Tomb paintings examined in Amphipolis

Painted figures have been found on the door frames of a 2,300-year-old tomb currently being excavated in Amphipolis.

Painted human figures have been discovered at the mysterious, richly-decorated tomb in Amphipolis in northern Greece, according to a news announcement by the Greek Ministry of Culture.

Found on the door frames of the second chamber, the figures will be examined with lasers.

Pictures of the newly found paintings, as well as additional information, have not yet been released.

“We are not hiding anything. New findings are revealed slowly as the restoration process continues,” Greek Culture Minister Kostas Tassoulas said.

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Story: Rossella Lorenzi, Discovery News | Photo: Discovery News

1,700-year-old cemetery excavated in China

A cemetery dating back 1,700 years has been excavated along the Silk Road in northwest China.

The cemetery was found in the city of Kucha, which is located in present-day northwest China. Ten tombs were excavated, seven of which turned out to be large brick structures.

One tomb, dubbed “M3,” contained carvings of several mythical creatures, including four that represent different seasons and parts of the heavens: the White Tiger of the West, the Vermilion Bird of the South, the Black Turtle of the North and the Azure Dragon of the East.

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Story: Owen Jarus, LiveScience | Photo: Chinese Cultural Relics

Tourist heavily fined for defacing Colosseum

A Russian tourist has been slapped with a €20,000 fine after he was caught etching a letter into one of the ground-floor bricks of the historic Colosseum in Rome. This is the fifth tourist this year who has been caught damaging the ancient stadium.

The man used a sharp stone to carve the 25-cm-tall letter on a ground-floor brick wall on the south side of the monument but was caught in the act by a guard and arrested.

The next day the 42-year-old tourist received a suspended four-year jail sentence and now has three months to pay the fine whose severity is described as “justified” by the Colosseum director Rossella Rea.

The city’s archaeology superintendent Mariarosaria Barbera said the damage is “significant”, adding that the incision removed part of the surface as well as “compromising the conservation and image” of the ancient structure.

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Story: Wanted in Rome | Photo: Wanted in Rome

Bone analysis reveals mammoth-meat diet

Analysis carried out on human remains found at a prehistoric site in the Czech Republic has revealed that the people living there ate large quantities of mammoth meat.

They found that humans did consume mammoth — and in large quantities. Other carnivores, such as brown bears, wolves and wolverines, also had access to mammoth meat, indicating the high availability of fresh mammoth carcasses, most likely left behind by human hunters. Surprisingly, the dogs did not show a high level of mammoth consumption, but rather consumed essentially reindeer meat that was not the staple food of their owners. A similar situation is observed in traditional populations from northern regions, who often feed their dogs with the food that they do not like. These results also suggest that these early dogs were restrained, and were probably used as transportation helpers.

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Story: Universitaet Tübingen | Photo: Nomad_Soul, Fotolia

1,300-year-old Egyptian spell book deciphered

A 1,300-year-old Egyptian parchement codex containing a series of invocations and spells has been deciphered.

“It is a complete 20-page parchment codex, containing the handbook of a ritual practitioner,” write Malcolm Choat and Iain Gardner, who are professors in Australia at Macquarie University and the University of Sydney, respectively, in their book, “A Coptic Handbook of Ritual Power” (Brepols, 2014).

The ancient book “starts with a lengthy series of invocations that culminate with drawings and words of power,” they write. “These are followed by a number of prescriptions or spells to cure possession by spirits and various ailments, or to bring success in love and business.”

For instance, to subjugate someone, the codex says you have to say a magical formula over two nails, and then “drive them into his doorpost, one on the right side (and) one on the left.”

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Story: Owen Jarus, Live Science | Photo: Ms. Effy Alexakis, Macquarie University Ancient Cultures Research Centre

Ancient rock art found near Sydney

Rock art dating back tens of thousands of years has been found in Sydney’s north shore.

The site, located in Sydney’s north shore area, is in a pocket of pristine bush that has kept the art hidden for generations.

Locals were not aware of the presence of the site because it was either obscured behind vegetation or dismissed as graffiti.

The site was discovered by chance, when Sydney Water investigated a traditional fishing hook found in the soil.

