Ancient Writers - Legend Makers and Ancient Writers
Monday October 31, 2005
The writers of most of the ancient legends and writings of the world are unknown to us today, but there are a few ancient writers whose writing continues to fascinate ... Read More
Archaeology Quiz: Çatalhöyük
Monday October 31, 2005
What is Çatalhöyük and how in the world do you pronounce it? Well, you won't have to pronounce it, but test your knowledge in our quiz of the week.
Ghost Stories
Sunday October 30, 2005
About's Ancient History Guide N.S. Gill asks, Why did ancient ghosts haunt the living? Could it be that all they wanted was a proper burial so they could cross the ... Read More
Top Signs of Domestication in Animals
Sunday October 30, 2005
The mechanism of domestication is an evolutionary one, and so slow; the evidence for domestication of a particular animal may be difficult to ascertain. Here are some ways archaeologists use ... Read More
My Son Excavations Report
Sunday October 30, 2005
This little report from Vietnam Net reports on the latest findings from the Cham dynasty (4th-12th centuries AD) My Son site:
VietNamNet Bridge
Characteristics of Ancient Civilizations
Saturday October 29, 2005
The characteristics that identify ancient civilizations are relatively agreed-upon by archaeologists, although the causes are not. Archaeologists recognize that in some cases, in some places, at some times, simple societies ... Read More
Cambodian Culture History and Archaeology
Friday October 28, 2005
Culture history, archaeological sites, and other information related to the past of Cambodia, newly updated.
Mummies of Bronze Age Scotland
Friday October 28, 2005
Mummies, that rarified form of ancestor worship, have been found in a Bronze Age site in Scotland. In the September 2005 issue of the journal Antiquity, researchers describe how using ... Read More
Submerged Resources Center
Thursday October 27, 2005
From Archaeology magazine, a brief report on the efforts by the National Park Service's Submerged Resources Center team:
Diving Into History
Red Wine and Ancient Egypt
Thursday October 27, 2005
News story in the Guardian today is typical of those making the rounds about the identification of red wine from the bottom of an amphora in King Tutankhamun's tomb. In ... Read More
Chesapeake Slavery and Landscape - Virginia, USA Field School 2006
Thursday October 27, 2005
June 5-July 14, 2006 Monticello's Department of Archaeology and the University of Virginia. Our fieldwork addresses changing patterns of land use and settlement on Thomas Jefferson's, Monticello Plantation from ... Read More
Chinese Culture History and Archaeology
Thursday October 27, 2005
Ancient Chinese culture history, archaeological sites, and other information related to the past of China, newly updated.
Tel Dor, Israel - Fieldschool 2006
Wednesday October 26, 2005
June 29-August 5, 2006. Hebrew University and University of California at Berkeley. The primary goal of the excavation is to provide a large and well stratified data-base for the study ... Read More
Olloy-sur-Viroin (Belgium) Fieldschool 2006
Wednesday October 26, 2005
July 2-28, 2006 [three sessions]. ArcheoStage. Excavations at a late Bronze Age fort near Viroinval, Belgium.
Achill Island, Ireland - Field School 2006
Wednesday October 26, 2005
May 29-August 18, 2006 two modules). Achill Folklife Centre, investigations into the Post-Medieval deserted village 1600-1900 A.D.), Slievemore and at the Achill Folklife Centre, Dooagh, Achill, Co. Mayo.
Kazakl'i-yatkan Field School 2006 (Uzbekistan)
Wednesday October 26, 2005
September 2006. University of Sydney Central Asian Programme. Excavations and work on wall paintings in western Uzbekistan at the the fortified centre of Kazakl'i-yatkan. The site dates broadly in the ... Read More
Programme for Belize Fieldschool 2006
Wednesday October 26, 2005
January 19-April 18, 2006 University of Texas at Austin. The field school program involves survey, excavation at several Maya sites, and laboratory experience working directly with excavated Maya ... Read More
Archaeology Fieldschool 2006: Palmarejo, Honduras
Wednesday October 26, 2005
Must be that time of year already: here's the first announcement for archaeological expeditions in Summer 2006:
May 29-June 24, 2006. University of South Florida. The prehispanic site of Palmarejo, ... Read More
Archaeology Movies - A Month in the Country
Wednesday October 26, 2005
Just ran across this archaeology-related movie in my local videostore and am passing it along to you other film junkies:
1987. Archaeologist Charles Moon (Kenneth Branagh, no less) is looking ... Read More
New Biography Listings
Wednesday October 26, 2005
Sketches of archaeologists this week include Germans, Americans, Englishmen, and that ancient scholar, architect and stooge of bad movies, Imhotep:
Franz Wickhoff [1853-1909],
Howard Dalton Winters [1923-1994],
Karl August Wittfogel [1896-1988],
Hans Martin ... Read More
Colombian Culture History and Archaeology
Wednesday October 26, 2005
Culture history, archaeological sites, and other information related to the past of Colombia.
