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La Tène: A place of memory
When La Tène was discovered more than 150 years ago, the site gave its name to the second half of the Iron Age across much of Europe, and objects of La Tène type are often equated with the Celts. But what was found at La Tène? Andrew Fitzpatrick and Marc-Antoine Kaeser explore the changing interpretations of this iconic site.
A matter of health
In 1950, Peter Williams-Hunt published a paper in Antiquity entitled ‘Irregular earthworks in eastern Siam: a review’. A former RAF pilot, he had pored over wartime aerial photos taken of the extensive Khorat Plateau in North-east Thailand. He was intrigued…
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…
Indiana Jones and the nature of archaeology: Fact and fiction in early 20th century fieldwork
The release of the latest Indiana Jones film presents an opportunity to reflect on how archaeology has been depicted in the franchise. Hélène Maloigne investigates the realities of archaeological fieldwork in the eras spanned by the movies.
St George’s Hill, Damoulianata, Kefalonia
Last summer, one day stands out. While on holiday on the Ionian island of Kefalonia, I persuaded three friends to spend a morning investigating a castle that has intrigued me. Situated on a high hill, the ruins command breathtaking views…
Sicily: An isle of myth
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.
Tracing the origins of the Benin Bronzes
A recent study has used geochemical analysis to compare brass manillas traded with West Africa in the 16th-19th centuries with the materials used to make the famous Benin Bronzes, in order to find out more about their possible origins.
Unique medieval Christian art in Sudan
Archaeologists working at Old Dongola in Sudan have stumbled across a set of unusual 13th-century Christian wall paintings.
Liman Tepe: A bridge between worlds
For over 30 years a pioneering project has investigated the prehistory of the Izmir region of Turkey. What has it discovered? Vasıf Şahoğlu told Matthew Symonds an epic tale of rise and fall, connectivity and technology, and the long shadows cast by devastating natural disasters.
Gold bracteate
What is it? This gold pendant, known to specialists as a bracteate, is 5cm in diameter and comes from a Danish hoard dated to the 6th century AD – the object itself dates to the early 5th century. The front…
The World of the Ancient Silk Road
REVIEW BY TIM WILLIAMS This book is a collection of papers that focus on themes of human migration, communication, and cross-cultural exchange along the Silk Roads, from the 3rd millennium BC to the early 2nd millennium AD. The volume is…
Europe’s Lost Frontiers – Volume 1 : Context and Methodology
REVIEW BY GEORGE NASH Due to current climate change, the coastline of north-western Europe is in a state of flux, resulting in the slow but inevitable inundation of the sea. This change in coastline is clearly witnessed by the ongoing disappearance…
The Museum of the Wood Age
REVIEW BY ROLAND ENNOS Given the preponderance of stone, bronze, and iron artefacts found at archaeological sites, and their usefulness in enabling archaeologists to date their finds, it has perhaps been inevitable that so much research has concentrated on these…
Celebrated crafts and cross-cultural connections
Buried in lead The excellent Museum of Antiquities in Rouen, Normandy, has mounted a special exhibition called Le Plomb et l’homme (Lead and Man; open until 5 March 2024) devoted to the large number of Gallo-Roman lead coffins and funerary…
Palaeolithic portable art
A rare example of Upper Palaeolithic portable art has been found at an open-air site in south-eastern France. Bellegarde, located between Nîmes and Arles, was discovered in 2015 by Inrap archaeologists. Excavations across c.2,000m2 of the multi-phase site have produced…
World’s earliest known saddle found in China?
A recent study has determined that a leather saddle found in north-western China may be the oldest surviving example currently known. Exactly when horse-riding and the use of saddles began is still a subject of some debate, but the latest…
Religious sites in Bolivia
Archaeological surveys in the Carangas region of highland Bolivia have identified a previously unrecognised concentration of religious sites built by the pre-Hispanic inhabitants of the area, including one site with characteristics currently unique in the Andes. The survey identified 135…
Fusion diets in the early colonial Caribbean
Analysis of pottery from the Caribbean island of Isla de Mona, part of the Puerto Rican archipelago, is shedding new light on food and drink practices on the island at the time of its early colonisation, including what may be…
World news in brief: Bronze sword from Bavaria, AI identifies new Nasca lines and new human remains found in Pompeii
A round-up of some of the latest archaeological discoveries from across the globe.
