September 19th News

There's lots of news today. I'm actually fairly sure I've missed stories, but I'm running out of time for the day to post.

New stories as of 6:47 AM:

Lullingstone Roman Villa
This Is Sussex
One of England's most important Roman sites has re-opened after the completion a year long refurbishment project...
http://www.thisissussex.co.uk/entertainment/Lullingstone-Roman-Villa-1/article-334217-detail/article.html

Dead Sea Scrolls To Be Showcased At ROM Next Year
National Post
The biggest international exhibition yet of the Dead Sea Scrolls will be showcased at the Royal Ontario Museum next year...
http://network.nationalpost.com/np/blogs/toronto/archive/2008/09/18/dead-sea-scrolls-to-be-showcased-at-rom-next-year.aspx

'Ancient' Christian Amulet Exposed As Modern Hoax
Times Online
A silver cross regarded as one of the most important early Christian artefacts found in Britain is a modern fake, scientists confirmed yesterday...
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/faith/article4783042.ece
This is certainly something you don't see too often in the news. I wonder how often it really happens. The last one I can think of was the Jesus Family Tomb controversy.

Bulgarian Archaeologist Georgi Kitov Dies At 65
Associated Press
SOFIA, Bulgaria (AP) — Archaeologist Georgi Kitov — an expert on the treasure-rich Thracian culture of antiquity — died of a heart attack while excavating a temple in central Bulgaria considered to be one of his greatest discoveries, his family said Thursday...
http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5iVhJBNwN-kmrDM4Q9FoVe6Hd2yygD939AF8O1
I know I've linked a number of articles where he's been interviewed. Just check the 'bulgaria' tag to see them. He seems to have been an archaeologist with tremendous luck when it came to new and spectacular discoveries.

Colchester: Roman Circus Site - New Deal
Gazette
A DEAL has been negotiated which could allow the public daily access to the site of the starting gates of Colchester's Roman circus...
http://www.gazette-news.co.uk/news/businessnews/3681087.Colchester__Roman_circus_site___new_deal/

'Field Of Dreams' Treasure Site May Be Investigated
The Press And Journal
Two men using metal detectors find hoard of coins and other artefacts...
http://www.pressandjournal.co.uk/Article.aspx/846053?UserKey=

Tracing Urban Development In Ancient Pompeii
SF State News
September 19, 2008 -- During SF State's first archeological field school in Pompeii this summer students unearthed a preserved drain pipe and its contents from the first century -- evidence that will provide clues about the urban development of Pompeii...
http://www.sfsu.edu/~news/2008/fall/7.html

Georgi Kitov
Telegraph.co.uk
Archaeologist who unearthed a remarkable Thracian treasure trove in Bulgaria's 'Valley of the Kings'...
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/obituaries/2984482/Georgi-Kitov.html

'Ancient' Christian silver cross worn by former Archbishop of Canterbury is exposed as a 19th century FAKE
Mail Online
Since its dramatic discovery in a Roman burial site, this silver cross was hailed as the earliest evidence of Christian worship in Britain...
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1057648/Ancient-Christian-silver-cross-worn-Archbishop-Canterbury-exposed-19th-century-FAKE.html

'Ancient' Christian Amulet Declared A Fake
Telegraph.co.uk
The discovery of the tiny silver cross in a fourth century Christian burial site was hailed as one of the archaelogical finds of the century...
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/religion/2982490/Ancient-Christian-amulet-declared-a-fake.html

Archaeologists Uncover 10th-Century Viking Shield
Charleston Daily Mail
COPENHAGEN, Denmark -- Danish archaeologists say they have found a well-preserved Viking shield that is more than 1,000 years old...
http://www.dailymail.com/News/NationandWorld/200809180221
Also published at:
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080918/ap_on_sc/eu_denmark_viking_shield_1;_ylt=Ahl1r57.kBU3kTWuJ8y6G2RFeQoB

Medieval Cross Stone Discovered Underwater In Veliki Novogrod
Russia IC
Underwater archaeologists working on Volkhov River in Veliki Novgorod have found a huge 12th century stone with a cross, which disappeared in the 1960s...
http://www.russia-ic.com/news/show/7092/

