on the species. Caviar is full of protein and vitamins making the delicacy a healthy meal. The United States led distribution at 600 tons per year until around 1900. However, due to the over-harvesting of Sturgeon fish...

A closeup of the Rho Ophiuchi cloud complex, imaged by JWST. (NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI, K. Pontoppidan/STScI, A. Pagan/STScI) *************************************************** A glittering treasure trove of baby stars hidden in the thick dust of their nursery is revealed in a stunning new image from the James Webb Space Telescope. To celebrate its first successful year of operations, the JWST has turned its honeycomb eye to the Rho Ophiuchi cloud complex some 390 light-years away, peering through the thick shroud to the bright star formation occurring therein. It's one of the things at which the telescope truly excels, its infrared vision detecting...

N THE YEAR 985, ERIK THE RED, A VIKING EXPLORER, LED A GROUP OF ICELANDIC FARMERS TO ESTABLISH A SETTLEMENT ON THE WEST COAST OF GREENLAND. Archaeological findings indicate that the settlement thrived for more than four centuries, but the story of the settlement left a lasting impact. Surprisingly, the pursuit of locating the descendants of these settlers greatly influenced European and American perceptions of Greenland for many generations. In his recently published book titled “The Vanished Settlers of Greenland: In Search of a Legend and Its Legacy,” Associate Professor Robert Rix asserts that the lost Norse settlement played a...

An archaeologist claimed in an interview published in late June that he has identified the ancient Biblical site where Sodom once stood. Trinity Southwest University’s Dean of Archaeology Steven Collins told host of the Rosenberg Report, Joel C. Rosenberg, that he and his team believe the Tell el-Hammam site in Jordan appears to have many of the markers of Sodom. The site is reportedly scattered with Bronze-age remains that appear to have been melted in a “flash heat” situation, matching the Biblical account of how Sodom burned to the ground. “As soon as we get a few centimeters into that...

(Last Updated On: June 28, 2023) NATIONAL FRIED CHICKEN DAY | JULY 6 In the United States, July 6th chicken lovers across the country recognize National Fried Chicken Day by feasting at a nearby restaurant, home, or an outdoor picnic. #NationalFriedChickenDay Scottish immigrants brought their tradition of deep-frying chicken in fat to the southern United States. After its introduction to the American South, fried chicken soon became a staple. Over time, cooks added seasonings and spices to enrich the flavor of the chicken. “The best comfort food will always be greens, cornbread and fried chicken.” ~ Poet, Maya Angelou Fried...

(Last Updated On: June 20, 2023) NATIONAL PECAN SANDIES DAY | JUNE 23 If you enjoy cookies, then National Pecan Sandies Day on June 23rd is a day worth celebrating. The American food holiday is observed annually and offers bakers and cookie lovers a chance to enjoy a classic cookie. #NationalPecanSandiesDay As long as baking has been documented, cookie-like wafers have existed. Part of the reason may be because these sturdy cookies travel very well. Cookies have changed and evolved over the years with the modern standards of sweetness and variety, though. The mild sweetness of these cookies pairs well...

A team of archaeologists has made a discovery in Mexico, where they have uncovered the remains of a long-lost Maya city hidden within the dense jungle of the Yucatán Peninsula. Upon further investigation, these experts have come across multiple structures that resemble pyramids, towering over 15 meters (50 feet) in height. The archaeologists have given the site a name: Ocomtún, which means “stone column” in the Mayan language. The Maya civilization is one of the most remarkable societies in the Western Hemisphere. They gained renown for their majestic pyramid temples and grand stone structures, which once adorned the regions we...

(Last Updated On: June 12, 2023) NATIONAL MEGALODON DAY | JUNE 15 On the 15th of June, National Megalodon Day teaches us about the most massive shark that ever lived! #NationalMegalodonDay The Megalodon swam the Earth’s oceans for 20 million years during the Cenozoic Era. Their mouths spanned 8 to 11 feet wide and were filled with rows of sharp teeth. With a bite force of over 40,000 pounds per square inch, a maximum weight of over 60 tons, and serrated teeth measuring near 7 inches, their prey did not stand a chance. Megalodon’s dentition consisted of 276 serrated teeth....

