===========================================================
explorator 24.49 March 270, 2022
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You can read explorator online at:

https://exploratornews.wordpress.com/

Thanks to Arthur Shippee, Dave Sowdon, Edward Rockstein, Kurt Theis,
John McMahon, Barnea Selavan, Joseph Lauer, Mike Ruggeri, Hernan Astudillo,
Richard Campbell, Barbara Saylor Rodgers, Bob Heuman, David Critchley, Nadia Durrani,
Richard Miller, Kris Curry, Rick Heli, Richard C. Griffiths, Frank MacKay, Sean David Reynolds,
Don Buck, mata kimasitayo, and Ross W. Sargent for headses upses this week
(as always hoping I have left no one out).

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EARLY HOMINIDS
============================================================
More on humans contributing to the demise of megafauna in the 'Middle East':

https://www.discovermagazine.com/planet-earth/did-humans-hunt-the-biggest-animals-to-extinction

More on sapiens and Neanderthals at Mandrin Cave:

https://mymodernmet.com/earliest-european-humans-cave/

More on recycling tools at the 500 000 years bp Revadim site in Israel:

https://english.tau.ac.il/news/prehistoric-collectors

More on motivations for early humans to created hafted tools:

https://phys.org/news/2022-03-early-humans-began-adding-tools.html
https://www.archaeology.org/news/10420-220324-tool-making-technology

============================================================
AFRICA
============================================================
Feature on Aksum:

https://www.heritagedaily.com/2022/03/aksum-the-capital-of-the-aksumite-empire/143225

Feature on Queen Amanirenas:

https://www.history.com/news/nubian-queen-amanirenas-roman-army
============================================================
ANCIENT NEAR EAST AND EGYPT
============================================================
More on the five 4000 years bp tombs of 'senior officials' from Saqqara:

https://phys.org/news/2022-03-egypt-ancient-tombs-saqqara.html
https://www.livescience.com/five-ancient-tombs-found-saqqara-egypt
https://www.bbc.co.uk/newsround/60806687
https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/archaeologists-discover-five-tombs-egypts-saqqara-necropolis-2022-03-19/
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/egypt-displays-treasures-ancient-tombs-saqqara/
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10634097/Tombs-rulers-palace-supervisors-dating-2700BC-near-Cairo.html
https://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/egypt-displays-recently-discovered-ancient-tombs-in-saqqara-172340
https://www.al-monitor.com/originals/2022/03/discovery-five-4000-year-old-tombs-south-saqqara
https://www.jpost.com/archaeology/article-702010
https://www.israelhayom.com/2022/03/22/egyptians-uncover-4000-year-old-egyptian-graves-built-for-ancient-bureaucrats/
https://www.ansamed.info/ansamed/en/news/sections/culture/2022/03/21/new-exhibition-in-egypt-for-five-ancient-decorated-tombs_a62af6e0-d913-4075-ba3e-0bdd5ee0b18c.html
https://english.news.cn/20220319/28320a9cc512420c87c111db0c5be704/c.html
http://www.thehistoryblog.com/archives/63653
https://archaeologynewsnetwork.blogspot.com/2022/03/five-ancient-egyptian-tombs-discovered.html
https://www.archaeology.org/news/10415-220321-egypt-saqqara-tombs

Review of Tallet and Lehner, *The Red Sea Scrolls*:

https://www.spectator.co.uk/article/proof-at-last-that-the-great-pyramid-wasn-t-built-by-aliens

In case you missed the mummy of Amenhotep I getting the CT scan treatment:

https://the-past.com/news/unwrapping-amenhotep-i/

Part of the Babylon Fortress complex in Cairo was restored and reopened:

https://www.egypttoday.com/Article/4/114076/Part-of-Egypt%E2%80%99s-Babylon-Fortress-opens-after-its-restoration

Feature on Tut's final months:

https://www.the-sun.com/tech/4981897/inside-mystery-king-tuts-death-gruesome-diseases/

Feature on the Oracle of Siwa:

https://www.middleeasteye.net/discover/egypt-siwa-oasis-history-alexander-cambyses-rommel-powerful

Feature on Babylonian astronomy:

https://psyche.co/ideas/what-did-the-ancient-babylonians-discern-in-the-skies-above

Haven't had a feature on Gertrude Bell in a while:

https://blogs.loc.gov/maps/2022/03/gertrude-bell/

More on the 9000 years bp 'shrine' from the Jordanian desert:

https://www.heritagedaily.com/2022/03/neolithic-shrine-uncovered-in-jordanian-desert/143244
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/9000-year-old-almost-intact-shrine-discovered-in-jordan-desert-180979635/

More on the study of the 'colored skeletons' of Catal Huyuk:

https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/946886
https://www.sciencealert.com/ancient-city-from-9-000-years-ago-buried-their-dead-in-very-mysterious-ways
https://archaeologynewsnetwork.blogspot.com/2022/03/the-coloured-skeletons-of-catalhoyuk.html
https://www.archaeology.wiki/blog/2022/03/21/the-colored-skeletons-of-catalhoyuk/
https://www.archaeology.org/news/10417-220321-turkey-catalhoyuk-color

cf: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-022-07284-3

We're getting more potentially controversial claims attached to that 'lead curse tablet' found during sifting at Mt Ebal a couple months ago:

https://www.timesofisrael.com/archaeologist-claims-to-find-oldest-hebrew-text-in-israel-including-the-name-of-god/
https://www.timesofisrael.com/podcast-does-a-tiny-curse-tablet-from-mt-ebal-date-to-the-israelite-settlement/
https://www.haaretz.com/archaeology/.premium-early-israelite-curse-inscription-found-on-mt-ebal-1.10696926
https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/324597
https://www.israelhayom.com/2022/03/25/earliest-hebrew-artifact-bearing-gods-name-found-in-israel-archaeologists-say/
https://www.jpost.com/archaeology/article-702271
https://www.jpost.com/christianworld/article-702243
https://www.houstonchronicle.com/neighborhood/katy/article/Ancient-curse-tablet-found-by-Katy-archaeologist-17026823.php
https://www.abc27.com/news/local/lancaster/archeological-earthquake-tiny-tablet-ancient-hebrew-curse-found-by-lancaster-based-organization/

see: https://biblearchaeology.org/current-events-list/4896-abr-researchers-discover-the-oldest-known-proto-hebrew-inscription-ever-found

but see also: http://www.rollstonepigraphy.com/?p=949

Some background, of sorts, to some of the folks involved:

https://www.jpost.com/christianworld/article-701793

More on the restoration project at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre:

https://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/biblical-sites-places/jerusalem/restoring_the_holy_sepulchre/?mqsc=E4142856&dk=ZE2130ZF0