Roman body armour undergoes analysis
In 2018, a rusty lump of more than 400 fragments of iron was discovered in Germany at Kalkriese, the site of the Varus Battle, where a catastrophic defeat was inflicted on Rome in AD 9 (see CWA 104). In the…
Anyang: China’s ancient city of kings
A recent exhibition at the National Museum of Asian Art in Washington, DC, explores the art and culture of the Bronze Age city of Anyang in China. We spoke to curator J Keith Wilson to find out more.
Minerva’s April listings: exhibitions from around the world
The dates listed below may have changed since we went to print. Check the websites of the museums for the most up-to-date information and bookings.
Asterix’s legacy at Alésia
Richard Hodges explores Alésia in Burgundy and the legacy of Julius Caesar’s defeat of Vercingétorix and the Gauls.
Aquincum: a museum and archaeological park in an urban setting
On 10 May 1894, Aquincum Museum in Budapest opened its doors to the public. Here, in anticipation of the forthcoming anniversary of that event, David Breeze recounts his connection to the museum and its archaeological park.
Qasr Bshir: conserving a special Roman fort
Deep in the Jordanian desert lies an extraordinary ruin. It is a Roman fort that can stake a claim to being the best-preserved example anywhere in the former empire. But this relic of imperial power is in urgent need of conservation work. David Breeze, Mark Driessen, and Fawzi Abudanah discuss why Qasr Bshir is special, and the challenges that lie ahead.
Unboxing Palmyra: the archive of Harald Ingholt
The cardboard sheets, photographs, and handwritten notes compiled by Harald Ingholt bear a wealth of information about Palmyrene sculpture and architecture. As his archive in the Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek is reopened, Olympia Bobou, Eva Mortensen, and Rubina Raja reveal some of the secrets within.
A Peruvian fortress-temple in the desert
In 2022, archaeologists from the University of Toronto and the University of Trujillo began the first excavations of Cerro Prieto Espinal, a mountainside fortress-temple and settlement in north coastal Peru. Across the 3km-wide site, the team identified massive concentric walls,…
Mountain rock art at Saimaluu Tash: battle chariots and ploughing scenes at an altitude of 3,000m
The remote, mountainous location of Saimaluu Tash has ensured that its ancient rock art remains remarkably well preserved. Some of the images, though, feature subjects such as ploughing and chariots. The presence of activities best suited to much lower altitudes raises questions about who was creating this rock art and why. Christoph Baumer is our guide to an extraordinary concentration of ancient artistry.
The 22nd Indo-Pacific Prehistory Congress
Myanmar is a newcomer to the study of South-east Asian prehistory. Twenty years ago, I joined a group of colleagues to visit, at the invitation of the Myanmar government, the first Bronze Age site to be discovered there.
Knossos: seeking the labyrinth
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.
CWA 117 Letters – January 2023
Your observations, your objections, and your opinions: send them to cwaletters@world-archaeology.com
CWA #117 Crossword, and Answers to #116
Across 7 Vegetables domesticated c.8000 BC (8)9 George ___, 20th-century French archaeologist noted for his work in French Indochina and Siam (6)10 Boudica’s tribe (5)11 Huntress of Greek mythology (8)12 Mayan ceremonial centre in Guatemala (5)13 Caleb ___, American antiquary…
Ivory comb with rare Canaanite inscription
Until now, inscriptions found in the Canaanite alphabet have been limited to two or three words; this is the first meaningful Canaanite inscription found in Israel.
Iron from Tutankhamun’s Tomb
by Katja Broschat et al.AUC, 2022ISBN 978-1-617-97997-2Hardback, £29.95. This is a lavish production from American University in Cairo Press, though at 62 pages long it is a rather slim volume. The book provides, for the first time, a complete account…
America’s oldest ochre mine identified
Artefacts made of non-local materials indicate that the quarry may have been the source of much of the ochre found across the American midcontinent