A Turkish homeowner chasing his chickens through a hole in his basement during renovations came across an abandoned underground Turkish city that once housed 20,000 people. ... the ancient city of Elengubu, known today as Derinkuyu. Derinkuyu, burrowed more than 280 feet beneath the Central Anatolian region of Cappadocia, is the largest excavated underground city in the world and is believed to connect to more than 200 smaller, separate underground cities ... Inside the subterranean city — whose entrances connect to more than 600 private homes in the modern, surface-level region of Cappadocia — researchers found 18 levels of tunnels...

(Last Updated On: June 8, 2023) NATIONAL PEANUT BUTTER COOKIE DAY | JUNE 12 Baking up some goodness on June 12th each year, National Peanut Butter Cookie Day celebrates the only cookie holiday in June. The day allows cookie lovers and peanut butter lovers to step away from the pies and cakes to indulge in a little peanut butter and cookie therapy. #NationalPeanutButterCookieDay Alabama’s American agricultural extension educator, George Washington Carver, promoted the peanut extensively. Well-known for his promotions, Carver compiled 105 peanut recipes from various cookbooks, agricultural bulletins, and other sources. In 1916, he created a Research Bulletin called...

Japanese researchers discovered a large dakō iron sword and a giant bronze mirror in a 4th-century burial mound in the city of Nara. The two items were found last November in the Tomio Maruyama Tumulus. According to the local government groups, the 125-pound, shield-shaped decorated mirror was the first of its kind to be discovered, and the seven-foot iron serpentine dakō sword is the largest and oldest from the Kofun period (300 CE–710 CE) to be found. Experts say this allows the two items from the Tomio Maruyama Tumulus to be classified as national treasures. The shield-shaped mirror is two...

Researchers announced Thursday that the timeline of Greece’s history needs to be pushed back by at least a quarter million years after a shocking discovery deep inside an open coal mine. Archaeologists uncovered the nation’s oldest archaeological site, which dates back at least 700,000 years. It is thought to be associated with some of our earliest hominin ancestors, according to The Associated Press. Although older archaeological sites have been uncovered in other parts of Europe, Asia and Africa, this is the first major discovery of this age in Greece, and may completely rewrite aspects of the nation’s human history. The...

Turkey’s Izmir Archaeological Museum is hosting a different exhibition this month. A bronze strigil is the museum’s guest this month as part of its “You Will See What You Can’t See“ project, in which a new, special artifact is introduced to visitors every month. The Izmir Archaeology Museum recently opened a new, unique exhibition focusing on the historical relic known as a “strigil,” which was used to cleanse the body 2,300 years ago by scraping off dirt, perspiration, and oil. The strigil in issue was unearthed during archaeological digs at Teos, one of the 12 ancient Greek towns that made...

Location of Kaylu archeological site (a no 1), Jebel (a no 2), and Dam-Dam-Cheshme 1 and 2 (a no 3); view of the rockshelter (b1); location of the two burials (b2 and b3); Caspian Sea view from the site (c); human remains state of preservation (d and e); lithic industry from layer 7 of Kaylu (f) – point (1), lunates (2, 3), end-scraper (4), splinted pieces (5, 6), cores (7, 8). Credit: Open Archaeology (2023). DOI: 10.1515/opar-2022-0289 Stone Age humans may have made extended maritime voyages on the Caspian Sea, according to a new study published in the journal Open...

Recently we have studied the unusual optical properties of the Veil of Manoppello, a canvas representing the face of Jesus Christ … with that visible on the Turin Shroud. In particular, the paper focuses on assessing whether the two images can be superimposed, i.e., whether they are different images of the same face. Indeed, some scholars have suggested that the Veil of Manoppello and the Turin Shroud show different images of the same face. We demonstrate that the face of the Turin Shroud, after a logarithmic transformation of the intensity and the correction of the background noise, shows cheeks’ profiles,...

A new model for human evolution asserts that modern Homo sapiens stemmed from multiple genetically diverse populations across Africa rather than a single ancestral population. This conclusion was reached after researchers analyzed genetic data from present-day African populations, including 44 newly sequenced genomes from the Nama group of southern Africa. The research suggests that the earliest detectable split in early human populations occurred between 120,000 to 135,000 years ago, after long periods of genetic intermixing, and that subsequent migrations created a weakly structured genetic stem. Contrary to some previous models, this research implies that contributions from archaic hominins were unlikely...