Using NASA laser technology, researchers have discovered thousands of new structures and illustrated the complex urban centres built at the ancient Maya city of Caracol, Belize. The equivalent of 25 years worth of data (if gathered through machete-wielding means) was gathered in only four days using a technique of emitting laser beams from a plane to penetrate the thick canopy that covers the site. LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) equipment brought aboard a small Cessna 337 bounced laser beams to sensors on the ground, penetrating the thick tree canopy to see ‘beyond the rainforest’, allowing for the detecting of many…
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Dr Michel Baud of the Louvre Museum in Paris gave an interesting lecture last week about his excavations of a pyramid at Abu Roash. The monument was badly preserved and its stone had been quarried in Roman times, but the certain details, such as its apparent solar connections, were still discernable. Earlier, Vassil Dobrev stated that the pyramid may actually be a solar temple. However, Baud dismisses these claims…. Nearly 4,500 years ago, in the time of the Old Kingdom, the pharaoh Khufu built one of the greatest monuments on earth – the Great Pyramid. His pyramid was actually a…
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As a wise man once said, “Education costs money, but then so does ignorance.” The first part of the maxim isn’t so true any more as online resources and information proliferate, making it free and easy for everyone to learn online if they want to. There are now a number of courses online on Roman history and architecture too and they’re from respected universities, given by well known experts in their field. Brought to my attention by the Free Technology for Teachers blog, Yale offers its online course Roman Architecture 252, a series of 24 lectures available to download to…
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A water feature excavated in the Maya city of Palenque, in Chiapas, southern Mexico, is the earliest known example of engineered water pressure in the New World, according to a collaboration between an archaeologist and a hydrologist from Penn State University. The spring-fed conduit has a restricted opening that would cause the water to exit forcefully, under pressure, to a height of 6 metres. How the Maya used the pressurized water is, however, still unknown. Such water pressure systems were previously thought to have entered Mexico with the arrival of the Spanish in the 16th century. “Water pressure systems were…
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The man with the toothless smile and sharp eyes beckons you over to see his papyrus, meanwhile another calls you to his perfume shop. Sales pitches vary: Special price for pretty lady or if youre male, You want something for your wife, not your wife? OK, for your mistress then? Apart from the hassle of the hustlers and the danger of having an over-priced piece of papyrus on your wall when you get home, what other risks do you face in Cairo? Is it safe to travel there at all? Cairo does have a certain charm, but a first visit…
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It’s the end of the Ancient World in London video series! We’ve travelled up and down the country getting the inside line on London’s impressive history, and we’ve seen no small number of ancient wonders along the way. So here’s a video of our best bits and what we thought of them – from the rebellion of Boudicca to the fearsome Maunsell Sea Forts. The series has been much more than the videos, though: we’ve been running bloggers’ challenges, real-world and virtual events, a pub quiz and even a special concert. Of course you can still see Stonehenge, the Valley…
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A team of archaeologists, led by Professor Vance Watrous and Matt Buell of the University at Buffalo, have discovered a fortification system at the Minoan town of Gournia. The discovery rebukes the popular myth that the Minoans were a peaceful society with no need for defensive structures. That idea arose from work done in the early 20th century by Sir Arthur Evans who proposed that a pax Minoica existed on Crete during their time. Certainly the Minoans were afraid of somebody, Professor Watrous said. The town was originally excavated from 1901-1904 by Harriet Boyd Hawes, a pioneering women who was…
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London’s skyline today may be better known for a gherkin, a big wheel and Big Ben, but the city’s past has been littered with Egyptomaniacs, bent on saluting ancient Egyptians in Britain’s capital. And who better to lead us on a tour round London’s hidden Egyptian architecture than Dr Jasmine Day, self-confessed Egyptophile and author of TheMummy’s Curse: Mummymania in the English-speaking World. “For me the fascination with ancient Egypt,” says Jasmine, “is the way that it continues to exert its power on us today. We can see the tremendous influence that ancient Egyptians have on our own architecture, our…
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For me, the press preview of the Tutankhamun and the Golden Age of the Pharaohs exhibition, which opened in New York today, was a momentous event because I’ve never met Dr. Zahi Hawass before, and I got to look him in the eye and shake his hand and even ask him a question. I’ll come to all that in a minute. The exhibition is impressive. I can’t deny that. There was a moment when I actually stopped dead in my tracks, mouth open (soon to be hustled out of the way by a pushy New York journo). This happened when…
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The famous city walls surrounding the ancient Chinese capital of Xian could be in store for a major makeover. Last week, the city publicized a plan to invest about $1.75 billion to renovate the already well-preserved walls, which have stood for centuries. The plan is meant to better restore the walls and beautify the area. It will also feature the construction of four new museums at the walls main entrances. Each of the museums will center on four different dynasties that include the Zhou, Qin, Han and Tang. (Pictures of the proposed plan can be found here.) Wang Tian, a…