Feature on the 'idolatrous Roman wine jug' which Bar Kochba's followers are claimed to have imbibed from:

https://www.israeltoday.co.il/read/the-wine-jug-that-would-not-quit/

Feature on a project to use AI to study Hebrew Texts:

https://bibleinterp.arizona.edu/articles/new-technology-ancient-world-using-artificial-intelligence-study-ancient-hebrew-texts

Feature on the ancient Judean Date Palm:

https://www.haaretz.com/archaeology/how-king-solomon-and-the-romans-shaped-the-judean-date-palm-1.10685653

Feature on the Jews, Romans, and pigs:

https://jewishjournal.com/commentary/opinion/346381/jews-romans-and-pigs-an-impossible-history/

Feature on the Philistines:

https://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/people-cultures-in-the-bible/who-were-philistines-where-did-they-come-from/

Feature on the knowledge of the elevation of the Dead Sea:

https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/MAGAZINE-when-did-people-figure-out-that-the-dead-sea-is-below-sea-level-1.10686420

Feature on Jericho:

https://www.discovermagazine.com/planet-earth/the-oldest-continuously-inhabited-city-in-the-world

Feature on the Huqoq Mosaics:

https://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/archaeology-today/ancient-wonders-the-huqoq-mosaics/

Review of Addison, *Raiders of the Hidden Ark*:

https://www.jpost.com/archaeology/article-702221

Concerns for the Atia Mosque:

https://www.thedailystar.net/news/bangladesh/news/413-year-old-atia-mosque-needs-urgent-renovation-2986956

Some Tylos period (50 BCE-150 CE) dice from Bahrain:

https://www.thenationalnews.com/gulf-news/bahrain/2022/03/22/ancient-dice-discovered-in-bahrain-may-have-been-used-for-fortune-telling/

A 500+ years bp fortress structure found during building demolition in Jeddah:

https://saudigazette.com.sa/article/618387/SAUDI-ARABIA/Over-500-year-old-heritage-fortress-unearthed-in-Jeddah

We continue to hear about the illegal excavations by 'turkish-backed factions':

https://www.syriahr.com/en/243851/

Feature on the Derinkuyu underground city found during a basement renovation project:

https://bigthink.com/strange-maps/derinkuyu-underground-city/
-----
This Week in the Ancient Near East Podcast:

https://thisweekintheancientneareast.podbean.com/

============================================================
ANCIENT GREECE AND ROME (AND CLASSICS)
============================================================
A wall in a temple of Minerva at Marano reveals a Pompeii-style decorated wall (Italian):

https://www.larena.it/territori/valpolicella/marano-riapre-il-tempio-di-minerva-e-svela-una-parete-in-stile-pompeiano-l-assessore-ora-i-privati-lo-sostengano-con-l-art-bonus-br-1.9305936

Three late Republic/early empire burials from San Marzano sul Sarno (Italian):

https://www.lacittadisalerno.it/cultura-e-spettacoli/a-s-marzano-sul-sarno-tornano-alla-luce-tre-tombe-di-epoca-romana-1.2810675

A Roman game board from a Roman military site in Spain:

https://elpais.com/cultura/2022-03-26/los-soldados-romanos-mataban-el-tiempo-con-juegos-estrategicos-de-mesa.html

A Roman cavalry helmet was being examined at the Weaver Hall Museum:

https://www.northwichguardian.co.uk/news/20009373.roman-auxiliary-cavalry-helmet-examined-weaver-hall-museum/

Plans for a housing development near the Roman fort at Longovicium were not approved:

https://www.thenorthernecho.co.uk/news/20018368.developers-plan-build-46-homes-near-roman-fort-fails/

More on the find of a previously-unknown settlement site at Grevena:

https://www.archaeology.wiki/blog/2022/03/21/unknown-settlement-discovered-north-of-grevena/

More on the Bronze Age Greek origins of saffron:

https://www.archaeology.wiki/blog/2022/03/21/saffron-originates-from-bronze-age-greece/

More on the Amphipolis tomb opening to the public this year:

https://www.archaeology.wiki/blog/2022/03/21/pilot-visits-to-the-kastas-mound-in-2022/

More on the study of 'peasant' life in Roman Spain:

https://archaeologynewsnetwork.blogspot.com/2022/03/an-archaeological-investigation.html
https://www.archaeology.wiki/blog/2022/03/21/an-archaeological-investigation-analyses-peasant-life-in-roman-spain/

More on the 'sacred Phoenician pool' at Motya:

https://www.livescience.com/ancient-sacred-pool-sicily
https://www.haaretz.com/science-and-health/MAGAZINE-monumental-structure-isn-t-phoenician-harbor-it-s-a-sacred-pool-of-baal-1.10679272
https://www.jpost.com/archaeology/article-701920
http://www.thehistoryblog.com/archives/63662
https://www.cnn.com/2022/03/22/world/sicily-ancient-sacred-pool-scn/index.html
https://www.archaeology.org/news/10416-220321-motya-phoenicians-pool

