Archaeology
2,000-year-old “receipt” uncovered in Jerusalem
Archaeologists conducting works on behalf of the Israel Antiquities Authority have uncovered a 2,000-year-old stone “receipt” during excavations in the Jerusalem Walls National Park, Israel.
The artefact has inscriptions written in Hebrew, showing partially preserved lines of fragmentary names with letters and numbers carved onto a chalkstone (qirton) slab. The slab was originally used as an ossuary (burial chest), which was discovered in a tunnel previously excavated during the 19th century by British archaeologists.
Although the slab was found outside of its original context, an analysis of the type of script and comparisons with contemporary examples suggests that it dates from the early Roman period or the late Second Temple period.
During antiquity, the find-site would have been located along the Pilgrimage Road, a major thoroughfare connecting the city gate all the way to the gates of the the Temple Mount and the Second Temple.
The partially preserved lines include fragmentary Hebrew names with letters and numbers written beside them. For example, one line includes the end of the name ‘Shimon’ followed by the Hebrew letter ‘mem’, and in the other lines are symbols representing numbers.
Some of the numbers are preceded by their economic value, also marked with the Hebrew letter ‘mem’, an abbreviation of ma’ot (Hebrew for ‘money’), or with the letter ‘resh’, an abbreviation of ‘reva’im’ (Hebrew for ‘quarters’).
According to the researchers, “the everyday life of the inhabitants of Jerusalem 2,000 years ago is expressed in this simple object. At first glance, the list of names and numbers may not seem exciting, but to think that, just like today, receipts were also used in the past for commercial purposes, and that such a receipt has reached us, is a rare and gratifying find that allows a glimpse into everyday life in the holy city of Jerusalem”.
Similar examples from the Roman period have been previously discovered in the Jerusalem and Bet Shemesh area, all with inscriptions marking names and numbers carved on stone slabs.
Header Image Credit : Eliyahu Yanai
Archaeologists have discovered human remains among thousands of jade and marine ornaments during excavations of a pyramid at K’anwitznal.
K’anwitznal, known today as Ucanal, is a Maya polity near the source of the Belize River in the Petén department of present-day northern Guatemala. The site consists of 114 structures in the main city precinct, where several pyramids and palaces are located.
Excavations within one of the pyramids have uncovered a deposit containing burnt human remains among thousands of jade and marine shell ornaments.
The human remains date from the 9th century AD and suggest a ritual desecration and burning of a Maya ruler. According to a paper published in the journal Antiquity, the burning event was likely a dramatic public display of a political regime change.
Image Credit : Antiquity
Contemporary sources indicate that the early 9th century saw a period of political upheaval in the Maya Lowlands, however, K’anwitznal grew in political power beginning with the reign of a new leader, Papmalil, who may have been a foreigner.
“Much epigraphic and archaeological research in the Maya area has focused on the collapse of Classic Maya polities at the end of the eighth and the beginning of the ninth century AD”, states lead author of the research, Dr Christina T. Halperin from the University of Montreal. “However, key tipping points in history are rarely found directly in the archaeological record”.
A radiocarbon analyses suggests that the burning event took place after the death of the ruler between AD 773 to 881, with the remains deposited in the construction of a new phase of a temple-pyramid. This was likely intended as an act to reject a Late Classic Maya dynasty and install a new era of a political order that overlapped in time with Papmalil’s takeover.
Image Credit : Antiquity
“The fire-burning event itself and the reign of Papmalil helped usher in new forms of monumental imagery that emphasised horizontal political ties and fundamental changes in the social structure of society,” states Dr Halperin. “In this sense, it was not just an end of an era, but a pivot point around which the K’anwitznal polity, and the Maya of the southern Lowlands in general, transformed themselves anew.”
Header Image Credit : Antiquity
Sources : A pivot point in Maya history: fire-burning event at K’anwitznal (Ucanal) and the making of a new era of political rule – Christina T. Halperin, Marta Lidia Perea Carrera, Katherine A. Miller Wolf & Jean-Baptiste LeMoine
https://doi.org/10.15184/aqy.2024.38
This content was originally published on www.heritagedaily.com – © 2023 – HeritageDaily
A study led by Griffith University’s Australian Research Centre for Human Evolution (ARCHE) has uncovered traces of prehistoric human occupation in a lava tube in northern Saudi Arabia.
The discovery was made in the Umm Jirsan Cave, which is a 1,500 metre long lava tube in the Harrat Khaybar Lava Field. The age of the lava flow has not been determined, but a 2007 study suggests that it occurred 3 million years BP.
Recent excavations by ARCHE archaeologists have uncovered human activity dating from the Neolithic to the Chalcolithic/Bronze Age periods (~10,000-3,500 years ago), providing new insights into the evolution and historical development of regional human populations.
Pastoralist use of the lava tube and surrounding landscape is attested in rock art and faunal records, suggesting that Umm Jirsan was situated along a pastoral route linking key oases. According to the researchers, it is unlikely that the lava tube served as a permanent place of settlement, instead was used as shade and a source of water for passing herders with their animals.
Excavations have found massive caches of bones from domestic (e.g., caprids, cattle) and wild (e.g., gazelles) animals, which were being processed and/or consumed within the cave interior.
Rock art and faunal records attest to the pastoralist use of the lava tube and surrounding areas, painting a vivid picture of ancient lifeways. Depictions of cattle, sheep, goat and dogs corroborate the prehistoric livestock practices and herd composition of the region.
“Our findings at Umm Jirsan provide a rare glimpse into the lives of ancient peoples in Arabia, revealing repeated phases of human occupation and shedding light on the pastoralist activities that once thrived in this landscape,” said Dr Mathew Stewart, the lead researcher and a Research Fellow at ARCHE.
Header Image Credit : Green Arabia Project
Sources : PLOS ONE – First evidence for human occupation of a lava tube in Arabia: the archaeology of Umm Jirsan Cave and its surroundings, northern Saudi Arabia. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0299292
This content was originally published on www.heritagedaily.com – © 2023 – HeritageDaily
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