Classical Archaeology News

bemusedlybespectacled: if you ever think mythology is boring or serious business or whatever...

Tue, 14 May 2013 07:44:36 -0400

if you ever think mythology is boring or serious business or whatever shit

just remember that cerberus, the hell-hound and guard dog of the underworld, comes from the root indo-european word ḱerberos, which evolved into the greek word kerberos, which got changed to cerberus when it went from greek to latin

ḱerberos means “spotted”

that’s right

hades, lord of the dead, literally fucking named his pet dog spot

I’m taking a short hiatus from Tumblr as I am traveling in...

Mon, 13 May 2013 08:59:49 -0400

I’m taking a short hiatus from Tumblr as I am traveling in Europe for the next three weeks. In the meantime, enjoy this garden of column drums from the Temple of Athena, Priene, Turkey.

ancientart: The Dalal Bridge in Zakho, Iraq, which dates to the...

Wed, 01 May 2013 21:18:10 -0400

ancientart:

The Dalal Bridge in Zakho, Iraq, which dates to the Roman era, and is unfortunately on the verge of collapse.

Photo courtesy & taken by Zaxo

Roman industrial area uncovered in Egypt's Suez Canal - Greco-Roman - Heritage - Ahram Online

Fri, 26 Apr 2013 08:03:35 -0400

Roman industrial area uncovered in Egypt's Suez Canal - Greco-Roman - Heritage - Ahram Online

The So-Called Ishtar Gate A perceptive student asked the other...

Wed, 24 Apr 2013 08:53:50 -0400

The So-Called Ishtar Gate

A perceptive student asked the other day how we know that the “Ishtar Gate” was really dedicated to the goddess Ishtar. I replied in class, “I believe that the dedication is mentioned on the inscription of the gate.” However, when I pulled up the whole inscription to show the class, I found that Ishtar was not mentioned at all.

…

This student’s question has sent me on a wild goose chase. There are multiple sources online which claim that the gate was dedicated to Ishtar, but no one explains how or when such a dedication was made. And if I dig into a few scholarly sites, such as the Yale University Gallery, I have noticed that these sites refer to the structure as the “so-called Ishtar Gate.” This makes me believe that the Ishtar Gate received its name from one of the early 20th-century excavators, perhaps Robert Koldewey.

Dam digs archeological finds dating millions of years - The Portugal News

Tue, 23 Apr 2013 08:42:43 -0400

Dam digs archeological finds dating millions of years - The Portugal News:

Excavations in advance of a hydroelectric dam project that will flood the region are turning up sites from the Upper Paleolithic to the Iron Age in Portugal.

So corny, but I couldn’t resist. MisterHaden

Tue, 23 Apr 2013 08:32:41 -0400

So corny, but I couldn’t resist.

MisterHaden

Exhibition of stolen and recovered artifacts begins in May - ANSA English - ANSA.it

Mon, 22 Apr 2013 21:55:14 -0400

Exhibition of stolen and recovered artifacts begins in May - ANSA English - ANSA.it:

Important artifacts, some thousands of years old, that have been recovered by police after thefts will be on display at Rome’s Castel Sant’Angelo.

The exhibition includes treasures stolen and then trafficked around the world before being recovered by police forces, organizers say.

Exhibits range from a sixth century BC marble bust, the Kouros Apollino Dilani, to a second century AD sarcophagus recovered after an unscrupulous collector commissioned its theft.

“Masterpieces of Archaeology: Recovery, Findings, Comparisons,” boasts more than 100 pieces and will show from May 20 to November 5.

“These masterpieces are often objects of desire for collectors of art,” who sometimes are not concerned with legal ownership of antiquities, says Daniela Porro, superintendent of Rome’s museums.

Besides the archaeological pieces, the exhibition includes documents related to the efforts that authorities have made to recover missing and stolen works.

The mafia left Naples in ruins. Can they do the same to Pompeii?

Mon, 22 Apr 2013 14:25:00 -0400

The mafia left Naples in ruins. Can they do the same to Pompeii? :

Significantly, one of the officials placed under investigation for suspected abuse of office was Marcello Fiori, the special commissioner appointed by Rome to oversee the “state of emergency” repair work at Pompeii from August 2008 to July 2010.

But the buck does not stop with a few managers accused of lining their own pockets. Something more worrying lurks in the shadows – the Camorra mafia. Just 15 miles away lies the southern port of Naples, the crime group’s home base, where it has a hand in everything from drugs to construction projects and rubbish collection .

Some of today’s festivities at the Circus Maximus, Rome,...

Sun, 21 Apr 2013 15:22:28 -0400

Some of today’s festivities at the Circus Maximus, Rome, celebrating the city’s birthday.

Felix Dies Natalis! photos by Massimo Betello

April 21, 753 BCE is the traditional date of the founding of...

Sun, 21 Apr 2013 11:10:51 -0400

April 21, 753 BCE is the traditional date of the founding of Rome, according to Livy.

Auguri, Roma!

Black market trade of Egyptian artifacts thriving amid post-revolution chaos

Fri, 19 Apr 2013 15:13:00 -0400

Black market trade of Egyptian artifacts thriving amid post-revolution chaos:

Black market trade of Egyptian artifacts thriving amid post-revolution chaos

Antiquity smuggling has witnessed an unprecedented surge in the two years since the 25 January Revolution since it is an easy way to make immediate money, even if it is on the account of Egypt’s heritage and history.

