The plaster cast figures from Pompeii are pretty famous. The casts are made by pouring plaster into hollows left in the ash by an item that has decomposed (like bodies, wood, etc.). The resulting figures capture the expressions and last moments of the people who were killed by the eruption of Vesuvius in 79CE. A snippet of a documentary shows the mice from Pompeii captured using the same plaster technique developed by Fiorelli:...
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Learn Latin Online
I found a link to an online Latin immersion course, Latinum. The course provides sample tracks along with some text for studying. Sounds interesting. I started studying Latin last fall, but ended up setting it aside due to lack of time and server issues with the course. I learned a lot while I was in it. (Learning Latin using a French text was *hard*. Here’s to having friends who have taught Latin or...
Continue reading...Shrine to Jupiter found at Vindolanda
Found a link to the article below on Archaeological News. Amazing find! I’d love to be able to see it. To my friend on the right side of the pond — if you get to visit the site, send me a picture? hexham-courant.co.uk — ONE of the most important artefacts ever unearthed at the Vindolanda Roman site near Bardon Mill could also be the heaviest. The 1.5 tonne altar depicts Jupiter riding a...
Continue reading...Destroying an archaeological site to build a Sam’s Club
I was reading Archaeologica during lunch and discovered an article about an American Indian mound in Oxford, Alabama being used as fill dirt for a Sam’s Club. The council members don’t seem to care about the possible historical site being demolished. Instead they are doing “what is best” for the city. Here are some articles about the destruction of this mound: “Wal-Mart and the Mound Builders,” blog post by Heather Pringle on Archeology...
Continue reading...Archaeo: Roman Column Painted in Light
Ancient Greek and Roman sculptures were not always plain white marble. And now Italian researchers are giving the Trajan Column a fresh coat of paint – with light. Rossella Lorenzi reports. read more | digg story Related Images:
Continue reading...Remains Of Gallo-Roman Winery in Burgundy
Science Daily had an article on the remains of a Gallo-Roman winery found in Burgundy. My favourite region in France is Burgundy. I should post some of the pictures I have of the grapevine-covered hill sides. It’s amazing. It would have been The Place to do a wine tasting — if I wasn’t allergic to alcohol… Gevrey-Chambertin, 12 km from Dijon, is famous throughout the world for its Burgundy wines. It is now...
Continue reading...Archaeologists Find Earliest Known Domestic Horses
An international team of archaeologists has uncovered the earliest known evidence of horses being domesticated by humans. The discovery suggests that horses were both ridden and milked. read more | digg story Related Images:
Continue reading...A Digital Eye of Horus for Archaeologists
As technology evolves at an increasingly rapid rate, the study of ancient sites is aided by some of its developments. One such tool that has leaped into the hands of Egyptlogists and Archaeologists in recent years is the satellite. A great boon to any study of a site is the ability to view an area from above. read more | digg story Related Images:
Continue reading...Seleukid coin with mare and foal
My friend Nantonos owns a Seleukid coin depicting a mare and foal.
Continue reading...Hairstyles in Ancient Greece and Rome
The History Blog has a good brief peice on the history of Greek and Roman hairstyles. Some good illustrations, too. It never ceases to amaze me that some things in the ancient world are well documented, and others are not. It’s possible to define possible date ranges for Greek and Roman statues based upon depicted clothing and hair styles. Related Images:
Continue reading...Archaeological Dig Uncovers Roman Mystery
Even though this find is later than my own period of interest (100 BCE to 400 CE), there are some interesting elements described. University of British Columbia archaeologists have dug up a mystery worthy of Indiana Jones, one that includes a tomb, skeletons and burial rites with both Christian and pagan elements. read more | digg story Related Images:
Continue reading...Witches of Cornwall (Archaeology Magazine)
Tis the season for this particular season. The finds in the article below are interesting — especially since the finds date to as late as the 1950s. Macabre evidence of age-old spells surfaces in an archaeologist’s front yard. Witchcraft, the rituals of a number of pagan belief systems, was thought to offer control of the world through rites and incantations. Carbon dating places evidence from the 1600s through the 1950s. read more |...
Continue reading...Ostia Antica Frescoes
Here are the image from the article about the restored frescoes in Ostia Antica, Italy. Amazingly preserved. read more | digg story Related Images:
Continue reading...Archaeologists Unveil Majestic Roman Ruins That Rival Riches
Officials in Ostia Antica hope that the decade-long restoration of four dwellings will focus new attention on this once-bustling port west of Rome. read more | digg story Related Images:
Continue reading...Scientist discovers flaw in Oceanic Carbon dating
It is interesting when something considered as stable as carbon dating gets reevaluated. What might this mean for archaeologists who use carbon dating on artifacts? As a consequence of the findings, changes in 13C/12C records need to be reevaluated, conclusions regarding changes in the reservoirs of carbon will have to be reassessed, and some of the widely-held ideas regarding the elevation of CO2 during specific periods of the Earth’s geological history will have...
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