August 18th News

Another quiet week-end in classical and medieval history.

New stories as of 8:19 AM:

Technology To Shed Light On Thera
Zeenews.com
A research team, from Princeton University in the US, has developed an automated system that works like a ''virtual archaeologist'' to shed new light on Thera, an island civilization near Greece that was buried under volcanic ash more than 3,500 years ago...
http://www.zeenews.com/articles.asp?aid=462770&sid=ftp

Excavations Continue In Zeugma
Turkish Daily News
Excavations that started Aug. 8 in the ancient city of Zeugma will continue through Sept. 25 this year. A group of 47 archeologists is working for the protection of the villas by covering them with roofs...
http://www.turkishdailynews.com.tr/article.php?enewsid=112598

Archaeologists Discover 2500 Year Old Gold Earrings
Thaindian News
London, August 18 (ANI): An archaeologist has discovered gold earrings, a ring, and other funeral gifts that date back to the 5th century B.C., roughly 2,500 years ago, while excavating a Thracian tomb near the village of Kushare, about 280 km from Sofia, Bulgaria...
http://www.thaindian.com/newsportal/entertainment/archaeologists-discover-2500-yr-old-gold-earrings_10085382.html

1,700-Year Old Apollon Statue Unearthed In Mersin
TurkishPress.com
MERSIN - Archeologists unearthed a 1,700-year old Apollon statue in Soloi Pompeipolis ancient city in the southern province of Mersin...
http://www.turkishpress.com/news.asp?id=247382

'Virtual Archaeologist' Reconnects Fragments Of An Ancient Civilization
Science Daily
For several decades, archaeologists in Greece have been painstakingly attempting to reconstruct wall paintings that hold valuable clues to the ancient culture of Thera, an island civilization that was buried under volcanic ash more than 3,500 years ago...
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/08/080815130417.htm

August 14th News

Things have been pretty quiet over the last couple of days. Only two stories today.

New stories as of 12:09 PM:

Colossal Head Of Roman Empress Unearthed
Archaeology.org
Sagalassos, Turkey, August 12—Tuesday morning, archaeologists of the Katholieke Universiteit Leuven team (Belgium) directed by Marc Waelkens uncovered the colossal portrait head of the Roman empress Faustina, wife of the emperor Antoninus Pius, who ruled from A.D. 138 to 161...
http://www.archaeology.org/online/features/faustina/

Archaeologists Uncover 1,800-Year-Old Roman Coffins In Newcastle City Centre
24dash.com
Two Roman stone sarcophagi have been uncovered at a dig on the site of a former chapel and office buildings...
http://www.24dash.com/news/Communities/2008-08-14-Archaeologists-uncover-1-800-year-old-Roman-coffins-in-Newcastle-city-centre

The news this morning is all new news, some of which is extremely interesting. There's quite a bit of work with replicas, ranging from the Viking replica the 'Sea Stallion' which is back in the news, to the forthcoming sailing of the replica Phoenician ship.

New stories as of 8:41 AM:

Roman Temple Uncovered In Ancient Jewish Capital Of Galilee
Science Daily
Ruins of a Roman temple from the second century CE have recently been unearthed in the Zippori National Park. Above the temple are foundations of a church from the Byzantine period...
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/08/080811072503.htm

Iron Age British Warrior With Roman Links Unearthed In England
Fresh News
Archaeologists have unearthed the grave of an ancient British warrior with Roman links in southern England...
http://www.freshnews.in/iron-age-british-warrior-with-roman-links-unearthed-in-england-47707

Archaeologists Dig In St Cross
Hampshire Chronicle
ENTHUSIASTIC excavators have been digging for clues near one of Winchester's most historic buildings...
http://www.hampshirechronicle.co.uk/news/news/display.var.2422581.0.archaeologists_dig_in_st_cross.php

Archaeologists Find 2,000 Year-Old Coins At Jerusalem Site
eNews 2.0
Archaeologists on an Israeli-German dig south of Jerusalem have uncovered a cache of 15 silver coins dating back 2,000 years and lying in a pot hidden in a pigeon hole...
http://www.enews20.com/news_Archaeologists_find_2000_year_old_coins_at_Jerusalem_site_10345.html

Roman Temple Ruins Found In Israel
Inquirer.net
JERUSALEM—Archaeologists have found the ruins of a pagan temple dating back to Roman times in the Galilee region of northern Israel, the Hebrew University in Jerusalem said on Monday...
http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/breakingnews/world/view/20080811-154017/Roman-temple-ruins-found-in-Israel

Iron Age Warrior With Roman Links Found In U.K.
National Geographic News
The grave of an ancient British warrior with tantalizing Roman connections has been unearthed in southern England, archaeologists say...
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2008/08/080808-british-warrior.html

