guy

Human nature hasn’t changed much after these many years. Bored legionaries found time to express their creative abilities. https://www.ladbible.com/news/latest-archeologists-roman-soldier-graffitied-a-dk-hadrians-wall-20220527

Using LiDAR technology, a previously unknown civilization has been found in the Amazon jungle: Screenshot from 3D animation of the Cotoca site. https://www.livescience.com/lidar-reveals-pre-hispanic-amazon-settlements https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-022-04780-4?utm_medium=affiliate&utm_source=commission_junction&utm_campaign=CONR_PF018_ECOM_GL_PHSS_ALWYS_PRODUCT&utm_content=textlink&utm_term=PID100052172&CJEVENT=e2f3587fdc5411ec81e701100a1c0e10

The archaeologists have been expanding beyond Burnswark, studying LiDAR data (pictured) from the surrounding 579 square miles (1,500 km2) with the support of the British Academy Using LiDAR technology, archaeologists are better understanding the framework of indigenous peoples at the time of the Roman occupation north of Hadrian’s Wall. More than 130 new indigenous settlements have been discovered north of Hadrian's Wall from the time of Rome's occupation. Although part of the area had been extensively studied in the past, the team discovered 134 previously unrecorded Iron Age settlements in the region, bringing the total to over 700 https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-10849845/Over-130-new-indigenous-settlements-discovered-north-Hadrians-Wall.html

Herod’s calcite-alabaster bathtub found in Kypros fortress. Herod “The Great” made the news with the closer chemical analysis of the two bathtubs attributed him. The quarry and royal bathtubs Here is the Te’omim cave where the calcite-alabaster quarry was found. This was close to the two sites where the bathtubs were discovered: Kypros and Herodium. Te’omim cave. The quarry is located in the right part of the photograph. Signs of quarrying-scars and cessation of quarrying are visible on the quarry’s walls and floor https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-022-11651-5 A nice readable summary of the scientific article is found at “Ancient Origens”: https://www.ancient-origins.net/news-history-archaeology/herods-bathtubs-0016804

A mass grave of around 50 headless Vikings from a site in Dorset, UK. Some of these remains were used for DNA analysis. Credit: Dorset County Council/Oxford Archaeology Reassessing 400 Viking skeletons found in Europe and Greenland by DNA analysis have uncovered interesting findings: I guess I was surprised to find six percent of the UK population has Viking blood compared to only ten percent in Sweden. World’s largest-ever DNA sequencing of Viking skeletons reveals they weren’t all Scandinavian | University of Cambridge

The song “Embryonic Journey” was written by Jorma Kaukonen of Jefferson Airplane. He is really a friendly guy and a great guitar teacher. I first met me him in the early 90s at a guitar seminar. I was actually hesitant to meet him, however, remembering the adage “Never meet the people you admire, you’ll be disappointed.” I was not disappointed and I’ve met Jorma several times since. Wonderful person. Below is Jefferson Airplane playing a live concert on a rooftop in New York … one year before The Beatles.

There have been several threads before on parasitic infestation discovered in ancient societies. This finding at Durrington Walls near Stonehenge is possibly the oldest finding of parasitic infection found in the UK. https://www.heritagedaily.com/2022/05/faeces-found-near-stonehenge-contains-prehistoric-parasites/143652?amp Intestinal parasites in the Neolithic population who built Stonehenge (Durrington Walls, 2500 BCE) | Parasitology | Cambridge Core I had to look up capillariasis up from the CDC information site: https://www.cdc.gov/parasites/capillaria/index.html

Below is an interesting short on the Sassanid horsemen:

An ancient Greek ring with a beautiful design of two sphinxes has been returned to its museum in Rhodes after being removed during WW II. [Interestingly, the Island of Rhodes is 225 miles (360 Km) from the southeast coast of Greek mainland but only 11 miles (18 km) from the southern shore of Turkey.] https://greekcitytimes.com/2022/05/21/an-ancient-gold-ring-adorned-with-two-sphinxes-returned-to-greece-after-world-war-ii-theft/

A strange collection of coins have been found by an amateur detectorist: At this point, the details are somewhat limited. It seems, however, that this is a diverse haul. I am uncertain whether this came from a single hoard or was a collection of separate hoards and isolated finds in one area. Finding a coin from distant Numidia is interesting, however. https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10826573/Detectorist-30-inspired-Indiana-Jones-finds-65-000-Roman-hoard.html

More people are doing home DNA genetic testing. Sometimes the results have been surprising. Interestingly, several people have told me they have a small percentage Neanderthal DNA. Although I initially thought that this finding was an error, I am now convinced that it was correct: I had to investigate this further. Modern humans, Neanderthals, and Denisovans all shared a common ancestor called Homo heidelbergensis. Between 300,000 and 400,000 years ago, one group of Homo heidelbergensis left Africa. They expanded into Eurasia and then split: Those that moved west into Europe evolved into Neanderthals. The ones that moved east into Asia became Denisovans. The human ancestors that remained in Africa evolved into our own species—Homo sapiens. And it appears that humans were shagging both Neanderthals and Denisovans. It shouldn't be surprising how close in appearance the Neanderthals were with humans: It appears that humans are more diverse than first appreciated. Below is a good lecture on these relationships among Neanderthals, Denisovans, and humans. https://medlineplus.gov/genetics/understanding/dtcgenetictesting/neanderthaldna/

