Archaeology August 2009 Archive

Today's Archaeology Quiz of the Week is on the Aztec Empire, the bloodthirsty but successful rulers of Mesoamerica. Codex Borbonicus (facsimile), an Aztec compilation of the monthly ritual and ceremonies ... Read More

You read it in the news every so often and if you're like me, you cringe. Some construction work in the world is halted because they discovered archaeological remains—usually human ... Read More

Today's Archaeology Quiz of the Week is on Time Team America, the new PBS reality series about archaeologists. The program, based on the popular British series Time Team, premiered this ... Read More

This week's Science magazine has a treat for anybody who, like me, is completely fascinated by the archaeology of China.

According to a new report in Science magazine last week, one of the modern behaviors exhibited by the Middle Stone Age peoples of South Africa was heat treatment of stone ... Read More

The Archaeology Quiz of the Week is on the Viking Age, that early, exciting Medieval period saga of blood, guts, and poor decision making. The Viking Sea Stallion, based on ... Read More

University College London's Institute of Archaeology reported this week that they had discovered an ancient trackway—a wooden roadway or footpath constructed for crossing bogs—which has been radiocarbon dated to nearly ... Read More

A review of archaeologist Timothy Pauketat's new book on the Mississippian capital of Cahokia appeared in Salon last week, with the gaudy title "Sacrificial virgins of the Mississippi". Monk's Mound, Cahokia, ... Read More

Today's Archaeology Quiz of the Week is on Lascaux Cave, that flashy French museum of art. Lascaux II - Image from the Reconstruction of Lascaux Cave Photo Credit: Jack Versloot Trivia Quiz: ... Read More

Tony Baker has a new article up on his Paleoindian site, always a good read.  He's been conducting experimental archaeology in trying to create a paleoindian foreshaft out of antler. The ... Read More

A new paper on mitochondrial DNA published in PNAS today enlightens me to an older paper doubling the previous estimates of the age of dog domestication. According to Germonpré et ... Read More

Today's Archaeology Quiz of the Week is on Dead Sea Scrolls, those ancient texts of the Mediterranean. Community Rule--4Q260-366, Parchment, Hebrew language, Written 1st century B.C.E. – 1st century ... Read More

On Wednesday, August 5th, the last show of the 2009 season of Time Team America airs on PBS. This week's program is on Fort James, an early military outpost in ... Read More