Archaeology Dictionary Additions
Wednesday October 26, 2005
A new crop of entries in the Dictionary of Archaeology appears this week, including archaeology sites in the UK, Iran, the USA, France, and Serbia, and other useful tidbits of ... Read More
Ecuador Culture History and Archaeology
Tuesday October 25, 2005
Culture history, archaeological sites, and other information related to the past of Ecuador.
Archaeology Sudoku
Monday October 24, 2005
A Sudoku game with pictures of archaeological sites instead of numbers. You use Flickr tags to change the pictures to whatever you choose, and select the game to play. What ... Read More
Archaeology Quiz: Bog Bodies
Monday October 24, 2005
What exactly is a bog body, and why would anybody do that to a person?
Tree of Paradise: Roman Jewish Mosaics from Tunisia
Monday October 24, 2005
An exhibition of Roman mosaics and other artifacts recovered from the 3rd century AD Jewish synagogue at Naro, Tunisia, begins this coming Friday, Ocrober 28, 2005, at the Brooklyn Museum ... Read More
CAMEL Remote Sensing Project
Sunday October 23, 2005
Blogger Roger Hart (of GeoCarta) describes a remote sensing project at Kerkenes Dag in Turkey by the Center for Ancient Middle Eastern Landscapes (CAMEL), although I don't think I'd call ... Read More
How the Noodle Wars Play in Japan
Sunday October 23, 2005
A story in Nature earlier this month which was making the world press rounds about the first bowl of noodles discovered in China doesn't seem to have unduly impressed this ... Read More
Argentina Culture History and Archaeology
Sunday October 23, 2005
A guide to Argentina's cultural history, archaeological sites and other information related to Argentina's past.
Tall-e Takht may be reopened
Sunday October 23, 2005
The Iran Cultural Heritage and Tourism Organization have indicated that that they may allow a team led by Ali Rahbari and including David Stronach to reopen investigations at Tall-e Takht, ... Read More
Podcasts in Archaeology
Saturday October 22, 2005
I did manage to find five podcasts with archaeological content to them, at least so far. One is actually a mystery novel told in serial podcast format. I'm also positive ... Read More
Well, Warmish Anyway
Saturday October 22, 2005
In a perfect reflexive moment, I caught a glimpse of my last blog in Bloglines, and scoffed aloud: weblogs are the 'hottest new' anything? --- No, no podcasting is the ... Read More
Archaeology Blogs - Great Sources of Archaeology News
Saturday October 22, 2005
The hottest new archaeological news source is weblogs, and with blog readers becoming simpler to set up, this may be the cheapest and fastest way to get the latest.
A Clockwork Computer
Saturday October 22, 2005
In 1900, a sponge diver found an ancient shipwreck dated to the first century AD off the coast of the Greek island Antikythera, which included a cargo of statues, jewelry ... Read More
Pacific Islands Culture History and Archaeology
Saturday October 22, 2005
Pacific Island culture history, archaeological sites, and other information related to the past of the Pacific Islands.
Archaeology News - Sources for Archaeology News
Friday October 21, 2005
So many archaeology news stories and journals and newsletters, so little time to read them. Here's a collection of some of the best ways to keep abreast of archaeology news, ... Read More
Chile Culture History and Archaeology
Friday October 21, 2005
Chile culture history, archaeological sites, and other information related to the past of Chile.
