Archaeology
Researchers find oldest bone projectile point in the Americas
A team of researchers from the Texas A&M University have found the oldest bone projectile point in the Americas.
The projectile point is made from bone and dates from 13,900-years-ago, predating other projectile points found to be associated with the Clovis people by 900 years.
The team were studying bone fragments embedded in a mastodon rib bone, previously excavated by archaeologists at the Manis site in Washington state from between 1977 to 1979.
A study, published in the journal Science Advances, conducted a CT scan and 3D models on the bone fragments, revealing the tip of a projectile point made from the bone of a Mastodon from the extinct genus Mammut.
Image Credit : Centre for the Study of the First Americans, Texas A&M University
Mastodons inhabited North and Central America during the late Miocene or late Pliocene, until their extinction at the end of the Pleistocene 10,000 to 11,000 years ago. Modern reconstructions based on partial and skeletal remains suggest that mastodons were very similar in appearance to elephants and, to a lesser degree, mammoths, though not closely related to either one.
Dr. Michael Waters, Director of Texas A&M’s Centre for the Study of First Americans said: “We isolated the bone fragments, printed them out and assembled them,” Waters said. “This clearly showed this was the tip of a bone projectile point. This is this the oldest bone projectile point in the Americas and represents the oldest direct evidence of mastodon hunting in the Americas.”
“What is important about Manis is that it’s the first and only bone tool that dates older than Clovis. At the other pre-Clovis site, only stone tools are found. This shows that the First Americans made and used bone weapons and likely other types of bone tools,” added Waters.
The projectile point is made from a mastodon’s leg bone and was intentionally shaped into a projectile point form. When it was thrown, the hunter’s intention was to get between the ribs and impair lung function, however, the hunter missed and it became lodged in the mastodon’s rib.
Not much is known about the people who used the Manis spear point other than they were some of the first Indigenous people to enter the Americas.
“It is looking like the first people that came to the Americas arrived by boat,” said Waters. “They took a coastal route along the North Pacific and moved south. They eventually got past the ice sheets that covered Canada and made landfall in the Pacific Northwest.”
“It is interesting to note that in Idaho there is the 16,000-years-old Coopers Ferry site, in Oregon is the 14,100-year-old site of Paisley Caves. And here we report on the 13,900-year-old Manis site. So there appears to be a cluster of early sites in the Northwestern part of the United States that date from 16,000 to 14,000 years ago that predate Clovis. These sites likely represent the first people and their descendants that entered the Americas at the end of the last Ice Age.”
https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.ade9068
Header Image Credit : Centre for the Study of the First Americans, Texas A&M University
This content was originally published on www.heritagedaily.com – © 2023 – HeritageDaily
A recent study, published in the journal ResearchGate, proposes that the Pyramid of Djoser could have been constructed using hydraulic lift.
The Pyramid of Djoser, also known as the Step Pyramid, is a proto-pyramid built as the final resting place of Djoser, the first or second pharaoh of Egypt’s 3rd Dynasty (2670–2650 BC) during the Old Kingdom period.
The pyramid rises from the Saqqara plateau in six steps to a height of around 60 to 62 metres, serving as the centre of a vast mortuary complex.
Due to the absence of authentic sources from the pyramid architects’ working sphere, there is currently no confirmed comprehensive model for the method used in the pyramid construction.
The prevailing theory suggests that the heavy stone blocks were transported on apparatuses such as rollers, and raised to height using a series of ramps.
In the study, a survey of watersheds near to the pyramid indicate that the Gisr el-Mudir (enclosure) has features of a check dam for trapping sediment and water. Furthermore, the topography beyond the “dam” shows a possible ephemeral lake west of the Djoser complex, and water flow inside the moat surrounding it.
The study authors explain: “In the southern section of the moat, we show that the monumental linear rock-cut structure consisting of successive, deep compartments, combines the technical requirements of a water treatment facility: a settling basin, a retention basin, and a purification system.”
Based on this finding, the study proposes that the Gisr el-Mudir and moat’s inner south section worked as a unified hydraulic system for regulating flow and improving water quality. In addition, the pyramid’s internal architecture is consistent with a hydraulic elevation mechanism never reported before.
“The ancient architects likely raised the stones from the pyramid centre in a volcano fashion using the sediment-free water from the Dry Moat’s south section. Ancient Egyptians are famous for their pioneering and mastery of hydraulics through canals for irrigation purposes and barges to transport huge stones. This work opens a new line of research: the use of hydraulic force to erect the massive structures built by Pharaohs,” said the study authors.
Please note: This study was submitted to PLOS ONE on December 7, 2023. After two rounds of review by peers, the paper was formally accepted by PLOS ONE on June 27, 2024. Since July 23, 2024, it has been the subject of new consultations and review by the PLOS ONE Editorial Board.
Header Image Credit : Shutterstock
Sources : ResearchGate | Piton, Guillaume. (2024). On the possible use of hydraulic force to assist with building the Step Pyramid of Saqqara. PLOS ONE.
This content was originally published on www.heritagedaily.com – © 2023 – HeritageDaily
Constructed between 1630 and 1633 in a Renaissance-Baroque style, the Great Synagogue of Vilnius served as the religious centre of a complex of synagogues, mikvahs, and community institutions devoted to Torah study in Vilnius, Lithuania.
According to a press statement by the Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA): “The Great Synagogue of Vilna was the beating heart of the Lithuanian Jewry, which included 12 synagogues and study houses, the community council building, the home of Rabbi Eliyahu – the Vilna Gaon, Kosher meat stalls, the famous ‘Strashun’ library, a bathhouse and more.”
During World War II, the synagogue was looted, burned, and partially destroyed by the Nazis in the holocaust. Soviet authorities completely demolished the remaining structure to build a school, intending to prevent any future restoration of Jewish worship.
Only three original pieces of the synagogue survived the destruction: a door of the Holy Ark, a reader’s desk, and a bas-relief with the Ten Commandments, which are now on display at the Vilna Gaon Jewish Museum.
Image Credit : Israel Antiquities Authority
In a recent study conducted by the IAA, the Association of Lithuanian Archaeology, the Good Will Foundation, and the Jewish Community of Lithuania, archaeologists have rediscovered traces of the synagogue’s decorated walls and remnants of flooring with red, black, and white floral patterns that paved the main hall.
Excavations also uncovered huge water reservoirs to feed halachically pure water to the mikva’ot, and one of the giant pillars that surrounded the Bimah (prayer platform).
Dr. Jon Seligman from the IAA and Justinas Rakas from the Lithuanian Archaeological Society, said: “The magnificent remains we are rediscovering bring back moments in the life of a lost vibrant community.”
Header Image Credit : Israel Antiquities Authority
Sources : IAA
This content was originally published on www.heritagedaily.com – © 2023 – HeritageDaily
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