December 21st News

The news for the day of the Winter Solstice.

New stories as of 9:30 AM:

Bulgaria Plagued By 'Grave Robbers'
Spiegel Online
From an archaeological point of view, Bulgaria has some of the richest digs around. The problem is, plunderers are aware of the valuable treasure as well. And they often get there first...
http://www.spiegel.de/international/europe/0,1518,524976,00.html

In Pictures: Ancient Roman Paintings
BBC News
A unique exhibition of 2,000-year-old paintings called Pompeian Red has opened at the National Museum of Rome...
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/shared/spl/hi/picture_gallery/07/europe_ancient_roman_paintings/html/1.stm
A slide show of ten images of the Roman frescoes on display. Each painting also has a description with dates and other information.

Ancient Houses Excavated And Restored In Italy
CCTV.com
Two houses of ancient Rome are unveiled, reborn to grace the basement of a government office building in Italy's capital. They are two upper-class homes, located, excavated, then restored to their ancient grace with the aid of high technology...
http://www.cctv.com/program/cultureexpress/20071221/107620.shtml

Masterpieces From The Ruins Of Pompeii
The Independent
The wall paintings that first brought the civilisation of ancient Italy home to modern Europeans went on show in Rome yesterday, for the first time in decades...
http://news.independent.co.uk/europe/article3273187.ece

Ancient Villas Restored In Rome
Associated Press
ROME (AP) — The restored ruins of two opulent Roman villas and private thermal baths will open to the public Saturday, along with a 3-D reconstruction that offers a virtual tour of the luxurious residences discovered in downtown Rome...
http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5hH_6aifHIo6zRXuDR2Ua1SXfvahQD8TLCVK80

Top Ten Archaeological Stories Of 2007
National Geographic News
The founders of Rome, the builders of Stonehenge, and ancient Egypt's "female king" were among the stars of this year's most popular archaeology stories from National Geographic News...
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2007/12/071220-archaeology.html

Gaulish Haul Discovered
NZ Herald
Asterix and Obelix, had they existed, might have paid for their mead and other magic potions with gold-silver-copper coins stamped with elaborate images of men and horses...
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/2/story.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=10483630

Ancient Egyptian Glassmaking Recreated
Science Daily
ScienceDaily (Dec. 21, 2007) — A team led by a Cardiff University archaeologist has reconstructed a 3,000-year-old glass furnace, showing that Ancient Egyptian glassmaking methods were much more advanced than previously thought...
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/12/071214094026.htm