More on a fresco fragment at the Getty being identified as probably looted:

https://www.theguardian.com/science/2022/mar/20/getty-museum-fresco-fragment-pompeii-row-looted-artefacts
https://hyperallergic.com/718961/antiquities-expert-calls-on-getty-museum-to-repatriate-ancient-artwork/
https://www.theartnewspaper.com/2022/03/23/roman-fresco-getty-collection-antiquities-traffickers

More on using AI to reconstruct ancient Greek inscriptions:

https://hyperallergic.com/719349/ai-can-help-reconstruct-ancient-texts-with-stunning-accuracy/

Funding for a survey of Gosbecks Archaeological Park:

https://www.gazette-news.co.uk/news/19986939.funding-secured-survey-gosbecks-archaeological-park/

Barry Strauss on Roman autocracy and modern comparisons:

https://lithub.com/how-ancient-romes-descent-into-autocracy-mirrors-the-fragility-of-our-own-political-systems/

Review of Barry Strauss, *The War that Made the Roman Empire*:

https://newcriterion.com/issues/2022/4/sea-change

Review of Roosevelt Montas, *Rescuing Socrates*:

https://areomagazine.com/2022/03/23/in-defence-of-liberal-education-roosevelt-montas-rescuing-socrates/

Review of Romm and Lefkowitz, *The Greek Histories*:

https://fredericksburg.com/entertainment/book-review-volume-captures-ancient-greece-history-as-told-by-its-first-chroniclers/article_140a7c84-b8d8-5bbb-827b-60ba5578b052.html

Review of Paul Stephenson, *New Rome*:

https://thecritic.co.uk/issues/march-2022/wonders-and-warnings-from-the-ancient-world/

Meature on Marchena's 'Rosetta Stone':

https://elpais.com/cultura/2022-03-21/las-incognitas-de-la-piedra-de-rosetta-de-marchena.html

Feature/study of a Virtual Reality treatment for a Pompeii villa:

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-10647263/Scientists-use-virtual-reality-reconstruct-ancient-Pompeian-home.html
https://www.haaretz.com/archaeology/ancient-roman-feng-shui-revealed-in-pompeii-1.10690473
https://www.heritagedaily.com/2022/03/researchers-have-rebuilt-a-pompeian-house-in-virtual-reality/143221

Feature on Cleopatra:

https://www.livescience.com/44071-cleopatra-biography.html

Feature on Pythagoras:

https://www.livescience.com/pythagoras

Feature on the Pythagoras cup:

https://medium.com/short-history/pythagoras-cup-f698e992593a

Feature on Homer and Greek history:

https://www.counterpunch.org/2022/03/25/homer-and-greek-history/

Feature on the burning of the library of Alexandria:

https://www.openculture.com/2022/03/what-was-actually-lost-when-the-library-of-alexandria-burned.html

Feature on female merchants in ancient Rome:

https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/antiquity-roman-female-merchants

Feature on the Farnese Sarcophagus:

https://www.theguardian.com/science/2022/mar/20/getty-museum-fresco-fragment-pompeii-row-looted-artefacts

Feature on Olympia:

https://www.archaeology.wiki/blog/2022/03/24/a-tour-of-ancient-olympia/

Feature on Apollonius of Tyana:

https://greekreporter.com/2022/03/22/greek-jesus-christ-apollonius-tyana/

Feature on the modern incarnation of Stoicism:

https://bigthink.com/thinking/modern-stoicism-christian/

At the beginning of the week, we read about the British Museum refusing to allow the Parthenon Sculptures to be scanned:

https://greekcitytimes.com/2022/03/23/british-museum-refuses-access/
https://www.tornosnews.gr/en/greek-news/culture/46754-british-museum-refuses-access-to-the-athens-acropolis-parthenon-marbles.html

... and we read of a possible court challenge:

https://neoskosmos.com/en/2022/03/23/news/greece/british-museum-to-face-court-after-rejecting-request-for-3d-scan-of-parthenon-marbles/

... and then we heard 'secret' or 'stealth' scans had already been made:

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2022/03/24/stealth-3d-scans-elgin-marbles-could-support-call-return-greece/
https://www.independent.co.uk/voices/elgin-marbles-british-museum-robot-copy-b2043150.html
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-10651775/Digital-archaeologists-secretly-scan-Elgin-Marbles-inside-British-Museum.html
https://greekreporter.com/2022/03/25/parthenon-marbles-british-museum-secretly-scanned/

... and there was an opEd that it 'wouldn't be the same':

https://www.independent.co.uk/voices/elgin-marbles-british-museum-robot-copy-b2043150.html

... and news that the British Museum was 'deeply concerned':

https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/british-museum-worried-about-elgin-marbles-replicas-j8x7gmd09

Latest Pasts Imperfect newsletter:

https://pastsimperfect.substack.com/p/pasts-imperfect-32422?s=r
-----
Roman Archaeology Blog:

http://romanarc.blogspot.com/

Rogueclassicism:

http://rogueclassicism.com/
============================================================
EUROPE AND THE UK (+ Ireland)
============================================================
Not sure of this 2000 years bp stater of 'Verica' found by a metal detectorist on the Dorset/Hampshire border:

https://www.bournemouthecho.co.uk/news/20007355.2-000-year-old-coin-found-metal-detectorist-dorset-county-border/

Study suggests it was drought which drove the Vikings from Greenland, not temperature:

https://phys.org/news/2022-03-rewriting-history-vikings-left-greenland.html
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/03/220323151650.htm
https://www.cnn.com/2022/03/24/world/why-vikings-left-greenland-scn/index.html
https://archaeologynewsnetwork.blogspot.com/2022/03/rewriting-history-books-why-vikings.html

cf: https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/sciadv.abm4346

Finds from various periods revealed during Leisure Centre excavation in Spelthorne:

https://www.getsurrey.co.uk/news/surrey-news/gallery/rare-historic-coins-found-staines-23428552

