Stories tagged ancient cultures
Stonehenge: A 19th Century engraving of the mysterious monument.
Courtesy Mark RyanStonehenge is back in the news. Archaeologists working on the mystery-laden prehistoric site located in south central England have now pinpointed the time of its construction to around 2300 BC. This radiocarbon-derived date connects it more closely with burial date of the Amesbury Archer, a wealthy metalworker from Europe’s alpine region, whose tomb was discovered not far from Stonehenge. Examination of the archer’s corpse revealed damage to his knee and other potentially fatal health issues.
This has led Tim Darvill and Geoff Wainwright, the two professors heading the excavation, to believe that the circle of megalithic stones existed as a healing center. Not everyone agrees, but you can find out all the details here. The dig's progress is also being recorded for an upcoming BBC Timewatch documentary.
All very well and good. But scientists remain uncertain as to how these huge stone monoliths were put in place by Stonehenge’s ancient technopeasant builders. Well, Wally Wallington, a retired construction worker in Flint, Michigan, just might have the answer. This following video came to my attention this past weekend, and I find it quite impressive and amazing. See for yourself.
SOURCES and LINKS
BBC website story
More about Stonehenge
Guardian website story
More on the Amesbury Archer
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What moon am I?: Ancient cultures had special names for each full month's full moon. Tonight's full moon is a "Buck Moon." Can you figure out what moon this one is?
Courtesy Luc ViatourTonight there will be a full moon. It happens every 29.5 days, no big deal right?
But did you know each full moon through the cycle of a calendar year has a special name? Tonight’s full moon, the one for July, is called a “Buck Moon,” named after a male deer.
The special monthly names for the full moons go back to ancient cultures, who tied the full moons to hunting, weather, planting and harvesting cycles of the year. Full details can be found here.
FYI: Here is a rundown of the various names for each month’s full moon:
January – Wolf Moon
February – Snow Moon
March – Worm Moon
April – Pink Moon
May – Flower Moon
June – Strawberry Moon
July – Buck Moon
August – Sturgeon Moon
September – Harvest Moon
October – Hunter's Moon
November – Beaver Moon
December – Cold Moon
Oil painting by Vincent Van Gogh (Art Institute of Chicago): Did Vincent know his new way of seeing things was made possible by using an ancient medium?
Courtesy Mark RyanOil painting, long considered a European invention dating from the 15th Century, appears now to have originated in Asia and from as early as the middle of the 7th Century.
Tests done on a series of wall murals discovered in caves in the Afghan region of Bamiyan show that the paint used is composed of resin and oil probably extracted from poppies or walnuts.
"This is the earliest clear example of oil paintings in the world, although drying oils were already used by ancient Romans and Egyptians, but only as medicines and cosmetics," said Yoko 
Gathering samples for analysis: Yoko Taniguchi and team members collect paint samples from one of the cave murals at Bamiyan.
Courtesy National Research Institute for Cultural Properties, Tokyo (Japan), who led a team of scientists from the National Research Institute for Cultural Properties in Tokyo, the Centre of Research and Restoration of the French Museums, and the California-based Getty Conservation Institute.
The caves are located behind the site of the giant Buddha statues destroyed by the Taliban in 2001 because they were deemed “un-Islamic”. The Taliban also damaged the cave walls.
Close-up of Buddhas on mural
Courtesy National Research Institute for Cultural Properties, Tokyo (Japan)Many of the cave paintings depict the robed Buddha sitting among mythical creatures, and are thought to have been painted by itinerant artisans traveling along the Silk Road, an ancient trade route linking China and the West.
Pigment layers under the microscope
Courtesy National Research Institute for Cultural Properties, Tokyo (Japan)Samples of the ancient pigment were tested at the European Synchroton Radiation Facility (ESRF) in Grenoble, France. The team used a combination of synchrotron techniques including mass spectrometry and gas chromatography to analyze several paintings from twelve of the caves and also from fragments of the toppled Buddha statues. The paint turned out to be composed of a mix of layered inorganic pigments and organic binders, such as natural resins, gums and protein. The latter indicates the possible use of egg or hide glue. Concentrations of lead carbonates known as lead whites were also detected.
"The use of drying oils in painting clearly shows an understanding of the properties of this material," said Ioanna Kakoulli, a materials archaeologist at the UCLA/Getty Conservation Program in Los Angeles. Although Kakoulli was not directly involved in the analysis, she confirmed it was of some of the earliest identified examples of drying oils used as a binding media in painting.
"Due to political reasons research on paintings in Central Asia is scarce," said team leader Taniguchi. "We were fortunate to get the opportunity from UNESCO, as a part of conservation project for the World Heritage Site Bamiyan, to study these samples."
Results of the study are published in the Journal of Analytical Atomic Spectrometry.
LINKS
ESRF site story
What is a Synchrotron?
NewKerala.com (India) story
Reuters.com story
National Geographic story
Stonehenge: Photo courtesy NASAArcheologists have announced the discovery of what they think may be the primitive homes of the mysterious builders of Stonehenge on the West Salisbury plains within walking distance of the famous monolith circle.
So far, eight huts have been unearthed, already making the excavation the largest concentration of prehistoric huts discovered in Britain. But Mike Parker Pearson, of Sheffield University thinks it’s just the beginning, and that maybe hundreds of hearth sites may exist in the region. Radar analysis of the landscape suggests the settlement is huge.
"The whole valley appears full of houses," Parker Pearson said. “Our dates for the building of Stonehenge are identical to the dates for this very large settlement.”
Carbon dating of the settlement dates it to the middle Neolithic Age about 4500 years ago, the same time the huge sarsens and bluestones of Stonehenge were being put in place.
Each of the huts uncovered so far measure about 5m (16ft) square, and was made of timber surrounding a central hearth. The archeologists found rubbish dating back to 2600 years B.C. covering the clay floors of the houses.
"It is the richest - by that I mean the filthiest - site of this period known in Britain," Professor Parker Pearson said. "We've never seen such quantities of pottery and animal bone and flint."
Parker Pearson believes the region was used for funereal purposes, as well as for some kind of ceremonial midwinter gathering site for prehistoric revelers.
The ancient village is located about 1.75 miles northeast of the famous stone circle, near Durrington Walls a large 500 meter (nearly a 1/3 mile) in diameter circular earthwork. Another henge of a sort is also nearby, but this one was made of wooden poles stuck in the ground in a circular formation. Known as Woodhenge, Parker Pearson believes it is linked in ritual to its more famous stone cousin. Both henges are aligned with astronomical events, but the events are complementary. Stonehenge is lined up with the sunrise of the midwinter solstice, while the timber circle at Durrington lined up with the sunset of the midwinter solstice.
Pig teeth found at the village site seem to support Parker Pearson’s theory of a midwinter festival.
"One of the things we can tell from the pig teeth we've looked at is that most of them have been slaughtered at nine months. And we think they are farrowing in Spring," he said.
"It's likely there's a midwinter cull and that ties in with our midwinter solstice alignments at Durrington and Stonehenge."
Durrington’s purpose, he speculates, was for celebration of life, while Stonehenge served as a memorial and cemetery. After feasting, Parker Pearson believes the dead were deposited in the River Avon and sent downstream to Stonehenge, where a select few were cremated and buried.
More Info and Links
Stonehenge Guide
Stonehenge Settlement Found (National Geographic)
Vast settlement of huts linked to Stonehenge (Guardian)
More on Stonehenge
Stonehenge didn’t stand alone (National Geographic)
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