Around Africa In A Phoenician Boat
BBC News
On Arwad Island off the coast of Syria, a group of 20 sailors-to-be are preparing for a voyage their captain believes has not been undertaken for two and a half millennia...
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/7550162.stm

Viking Longship Returns To Home Port After Epic Sail
Irish Times
THE VIKING replica longship Sea Stallion returns to home waters in Roskilde today, after a 2,800 nautical-mile round trip between Denmark and Ireland...
http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/ireland/2008/0809/1218206296723.html

Romanian Experts Uncover Biggest Dacian Find Ever
Southeast European Times
Romanian archaeologists discovered an ancient cemetery, which experts consider the largest necropolis ever found in the Dacian area...
http://www.setimes.com/cocoon/setimes/xhtml/en_GB/features/setimes/roundup/2008/08/04/roundup-st-03

August 8th News

It's definitely a quiet morning today. Most of the news is continuations of yesterday's stories.

New stories as of 7:04 AM:

Why Not Test The Phaistos Disc?
The New York Times Blogs
If there are suspicions that the renowned Phaistos Disc is fake, why not address them by determining its age? That was the excellent question raised by Lab readers in response to a post on the disc...
http://tierneylab.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/08/07/why-not-test-the-phaistos-disc/

Ancient Fully-Preserved Chariot Discovered In Bulgaria
redOrbit
A team of Bulgarian archaeologists working in an ancient Thracian tomb uncovered a well-preserved 1,900-year-old chariot, according to the team’s leader on Thursday...
http://www.redorbit.com/news/science/1514844/ancient_fullypreserved_chariot_discovered_in_bulgaria/

Chance Find Could Be Long Lost Church
Berwick Today
REMNANTS of what experts believe could be an ancient church have been found in a chance discovery at Bamburgh Castle...
http://www.berwick-advertiser.co.uk/news/Chance-find-could-be-long.4363082.jp

Ancient Olive Press Unearthed In Galilee
Arutz Sheva
Archaeologists have discovered an ancient olive press dating back to the Byzantine period at a dig at Moshav Achihud in the Western Galilee...
http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/127106

King Tut Tomb Fetuses May Reveal Pharaoh's Mother
National Geographic News
Two mummified fetuses found in the tomb of King Tutankhamun will undergo DNA testing to determine their relation to the famous pharaoh, Egyptian officials announced today...
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2008/08/080807-tut-fetus.html

DNA Tests To Study Mummy Fetuses In King Tut Tomb
Associated Press
CAIRO, Egypt (AP) — Egyptian scientists are carrying out DNA tests on two mummified fetuses found in the tomb of King Tutankhamun to determine whether they are the young pharaoh's offspring, the antiquities authority said Wednesday...
http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5jUrpC3Kol6I-ebbUlLTwpNw4dhIwD92DMIM08

Bulgarian Archaeologists Discover Ancient Chariot
Yahoo! News
SOFIA, Bulgaria - Archaeologists have unearthed a 1,900-year-old well-preserved chariot at an ancient Thracian tomb in southeastern Bulgaria, the head of the excavation said Thursday...
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080807/ap_on_sc/sci_bulgaria_ancient_chariot_1;_ylt=ArR7XXIgGEqTqvUEq6eKjQxFeQoB

August 7th News

I'd thought there wasn't going to be much in the way of news this morning, but I was wrong. The big story of the day is from a period a little later than I usually post in here: the possible discovery of the first theatre where Shakespeare's plays were first shown.

New stories as of 7:50 AM:

Unveiling The Secrets Of the Ancient Olympic Computer
Infopackets.com
Researchers have discovered that the ancient Greeks used a primitive 'computer' to set the dates of the Olympic Games...
http://www.infopackets.com/news/technology/it/2008/20080807_unveiling_the_secrets_of_the_ancient_olympic_computer.htm

Bulgarian Archeologists Unearth 1900-Year-Old Thracian Chariot
Visit Bulgaria
A team of Bulgarian archeologists has discovered a unique, fully preserved four-wheeled Thracian chariot, which is more than 1900 years old...
http://www.visitbulgaria.net/en/yambol/news/20080807/thracian_chariot.html

Bulgarian Archaeologists Discover Ancient Chariot
Associated Press
SOFIA, Bulgaria (AP) — Archaeologists have unearthed a 1,900-year-old well-preserved chariot at an ancient Thracian tomb in southeastern Bulgaria, the head of the excavation said Thursday...
http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5hCV8iXXy_l-nAPuadPyq-5RCMVOQD92DEKT80

Shakespeare's 1st Theater Unearthed
UPI.com
LONDON, Aug. 6 (UPI) -- An excavation in England has uncovered the brick foundations of the 16th century theater where William Shakespeare's plays were first performed, officials said...
http://www.upi.com/Entertainment_News/2008/08/06/Shakespeares_1st_theater_unearthed/UPI-30401218063847/
Yes, this one's strictly a little late for this journal, but I found it interesting enough that I had to include it. Besides, things seem so quiet, that more articles are a good thing.

