Stone Pageshttp://www.stonepages.com****** Archaeo News no.108 (22 January 2005) ******
Contents:
* The return of the Bronze Age dagger
* Prehistoric huts found in Colorado
* Archaeologists discover 6000-year-old rocky village in Iran
* Workmen find body in bog machine
* Rare Iron Age wooden bowl unearthed in England
* Ritual complex saved from the developers
* Tourism potential of Scottish village's ancient past
* Replica Bronze Age boat makes maiden voyage
* Archaeologists begin excavation of 3400 year old wall
* Healing ceremony at ancient burial site
* Neolithic stone tool workshop spotted in China
The return of the Bronze Age daggerA Bronze Age dagger has been returned to the town that it has called home since about 1400 BCE. The prehistoric weapon was unearthed during the excavation of Testwood Lakes in Totton (Hampshire, England) nearly a decade ago. The foot-long dagger was donated to the Totton and Eling Heritage Centre as their main exhibit when it opened in 1996. It left the town on loan to the Salisbury and South Wiltshire Museum where it was on display celebrating the 25th anniversary of Wessex Archaeology for most of last year.
Staff uncovered the dagger, which is one of their most major finds, when they were commissioned by Southern Water to excavate the area so that the reservoir there could be widened. David Blackwell-Eaton, manager of the heritage centre, said: "We are extremely pleased to have it returning. It's quite an important and very impressive find. It's by far the single most important exhibit we have. Not a great deal of archaeology has been done around the Totton area and to have something of this standard on display in a little place like Totton is very lucky."
A Bronze Age bridge was unearthed during the excavation and the dagger was found among the timber remains. "These kind of items were
expensive so it would had to have belonged to a noble or warrior," added Mr Blackwell-Eaton. A copy of the weapon was made before it went back on display to be kept at the Interpretation Centre at Testwood Lakes.
Source: This is Southampton (22 January 2005)
This Is SouthamptonPrehistoric huts found in ColoradoA team of archaeologists looking for historical artifacts at the Rueter-Hess Reservoir construction site (Colorado, USA) has found
traces of huts used by nomadic tribes up to 5,000 years ago. Centennial Archaeology Inc., an archaeological surveyor, found 'shallow, basin-type structures' five feet below the ground's surface, said Chris Zier, owner of the company. The 'saucer-shaped depressions,' which are roughly 3 to 3.5 meters in diameter, were dug by tribes and covered by a crude brush structure made of sticks and other natural materials, he said. "These people were mainly
hunter-gatherers, so they didn't stay in one place," Zier said. "But that doesn't mean they didn't live without shelter."
Although the artifacts have not been carbon-dated, Zier said the excavation team has found spear points used in the Middle Archaic Period roughly 3,000 to 5,000 years ago. The artifacts are being tested in the Centennial Archaeology laboratory and more data will be available by the end of the month. One site has been excavated and crews recently began work on a second one. The team will comb a total of four sites, some of which are near an area planned for a water treatment plant. Fire pits, stone tools and debitage - flakes and chips from stone tool production - have already been found at the prehistoric sites. The artifacts will be removed and put into storage for the Douglas County Historical Society. Norma Miller, a member of the society, was not aware of the discovery but was excited to find out her organization would be receiving the items. The pieces will be on display when the historical society finds a location for a museum.
Zier said the find is not rare for the area; archaeologist have uncovered about 100 similar sites in Colorado and Wyoming. Weaver Construction will be permitted to resume work at the reservoir site once the artifacts are collected.
Source: Douglas County News-Press (20 January 2005)
Douglas County News PressArchaeologists discover 6000-year-old rocky village in IranIranian archaeologists recently discovered a 6000-year-old rocky habitation with more than 800 cells in the Barez Mountains, east of the Halil-Rud River in southern Kerman Province, the director of the archaeological team working in the Halil-Rud River area said. "The
rocky village is located at a height of 250 meters with two and four square meter cells. The habitation is Iran's most ancient rock
residence ever discovered," Davud Abyan added.