The fragile security situation in the country and the financial and economic ordeals the population is suffering from are considered the main reasons behind this phenomenon. Given that a small, wooden, carved Pharaonic statue or a marble bust can be sold for a large sum of US dollars, there are many who take advantage of this immediate influx of cash that can immediately improve their standard of living.

Consequently many historic antiquities are found missing from museums throughout Egypt and sealed historic areas are subjected to random excavations carried out by inhabitants looking for any hidden or unknown antiquities.

The Egyptian Council for Culture and Arts mentioned in its report last year that the amount of stolen Egyptian antiquities reached about 3,000 artefacts, probably now residing outside Egypt in the hands of private collectors.

The Ministry of Interior and the security forces have proven to be incapable to stand against and stop this heritage drain in Egypt and the Ministry of Antiquities refuses to publicise which parts of Egypt’s heritage are missing.

Tomorrow is my last lecture in the Pompeii course. The topic is...

Thu, 18 Apr 2013 17:16:28 -0400

Tomorrow is my last lecture in the Pompeii course. The topic is “the victims of Vesuvius.” What would you want to know about the human remains from Pompeii, Herculaneum, etc. and what those remains tell us about life in antiquity?

natgeofound: Two actresses at Delphi Festival adorn costumes of...

Mon, 15 Apr 2013 14:09:33 -0400

natgeofound:

Two actresses at Delphi Festival adorn costumes of classical Greece, December 1930.
Photograph by Maynard Owen Williams, National Geographic

superfluidity: B. Mure is an idiot. (Philae, Egypt)

Mon, 15 Apr 2013 10:08:54 -0400

superfluidity:

B. Mure is an idiot. (Philae, Egypt)

Lego Abu Simbel (by customBRICKS)

Mon, 15 Apr 2013 10:08:12 -0400

Lego Abu Simbel (by customBRICKS)

A tiny amber amulet shaped like a gladiator’s helmet has been...

Sat, 13 Apr 2013 17:14:22 -0400

A tiny amber amulet shaped like a gladiator’s helmet has been discovered in the Walbrook area by Museum of London Archaeology (MOLA).

Measuring just over 1cm across, the object was found amongst the remains of a demolished Roman building, together with large amounts of pottery and animal bone. It is hoped that analysis of these will narrow down a possible date for the artefact.

Its distinctive visor and high crest marks it out as depicting part of the equipment of a murmillo, who wore a large enclosing helmet with a grille covering the face. Armed with a short sword or gladius and a rectangular shield called a scutum, he was normally paired against a thraex (Thracian).

Amber was an expensive imported material and was thought to have magical powers. The Roman author Pliny describes how amber amulets could protect children from illness and the symbolism of the gladiator may also be protective.

More here.
Image: MOLA

The ancient site of Alacahöyük in Central Anatolia will be...

Fri, 12 Apr 2013 13:42:00 -0400

The ancient site of Alacahöyük in Central Anatolia will be turned into a tourism attraction center with the completion of new facilities. The new plan is scheduled to start in a year. The reconstruction plan for the protection of Alacahöyük has been prepared by the ministry.

Turkey’s well-known ancient site of Alacahöyük, which currently draws around 50,000 visitors a year, in the Central Anatolian province of Çorum, is set to be given new facilities reflecting traces of the Hittite civilization.

The head of the Alacahöyük excavations, Professor Aykut Çınaroğlu, said the reconstruction plan for the protection of Alacahöyük had been prepared by the Culture and Tourism Ministry, was in its final stage and was set to be implemented in a year.

“Ministry officials and representatives of the company that prepared the project came to Alacahöyük and conducted inspections in areas where the project will be implemented. With this plan, the protection area of the ancient site will be widened,” Çınaroğlu said.

He added that some areas would be launched as first degree archaeological areas, and that they had also organized meetings to exchange views with the public about the project that will shape the future of Alacahöyük. “The execution area of the project was discussed at the meeting, which was attended by ministry officials, the mayor, the museum director, and citizens. The project is careful to prevent the suffering of citizens who have rights in the area and a road map was determined by taking views from all sections,” he said.

More here.

A technique based on the same kind of technology used in airport...

Fri, 12 Apr 2013 12:25:00 -0400

A technique based on the same kind of technology used in airport scanners has revealed images beneath a fresco held at the Louvre museum in Paris.

Trois Hommes Armes de Lances was known to be a fresco forged by Giampetro Campana on a wall from Roman times.

The new research suggests that under that forgery lies a real Roman fresco.

The discovery was announced at the American Chemical Society meeting by Bianca Jackson of the University of Rochester in the US.

Terahertz waves are known for their ability to penetrate materials without damaging them, and have in recent years been added to the suite of tools used to examine items of cultural heritage.

These tools span much of the electromagnetic spectrum from X-rays to ultraviolet to the infrared - and of course microscopy with visible light.

Previous studies of Trois Hommes Armes de Lances had used X-ray fluorescence - which yields a list of all the atoms within an object - but showed that there were atoms present in the work that were not present on the surface.

Dr Jackson and her colleagues were called in to apply terahertz imaging to find out what lay beneath.

“After quite a bit of data processing, we were able to pull out some signs that there is a figure beneath… what looked like two eyes, eyebrows, nose, mouth, a shadow for a chin,” she said.

more here

American Institute for Roman Culture - SUMMER PROGRAMS

Thu, 11 Apr 2013 11:01:29 -0400

American Institute for Roman Culture - SUMMER PROGRAMS:

Summer programs in Rome: Latin language, History and Art History, Media Studies, Roman Culture (high school students).

Applications due April 15!