In the 12th century, the counts of Foix began creating a unique network of fortifications using caves and other natural features in their part of the Pyrenees. Colin Duncan Taylor explores their origins and reveals how, starting in the 19th century, these castles in the cliffs were ransacked by early archaeologists and fortune hunters in search of fabled Cathar treasure.
The Osirion is one of the most intriguing New Kingdom monuments. It is located behind the Sety I temple at Abydos, the burial place of Osiris. Now open to the sky, this unique structure was originally subterranean, built to resemble…
Andrew Fulton describes an important New Kingdom text that invokes 75 forms of the sun god.
This book explores an important, new aspect of archaeological interpret-ation that deals with the description and transmission of mythical romanitas. One of the most prominent and novel features of Dr Turner’s study is his use of what he terms ‘heat…
Stephen Cosh, together with his colleague Dr David Neal, are the authors of a truly monumental and authoritative five-volume survey of all the Roman mosaics of Britain, the only province of the Empire which brought such a venture to completion:…
As Lucia Gahlin explains in the final chapter of this book, popular perceptions of ancient Egyptian culture are traditionally informed by the works of Graeco-Roman writers, and by modern interpretations of Egypt’s ancient history in literature and film. But in…
During the Black Death of 1347 to 1352, doctors wore bird-beaked masks filled with various herbs that were designed to protect the wearer from breathing poisoned air – or so we have been led to believe.
REVIEW BY ANDREW FULTON This volume is part of a series of books of ancient texts that Amber Books are publishing in hardback using traditional Chinese bookbinding methods that were first developed in the Ming Dynasty. The results are impressive…
In recent months, excavations in Pompeii’s Insula 10, Regio IX, have uncovered several sections of a grand domus, including a black-walled dining room decorated with scenes from the Trojan War (CWA 125), a lararium or household shrine room (CWA 126),…
The Hill of Tara, once the seat of the High Kings of Ireland, is a site steeped in mythology and history, dating back over 5,000 years. At the centre of the image lies the Mound of the Hostages, an ancient…
Ani reaches the end of his journey through the underworld in the fourth of Andrew Fulton’s series exploring this famous Book of the Dead.
Across 7 Portico or vestibule at the western entrance of an early Christian church (7)8 Green semi-precious mineral (7)10 US state, location of the Jeffers Petroglyphs archaeological site (9)11 Covered colonnade in ancient Greece (4)12 Father of Aeneas in Greek…
A major exhibition at the National Museum of Denmark is exploring the mysterious Viking Age Völva.
Continuing his series exploring specific vignettes from Papyrus of Ani, Andrew Fulton focuses on the most famous scene from the Book of the Dead.
A small, ornately decorated house has been uncovered in Pompeii during ongoing excavations of the Insula of the Chaste Lovers, in the centre of the ancient city. Archaeological investigations of this newly discovered residence are still under way, but it…
Your observations, your objections, and your opinions: send them to cwaletters@world-archaeology.com
What is it? This ornate bronze hanging oil lamp, 60cm in diameter and weighing 57.72kg, comes from the Etruscan civilisation. It is decorated with a unique combination of iconography that has been the subject of discussion since its discovery. In…
REVIEW BY ROGER FORSHAW This Golden House Publication is a meticulous study of a distinct wall scene found in numerous private tombs, particularly during the New Kingdom. Kelly-Anne Diamond refers to it as ‘the Sacred District’, a map-like illustration depicting…
Across 7 North American archaeological culture (6)9 Huntress of Greek mythology (8)10 Germanic people defeated by the Huns (10)11 Port, now in Israel, conquered by Alexander in 332 BC (4)12 Father of Aeneas in Greek mythology (8)13 Extinct language of…
There has been much debate about the exact nature of the perceived link between the Milky Way and the goddess Nut. A new study, published in the Journal of Astronomical History and Heritage, suggests that rather than the Milky Way…
Across 6 Large knife often found among Anglo-Saxon grave goods (9)8 Fertility goddess worshipped at Carthage (5)10 ___ Wall, Roman fortification in Scotland (8)11 Extinct Tibeto-Burman language (6)12 Opponent of Greece at the battles of Thermopylae and Salamis (6)13 US…
Archaeologists working at Pompeii have uncovered a spectacular banquet hall decorated with mythological images connected to the Trojan War. This luxurious space, once used for feasting and entertaining, was part of a grand private residence located in Insula 10 of…
It was not just an important food item for the ancient Egyptians: milk had magical properties.
REVIEW BY GERALD LALONDE Activity of the Earth’s tectonic plates affects geography, and geography affects the activity of humans. Sliding of the Africa–Arabia plate under the Eurasia plate in the Miocene and Oligocene ages raised mountains from the Pyrenees in…
An exceptional discovery has been made during the laying of a water pipeline in northern Naples, in Giugliano, an area that has never before yielded this type of find. The archaeological excavations, requested by the Superintendency for the Metropolitan Area…
REVIEW BY EDWARD BIDDULPH How did a giant ship create the White Cliffs of Dover? Why can Oxfordshire’s Rollright Stones never be counted? Which ghost said to haunt Lake Windermere was recorded on Ordnance Survey mapping? The answers can be…
What was the purpose of this small disc of cartonnage, now in the British Museum? Dr Campbell Price explains.
This is a Roman tortoise or turtle figurine that was recently found by a metal-detectorist near Wickham Skeith in Suffolk. Cast in copper-alloy, it has a flat base with no evidence of having once had a fixing, suggesting that it…
REVIEW BY KK This volume brings together the current evidence of dogs in the past: from their evolution from wild animals to domesticated pets, to their presence in the archaeological record, through to their importance in myths and legends. Combining…
Across 6 Homo ___, early human species, the name meaning ‘handy man’ (7)8 Undeciphered script found on tablets in Crete (6,1)10 Earliest epoch of the Tertiary period (10)11 Recess in the wall of a Roman basilica (4)12 ___ Ware, 6th-century…
Looking for somewhere off the beaten track to explore in Greece? Martin Davies is our guide to the rich prehistoric heritage of Volos.
The Germanic warlord who led the massacre of three Roman legions in the Teutoburg Forest would later provide inspiration for both the Kaiser and Adolf Hitler, as Tim Newark explains.
The impressive ancient temples, villas, and theatres of Sicily understandably attract the attention of many visitors, but looking beyond the monuments to their spectacular natural surroundings and the stories they inspired also offers a way to understand the island’s ancient societies. David Stuttard guides us through Sicily’s mythological landscapes.
Andrew Fulton investigates the ancient Egyptian myth that tells how humanity
was saved by red-coloured beer.
Sean Rigby traces the worship of this distinctive-looking ancient Egyptian god.
Was the Minoan palace at Knossos the inspiration for myths about the Minotaur and its labyrinth lair? Delving into the archaeology of this monument and its environs reveals a reality every bit as remarkable as the ancient legends, as Andrew Shapland told Matthew Symonds.