Important Finds In Bronze Age Settlement
Cyprus Mail
ARCHAEOLOGISTS have uncovered the remains of an unusual 1.2 metre high wall with once curved end and one straight end during continued excavations at Kissonerga-Skalia in Paphos...
http://www.cyprus-mail.com/news/main.php?id=41472&cat_id=1

Georgi Kito, Bulgarian Archaeologist
International Herald Tribune
Georgi Kitov, a Bulgarian archaeologist whose discoveries helped illuminate the culture of ancient Thrace, but whose methods - especially using bulldozers and backhoes - appalled his more meticulous colleagues, died Sunday in Starosel, Bulgaria. He was 65...
http://www.iht.com/articles/2008/09/18/news/obits.php

September 4th News

There's a lot of stories today, ranging from more on yesterday's stories to some entirely new stories. Some of them throw out new details on stories from previous posts, and some of them are entirely new, about new discoveries.

New stories as of 9:01 AM:

National Archaeological Museum...
Kathimerini
Culture Minister Michalis Liapis gestures before the upper section of a marble tomb, one of two ancient artifacts returned to Greece by US collector Shelby White, at the National Archaeological Museum in Athens yesterday...
http://www.ekathimerini.com/4dcgi/_w_articles_politics_100005_04/09/2008_100118

Science Brings Back Ancient Instrument
Dallas Morning News
You know that harp-like instrument you always see nymphs and satyrs playing when you look at the illustrations in a book of Greek myths? It's not actually a harp. It's called an epigonion...
http://techblog.dallasnews.com/archives/2008/09/science-brings-back-ancient-in.html

Archaeologists Shed Light On Ancient Caananite Burial Rituals
The Daily Star
SIDON: The British Museum's excavation team in Sidon on Wednesday declared the end of its mission for 2008 at the "Freres" excavation site near the southern port city's fortress...
http://www.dailystar.com.lb/article.asp?edition_id=1&categ_id=1&article_id=95699

Astra Revives Forgotten Sounds
The Inquirer
SOUNDS THAT HAVE been dead for years are being revived electronically thanks to a new computer modelling project...
http://www.theinquirer.net/gb/inquirer/news/2008/09/03/astra-revives-forgotten-sounds

Roman Fort Is Found In The Lake District
The Whitehaven News
A Roman camp, said to be of national significance, has been discovered on the outskirts of Keswick...
http://www.whitehaven-news.co.uk/1.232739

Found: Ancient Capital Of 'Jewish' Khazar Kingdom
Arutz Sheva
A team of archaeologists claims to have discovered remnants of the legendary Khazar kingdom in southern Russia, according to a recent report. If the findings by the Russian team, reported by the French agency AFP, prove to be indeed the long-lost capital of the reputed Jewish state, they would represent one of the largest breakthroughs in Jewish archaeology...
http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/127483

Hereford's Ribbon Has Backing Of Government
Hereford Times
HEREFORD’S Rotherwas Ribbon is worth preserving – and that’s official...
http://www.herefordtimes.com/news/3645073.Hereford_s_Ribbon_has_backing_of_government/
I linked a lot of stories about this site last year. It's interesting to see what's being said about it now. So often a story is picked up briefly, and nothing more comes of it.

Israeli Diggers Uncover Ancient Jerusalem Wall, Continuing Work Begun A Century Ago
Chicago Tribune
JERUSALEM (AP) _ Israeli archaeologists say they have uncovered new sections of Jerusalem's ancient walls, continuing a project started more than a century ago...
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/sns-ap-israel-archaeology,0,1403276.story
Also published at:
http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5hULCIa_wLA2b2BkhgMpPKtJn3rvgD92VFC0G0

Greece Welcomes Return Of Antiquities
The New York Times
On Wednesday Greece celebrated the return of two rare antiquities, Reuters reported. The items, a bronze vase from the fourth-century B.C. and the upper part of a marble tombstone, have been put on display at the National Archaeological Museum in Athens...
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/04/arts/04arts-GREECEWELCOM_BRF.html?ref=arts

