A research team from the University of Liverpool, led by Evolutionary Anthropology PhD student Emma Nelson, reckon theyve made some tenuous inroads into establishing just how much early human-like primates liked to play the field when it came to sex. With it, they may have found some clues as to why Homo sapiens managed to see off Neanderthals as the dominant species on the planet. The secret is in the ratio between the index and ring fingers on human hands, which are thought to be telltale indicators of how much androgen and with it, testosterone a person is exposed to…
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The recent discovery of the Staffordshire Hoard has turned up over 1,500 pieces of stunning gold and silver artfacts from the 7th century Dark Ages era. The find has been described as “unparalleled” and represents the largest haul of Anglo-Saxon treasure ever to have been discovered, within an area which was the heartland of theKingdom of Mercia. The Mercian tribe was particularly aggressive in their conquests and fought to expand the land in their control – centered on the valley of the river Trent, what today is the English Midlands – in wars against Northumbria and East Anglia. Out of…
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Heritage Key has posted the latest video clip from Dr. Zahi Hawass regarding current excavations at the Valley of the Kings and surrounding areas. In New Discoveries in Drabu el Naga, Dr. Hawass brings us up to date with his excavations at this promising site on the West Bank of the Nile, close to Luxor and directly across from Karnak.There are about 80 numbered tombs at Dra Abu el-Naga, some of which are royal tombs dating from the Seventeenth Dynasty, with other New Kingdom tombs belonging to Theban priests and privileged court officials. The site suffers from modern encroachment, with…
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A skull and gold-inlaid brooch ‘on a par with the Sutton Hoo burial‘, found by an amateur metal detecting enthusiast, could prove to belong to a 1,500 year-old Saxon princess, experts are claiming. The incredible haul came to light when Chris Bayston, 56, noticed something during a rally with the Weekend Wanderers Metal Detectors Club on farmland near West Hanney, Oxfordshire. On further inspection Mr Bayston found the skull and copper alloy brooch; circular in shape, covered in gold and studded with garnets and coral. “I lifted a shovel load of muck out and as I threw it down I…
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Archaeologists have made an amazing discovery in Mexico, which could hold the key to one of history’s enduring enigmas. Two pyramids and nine palaces have been found hidden in the jungles of the Puuc region of Mexico’s Yucatan, the birthplace of the famous Maya culture. Experts have described the incredible haul, located at the ancient site of Kiuic, as a ‘Maya Pompeii’ – and believe its sudden abandonment could unlock the mystery of the Mayas, whose highly advanced civilization suddenly imploded around a thousand years ago. The project, led by Mexico‘s National Institute of Archaeology and History, unearthed an intriguing…
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The fight goes on for the repatriation of Australian Aboriginal remains stored in museums across the world, with two artworks now added to the list of artifacts campaigers want returned Down Under. A delegation from the Tasmanian Aboriginal Centre in Hobart is in the UK this week to lobby institutions among them the Wellcome Trust, and Oxford and Cambridge universities to return the skulls, bones and other Aboriginal remains held in their collections. This follows their success earlier this month in having the remains of a skull from a Tasmanian Aborigine returned to Australia from the National Museum of Scotland.…
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Work is ongoing in China on a major project to restore Daming Palace – the 1,100 year-old ruling centre of the Tang Dynasty in modern Xi’an (formerly the Tang capital, Chang’an) – and around it build an expansive National Relics Park. The project was officially launched in October of last year, and is hoped to be completed by October 2010. Daming Palace was established in 634 AD, in the eight year of the reign of Emperor Taizong. It was the largest of three major palaces in Chang’an, and the political hub of the empire for 240 years, until the Tang…
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Work is ongoing in China on a major project to restore Daming Palace the 1,100 year-old ruling centre of the Tang Dynasty in modern Xian (formerly the Tang capital, Changan) and around it build an expansive National Relics Park. The project was officially launched in October of last year, and is hoped to be completed by October 2010. Daming Palace was established in 634 AD, in the eight year of the reign of Emperor Taizong. It was the largest of three major palaces in Changan, and the political hub of the empire for 240 years, until the Tang moved their…
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In Zahi Hawass in the Valley of the Kings: Part 1, Dr. Hawass caught us up on how excavations were progressing in the Central Valley area of the Valley of the Kings, particularly with the northern side, between the tombs of Ramesses II and Merneptah, and the area to the south of Tutankhamuns tomb. Watch part 2! In my analysis of what the Part 1 said – and left unsaid – I pointed out that theWestern Valley dig was conspicuously absent from the discussion. Well, it remains such. The second video makes no mention of KV64 at all, much less…
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The literary world is waiting for a bombshell. Controversial Da Vinci Code author Dan Brown is about to release his latest historical fantasy tale – The Lost Symbol – on the public. But what does this mean for the history books industry at large, and should the work of Dan Brown be considered historical fiction at all, or merely fantasy? Judging by the healthy state of historical fiction at the moment, it could be that history pulp has helped stimulate readers’ and writers’ interest in proper historical fiction. In his review of Ben Kanes The Forgotten Legion, Roger Michael Kean…