CWA news in brief

This article is from World Archaeology issue 132

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Cave treasures

In 2023, two speleologists exploring the Cave of Tlayócoc in south-western Mexico came across a collection of 500-year-old objects. Archaeologists from INAH investigated further, revealing that the assemblage consisted of 14 artefacts in total, including three engraved shell bracelets, two of which had been placed deliberately around stalagmites; a giant snail of the species Strombus, with perforations and decorations; and several stone discs with similarities to pyrite mirrors. The finds are believed to have been placed in the cave during the Post-classic period, c.AD 950-1521, and are most likely connected to the Tlacotepehua culture, who are reported by 16th-century written sources to have inhabited this region. The arrangement of the bracelets around the stalagmites, which had been rounded to enhance their phallic appearance, combined with the fact that pre-Hispanic cultures often viewed caves as the ‘womb of the Earth’, has led researchers to propose that fertility rituals may have been performed in the cave.

Digitising Tuvalu’s heritage

The Tuvalu Digital Repository for Cultural Heritage is a new project aiming to record and digitise cultural assets of the Pacific Island nation, which are currently under increasing threat from climate change. The initiative is being implemented by the German Archaeological Institute (DAI), working in close collaboration with the Tuvaluan Ministry of Culture, and the digital repository is defined and managed by the Tuvaluan community itself. The project involves the creation of 3D models of cultural sites, artefacts, and objects, as well as transcription of oral narratives and interviews, and audiovisual documentation of traditional dances, music, crafts, and practices. It is hoped that this interdisciplinary approach, combining digital documentation technologies with traditional knowledge systems, will help to preserve Tuvalu’s endangered cultural heritage – both tangible and intangible – for future generations.

The Venus of Kołobrzeg

This small limestone statuette depicting a female figure with exaggerated proportions has been given the name the ‘Venus of Kołobrzeg’ after the district in Poland where it was found in 2022. The object eventually reached the attention of the Museum of Polish Arms in Kołobrzeg, where it is currently undergoing conservation and further investigation. The figurine has been dated to the Neolithic period, over 6,000 years ago, and may have been made by the first farmers to settle in this area. Other anthropomorphic figurines are known from Neolithic sites in areas to the south and south-east of the Carpathian Mountains, and in Anatolia and southern Europe, but none has ever been found in Poland before. It is also relatively unusual to find such a figurine made of stone, rather than the more commonly used clay. Plans are under way for more detailed study of this special object, as well as its upcoming display in the museum.