Intelligent Design Petition Results
Thursday October 20, 2005
Last month, an internet petition was run on the Shovelbums website for four days, opposing the teaching of Intelligent Design (ID) in science classes. The petition was in direct response ... Read More
Huari Leader Found
Thursday October 20, 2005
A news brief from ABC reports that archaeologist Isabel Flores has found the headless remains of a Huari civilization leader in the ruins of the Huaca Pucllana ceremonial complex in ... Read More
Emperor Qin's Hidden Treasure
Thursday October 20, 2005
Not that the Emperor's tomb hasn't already uncovered some of the most fabulous grave goods ever found in a burial, for example, 7000 terracotta soldiers, but Chinese archaeologists are currently ... Read More
Ancient Daily Life - Daily Life in Ancient Times
Thursday October 20, 2005
Ancient Daily Life includes archaeological studies of how people lived in the past, what they ate, the houses they lived in, the tools they used. Ancient daily life also involved ... Read More
Brazil - Culture History and Archaeology
Thursday October 20, 2005
Culture history, archaeological sites, and other information related to the past of Brazil.
Bolivia - Culture History and Archaeology
Wednesday October 19, 2005
Bolivia's culture history, archaeological sites, and other information related to the past of Bolivia.
Intelligent Design Trial Begins
Tuesday October 18, 2005
The hottest court room drama since the Scopes Trial (okay, archaeologists are a dull sort, and so it's probably the hottest for some of us, anyway), began yesterday. And Slate ... Read More
The Roman Empire in Scotland
Tuesday October 18, 2005
Article in last weekend's Sunday Herald discusses the impact on Scottish history of those rascally Romans:
WHAT DID THE ROMAN EMPIRE DO FOR US? - [Sunday Herald]
Stratify 1.3
Tuesday October 18, 2005
Another Windows-based software program to assist in the visual representation of a Harris Matrix.
Archaeology Quiz: Easter Island
Tuesday October 18, 2005
This week's quiz is on Easter Island, one of the gifts of the aliens who used to live... wait a minute, that's not right.
Alun Salt's Creationist Cards
Monday October 17, 2005
Rand across this today on Flikr, one of my favorite entertainments: a collection of Creationism Cards from classical archaeologist Alun Salt:
Creationism Cards - a photoset on Flickr
The Onion: Intelligent Falling Theory
Monday October 17, 2005
Leave it to the humor magazine The Onion to come up with the answer to the theory of gravity: Intelligent Falling.
Evangelical Scientists Refute Gravity With New 'Intelligent Falling' Theory ... Read More
Hobbit Controversy Continues
Monday October 17, 2005
Several stories this week bring the controversy over the possible new species Homo floresiensis to the forefront of scientific debate. Thanks to Dar Habel for bringing these stories together.
New GlossaryTerms
Monday October 17, 2005
Lidar (Light Detection and Ranging), Merv Oasis (Turkmenistan), Desert Castles, Serpent Mound (USA), Khirigsuur, Graham Ritchie [1942-2005], Monden-tsujibatake (Japan), Lene Hara Cave (Indonesia), Easter Island (owned by Chile)
Octagon Moon Rise at Newark Earthworks: Ancient Observatory of the Ohio Hopewell
Monday October 17, 2005
The Octagon Moon Rise event is scheduled for this upcoming Saturday evening, October 22, 2005. The Newark Earthworks, an ancient Hopewell civilization observatory and sacred enclosure, will witness the Octagon ... Read More
Iceman Legal Fight
Sunday October 16, 2005
New article on the Discovery Channel describes what can only be called a custody battle over the reward for finding Oetzi, where four people are bitterly fighting over who gets ... Read More
Pydna (Macedonia, Greece)
Sunday October 16, 2005
A mass burial of 115 individuals dated to the 4th century BC is reported in this brief article from the September 2005 Antiquity, by S. Triantaphyllou and M. Bessios. The ... Read More
Archaeology in Benin
Saturday October 15, 2005
From the September 2005 Antiquity, a report from J. Cameron Monroe on recent archaeological studies in Benin.
AIA Fieldwork Listings 2006
Friday October 14, 2005
AFOB Online is one of the largest online listings of fieldwork opportunities in the world. They are in process of preparing their 2006 print edition of the Archaeological Fieldwork Opportunities ... Read More
What's three feet tall...
Friday October 14, 2005
Slate magazine had a column about the Flores Man by Daniel Engber on Wednesday:
What's 3 Feet Tall With a Small Brain and No Chin? - How the tiny island people ... Read More
Inca Secret World Untangled
Friday October 14, 2005
An article by Dan Vergano, writing in USA Today, describes the computer methodology used by Gary Urton and colleagues to Crack the Khipu Code.