Vladimir Monomakh Seal Discovered In Novogrod
Russia InfoCentre
A lead seal has been recently found during archeological excavation in Veliki Novgorod. It belonged to legendary Prince Vladimir Monomakh, scientists presume...
http://www.russia-ic.com/news/show/7005/

Tutankhamen Fathered Twins, Mummified Fetuses Suggest
ScienceDaily
Two fetuses found in the tomb of Tutankhamen may have been twins and were very likely to have been the children of the teenage Pharaoh, according to the anatomist who first studied the mummified remains of the young King in the 1960s...
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/09/080902143322.htm

September 3rd News

There's a lot of smaller stories this morning.

New stories as of 6:34 AM:

Plateau May Be Ancient Gateway In Cyprus
Newspost Online
New research has suggested that a fortified settlement with a shrine that stood on a plateau near the eastern Larnaca coast in Cyprus, could have been the original gateway to Pyla, a village located in the eastern part of the island...
http://www.newspostonline.com/sci-tech/plateau-may-be-ancient-gateway-in-cyprus-200809034053

Ancient Musical Instruments Play Again Through Astra Project
Computing News
Ancient musical instruments can now be heard for the first time in hundreds of years, due to a new computer modelling project. ASTRA (Ancient instruments Sound/Timbre Reconstruction Application) has recreated the sounds of the harp-like Epigonion musical instrument from Ancient Greece and has performed one of the oldest known musical scores dating back to the Middle Ages...
http://home.nestor.minsk.by/computers/news/2008/09/0302.html

Reclaimed Antiquities Exhibited
IOL
Athens - Two ancient artifacts illegally removed from Greece decades ago went on display in Athens on Wednesday after a US-based collector was persuaded to repatriate them, the Greek culture ministry said...
http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?set_id=1&click_id=24&art_id=nw20080903135848560C475999

Roman Camp Found By Chance
Ellismere Port Standard
A nationally significant discovery of a Roman camp, thought to date back to the first century, has solved a mystery in Cumbria spanning hundreds of years...
http://www.ellesmereportstandard.co.uk/latest-north-west-news/Roman-camp-found-by-chance.4454284.jp

Roman Fort Found In The Lake District
News & Star
A Roman camp, said to be of national significance, has been discovered on the outskirts of Keswick...
http://www.newsandstar.co.uk/news/1.232739

Russian Archaeologists Find Long-Lost Jewish Capital
ABC News
Russian archaeologists say they have found the long-lost capital of the Khazar kingdom in southern Russia, a breakthrough for research on the ancient Jewish state...
http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2008/09/03/2354822.htm

Jerusalem Ancient Walls Unveiled
BBC News
Archaeologists in Jerusalem have given a first glimpse of newly-exposed 2,100-year-old walls to the south of the city's ancient heart...
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/7595613.stm

Archaeological Dig Confirms Roman Presence In Moray
The Press And Journal
ARCHAEOLOGISTS and volunteers at the Birnie dig site, near Elgin, have uncovered more evidence of the Romans’ presence in Moray...
http://www.pressandjournal.co.uk/Article.aspx/815790?UserKey=

January 3rd News

Now that the holidays are over, I'm returning to a more or less regular daily posting here.

New stories as of 8:32 AM:

Satellites Build A Picture Of The Past
Cosmos
Gone are the days of a fearless Indiana Jones battling through the jungle in search of ancient treasures. Today's archaeologists are using high-tech tools, from NASA satellites to Google Earth, do the hard work for them...
http://www.cosmosmagazine.com/node/1764

Race To Save Lascaux Cave Art, Prehistoric 'Sistine Chapel'
Wired
It was discovered by a dog called Robot, and has survived 17,000 years of climate change and human history. But the world's most famous cave art at Lascaux, France - dubbed prehistory's "Sistine Chapel" - could end up on a World Heritage in Danger list...
http://blog.wired.com/underwire/2008/01/race-to-save-la.html

