• sean-williams

    University Team Finds Prehistoric East Midlands Settlement

    A prehistoric settlement, which could date back 11,000 years, has been discovered near in England’s East Midlands region. The site, unearthed by a University of Leicester Archaeological Services (ULAS) team, was excavated in advance of building works at Asfordby, near Melton Mowbray, Leicestershire. The team’s experts believe the site would have been inhabited by hunter-gatherers, who journeyed to Britain over the icy remnants of a giant super-river we reported yesterday (sadly they weren’t quite around at the time of Stone Age GPS). Britain would only become an island thousands of years later, when the final chills of the last ice…

  • Ann

    Zahi Hawass’ a Not-So Secret Voyage through London – Book Signing at Harrods’ Waterstone’s

    Dr. Zahi Hawass is coming to London, to promote the massive – you can take that quite literally – art book ‘A Secret Voyage’ and the more normal-sized – but still stunning, we’re sure – ‘Inside the Egyptian Museum with Zahi Hawass’. To the list of must-attend events is now added a book signing at the most famous Egyptian-owned location in London:Harrods. Book Signing at Harrods Invited to London’s most famous departement store by owner Mohamed Al Fayed, the Secretary General of the Supreme Council of Antiquities (that’s Dr. Hawass) will sign copies of his new books at Waterstones, Third…

  • owenjarus

    Cypriot archaeology day hits Toronto this Sunday

    Cyprus that great crossroads of the ancient world is going to be the focus of a special event happening this Sunday at the Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto Canada. Five archaeologists will give talks about their research and how it is changing our understanding of the island. Heritage Key will be at the event and will publish reports. Cyprus was truly a crossroads of the ancient world. Greeks, Phoenicians, Egyptians, Romans and the Sea People all left their mark on the island. They did it by way of trade, migration, settlement and conquest. Just a month ago Heritage Key reported…

  • bija-knowles

    Roman Wales: Can Discovery of Ceredigion’s First Roman Villa Shed New Light on Welsh Heritage?

    Historians and archaeologists are having to rethink the history of Roman Wales, as the foundations of what is very likely to have been a Roman villa have been discovered at Trawsgoed, about eight miles from Aberystwyth. As many as 21 Roman villas are known in south Wales, but until now archaeologists didn’t believe that the Romans had built villa-sized dwellings as far north as Aberystwyth, in Ceredigion. In fact, this could be Ceredigion’s first Roman villa, according to the archaeologists working for the Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments in Wales (RCAHMW). The realisation was made this summer…

  • sean-williams

    Cleopatra Comes to Philadelphia (Well, some of her Treasures)

    Just as Cleopatra’s tomb could be discovered at Taposiris Magna, some of her greatest treasures will be winging their way to the States. Next June Cleopatra: The Search for the Last Queen of Egypt will be showcased at Philadelphia’s Franklin Institute for six months, before heading to three other US cities on a massive tour. The exhibition will bring together some of the best-known artefacts and freshest discoveries from Cleopatra’s city of Alexandria. The Institute’s senior vice president of marketing, programs and business development Troy Collins says the show’s treasures are coming from two major sources: “Land sources from the…

  • Ann

    The Dmanisi Skull on Display at Naturalis, Leiden

    How does one transport a 1.8 million-year-old skull that might rewrite the history of mankind and has never before left the vault of the National Historic Museum in Tbilisi, Georgia? Very carefully, of course! The only person allowed to travel with the The ‘Dmanisi Skull’ – which suggests a Eurasian chapter in the long evolutionary story of man – is Professor David Lordkipanidze, director of the Georgian National Museum who brought the extra-ordinary find to the Naturalis Museum, Leiden for a special exhibition to end their one-year celebration of evolutionary scientist Charles Darwin. Archaeologists started in 1936 by excavating the…

  • sean-williams

    Iran Urges UNESCO to Step in Over Lost Persian Army in Egyptian Desert

    Remember the ‘groundbreaking discovery’ of Cambyses’ lost Persian army a few weeks back, in the Western Desert of Egypt? Almost as soon as it had been announced, Zahi Hawass’ Supreme Council of Antiquities were all over it, rejecting the Castiglioni brothers’ claims they’d found the legendary fleet near Siwa Oasis. Yet any doubts as to the brothers’ credibility have been lost on Iranian officials, who have branded Dr Hawass’ rejection of the discovery as politically motivated, and have urged UNESCOto step in to save the army’s remains. The request by Iran’s Cultural Heritage, Handicrafts and Toursim Organisation (ICHHTO) was made…

  • sean-williams

    Dr Kara Cooney Holding her Own on Craig Ferguson’s Late Late Show

    Some people might look to Dr Zahi Hawass, bedecked in Indiana Jones denim shirt and Stetson hat, for a paragon of archaeological cool. Others could point to Kathleen Martinez, currently hunting for the tomb of Cleopatra at Taposiris Magna, as the epitome of a dynamic modern adventurer. But how many Egyptologists could realistically hold their own on long-running US chat show TheLate Late Show, hosted by Scottish funnyman Craig Ferguson? I’m struggling to think of any – much less anyone who’s done it three times. It must have been child’s play when the lovely Dr Kara Cooneyspoke to me about…

  • owenjarus

    Afghan treasures still being picketed: Talks break down in Canadian Museum strike

    It looks as if picket lines will be up for awhile yet at the Ottawa showing of Afghanistan: Hidden Treasures from the National Museum, Kabul. The blockbuster exhibition has been at the Canadian Museum of Civilization since October 23. There has been a strike on at the museum for that entire time. Nearly 400 workers, including educational staff and tour guides, have been manning picket lines. News is just breaking that the latest attempt to reach a negotiated settlement has failed. The union now believes that a negotiated settlement is impossible. PSAC advised the Minister of Labour after the vote…

  • Ann

    The Virtual Museum of the European Roots

    Museums from Italy, Germany, Austria, Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria and Greece have joined hands – and virtual artefacts – to create the first ‘Virtual Museum of European Roots’. They have put their most treasured objects online in 3D for visitors to explore in several thematic routes, as they are guided through European prehistoric culture and heritage. For museum professionals, there are e-courses, training them in the skills needed for establishing and managing a virtual museum. The ‘Berliner Goldhut‘ (Berlin Golden Hat, in the Neues Museum), thought to be a lunar and solar calendar, is part of a larger group of Golden…