The Halil-Rud plains are covered with over 100,000 ancient shards, but no written documents identifying the ancient inhabitants
of the region have been discovered yet. We surmise that the people of ancient Jiroft lived in the rocky habitation," Abyan said. Last week, Abyan announced that his team had discovered the ruins of a once prosperous Islamic city near the town of Anbarabad in the Halil-Rud region. They had also excavated a major industrial center dating back to approximately 3000 BCE in Anbarabad.
Source: Tehran Times (20 January 2005)
Tehran TimesWorkmen find body in bog machineWorkmen at the Bord na Mona works in Mountdillon (Co Longford, Ireland) made a chilling discovery when they uncovered what is now known to be parts of a human skeleton in the body of a machine. The machine in question - a massive harvester - was brought in for a
routine service and the grim discovery was made as a team of fitters were about to begin their work. Works manage immediately notified
local Gardai and in turn a team of archaeologists were rushed down from Dublin.
A quick examination of the remains confirmed that they were human but at this stage the archaeologists could give no indication as to how long the body may have been in the bog of whether or not it died from natural causes. Two archaeologists took the remains back to Dublin and they will carry out an extensive examination of the remains. At this stage there is still no indication as to whether the
remains are male or female.
It is more than probable that the remains have been in the body of the harvester since the semi-state company ended seasonal harvesting work towards the end of last year. It is not unusual for workmen to uncover skeletal remains in a bog but this is certainly the first in recent memory to be found in Co Longford. Bogs can be treacherous places and it is thought likely that bodies found in the peat were those of ancient travellers who slipped into bog pools and were trapped. Some ancient bodies discovered were supposedly clutching heather or sticks as if attempting to haul themselves out.
Coincidentally it is now ten years since the opening of the Corlea Interpretative Centre in Kenagh and that was the result of another chance discovery by Bord na Mona workers. The trackway was discovered by workmen close to Kenagh village and dates to the Iron Age at 148 BCE. It was composed of oak planks, measuring 2.5m each, which rested on parallel pairs of long runners at right angles to the direction of the track way. In places the oak planks were secured by sharpened pegs of birch driven through mortices at their ends. The track way extended for a distance of almost 1km across the bog.
Source: The Longford Leader (19 January 2005)
Longford LeaderRare Iron Age wooden bowl unearthed in EnglandArchaeologists working on a site near Lincoln, England, having uncovered wooden and stone artefacts, some dating back to 3,000 years
ago.
The site was discovered during work on a flood bank strengthening scheme on the River Witham near Washinborough. Since November last year, over 10,000 items have been removed from the dig, including an extremely rare wooden bowl and a stone tablet.
Mark Allen of Preconstruct Archaeology believes the items probably date from 800 to 1,000 BCE. He said "We have uncovered a wooden bowl that is as thin as glass and beautifully made. We also found a small stone tablet with circles that is mould for smelting metal. The tin or gold would be used to make rivets for decorative purposes - possibly on knife handles. We have known about the site since the 1970s - when the pumping station was built. Workmen called in the museum when they found bones and the researchers found late Bronze Age to early Iron Age pottery."
Environment Agency consultant Peter Senior said: "The level of preservation of timber is absolutely amazing. We are led to believe
that this is a site of European importance."
Source: BBC (19 January 2005)
BBC News LincolnshireRitual complex saved from the developersPlans for a massive film studio development in Perthshire, Scotland, have temporarily been put on hold.
The controversial plans would have radically altered a rich ritual landscape which features a standing stone, several enclosures, the remains of a four-poster stone circle, a Class I henge, an enclosed cremation cemetery, a round barrow, a probable palisaded homestead, several ring-ditches, pits and enclosures, and numerous crop-marks.
Although the scheduled monuments would have been protected by a buffer zone, their vista would have been changed irreparably by the
planned car parks, golf clubhouse and hotel which would have hemmed in the sites on all sides.