An interesting view of the Esna Temple revealed:

There have been previous discussions about the use of vanilla in the wine of the Kingdom of Judah. Vanillin is an organic substance that is extracted from the vanilla bean. It can also be found in lower concentrations naturally in grapes and other organic substances. However, the higher concentration of vanillin found in at least five recovered ancient jars can only be attributed to the import of the distant spice vanilla. Here are good articles on the findings. http://www.sci-news.com/archaeology/ancient-vanilla-wine-10794.html https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0266085

It is easy to forget how colorful the ancient world really was. https://www.heritagedaily.com/2022/05/restoration-work-reveals-original-colour-and-patterns-in-ancient-egyptian-temple/143605?amp https://english.ahram.org.eg/News/466145.aspx We have had several threads before on the colorful grandeur that was once Ancient Rome:

This study that shows ancient grains were more nutritionally dense than modern grains may answer many questions about the Romans’ ability to have a primarily vegetarian diet. (The previous thread about the gladiator’s vegetarian diet is found below.) Summary: Paleoethnobiologists are helping historians reassess our view of ancient life. Knowing that crops had a greater nutritional content supports the idea that there could have been a greater reliance on a mostly vegetarian diet than previously imagined: https://news.umich.edu/ancient-grains-grant-will-help-u-m-researchers-rethink-roman-diets/

A subject I had never thought about was the long struggle between Neanderthals and Homo sapiens for domination. Here is an interesting article that delves into that struggle: https://www.inverse.com/science/humans-vs-neanderthals Here’s an interesting video that explores the relationship between the two species further:

Roman Amphorae have been discovered while preparing defenses in Odessa, Ukraine: The extant and influence of the Roman Empire was staggering. https://www.heritagedaily.com/2022/05/ukrainian-soldiers-find-ancient-amphorae-whilst-digging-defences/143599?amp Here is a good review of the Roman Empire in Ukraine. http://www.encyclopediaofukraine.com/display.asp?linkpath=pages\R\O\Romans.htm#:~:text=Many Roman merchants settled there,the 2nd to 5th centuries

Many artifacts from the second and third centuries A.D. were unearthed in an underground city in Mardin's Midyat district in Turkey, as shown in this April 16 photo. (Image credit: Photo by Halil Ibrahim Sincar/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images) Excavation teams discovered that a cave, which was found during works carried out in the historical streets and houses in the district two years ago, opened up into underground corridors that provide passages to different places. (Image credit: Photo by Halil Ibrahim Sincar/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images) A possible underground city that was a refuge from Romans in Turkey has been discovered. https://www.livescience.com/christians-hid-from-romans-in-underground-city

The Elgin marbles have been a source of controversy. Recovery of the ship that originally carried the marble (but sank) is being further investigated. (Elgin's shipwreck the Mentor) So far, at least, there has been no spectacular finds. The marble pieces had been recovered and taken to the British Museum two centuries ago. Small pieces of nautical wreckage have been recovered, however. (Nautical instrument found in the wreckage) From The Depths Of Despair: Lord Elgin And The Parthenon Sculptures (greekcitytimes.com)

(Fresco of a gambling dice table) Rome and the rest of the ancient world became another place after the sun set. Both enticing and treacherous, the night offered opportunities for food and socializing, but also the dangers of robbery or bodily injury. Here’s an entertaining video on “Bars and Nightlife in Ancient Rome”

Thank goodness things are opening up.

Here is an interesting article on masculinity in Ancient Greece. https://www.haaretz.com/archaeology/manhood-in-ancient-greece-battle-blood-and-not-being-a-bottom-1.10787527

Here is a wonderful article on the Latin accents in the ancient world by classical language expert professor Wolfgang de Melo of Oxford. https://antigonejournal.com/2022/05/latin-accent/

An interesting conference In Basel, Switzerland. (I guess see Zoom attendance is available): “Palaeoclimatologists believe to have identified a period of unusually warm and humid weather in Europe and the Mediterranean that expanded from roughly 200 BCE to 150 CE, which they called the ‘Roman Climate Optimum’ or the ‘Roman warm period’. Some historians have linked this overall perseverance of unusually stable and favorable climatic conditions to the expansion of the Roman Empire to its greatest height, and argue that these predominantly warm and humid conditions in large parts of the Empire enabled the delivery of sufficient supply to the growing urban population around the Mediterranean and to the Roman army.” ”This international conference will be the first that is specifically devoted to the notion of a Roman Climate Optimum and its impact on the fate of the Roman Empire.” https://ancientclimate.philhist.unibas.ch/en/event/the-end-of-the-roman-climate-optimum-and-the-disintegration-of-the-roman-empire/

Here’s another article on the exhibit. https://www.lonelyplanet.com/news/pompeii-sexual-erotic-art-exhibition