A possibly 15th century seal matrix of St George killing the dragon from a French chateau:

http://www.thehistoryblog.com/archives/63621

Two more medieval dugout boats were found in the River Foyle:

https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-northern-ireland-60866202

A 19th century shipwreck off Greece has been identified as the Taormina:

https://greekreporter.com/2022/03/26/19th-century-shipwreck-greece-identified/

More on the Burton Agnes drum:

https://the-past.com/news/rare-chalk-sculpture-found-in-britain/

More on identification of burial sites of 65 or so 'Dark Age' British Royals:

https://www.livescience.com/royal-british-graves-discovered

More on a Pictish inscription from Scotland:

https://www.livescience.com/pictish-stone-discovered-scotland
https://www.sciencealert.com/archaeologists-uncover-unkown-symbols-carved-by-the-painted-people-of-scotland

More on the study suggesting children were making petroglyphs in Spain:

https://phys.org/news/2022-03-ancient-handprints-cave-walls-spain.html
https://www.archaeology.org/news/10419-220322-spain-hand-prints

More on the search for Ravenser Odd:

https://www.livescience.com/yorkshire-atlantis-could-be-revealed

More on the medieval burials revealed at Notre Dame:

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/notre-dame-repair-crews-discover-an-ancient-graveyard-with-a-sealed-sarcophagus-180979809/
https://www.archaeology.org/news/10412-220316-paris-notre-dame

Feature on the Vetones boars:

https://elpais.com/cultura/2022-01-10/treinta-toros-celtas-escondidos-en-rotondas-iglesias-islotes-murallas-o-escombreras.html

A letter from the English Civil War period found in a book on the siege of Colchester:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-essex-60778461

Plans for restoration of some fields around Stonehenge:

https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2022/mar/21/part-of-the-way-to-stonehenge-to-be-restored-to-how-ancient-pilgrims-saw-it

William Morris' restored home is opening to the public:

https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2022/mar/26/william-morris-heaven-on-earth-oxfordshire-home-restored-to-former-glory

Hay Castle is opening to the public:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-hereford-worcester-60873963

Historic England has put 100 years of aerial images online:

https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2022/mar/22/historic-england-puts-aerial-photos-of-nations-past-online
https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-birmingham-60824486
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-wiltshire-60822579
https://digitaleditions.telegraph.co.uk/data/915/reader/reader.html?#!preferred/0/package/915/pub/915/page/25/article/282450

Not sure why this 'old news' about the age of the Cerne Abbas giant is making the rounds again:

https://www.zmescience.com/science/news-science/cerne-abbas-giant-dated-04324/

Feature on the Vanis Kvabebi cave monastery:

https://www.heritagedaily.com/2022/03/vanis-kvabebi/143102
----------
Archaeology in Europe News:

http://archaeology-in-europe.blogspot.com/

Medievalists.net:

https://www.medievalists.net/category/news/

Viking Archaeology Blog:

http://viking-archaeology-blog.blogspot.com/

============================================================
ASIA AND THE SOUTH PACIFIC
============================================================
Study suggests humans and giant camels were both present in Mongolia untill 27 000 years bp:

https://phys.org/news/2022-03-giant-camels-archaic-humans-mongolia.html
https://archaeologynewsnetwork.blogspot.com/2022/03/last-of-giant-camels-and-archaic-humans.html

Xia dynasty stone weapons from the Sunjiagang site in Hunan:

https://english.news.cn/20220325/5e399c6b2bc747e2bc236583d4ff70e0/c.html
https://english.news.cn/20220325/640ad4fc23184084ba78e0e68c437cc9/c.html
http://www.china.org.cn/china/2022-03/26/content_78131528.htm
http://www.news.cn/english/20220325/5e399c6b2bc747e2bc236583d4ff70e0/c.html

cf: https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/feart.2022.861163/full

China is still hyping its top finds from 2021:

http://www.ecns.cn/hd/2022-03-21/detail-ihawuesq7010148.shtml
https://www.scmp.com/news/people-culture/article/3171913/chinese-government-reveals-its-most-significant-archaeological

Plenty of porcelain from Jingdezhen from a 160 years bp shipwreck:

https://english.news.cn/20220324/154194a3e0b849fbbf4c60c2f8075162/c.html

More on that 40 000 years bp ochre workshop at the Xiamabei site:

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/researchers-discover-oldest-known-ochre-workshop-in-east-asia-180979776/

More on 12 000 Paleolithic items from a site in Shaanxi:

https://english.news.cn/20220315/5503ad59569145e18da0ac863f5629e7/c.html

More on those 3200 years bp pants on a Chinese mummy:

https://bigthink.com/the-past/chinese-mummy-worlds-oldest-pants-ancient-fashion/

Feature on Ma Wan island:

https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/3170957/little-island-could-have-been-hong-kong-british-naval

Not sure if we've mentioned this latest 2500 years bp find from the 'Siberian Valley of the Kings':

https://www.jpost.com/archaeology/article-697029

I think we mentioned this study of food residues from Indus Valley Civilization pots:

https://www.newswise.com/articles/leftovers-in-prehistoric-pots-let-scientists-peek-into-the-kitchen-of-an-ancient-civilization
https://www.heritagedaily.com/2022/03/scientists-analyse-traces-of-ingredients-in-5300-to-4000-year-old-cooking-vessels/143098
https://archaeologynewsnetwork.blogspot.com/2022/03/leftovers-in-prehistoric-pots-let.html
https://www.archaeology.wiki/blog/2022/03/24/leftovers-in-pottery-allow-peek-into-an-ancient-civilization-kitchen/
https://www.archaeology.org/news/10424-220323-india-cooking-residues

A 1st century CE Buddhist 'sculptural slab' from a 13th century Siva tempa in Telangana:

https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/telangana/satavahana-era-buddhist-sculptural-slab-discovered-in-telangana/article65243069.ece