The developers, Quillco 100 Ltd., have temporarily withdrawn their original plans after being advised that Perth and Kinross Council planning officials were going to advise councillors to turn down project's go-ahead at a meeting next month. However, they intend to submit revised plans later in the year.
A Quillco spokesperson said: "Withdrawing outline proposals at this stage will allow comments, suggestions and concerns raised during the consultation phase to be addressed. As detailed plans and reports are finalised, public consultation will continue within the
Strathearn and wider area. This will include a team of liaison officers being put in place to host a number of public meetings and informal public consultation days within the local community in order to establish a more informative and inclusive finalised planning
application in the near future. Those backing the vision of a film studio-led residential and leisure development at Aberuthven stress
they remain 100 per cent. committed to delivering the project. All project partners look forward to working with and alongside all
concerned parties over the coming weeks and months to deliver this new and exciting project for Scotland."
Aberuthven, the village closest to the proposed site, is made up of just 124 houses, which would have been dwarfed the development, which also included plans for 600 homes. Scottish Natural Heritage voiced concerns about the effect on the landscape, the visual impact
and the threat to local wildlife including foul, otters and bats. The Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) objected to the initial application because of the flood risk and uncertainty regarding the proposed foul drainage arrangements. The site is a flood plain for the nearby River Earn, and two weeks ago was under 1.5m of water.
Bill Fyfe of Aberuthven Community Threatened (ACT) said "Why should anyone be surprised by a known flood plain flooding? It would be crazy to propose building on it, as no matter what proposals the developer puts in place we should all have learned from what has happened over the past month in Asia that when mother nature decides to do something there is very little we can do to stop it."
Source: Aberuthven Community Threatened / The Courier / Perthshire
Advertiser / Radio Tay (18 January 2005)
The CourierPerth NewsTourism potential of Scottish village's ancient pastA veteran campaigner is urging the members of the Scottish Parliament (MSPs) to unlock the tourism potential of one of Scotland's most ancient historic areas.
Cramond, four mile north west of Edinburgh, was shown in 2001 to be the earliest known place of human settlement in Scotland, with tiny fragments of discarded hazelnut shells dating back to 8500 BCE found by archaeologists, pushing the starting date for Scottish civilisation back about 500 years.
Ronnie Guild was behind one of the earliest petitions to the Scottish Parliament, and succeeded five years ago in persuading MSPs to launch an investigation into the area's history. The Parliament set up a management group chaired by Edinburgh City Council which appointed consultants, and signs went up to highlight the area's Roman past.
But now Mr Guild wants Cramond's wider history to be celebrated. He said "Where it went wrong right at the start was when they focused on the Roman element and they employed the consultants on that basis," he said. I wanted them to look at the whole area and the whole span of history. We could reconstruct settlements from the different periods which were present in the Cramond area. Pupils could come and see all these stages of human development."
Edinburgh City Council said Cramond had been recognised as a site of international archaeological importance and that a five-year plan to develop the site to its full potential had been drawn up. A spokeswoman said: "Archaeological evaluation and assessment work is currently being carried out in the area to establish the restoration work needed and then to arrange to have that work done."
Source: Edinburgh Evening News (18 January 2005)
Edinburgh Evening NewsReplica Bronze Age boat makes maiden voyageStudents from Hull University in the north east of England this week launched a replica Bronze Age boat.
The boat, named Oakleaf by North Ferriby schoolgirl Katherine Imrie, set out on the River Humber not far from where three Bronze Age boats were discovered. The oak timbers of the boats were excavated by amateur archaeologist Ted Wright between 1937 and 1963.
The replica was built in Southampton and was partly funded by Mr Wright's family. Mr Wright died three years ago, but his son travelled north to see the boat's launch, and said "It was his life's hobby and he was still going when he was in his 80s. For the first time there was a puddle of Humber water in the boat when it came out of the river."