USATODAY.com - Incas' secret world untangled
More on Flores
Friday October 14, 2005
John Hawks has an excellent commentary on the Flores findings today:
John Hawks Anthropology Weblog : Flores update, October 2005
Shigirsky Peat Bog, Russia
Friday October 14, 2005
Malcolm Lillie and associates report on evidence for sophisticated wood working evidence by the Shigirsky Idol at this Mesolithic period site in Russia. Article in Antiquity, September 2005.
Diggers at Sunset
Thursday October 13, 2005
Wessex archaeology posted this fabbo picture on flickr today:
Digging in the dark on Flickr - Photo Sharing!
An Early Neolithic Canoe from China
Thursday October 13, 2005
In this project gallery report from September 2005's Antiquity, Leping Jiang and Li Liu report on the Kuahuqiao site, an early Neolithic village occupation with a dugout canoe, radiocarbon dated ... Read More
Fall CSA Newsletter out
Thursday October 13, 2005
The Fall newsletter of the Center for the Study of Architecture adn Archaeology just came out. Articles in it include a review of the websites Choma and Traditions of the ... Read More
Maritime Archaeology and History Conference
Thursday October 13, 2005
There's a call for papers on the bulletin board for the upcoming conference by the Centre for Portuguese Nautical Studies, to be held in August 2006 in Mossel Bay, South ... Read More
Warrior Women
Wednesday October 12, 2005
Jeannine Davis-Kimball's book from 2002 is a compelling report of her search for powerful women at the edges of history, beginning with her study of women warriors and priestesses ... Read More
Further Fossil Finds of Flores Man, Indonesia
Wednesday October 12, 2005
New excavations at the Liang Bua Cave on the island of Flores in Indonesia have recovered additional specimens of the human ancestor known as Flores Man; or more popularly, the ... Read More
Tickets for Tut Two
Wednesday October 12, 2005
If you have lost your ticket to the upcoming Tutankhamun exhibit, all is not lost, according to reader Stan Parchin. Contact the original source, according to this email making the ... Read More
Olmec Ruler Cave Painting
Wednesday October 12, 2005
In September's Antiquity, archaeologist Michael Coe posted a color image of a cave painting at the Olmec site of Juxtlahuaca in Mexico, with what must be among the earliest of ... Read More
Mary Rose Stem and Anchor Rises Again
Tuesday October 11, 2005
The final work on the wreck of the Mary Rose has culminated in the safe recovery of the stem mast and anchor, according to this news report in 24 hour ... Read More
History Detectives 10/11
Tuesday October 11, 2005
The last episode of the 2005 season of the History Detectives includes Wes Cowan looking for evidence of the 1819 Long Expedition on the Missouri river, and other stories:
WTVI42 ... Read More
The Dorak Affair's Final Chapter
Tuesday October 11, 2005
Scoop columnist Suzan Mazur reports on her investigations iinto the Dorak Affair, an antiquities mystery that severely damaged archaeologist James Mellaart's reputation.
Michael Balter, science writer who contributed to ... Read More
Archaeology Quiz: Mexico Culture History
Tuesday October 11, 2005
What do you know about the ancient history of Mexico? Give your tortillas a flip and try this week's quiz.
Bob Brier to Lecture in Long Island
Monday October 10, 2005
On October 22, 2005, Bob Brier, a world-renowned author and host of Discovery Times' channel series Mummy Detective, will speak on the "Murder of King Tut" at the Egyptian Festival ... Read More
In Search of Myths and Heroes: Exploring Four Epic Legends - A Book Review
Monday October 10, 2005
In the new book and television program In Search of Myths and Heroes, Michael Wood seeks to learn about the ancient legends of King Arthur, Jason and the Golden Fleece, ... Read More
Neolithic Daily Life in Greece
Sunday October 9, 2005
Stone Pages is blogging an article from Kathimerini on Greek excavations near Aghia Triada.
Stone Pages Archaeo News: Neolithic daily life shown in dig at ancient Greek site
Mexican Culture History and Archaeology
Sunday October 9, 2005
The newly refurbished page on Mexico archaeology and history, representing the first major upgrade of the World Atlas of Archaeology.