France Racing To Save Lascaux Cave Paintings From Fungus
CBC.ca
The French government is taking emergency action to rescue the celebrated cave paintings of the Lascaux caverns from a fungus...
http://www.cbc.ca/world/story/2008/01/02/lascaux-caves.html

Ancient Civilization Found
CFP
Reported at the end of last year, but missed pretty much everywhere, Russian archaeologists working in Kyrgyzstan have discovered the remains of, what must have been at its time, a thriving metropolis. Estimated to be from 2,500 years ago, they were found at the bottom of Lake Issyk Kul, in the Kyrgyz mountains...
http://canadafreepress.com/index.php/article/1194

Four Years Work - But There's A Silver Lining...
Leicester Mercury
Archaeologists have begun a four-year restoration of a piece of history that could unravel Leicestershire's Roman past...
http://www.thisisleicestershire.co.uk/displayNode.jsp?nodeId=132935&command=displayContent&sourceNode=132702&contentPK=19431090&folderPk=77465&pNodeId=132393

Irish Split On Road Near Sacred Site
Marketplace
The Hill of Tara, northwest of Dublin, has a great deal of archaeological and religious significance. Now, the Irish government wants to build a four-lane highway near it. Stephen Beard reports many are protesting...
http://marketplace.publicradio.org/display/web/2008/01/02/road_near_hill_of_tara
The story contains an audio version as well as the text of the audio.

Can Ice Age Art Survive Man's Attempt To Save It?
Times Online
The survival of the most important cave paintings in the world is in doubt because of a severe fungal infection that spread after an air-circulation system was installed to protect them, archaeologists say...
http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/visual_arts/article3118897.ece

November 16th News

There's quite a range of stories today, from ancient Syria to medieval Britain.

New stories as of 6:15 AM:

In the Phoenician's Tracks
Al-Ahram Weekly
Widely advertised and long awaited, La Méditerranée des Phénicians, an exhibition that opened at the Institut du monde arabe in Paris on 6 October, affords a rare glimpse of ancient Phoenician civilisation, which dominated Mediterranean commerce for a millennium...
http://weekly.ahram.org.eg/2007/871/cu5.htm

Archaeological Find In Turkey
Nirvana International
A significant archaeological discovery has been made in Turkey's ancient city Laodiceia, near the coastal city of Denizli...
http://www.nirvanainternational.com/news/archaeology/archaeological-find-in-turkey-18357457

Syrian Archaeologists Discover 1,700 Year Old Cemetery
ANH
Damascus, Syria (AHN) - Syrian archaeologists have unearthed an ancient Roman-era cemetery in northeast Syria, which dates back to the 3rd century BCE near the capital of Damascus...
http://www.allheadlinenews.com/articles/7009178001

Syria Finds 2nd Century Skeletons, Statues
Middle East Times
DAMASCUS (AFP) Syrian archaelogists have uncovered a 2nd century necropolis and statues in the central town of Palmyra, along with several skeletons, museum director Walid Assaad told AFP on Thursday...
http://www.metimes.com/Politics/2007/11/15/syria_finds_2nd_century_skeletons_statues/afp/

17,00-Year-Old Cemetery Found In Syria
Associated Press
DAMASCUS, Syria (AP) — Archeologists have unearthed a Roman-era cemetery dating from the 3rd century A.D. in northeast Syria, one of several recent archaeological discoveries in the history-rich country, a government newspaper reported Thursday...
http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5gcqC6lHr-qFgEzzwzjtgGiLWKl8AD8SUC0280

Archaeology Student Finds Roman Remains In Garden
The Press
AN ARCHAEOLOGY student struck lucky when he began digging the garden of his new home - and discovered ancient Roman remains...
http://www.thisisyork.co.uk/display.var.1835934.0.archaeology_student_finds_roman_remains_in_garden.php

Sarmat Epoch Hoard Passed On To A Museum
Russia IC
A unique hoard of the Sarmat epoch found in Ilovlya Region has been transferred to the fund of Volgograd Local Lore Museum...
http://www.russia-ic.com/news/show/5179/