Possible Shakespearean Theater Found In London
Physorg.com
(AP) -- The theater where "The Merchant of Venice" and "Romeo and Juliet" likely debuted and where William Shakespeare himself may have trodden the boards has likely been discovered in east London, archaeologists at the Museum of London said Wednesday...
http://www.physorg.com/news137261623.html

DNA Tests To Study Mummy Fetuses In King Tut Tomb
Physorg.com
(AP) -- Egyptian scientists are carrying out DNA tests on two mummified fetuses found in the tomb of King Tutankhamun to determine whether they are the young pharaoh's offspring, the antiquities authority said Wednesday...
http://www.physorg.com/news137258291.html

Wine Presses Yield More Secrets
DI-VE
The fields in the locality have turned out to date back to the 4th and 3rd centuries BC – as old as the wine-presses...
http://www.di-ve.com/Default.aspx?ID=72&Action=1&NewsId=53479&newscategory=36

Shakespeare's Shoreditch Theatre Unearthed
Guardian.co.uk
A shiver of excitement rippled around the theatrical globe as news spread of some grubby red bricks uncovered in a muddy pit off a nondescript street in east London...
http://www.guardian.co.uk/culture/2008/aug/07/shakespeare.shoreditch

King Tut's Kids
inthenews.co.uk
Foetuses found in the tomb of Tutankhamun are to be tested in an attempt to determine who their parents were...
http://www.inthenews.co.uk/infocus/features/in-focus/king-tuts-kids-$1235395.htm

Egypt To DNA Test Mummies To See If Tutankhamun Was A Father
Telegraph.co.uk
Egyptian scientists will carry out DNA tests on two mummified foetuses found in the tomb of King Tutankhamun to determine their link to the young pharaoh, Egypt's Supreme Council of Antiquities has announced...
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/africaandindianocean/egypt/2515379/Egpyt-to-DNA-test-mummies-to-see-if-Tutankhamun-was-a-father.html

Tutamkhamuns Mummified Fetuses To Get Paternity Test
Thaindian News
London, August 7 (ANI): Egyptian scientists are doing DNA tests on stillborn children found in Tutankhamuns tomb in the hope of confirming if they are the pharoahs offspring and confirming his family tree...
http://www.thaindian.com/newsportal/india-news/tutankhamuns-mummified-fetuses-to-get-paternity-test_10080906.html

Large Olive Press Discovered In Northern Israel
Scoop
6 August 2008 - An ancient olive- oil production complex dating from the 6th-7th Centuries CE – one of the largest ever exposed in Israel – was discovered at Ahihud, in excavations conducted by the Israel Antiquities Authority...
http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/WO0808/S00097.htm

The Truth About The Picts
The Independent
The Picts have long been regarded as enigmatic savages who fought off Rome's legions before mysteriously disappearing from history, wild tribesmen who refused to sacrifice their freedom in exchange for the benefits of civilisation...
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/science/the-truth-about-the-picts-886098.html

German Scientists Dig for Their Own Stonehenge
Reuters
BERLIN (Reuters Life!) - Archaeologists have discovered traces of a Bronze Age place of worship in Germany in what they say might be the country's answer to Stonehenge...
http://www.reuters.com/article/lifestyleMolt/idUSL623035920080806

August 5th News

Definitely a quiet day today.

New stories as of 10:46 AM:

Greek Mummy Found Inside Lead Coffin Dates Back To A.D. 300
Argentina Star
Washington, August 5 : A mummy of a middle-aged woman dating to A.D. 300 has been discovered in a lead coffin inside a marble sarcophagus in northern Greece, the first clear indication of embalming in Greece from the era when the Romans ruled there...
http://story.argentinastar.com/index.php/ct/9/cid/88176adfdf246af5/id/390416/cs/1/

Ancient Greek Astronomical Mechanism Designed To Record Olympics
Huliq News
The Antikythera Mechanism, which was used in ancient Greece to make astronomical calculations, has now been discovered to also record the times of the Olympiads...
http://www.huliq.com/65795/ancient-greek-astronomical-mechanism-designed-record-olympics

First Embalmed Greek Mummy Found In Lead Coffin
People's Daily Online
Found inside a lead coffin inside a marble sarcophagus, a mummy of a middled-aged woman from Ancient Greek times is the first clear indication of embalming in Greece during the Roman occupation...
http://english.people.com.cn/90001/90781/90879/6467059.html