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Story: Anne Barker, ABC News | Photo: Anne Barker, ABC News

Marble headstone unearthed in Athens

A marble headstone dating back to 400 B.C. has been found in the Kerameikos area of Athens.

According to the official announcement, the shape and style of the sculpted marble of the headstone date from the third quarter of the 4th century B.C.. It is possible that the sculpture was initially placed in the ancient burial ground along the road in front of the Sacred Gate. It is estimated that later on, the headstone was used as building material and specifically as a door sill. Archaeologists also suggest that the marble piece had a third use later on, possibly as a cover of the sewer under the Sacred Road (Iera Odos street today) when the Athens sewage system was built in 6th century A.D..

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Story: Philip Chrysopoulos, The Greek Reporter | Photo: The Greek Reporter

Terracotta army modeled on real soldiers

New research suggests that the 7,000 soldiers that make up China’s famous Terracotta Army may each have been individually modeled off of a real soldier.

“If a thief presses an ear against a door or a windowpane, that can be as effective as a fingerprint,” says team member and UCL archaeologist Andrew Bevan. If the terra-cotta warriors portrayed real people, each statue should have distinctively shaped ears.

But taking measurements of the clay ears was a risky proposition. The fragile warriors are packed so tightly in their burial pit that moving among them with calipers could have damaged them. So the team used new digital technology known as structure-from-motion to create precise, three-dimensional reconstructions of the warriors’ ears.

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Story: Heather Pringle, National Geographic | Photo: O. Louis Mazzatenta, National Geographic Creative

Unfinished vases found at Pompeii pottery workshop

Excavations taking place at a pottery workshop in Pompeii has led to the discovery of ten unfinished vases.

The vases were found sealed under a layer of ash and pumice from Mount Vesuvius’ devastating eruption of 79 A.D. and it appears they were just ready to be fired.

They were dropped and abandoned, along with the kilns, after frightened potters saw a pine tree-shaped column of smoke bursting from Vesuvius on Aug. 24, 79 A.D.

Reaching nine miles into the sky, the column began spewing a thick pumice rain. Like many Pompeii residents, the scared potters probably rushed in the streets, trying to leave the city.

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Story: Rosella Lorenzi, Discovery News | Photo: Laëtitia Cavassa

Anglo-Saxon cemetery found in Suffolk

20 Anglo-Saxon burials (containing the remains of 21 individuals) have been unearthed in Suffolk, England.

“It was quite a surprise. We had done a series of trial trench excavations and had no idea they were there.

“We were very lucky they had survived because they were less than a foot down and the land had been ploughed very recently.”

Exning has strong links to King Anna, who converted to Christianity in the early 7th century, and is reportedly the birthplace of Queen Etheldreda, his daughter, who had Ely named after her.

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Story: Cambridge News | Photo: Cambridge News

Bronze Age shaving razor found in Siberia

A thin bronze plate that may have been used for shaving has been found at a 4,000-year-old site in Siberia.

A rudimentary razor blade used by fashion-conscious men 4,000 years ago has been unearthed on the site of an ancient settlement in Siberia. Archaeologists found the Bronze Age bathroom accessory during an expedition to the Vengerovo region of Novosibirsk.

The thin bronze plate had been sharpened on both sides and experts believe it was used to trim beards and cut hair, and may have doubled up as a knife.

What is particularly interesting about the find is that razors were only starting to become popular in the Bronze Age as males put a stamp on their individual identities.

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Story: Siberian Times | Photo: Vyacheslav Molodin, Institute of Archeology and Ethnography of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences

WWII aircraft found underwater near Republic of Palau

Two WWII aircraft has been found under the waters of the Pacific near the Republic of Palau.

The group narrowed their search area and in March 2014, the AUVs found the remainder of the Avenger bomber, which had been missing in action for 70 years. A few days later, sonar images helped reveal a second aircraft, an F6F Hellcat, in a second location.

“It was an exciting time, but also a solemn time because you know there are potentially servicemen still in the plane,” said Moline, who attributes the discovery to the combination of BentProp’s historical knowledge of the area and archival records, and the advanced robotics technology provided by UD and Scripps.

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Story: University of Delaware | Photo: University of Delaware