Giove: In Jupiter’s shadow
I first came to the Umbrian hilltop village of Giove half a lifetime ago. I was seeking sanctuary in the real Italy as I navigated potential closure of the British School at Rome (where I was director) at the hands of Mrs…
settlement history
Sinai rock art
A new archaeological site has been declared in South Sinai, at the Umm Arak Plateau – about 5km (3 miles) north-east of the Serabit el-Khadim temple and the copper and turquoise mining areas. An Egyptian mission discovered a large number…
Evidence of Glasgow’s medieval expansion uncovered at Gallowgate
Recent excavations at Spoutmouth in the Gallowgate area of Glasgow have revealed evidence of the city’s medieval expansion. The site was a car park for years, and will be redeveloped as social housing. It lies on the edge of medieval…
Ratting out
If you want to know how liveable a city is, you can ask the rats. The cosmopolitan rodents will know exactly how resource-rich and wasteful in nutrients their human co-habitants are.
A Viking Age cemetery
A Viking Age burial site has been uncovered at Lisbjerg, near Aarhus, in Denmark. Excavations carried out by archaeologists from Moesgaard Museum have revealed 30 burials, although it is possible that there could be more in the surrounding area. The…
Great Zimbabwe’s water system
In the south-eastern margins of the Zimbabwe plateau sit the ruins of southern Africa’s first major city, Great Zimbabwe. The city was established as the capital of the Karanga kingdom in the 11th century AD, and remained occupied until the…
Shadowlands: a journey through lost Britain
Review by HB. Shadowlands is a moving and at times personal tour of Britain’s lost villages and urban spaces. The author pointedly excludes the historical remains of ‘urban success’ found in places like Bath and St Albans, choosing instead to…
Machu Picchu may have been known by another name, study suggests
The Inca may have called the city Picchu, or more likely Huayna Picchu.
World News: Canada, Petite Mustique, China
A round up of some of the latest archaeological stories from across the globe, including the discovery of a tudor coin found in Canada, evidence of leprosy in the Caribbean, an ancient murder victim in China.
This week: jungle
According to the dictionary, it means simply 'land covered with dense forest and tangled vegetation'. But in the context of our human story, the word 'jungle' – which derives from the Hindi 'jangal' – has often taken on unfairly negative connotations.
Living like common people: uncovering medieval peasant perceptions of landscape
How did medieval villagers understand the world around them? Stephen Mileson and Stuart Brookes addressed this question in a research project and recently published book. Here Stephen reports on their findings, and how they met the challenges of uncovering the perceptions and sense of identity of ordinary rural people in the past.