Chola period finds from a site in Tamil Nadu:

https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/tamil-nadu/watch-what-did-archeologists-find-hidden-in-the-maligaimedu-excavation-site/article65258680.ece
https://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Tiruchirapalli/chola-era-pot-unearthed-at-maligaimedu/article65259589.ece
https://www.newindianexpress.com/states/tamil-nadu/2022/mar/27/25-cm-clay-pot-brick-structure-found-during-excavation-at-ariyalurs-maligaimedu-2434790.html

Excavations in Swat have revealed a secondary gate for fhe Bazira city site:

https://www.dawn.com/news/1681917/archaeologists-discover-secondary-gate-of-bazira-city

Feature on finds made over the years at Harwan:

https://www.greaterkashmir.com/todays-paper/op-ed/revisiting-the-archaeological-site-at-harwan

A 3d survey of the Taj Mahal is under way:

https://www.indiatoday.in/cities/agra/story/archaeological-dept-begins-3d-survey-of-taj-mahal-1928315-2022-03-23

Plans to restore a 500 years bp stepwell in Sevasi:

https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/vadodara/500-year-old-forgotten-stepwell-in-sevasi-to-spring-back-to-life/articleshow/90385549.cms

Excavations have started at Chetradeikot (Nepal):

https://kathmandupost.com/province-no-5/2022/03/26/archaeologists-begin-excavation-exploration-of-historic-chetradeikot

Feature on motivations behind Taliban preservation of Buddhist heritage sites in Afghanistan:

https://apnews.com/article/russia-ukraine-afghanistan-business-china-europe-3a5074c2043729df5d8f147d6aa0ee3d
============================================================
AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND
============================================================
More on the study of wattle/firewood use in the Western Desert:

https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2022/mar/22/wattle-used-for-tools-food-and-medicine-by-western-desert-traditional-owners-for-50000-years-study-shows

More on finds made during a dig in central Christchurch:

https://www.odt.co.nz/news/national/historic-treasures-found-under-central-christchurch-site
============================================================
NORTH AMERICA
============================================================
Study suggests an ice-free corridor did not open up in North America until 14 000-15 000 years bp:

https://www.livescience.com/first-americans-ice-wall
https://cosmosmagazine.com/history/archaeology/first-americans-no-ice-free-entry/

cf: https://www.pnas.org/doi/full/10.1073/pnas.2118558119

Study suggests Indigenous groups were doing controlled burns and the like before, during, and after European colonization of California:

https://archaeologynewsnetwork.blogspot.com/2022/03/how-indigenous-burning-shaped-klamaths.html

An 18th century (maybe) cannonball from a Florida beach:

https://www.upi.com/Odd_News/2022/03/24/cannonball-Vilano-Beach-Florida/5291648154208/

A wreck of an 1830s whaling ship from the Gulf of Mexico had a multiracial crew, apparently:

https://phys.org/news/2022-03-year-old-whaling-ship-gulf-mexico.html
https://www.livescience.com/19th-century-whaling-shipwreck-found
https://www.theguardian.com/education/2022/mar/23/whaling-ship-discovery-black-indigenous-crew
https://www.nytimes.com/2022/03/23/science/industry-whaling-ship-found.html
https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2022/03/24/gulf-mexico-whaling-ship-wreck-race-slavery-ties-discovered/7159179001/
https://www.archaeology.org/news/10425-220324-industry-whaler-shipwreck

Plans for a dig at the Charlie Lake cave site (Alaska):

https://www.alaskahighwaynews.ca/regional-news/charlie-lake/new-archaeological-dig-planned-at-charlie-lake-cave-site-5177716

More on the identificaiton (probably) of the wreck of the Sparrow Hawk:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/history/2022/03/26/sparrow-hawk-pilgrim-ship-cape/

Feature on the Trudeau Sanatorium in the Adirondacks:

https://www.bbc.com/travel/article/20220321-new-yorks-healing-mountain-village

Feature on the 'Hopewell Interaction Sphere':

https://www.dispatch.com/story/news/columns/2022/03/24/hopewell-influence-may-have-ranged-much-farther-west/7127569001/

Feature on Hannah Marie Worminton and Cythia Irwin-Williams:

https://www.sapiens.org/column/curiosities/pioneering-female-archaeologists/

The oldest grain elevator in Canada is being dismantled:

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/mar/22/canada-prairie-castle-elva-manitoba-grain-elevator

A trio of Revolutionary War-era muskets found in a shipwreck off St Augustine in 2009 have been restored:

http://www.thehistoryblog.com/archives/63674

The City of Boston has digitized a pile of significant finds from the area:

https://www.boston.gov/news/city-boston-archaeology-program-goes-digital

Seeking Heritage status for the Hopewell Earthworks:

https://www.newarkadvocate.com/story/news/2022/03/24/us-submits-hopewell-earthworks-nomination-world-heritage-list/7158539001/
============================================================
CENTRAL AND SOUTH AMERICA
============================================================
Study suggests we've likely been calling Machu Picchu by the wrong name for quite a while:

https://today.uic.edu/study-reconsiders-name-of-perus-machu-picchu
https://phys.org/news/2022-03-reconsiders-peru-machu-picchu.html
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/03/220322150840.htm
https://www.theguardian.com/travel/2022/mar/23/machu-picchu-inca-site-wrong-name
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/science/archaeology/machu-picchu-name-wrong-inca-b2042848.html
https://www.heritagedaily.com/2022/03/name-of-perus-machu-picchu-under-review/143108
https://archaeologynewsnetwork.blogspot.com/2022/03/study-reconsiders-name-of-perus-machu.html
https://www.archaeology.wiki/blog/2022/03/23/study-reconsiders-name-of-perus-machu-picchu/
https://www.archaeology.org/news/10427-220325-peru-machu-picchu

cf: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/00776297.2021.1949833

A study of some human remains from a Middle Sican burial in Lambayeque (found ten years ago) suggests one burial was of a surgeon:

https://andina.pe/agencia/noticia-peru-archaeologists-find-remains-of-person-who-served-as-surgeon-in-sican-culture-885759.aspx
http://www.thehistoryblog.com/archives/63683
https://www.heritagedaily.com/2022/03/sican-culture-surgeon-found-in-funerary-bundle/143241

