Archaeology
Rare Christogram tattoo found in Nubian burial
Archaeologists from the Polish Centre of Mediterranean Archaeology, University of Warsaw (PCMA UW), have discovered a Christogram tattoo in a medieval Nubian burial.
The discovery was made during excavations at the monastic site of Ghazali, located in the Wadi Abu Dom region of the Bayuda desert, Sudan.
The monastery was likely founded during the late 7th century by King Merkurios, a ruler of the Nubian kingdom of Makuria, in what is today northern Sudan and southern Egypt.
John the Deacon, an Egyptian Christian writing around 768, described Merkurios as the “New Constantine”, suggesting that Merkurios played an important role in the Nubian church within the Makuria kingdom.
The first excavations at Ghazali took place in the 1950’s, with ongoing excavations from 2012 to 2018 conducted by PCMA UW. The excavations revealed the main monastic structure, a church with a basilica layout, cemeteries, a settlement, and evidence that Ghazali was a metallurgical centre for iron smelting.
Recent studies by PCMA UW have discovered a Christogram religious tattoo on a burial at Ghazali, the second only example of the practice of tattooing evidenced in medieval Nubia. The burial comes from a 7th–13th century cemetery, designated Cemetery 1, first excavated during the 2012 to 2018 campaign.
During photo documentation, the researchers identified a Christogram tattoo on the right foot with the Greek letters “alpha” and “omega”. A Christogram is a monogram or combination of letters that forms an abbreviation for the name of Jesus Christ. The letters “alpha” and “omega,” the first and the last letter of the Greek alphabet, stand for the Christian belief that god is the beginning and the end of everything.
“It was quite a surprise to all of a sudden see what appeared to be a tattoo when I was working with the Ghazali collection. At first, I was not certain, but when the images were processed and the tattoo was clearly visible, any initial uncertainties were removed, said Kari A. Guilbault of Purdue University.
Header Image Credit : PCMA UW
Archaeologists excavating at Colonial Williamsburg have discovered a barracks for soldiers of the Continental Army during the American War of Independence.
Colonial Williamsburg is a living-history museum that forms part of the historic district in the city of Williamsburg, Virginia.
Williamsburg was the capital of the Virginia colony from 1699 until 1779, founded by English settlers during the Second Anglo-Powhatan War (1622–1632).
Tensions with England mounted over fundamental civil and economic rights for the colonists, resulting in the American Revolution and the American War of Independence.
Image Credit : Colonial Williamsburg
Archaeologists excavating next to the museum’s visitor’s centre uncovered foundations of a barracks that could accommodate up to 2,000 soldiers from the Continental Army and up to 100 horses.
“We have horseshoes,” said Jack Gary, Colonial Williamsburg executive director of archaeology. “We also have this object here which is a snaffle bit, so it’s part of a horse bit that goes in the mouth to control the horse. And this object here is part of a curry comb for brushing down the horse’s coat.”
Excavations have so far unearthed only a small part of the complex, but experts suggest that it covered roughly three to four acres.
The barracks were known from Eighteenth-century maps and other historical documents, but until now, the exact location of where it existed within the colony interior was unknown.
According to the historical sources, the barracks were built between 1776 and 1777, and were later destroyed by fire in 1781 by soldiers of the British Army under the command of General Cornwallis.
Excavations also uncovered mid-1700 chimney bases, ceramics, gun flint, coins, musket balls, military buckles, and items of decorative jewellery worn by high-ranking officers as cufflinks.
An interesting discovery are examples of lead shot with indications of tooth-marks, suggesting that the soldiers chewed on the lead shot because it tasted sweet.
Header Image Credit : Colonial Williamsburg
Sources : Colonial Williamsburg
This content was originally published on www.heritagedaily.com – © 2023 – HeritageDaily
Archaeology
Pleistocene hunter-gatherers settled in Cyprus thousands of years earlier than previously thought
Archaeologists have found that Pleistocene hunter-gatherers settled in Cyprus thousands of years earlier than previously thought.
An analysis of the oldest archaeological sites on the island suggests that the first human occupation occurred between 14,257 and 13,182 years ago.
This analysis, published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, used archaeological data, climate estimates, and demographic modelling.
The demographic modelling indicates that these early groups consisted of hundreds to thousands of people, who arrived in two to three main migration events over a period of only 100 years. Within just a few centuries, 11 generations – the population of Cypris had expanded to up 4,000 to 5000 inhabitants.
According to the study authors, these findings refute previous studies that suggested Mediterranean islands would have been unreachable and inhospitable for Pleistocene hunter-gatherer societies. “This settlement pattern implies organised planning and the use of advanced watercraft,” says Professor Bradshaw.
The climate estimates suggest that these early settlers arrived at a time during an increase in temperature and precipitation, also enabling an increase in environmental productivity that could sustain large hunter-gather populations.
Dr Moutsiou, said: “It has been argued that human dispersal to and settlement of Cyprus and other eastern Mediterranean islands is attributed to demographic pressures on the mainland after abrupt climatic change saw coastal areas inundated by post-glacial sea-level rise, forcing farming populations to move to new areas out of necessity rather than choice.”
Our research, based on more archaeological evidence and advanced modelling techniques, changes that”, adds Dr Moutsiou.
The research – “Demographic models predict end-Pleistocene arrival and rapid expansion of pre-agropastoralist humans in Cyprus” by Corey Bradshaw, Christian Reepmeyer, Frédérik Saltré, Athos Agapiou, Vasiliki Kassianidou, Stella Demesticha, Zomenia Zomeni, Miltiadis Polidorou and Theodora Moutsiou – has been published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the USA.
Header Image Credit : Michalakis Christoforou
Sources : Demographic models predict end-Pleistocene arrival and rapid expansion of pre-agropastoralist humans in Cyprus. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2318293121
This content was originally published on www.heritagedaily.com – © 2023 – HeritageDaily
-
Ghosts2 years agoZozo: The Ouija Board Demon
-
Space2 years agoScientists claim to have found the answer what existed before the Universe
-
Ghosts2 years agoOld Coot of Mount Greylock
-
Archaeology1 year ago
New discoveries at Ekʼ Balam during conservation works
-
General3 years agoUC San Francisco engaging in horrifying experiments, organ harvesting of live babies in the name of “science”