The image of the Chacmool of Tula was taken by ... Read More
New Glossary Entries
Saturday October 8, 2005
Uxmal (Mexico), Tula (Mexico),
Teotihuacan (Mexico),
Monte Alban (Mexico),
La Mojarra (Mexico),
Mayapan (Mexico),
Chichén Itzá (Mexico).
Cacaxtla (Mexico).
Lefkandi (Greece),
Lindow Man (UK),
Wietenburg Culture,
Wilgie Mia (Australia),
Winchester (UK)
Clovis in the Southeast
Friday October 7, 2005
Now this must be the conference to go to this year, if you're in North America, and are into the Clovis/Preclovis controversy. It promises to be the followup to the ... Read More
Monte Alban (Oaxaca, Mexico)
Friday October 7, 2005
The mountainous capital city of the Zapotec state called Monte Alban ruled the Oaxaca Valley of Mexico between 500 BC and AD 700.
Ithaca Discovery Discussion
Thursday October 6, 2005
the Ancient History forum has a lively ongoing discussion going on about Odysseus' Tomb and whether you can actually find such a thing, and they recently took up the issue ... Read More
Intelligent Design and Evolution: Bring on the Debate
Thursday October 6, 2005
The Los Angeles Times published a commentary by science writer Michael Balter who believes we shouldn't be afraid to bring the debate about science and evolution into the public arena, ... Read More
Akrotiri Collapse
Wednesday October 5, 2005
Last week at the Greek site of Akrotiri on Thera, a protective roof collapsed, killing a tourist and injuring another. Akrotiri is one of the candidates for the basis of ... Read More
More New Biographies
Wednesday October 5, 2005
Gordon Randolph Willey [1913-2002], Charles Wiener [1851-1919], Peter J. Whybrow [1942-2004], Leslie A. White [1900-1975], Theodor Wiegand [1864-1936], Timothy D. White [born 1950], David Whitehouse, Alan Wilson [1934-1991], Johann-Joachim Winckelmann ... Read More
ArcheoNet Flanders
Tuesday October 4, 2005
ArcheoNet Flanders is a Dutch-language weblog for news on archaeology and heritage in Belgium, and they now have an English-language interface.
Archaeology Quiz: Hunter-Gatherers
Tuesday October 4, 2005
The Archaeology Quiz for the first week in October is on Hunter Gatherers, whatever the heck they are.
Women in Archaeology
Monday October 3, 2005
News report from the Mercury from South Africa suggests that "a rapid gender revolution is underway" at Witwatersrand:
Mercury - The new bone collectors
Evolution and Intelligent Design
Monday October 3, 2005
Our Geology guy, Andrew Alden, has been closely tracking the court battle in Pennsylvania over the right to teach Intelligent Design in high school science classes. Teaching ID in a ... Read More
Writing a Research Paper in Archaeology
Monday October 3, 2005
Writing a research paper in archaeology may seem like a daunting process, if you are new to the field or just learning about a site or culture. But it needn't ... Read More
New Biography Sketches
Monday October 3, 2005
Christine D. White [b. 1951], Joseph Whemple, Robert Eric Mortimer Wheeler [1890-1976], Robert Whallon
What Kind of Anthropologist are You?
Sunday October 2, 2005
Here's a little test to see what field you should go into, if you're an anthro major. Turns out I am a four-fielder (duh):
OKCupid! The What Anthropology Subfield Test
Q&A: Intelligent Design
Sunday October 2, 2005
Anna Seward in The Guardian defines Intelligent Design and why so many scientists are up in arms about it, in nice plain language that even I can understand.
EducationGuardian.co.uk | ... Read More
Homer's Ithaca Found?
Sunday October 2, 2005
Well, as usual with these kind of stories about Homer, the rider has to be "if there was an Ithaca", but if there was an Ithaca, this fellow seems to ... Read More
New Glossary Terms
Saturday October 1, 2005
Hunter-gatherers Kapova Cave (Russia), Mohenjo-Daro (Pakistan), Wasserburg (Germany), Songhai Empire, Hieroglyphic Symbols, Banpo (China), Wharram Percy (UK), Wheeled Vehicles, Deserted Medieval Villages, Rougiers (France)