Burials from near Puebla are being linked to a 19th century French invasion:

https://www.laprensalatina.com/human-burials-found-in-mexico-linked-to-19th-century-french-invasion/

Claims of a lost city found in the Guatemalan jungle:

https://www.gazetteandherald.co.uk/news/19999869.expeditions-leader-claims-find-lost-mayan-city-guatemala/

More on the starfish offering at the Templo Mayor:

https://www.jpost.com/archaeology/article-702063
http://www.thehistoryblog.com/archives/63616
https://www.artnews.com/art-news/news/starfish-altar-mexico-1234622383/
https://www.archaeology.org/news/10421-220322-mexico-temple-deposit

Mining related concerns for sites in Brazil's Tapajos region:

https://news.mongabay.com/2022/03/millennia-of-indigenous-history-faces-erasure-as-mining-grips-brazils-tapajos/

Climate-change-related concerns for mummies in Peru:

https://www.theguardian.com/science/2022/mar/26/mummies-chile-archaeologists-save-climate-change

Feature on the various 'Archaic' peoples of the Caribbean:

https://www.bbc.com/travel/article/20220322-the-mysterious-people-of-the-caribbean
-----
Mike Ruggeri's Ancient Americas Breaking News:

http://goo.gl/1VdeA

Mike Ruggeri's Ancient Americas lecture channels on Youtube:

https://mikeruggerisyoutube.tumblr.com/

Ancient MesoAmerica News:

http://ancient-mesoamerica-news-updates.blogspot.com/
============================================================
OTHER ITEMS OF INTEREST
============================================================
In case you're thinking of becoming an archaeologist:

https://www.artandobject.com/news/want-become-archaeologist-phd-student-offers-insight

Feature on Marshalltown trowels:

https://bam.sites.uiowa.edu/articles/marshalltown-trowels-how-iowa-company-produced-gold-standard-archaeologists

Victor Nuovo on 'the good':

https://www.addisonindependent.com/2022/03/24/victor-nuovo-the-right-and-the-good/

Feature on the motives behind cave art:

https://www.archaeologyworldwide.com/post/visual-psychology-and-the-origins-of-modern-human-art

Feature on some of the oldest jokes in history:

https://www.cracked.com/article_33114_15-of-the-oldest-jokes-in-recorded-history.html

Feature on color palettes in various cultures:

https://hyperallergic.com/719033/centuries-old-palettes-illuminate-the-role-of-the-painter/

Feature on five women leaders from history:

https://www.mentalfloss.com/posts/myths-women-leaders-history

Feature on south Asians and the swastika:

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/asian-america/south-asian-americans-complicated-relationship-swastika-rcna18599

Feature on 'drug use' in the ancient Mediterranean world:

https://www.thenation.com/article/society/ancient-world-drugs/

Feature on Old Norse Sagas:

https://www.bbc.com/reel/video/p0bx78hx/why-we-are-still-living-in-an-old-norse-saga

Feature on John Harrison:

https://www.biobiochile.cl/biobiotv/programas//2022/03/24/efemerides-el-24-de-marzo-de-1693-nace-john-harrison-inventor-del-cronometro-marino.shtml

A backgrounder to Ukrainian literature:

https://www.bbc.com/culture/article/20220322-the-stories-that-reveal-the-soul-of-ukraine

On the history of jousting:

https://www.livescience.com/jousting

Pondering whether other species know about geometry:

https://www.nytimes.com/2022/03/22/science/geometry-math-brain-primates.html

Part two of a feature on the origin of the word 'soul':

https://blog.oup.com/2022/03/souls-searched-for-but-not-found/

Feature on Robert Koch:

https://www.dw.com/en/robert-kochs-dubious-legacy-in-africa/a-61235897

Feature on dharma stories:

https://aeon.co/essays/how-ancient-dharma-stories-encourage-a-life-of-compassion

Feature on skepticism:

https://aeon.co/essays/scepticism-is-a-way-of-life-that-allows-democracy-to-flourish

The Museo Galileo has digitized a 15th century map of the world:

https://mostre.museogalileo.it/framauro/en

Collecting/saving UK rainfall records:

https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-60860397
https://www.nytimes.com/2022/03/24/climate/britain-rainfall-historical-data.html

cf: https://rmets.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/gdj3.157

A study linking information processing and hierarchies:

https://phys.org/news/2022-03-tied-emergence-hierarchy-human-societies.html

Review of Helen Rappaport, *After the Romanovs*:

https://www.nytimes.com/2022/03/22/books/review/after-the-romanovs-helen-rappaport.html
============================================================
CURRENT EVENTS:
============================================================
Feature on the relevance of Antigone to events in Ukraine:

https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/a-greek-tragedy-that-speaks-to-ukraine-hvp0rblnw

Ongoing concerns for heritage in Ukraine:

https://www.asor.org/anetoday/2022/03/cultural-heritage-ukraine
nbcnews.com/nightly-news/video/ukraine-s-cultural-history-under-attack-135813189805

OpEddish on Ukrainian efforts to save art:

https://www.nbcnews.com/think/opinion/ukrainians-are-making-herculean-efforts-save-their-art-why-it-ncna1292791

Report on residential/boarding schools in Utah:

https://local.sltrib.com/utah-boarding-schools/utah-boarding-schools.html
============================================================
ANIMAL AND PLANT DOMESTICATIONS
============================================================
More on geese domestication in China:

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/new-study-suggests-geese-were-the-first-domesticated-birds-180979818/
============================================================
MUSEUM MATTERS
============================================================
Antiquities from Iraq:

https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-nottinghamshire-60826818