Transatlantic Partnership Puts Major British Library Online, Spotlighting Books Rescued From The Medieval World
Exduco
In the beginning was the Word,” the opening page of St. John’s Gospel from an early 8th-century Northumbrian Gospel Book. It’s one of hundreds of manuscripts from the Parker Library at Corpus Christi (Cambridge). The entire library will go online, thanks to a collaboration between Corpus Christi, the University of Cambridge, and Stanford. Courtesy Corpus Christi College (Cambridge)...
http://www.exduco.net/news.php?id=2620

Archaeologists Uncover City Of The Dead In Syria
Thaindian News
London , November 16 (ANI): Syrian archaeologists have unraveled a second century necropolis (a large cemetery or burial place) and statues along with several skeletons in the central town Palmyra...
http://www.thaindian.com/newsportal/health/archaeologists-uncover-city-of-the-dead-in-syria_1005385.html

October 1st News

It's a new month and there's some new stories to go with it. As to missing yesterday's update, there were power issues going on over a good portion of the day.

New stories as of 6:13 AM:

Jupiter Relief Found In Gaziantep's Dülük
Turkish Daily News
A 130-centimeter-long relief, a sculpture consisting of shapes carved on a surface so as to stand out from the background, depicting the Roman god Jupiter taking a vow with his wife Iuno Regina was found during excavations in the ancient city of Dülük in Gaziantep...
http://www.turkishdailynews.com.tr/article.php?enewsid=84385

75 Medieval Entombments Excavated In North-Western Russia
New Kerala
Moscow, Oct 1 : Russian archaeologists have found 75 ancient graves dating from the 15th to the 18th century at the excavation site of the necropolis by Nikolo-Dvorishchenskiy Cathedral in Veliki Novgorod in north-western Russia...
http://www.newkerala.com/oct.php?action=fullnews&id=7406

September 24th News

Back to the early start for a new week.

New stories as of 6:48 AM:

Report: Herod's Temple Quarry Found
Mercury News
JERUSALEM—Israeli archaeologists on Sunday said they have discovered a quarry that provided King Herod with the stones he used to renovate the biblical Second Temple compound—offering rare insight into construction of the holiest site in Judaism...
http://www.mercurynews.com/nationworld/ci_6980341
Also published at:
http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5glGujsIFl1M38VZe4Zng-VZgtoFg

10000 Historical Scottish Sites At Risk Of Inundation Due To Global Warming
New Kerala
Edinburgh, Sept 24 : Global warming induced storm surge and rising sea level threatens more than 10,000 of the most important ancient and historical sites around Scotland's coastline, it has been revealed...
http://www.newkerala.com/oct.php?action=fullnews&id=4716

3,500 Year Old Baby Is Unearthed
The Evening Telegraph
ARCHAEOLOGISTS have unearthed the tiny skeleton of a 3,500-year-old baby at a quarry near Peterborough...
http://www.peterboroughtoday.co.uk/news/3500yearold-baby-is-unearthed.3226038.jp

Olympics-2014 Poses A Threat To Medieval Fortresses
Russia InfoCenter
Fellows of the Southern scientific centre of Russian Academy of Sciences seriously worry about possible demolition of the medieval fortresses located in the zone of mass building the area of Krasnaya Polyana planned as part of preparation to the Olympics-2014 in Sochi...
http://www.russia-ic.com/news/show/4800/

King Herod's Temple Quarry Unearthed
Telegraph.co.uk
Archaeologists have discovered the quarry King Herod is believed to have used during a renovation of the biblical Second Temple, offering a rare insight into the construction of one of Judaism's holiest sites...
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/09/24/wherod124.xml

Baskets, Pots Found Abandoned In Tutankhamun Tomb
Reuters Africa
CAIRO, Sept 24 (Reuters) - Egyptian archaeologists working in the tomb of the boy pharaoh Tutankhamun have found baskets and intact clay pots apparently overlooked when the tomb was cleared out in the 1920s, the government said on Monday...
http://africa.reuters.com/wire/news/usnL24428432.html