John Davis, a former chairman of Hull's Sail Training Association, has worked to bring the replica to Hull as part of SeaBritain 2005, a celebration of the UK's maritime heritage. He said: "The weather was great, the tide was right and the crowds turned out. Everybody had a great day. We were a bit worried as she hadn't been in the water for a year."
It is hoped that a full-size replica will now be built, possibly at Dunstan's Shipyard in Hessle, near Hull. The only earlier similar planked boats found so far were ceremonial vessels belonging to the Egyptian pharaohs.
Source: Yorkshire Post (17 January 2005)
Yorkshire PostArchaeologists begin excavation of 3400 year old wallA combined team of German students and Iranian archaeologists have begun excavating a huge wall discovered in the 3400 year old ruins of the ancient city of Kabnak in Khuzestan Province, Iran.
The students, from the University of Tubingen, accompanied Iranian archaeologist Dr. Mofidi to the ruins of Haft Tappeh, where Kabnak is located, last year, and have now returned to continue their
work.
The archaeologists believe that the wall was part of a tall building. Prior to the Islamic Revolution, archaeologist Ezzatollah Negahban suggested that the huge wall was part of a ziggurat.
Source: Mehrnews.com (17 January 2005)
Mehr NewsHealing ceremony at ancient burial siteTribal leaders held a healing ceremony last week at the site of an ancient Indian village in Washington State, USA.
Construction work begun in August 2003 uncovered around 315 intact burials and thousands of bone fragments at the ancient Klallam village of Tse-whit-zen, parts of which have been dated at 2,700 years old.
The Department of Transportation (DOT) were building pontoons for the replacement of the east half of the Hood Canal Bridge near Port Angeles when the burials were disturbed. Work stopped while archaeologists worked alongside the Lower Elwha Klallam to recover the human remains. Some construction workers attended the ceremony which was led by Tribal Chairwoman Frances Charles.
Dan Starks said "I wanted to offer respect for the Natives I work with; they mean a lot to me, we grew up in the same town, went to the same schools, worked here at the same job. I could see this was hard on them; it would be hard on me."
Dennis Sullivan, vice chairman of the Lower Elwha Tribal Council, said "How much this means, to have this support, to see the different nationalities and races standing there in support, this is great medicine for the Klallam people; we have suffered and been in such pain."
Tse-whit-zen is the largest pre-European-contact village site ever found in Washington State, according to Larson Anthropological Archaeological Services who are analyzing the site for the DOT. Other finds include bone and antler artefacts, cooking pits, drying racks, areas where sacred red ochre was processed for ceremonial use, tools, points, fishhooks, ornamental objects and hundreds of stones etched with sacred teachings.
Currently the future of the site is undecided.
Source: Seattle Times (16 January 2005)
Seattle TimesNeolithic stone tool workshop spotted in ChinaArchaeologists have discovered what is believed to be China's largest stone tool processing workshop of the Neolithic Age. The workshop, with an area of 1,200 sq metres, was spotted in some ruins dating back about 7,000 years ago in the Guangxi Zhuang region, said Lin Qiang, a deputy researcher fellow with the autonomous regional cultural heritage research team.
Tens of thousands of stone tools and instruments such as stones in the shape of hammers and chopping blocks, whetstone and semi-finished stoneware were unearthed from the site of the workshop.
Experts said that judging from the pile-up of the stoneware, the workshop site could have been used for approximately 100 years before it was abandoned.
Apart from its large size, acknowledged Lin, the ancient workshop had also left behind doubts and suspicions: where had these stone tools had gone to and why did ancestors discard this workshop?
He said what amazed archaeologists was that they excavated more than 20 tombs belonging to the Neolithic Age, the period from the Shang Dynasty (1600-1100 BCE) to the Warring States Period (475-221 BCE) and Han Dynasty (206-220 CE). It is rare for tombs of different historical periods to be found at the same site, archaeologists said, adding that the discovery would provide evidence for the study of ancient cultural progress in the area.
Sources: Indo-Asian News Service, NewKerala (11 January 2004)
Indo-Asian News Service***************************************
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