Document Shows Templars Not Heretics, Historian Says
Canada.com
OTTAWA - When several Knights Templar were burned at the stake for heresy in 1314, legend has it they screamed out a curse against the villainous lawyer who convicted them. Eight days later, he died...
http://www.canada.com/topics/news/national/story.html?id=ef6b1b1a-13c3-4867-a42c-1a9624d84bbb

Archaeologists Discover Fragrance Container
Visit Bulgaria
Archaeologists have found a 900-year-old lead ampoule of fragrance at the excavations on Tzarevetz hill in the town of Veliko Tarnovo. The find dates back to 12-13 century and was discovered by the team of archaeologist Mirko Robov by the South fortress wall...
http://www.visitbulgaria.net/en/veliko_tarnovo/news/20080805/fragrance_container.html

August 2nd News

There's a wide range of stories today, most of which are entirely new, and a few which have more information about earlier stories, such as the Antikythera Mechanism.

New stories as of 8:37 AM:

Two Piers Belonging To 1st Century A.D. Unearthed In Ancient Turkish City
TopNews.in
Istanbul, August 2 : Archaeologists have unearthed two piers belonged to the first century A. D. in the ancient city of Aphrodisias in Turkey...
http://www.topnews.in/two-piers-belonging-1st-century-d-unearthed-ancient-turkish-city-256175

500 BC Greek Ship Found
Zee News
Athens, Aug 02: A 21-meters long ancient Greek ship, which archaeologists believe sank in a storm some 800 metres off the Gela coast in Greece while transporting goods from the Greek colony in Gela back to Greece in around 500 BC, has been pulled out of the seabed, where it lay for nearly 2500 years...
http://www.zeenews.com/articles.asp?aid=459649&sid=ftp

Ancient Calculator Recorded Games
The Press Association
A 2,100-year-old mechanical calculator which was designed by the Greeks to carry out complex mathematical sums was also used to record the dates of the Olympic Games, researchers revealed...
http://ukpress.google.com/article/ALeqM5jjR5zgNvWEQkV64py2892tU7ecKA

Ancient Greeks Used Computer To Set Date For Olympics
Chatter Shmatter
According to researchers an old mechanical brass calculator which was used by the ancient Greeks to predict solar and lunar eclipses may also have been used to set the dates for the Olympics...
http://www.chattershmatter.com/2008/08/01/ancient-greeks-used-computer-to-set-date-for-olympics/

UK Museum Gets Medieval Tool
azcentral.com
LONDON - A rare astronomy tool that helped medieval scientists tell time will remain in Britain after the British Museum scrambled to come up with the money to buy it...
http://www.azcentral.com/ent/arts/articles/2008/08/01/20080801tool.html

Ancient Palace Found In Dig On Hill
The Press And Journal
Archaeologists have uncovered ancient traces, from tiny bead ornaments to massive walls, of a forgotten prince’s palace on the slopes of Bennachie in Aberdeenshire...
http://www.pressandjournal.co.uk/Article.aspx/769194?UserKey=0

Scientists Find First Indication For Embalming In Roman Greece
Newspost Online
A team of scientists has found the first indication for embalming in Roman Greek times...
http://www.newspostonline.com/sci-tech/scientists-find-first-indication-for-embalming-in-roman-greece-20080802557

Seal Of Biblical Royal Official Found In Jerusalem
Inquirer.net
JERUSALEM—Israeli archaeologists in Jerusalem said on Friday they found the imprint of a seal that belonged to a 6th century BC official in the court of the last king of Judah who was mentioned in the Old Testament...
http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/breakingnews/world/view/20080801-152098/Seal-of-biblical-royal-official-found-in-Jerusalem

Archaeologists Find Old Testament Seal
The Australian
ISRAELI archeologists in Jerusalem have found the imprint of a seal that belonged to an 6th century BC official in the court of the last king of Judah who was mentioned in the Old Testament...
http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,24115029-12335,00.html

Cremated Bones Dating From 3,500 BC To 2,000 BC Unearthed In Ireland
Smashits.com
London, July 31 (ANI): Archaeologists has unearthed cremated bones thought to date from around 3,500BC to 2,000BC during a dig near Lough Fea in Ireland...
http://news.smashits.com/277930/Cremated-bones-dating-from-3-500-BC-to-2-000-BC-unearthed-in-Ireland.htm

Sailing Into Eternity
Al-Ahram Weekly
Visitors to the Giza Plateau will be able to view Khufu's second solar boat through a tiny camera 4,500 years after it was buried to ferry the king to eternity. Nevine El-Aref takes a look...
http://weekly.ahram.org.eg/2008/908/he1.htm