Archaeology
Royal Sumerian palace and temple uncovered in ancient Girsu
Archaeologists from the Girsu Project have uncovered the remains of a Royal Sumerian palace and temple complex in the ancient city of Girsu, located in the Dhi Qar Governorate, Iraq.
Girsu was a city of the Sumer, one of the earliest known civilisations in the historical region of southern Mesopotamia. Occupation at Girsu dates from the Early Dynastic period (2900-2335 BC), emerging as the capital of the Lagash Kingdom, and a major administrative centre during the Ur III period (2112-2004 BC).
Girsu was discovered during the 19th century, with the first excavations being conducted in the 1880s by the French archaeologist, Ernest de Sarzec.
These early excavations uncovered the famous Stele of the Vultures (the earliest known war monument), that dates from the Early Dynastic IIIb period (2600–2350 BC) and commemorates the victory of king Eannatum of Lagash, over Ush, king of Umma.
Image Credit : British Museum
The site consists of two large tells (mounds), one rising 50 feet above the plain, and the other 56 feet. Over the centuries, Girsu has been damaged from poor excavation standards during the 19th and 20th century, and illegal excavations searching for artefacts to sell on the black market.
A study in 2021 by the Girsu Project, a joint initiative between the British Museum and the State Board of Antiquities and Heritage (SBAH) of Iraq, have been applying remote sensing within the Girsu zone at an area designated as Tablet hill.
The study revealed a vast complex of undisturbed architectural remains, which have now been excavated to reveal a mudbrick-built palace and more than 200 ancient cuneiform tablets containing administrative records.
Archaeologists also discovered a main sanctuary of the great Sumerian god, Ningirsu (from whom the city has taken its name), located in the sacred precinct called the Urukug. The sanctuary is named Eninnu, the White Thunderbird, and would have been revered as one of the most important temples of Mesopotamia.
Dr Hartwig Fischer, Director of the British Museum, said: “While our knowledge of the Sumerian world remains limited today, the work at Girsu and the discovery of the lost palace and temple hold enormous potential for our understanding of this important civilisation, shedding light on the past and informing the future.”
The Girsu Project
The Girsu Project, led by the British Museum and funded by Getty, builds on the legacy of the Museum’s Iraq Scheme, developed in 2015 and first funded by the British Government in response to the destruction of heritage sites in Iraq and Syria by Daesh (or Islamic State). The Girsu project addresses the damage caused by early excavations and modern looting.
Header Image – Reconstruction of the palace – Image Credit : British Museum
This content was originally published on www.heritagedaily.com – © 2023 – HeritageDaily
A new study published in the journal Antiquity has revealed hundreds of previously unrecorded monuments at Baltinglass in County Wicklow, Ireland.
The Baltinglass area (known as ‘Ireland’s Hillfort Capital’) has a high density of Early Neolithic and Late Bronze Age monuments, however, very little evidence has been recorded that dates from the Middle Neolithic period.
According to Dr James O’Driscoll from the University of Aberdeen, the ancient landscape around Baltinglass was incredibly important to the Early Neolithic people, however, the lack of Middle Neolithic evidence suggests that this importance was lost until the Late Bronze Age.
Using advanced LiDAR technology, archaeologists have created detailed three-dimensional models, revealing hundreds of ancient sites that that been destroyed by thousands of years of ploughing.
Image Credit : Antiquity
Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR), is a method of remote sensing using light in the form of a pulsed laser to measure ranges (variable distances) to the Earth. The differences in the laser return times and wavelengths can be used to compile a 3-D digital map of the landscape.
The most significant discovery from the survey is a cluster of five cursus monuments, the largest example found in both Britain and Ireland. The purpose of such monuments are speculative, but some theories propose that they were used in rituals connected with ancestor veneration, that they follow astronomical alignments, or that they served as buffer zones between ceremonial and occupation landscapes.
Image Credit : Antiquity
According to the study authors: “These five cursus monuments are clearly aligned with burial monuments in the landscape, as well as the rising and setting sun during major solar events such as the solstice.”
“This may have symbolised the ascent of the dead into the heavens and their perceived rebirth, with the cursus physically setting out the final route of the dead, where they left the land of the living and joined the ancestors beyond the visible horizon,” said Dr O’Driscoll.
Header Image Credit : Antiquity
Sources : Antiquity | Exploring the Baltinglass cursus complex: routes for the dead? – James O’Driscoll. https://doi.org/10.15184/aqy.2024.39
This content was originally published on www.heritagedaily.com – © 2023 – HeritageDaily
Archaeologist from NIKU are using a revolutionary new GPR robot to explore a Viking Age site in Norway’s Sandefjord municipality.
The robot has been developed as part of a collaboration between AutoAgri, Guideline Geo/MÅLÅ, and NIKU, and uses the I-Series autonomous implement carrier model fitted with the latest high-resolution, multi-channel ground-penetrating radar system.
GPR is a geophysical method that uses radar pulses to image the subsurface. It is a non-intrusive method of surveying archaeological features and patterning beneath the subsurface.
Initial testing of the robot was conducted in Trøndelag Vinnan in Stjørdal municipality, which according to the researchers has demonstrated increased efficiency and provides accurate mapping solutions.
Image Credit : Erich Nau, NIKU
The new robot system has an antenna that produces a much higher resolution than traditional georadar systems, which for the first time can be interpreted in real time.
According to Erich Nau from NIKU, previous systems had to be driven around archaeological sites, however, the new GPR robot only needs a short hour to map the driving route, then the robot does the rest on its own.
The robot is being used as part of a new study of a Viking Age trading post at Heimdalsjordet near the Gokstadhaugen ship burial in Sandefjord.
The non-intrusive approach will provide a detailed picture of the subsurface that previous surveys could have missed, such as traces of longhouses, land plots, roads, wharves and burials.
“This collaboration gives us a unique opportunity to explore and understand our historical landscape with new and advanced technology. We look forward to uncovering new discoveries that can give us valuable insight into our rich cultural heritage,” says Petra Schneidhofer, archaeologist in Vestfold county municipality.
Header Image Credit : Jani Causevic, NIKU
Sources : NIKU
This content was originally published on www.heritagedaily.com – © 2023 – HeritageDaily
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