Tut:

https://wtop.com/dc/2022/03/dc-hosts-king-tut-exhibit-to-celebrate-100th-anniversary-of-tombs-discovery/

Gaugin:

https://www.dw.com/en/how-paul-gauguin-contributed-to-the-colonial-myth/a-61245258

cf: https://www.smb.museum/en/exhibitions/detail/paul-gauguin-why-are-you-angry/

Ancient Greeks:

https://greekcitytimes.com/2022/03/20/ancient-greeks-athletes-warriors-and-heroes-in-canberra-is-a-must-see/

Ghosts of Empires:

https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/arts-culture/article/3171375/colonies-experience-imperialism-theme-ghosts-empires-two

Questioning 'blood antiquities' from Kashmir at the Met:

https://www.newindianexpress.com/opinions/2022/mar/26/blood-antiquities-from-kashmir-in-a-new-york-museum-2434260.html

The British Museum is removing the Sackler name from various places:

https://www.nytimes.com/2022/03/25/arts/design/british-museum-sackler-family.html
https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2022/mar/25/british-museum-removes-sackler-family-name-from-galleries
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2022/03/25/british-museum-cuts-ties-sackler-family-30-years-opioid-crisis/
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/george-osborne-purdue-pharma-the-guardian-tate-b2044628.html
https://www.timesofisrael.com/liveblog_entry/british-museum-to-remove-sackler-name-from-galleries-endowments/
https://www.theartnewspaper.com/2022/03/25/british-museum-removes-sackler-name

... but not everywhere:

https://hyperallergic.com/720048/british-museum-drops-sackler-name/

The British Museum is also saying it needs a huge amount of money for 'refurbishment':

https://www.theartnewspaper.com/2022/03/22/british-museum-must-prove-it-deserves-another-pound1bn

The Bronze Hall of the Sanxingdui Museum has reopened:

http://t.m.china.org.cn/convert/c_o7v7KWcz.html

Another feature on Rome's Garum and Cooking Museum:

https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/garum-museum

The GEM is still under construction:

https://www.dailysabah.com/arts/gem-of-egypt-louvre-of-archaeology-turns-into-endless-building-site/news

Norway's National Museum is opening (finally):

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/mar/21/norways-500m-national-museumto-open-after-eight-year-wait

A strike at the Guggenheim is over:

https://elpais.com/sociedad/2022-03-25/el-triunfo-de-las-limpiadoras-del-guggenheim-tras-285-dias-de-huelga-hemos-ganado-en-dignidad.html
============================================================
AUCTIONS AND SALES RELATED
============================================================
An 800 years bp seal matrix found by a 10 year-old metal detectorist was sold at auction:

https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-nottinghamshire-60864579

... as was a metal-detectorist-found gold ring linked to the Sherrif of Nottingham:

https://www.thenationalnews.com/world/uk-news/2022/03/24/gold-signet-ring-linked-to-sheriff-of-nottingham-worth-10000-to-go-up-for-auction/

High expectations for a 'lost' Canova coming to auction:

https://www.egyptindependent.com/canovas-lost-maddalena-giacente-seen-fetching-up-to-10m-at-auction/

Christie's withdrew a couple of lots associated with known questionable dealers:

https://www.theartnewspaper.com/2022/03/24/christies-antiquities-sale-dealers-trafficking-illicit-artefacts
https://news.artnet.com/market/chirsties-antiquities-2090201

More on the Ides of March coin coming to auction soon:

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/this-ancient-coin-was-minted-to-celebrate-julius-caesars-murder-180979743/
============================================================
ON THE DNA FRONT
============================================================
DNA suggests that a migration 5600 years bp from South America brought maize to Central America and 'seeded' the Maya:

https://phys.org/news/2022-03-ancient-migrants-maize-south-early.html
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/03/220323101209.htm
https://www.nytimes.com/2022/03/22/science/maya-human-migration-maize-dna.html
https://www.science.org/content/article/maya-and-maize-sustained-them-had-surprising-southern-roots-ancient-dna-suggests
https://archaeologynewsnetwork.blogspot.com/2022/03/migrants-from-south-carrying-maize-were.html
http://www.archaeology.org/news/10423-220323-maya-maize-cultivation

Genomic analysis suggests links between burials near San Francisco Bay and the Muwekma Ohlone people:

https://news.stanford.edu/press-releases/2022/03/21/genomic-analysishlone-connection/
https://phys.org/news/2022-03-ties-present-day-native-american-tribe.html
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/03/220321150412.htm
https://www.heritagedaily.com/2022/03/genomic-analysis-supports-ancient-muwekma-ohlone-connection/143094
https://www.archaeology.wiki/blog/2022/03/22/genomic-analysis-supports-ancient-muwekma-ohlone-connection/

A huge DNA-based family tree:

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/largest-human-genomic-family-tree-identifies-nealy-27-million-ancestors-180979657/

A study of RNA:

https://theness.com/neurologicablog/index.php/origins-of-life-from-rna/
============================================================
THE TECHY SIDE
============================================================
More on computer modelling to identify hunter-gatherer sites:

https://archaeologynewsnetwork.blogspot.com/2022/03/new-computer-predictive-model-useful-in.html
https://www.archaeology.wiki/blog/2022/03/23/new-technology-useful-in-identifying-ancient-hunter-gatherer-sites/
https://www.archaeology.org/news/10418-220322-prehistoric-camp-lamap

============================================================
TOURISTY THINGS
============================================================
Lycian Way:

https://www.cnn.com/travel/article/turkey-lycian-way-beaches/index.html

Celebrating Harriet Tubman:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/travel/2022/03/25/tubman-auburn-new-york/
============================================================
PERFORMANCES AND MUSIC RELATED
============================================================
The Burnt City:

https://www.punchdrunk.com/project/theburntcity/

Suffs:

https://www.nytimes.com/2022/03/24/theater/shaina-taub-suffs-public-theater.html
============================================================
CRIME BEAT
============================================================
Eight charged in a smuggling bust in North Macedonia:

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/wires/ap/article-10653027/North-Macedonia-charges-8-antiquities-smuggling.html
https://www.chroniclejournal.com/entertainment/entertainment_news/north-macedonia-charges-8-for-antiquities-smuggling/article_4decf714-1e2a-5cda-81a7-2be9cff6fab3.html
https://apnews.com/article/europe-middle-east-arts-and-entertainment-turkey-serbia-f92fa85fa153dae7df170e70314222cf
https://abcnews.go.com/Entertainment/wireStory/north-macedonia-charges-antiquities-smuggling-83674014

Robin Dib is the latest dealer suspected of selling looted antiquities to various museums:

https://www.theartnewspaper.com/2022/03/25/dealer-suspected-of-selling-looted-antiquities-to-the-metropolitan-museum-of-art-and-louvre-abu-dhabi-detained-in-paris

A Turkish museum head is implicated in artifact smuggling:

https://www.duvarenglish.com/turkish-museum-head-abdulbari-yildiz-detained-over-historical-artifact-smuggling-news-60690

Feature on counterfeiting Spanish medieval art:

https://elpais.com/cultura/2022-03-18/el-gran-negocio-de-la-falsificacion-de-arte-medieval-espanol-invade-museos-y-galerias.html

More on Operation Pandora VI:

https://www.jpost.com/archaeology/article-702108
----------
conflict antiquities:

http://conflictantiquities.wordpress.com/

anonymous swiss collector:

http://www.anonymousswisscollector.com/

Portable Antiquity Collecting and Heritage Issues:

http://paul-barford.blogspot.ca/

Looting Matters:

http://lootingmatters.blogspot.com/

Illicit Cultural Property:

http://illicit-cultural-property.blogspot.com/

SAFE:

http://www.savingantiquities.org/blog/

============================================================
REPATRIATION AND RECOVERY
============================================================
Feature on a recovered tapestry piece:

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/recovered-tapestry-flemish-spain-erik-belgian-heist-180979620/

Seattle returned a number of stone artifacts to the Upper Skagit people:

https://www.wenatcheeworld.com/news/a-deep-inner-meaning-ancient-artifacts-returned-to-upper-skagit-tribe/article_f605dc98-aaaa-11ec-9da3-cbfb742ec250.html
https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/a-deep-inner-meaning-seattle-returns-ancient-artifacts-to-upper-skagit-tribe/

Australia returned 29 antiquities to India:

https://www.tribuneindia.com/news/nation/29-antiquities-repatriated-to-india-by-australia-379443
https://indianexpress.com/article/india/narendra-modi-artefacts-repatriated-australia-7829059/
https://www.newindianexpress.com/cities/delhi/2022/mar/22/australia-returns-29-pieces-of-antiquities-to-india-2432825.html
https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/australia-repatriates-29-indian-antiquities-ahead-of-virtual-summit/article65245276.ece
https://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/australia-returns-29-artefacts-stolen-from-india-101647887946746.html
https://theprint.in/india/ancient-statues-scroll-portraits-full-list-of-29-antiquities-australia-returned-to-india/883517/

This week's Steinhardt-related returns are going to Israel (I think we had these):

https://www.jpost.com/archaeology/article-702211
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/ap-new-york-manhattan-jerusalem-west-bank-b2041557.html
https://abcnews.go.com/Entertainment/wireStory/artifacts-seized-us-billionaire-returned-israel-83602117

A London gallery returned a couple of items looted from tombs in Nepal:

https://www.artnews.com/art-news/news/london-gallery-returns-two-nepal-artifacts-1234622423/

============================================================
NUMISMATICA
============================================================
Feature on Cambodian currency:

https://www.khmertimeskh.com/501043895/from-coins-to-banknotes-a-short-history-of-cambodias-currencies/

Feature on the coinage of Claudius:

https://coinweek.com/ancient-coins/coinweek-ancient-coin-series-the-coinage-of-claudius/

Latest e-Sylum:

http://www.coinbooks.org/v25/club_nbs_esylum_v25n12.html

... and the one which should appear later today:

http://www.coinbooks.org/v25/club_nbs_esylum_v25n13.html
------------------------

Coin Week:

http://www.coinweek.com/

============================================================
OBITUARIES
============================================================
Olexander Kislyuk:

https://russianewsreview.org/2021/12/29/

Neil Faulkner:

https://www.edp24.co.uk/news/obituaries/sharp-archaeologist-dr-neil-faulkner-dedicated-at-nnas-8773704

Nancy Bernard:

https://www.greenwichsentinel.com/2022/03/25/column-on-my-watch-nancy-bernard-rip/
============================================================
AUDIO/VIDEO NEWS
============================================================
Audio News from Archaeologica:

https://www.archaeologychannel.org/audio-guide/audio-news/3163-audio-news-from-archaeologica-march-13th-2022-through-march-19th-2022
============================================================
GENERAL ARCHAEOLOGY NEWS BLOGS
============================================================
Archaeology Magazine News Page:

http://www.archaeology.org/news/

About.com Archaeology:

http://archaeology.about.com/

Archaeology Briefs:

http://archaeologybriefs.blogspot.com/

Atlas Obscura:

https://www.atlasobscura.com/

Heritage Daily:

https://www.heritagedaily.com/

Sapiens Archaeology:

https://www.sapiens.org/category/archaeology/

Taygete Atlantis excavations blogs aggregator:

http://planet.atlantides.org/taygete/
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PODCASTS/VODCASTS
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Archaeosoup:

http://www.youtube.com/user/Archaeos0up?feature=watch

Archaeology Podcast Network:

http://www.archaeologypodcastnetwork.com/
============================================================
EXPLORATOR is a free weekly newsletter bringing you the latest
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explorator 24.49

david meadows