The answer about the marks on these #StoneTools in #Ethiopia provides info about our diets. - http://clapway.com/2015/08/16/ancient-bones-marks-confirmed-as-butchery-from-stone-tools-not-trampling-244/

A five-year controversy between archaeologists and paleontologists has finally been resolved over whether marks found on 3.4 million-year-old bones were made from stone tools or trampling. A new analysis confirms that stone tools were used to create the marks, effectively ending the debate and starting a new perspective on tool-use in early hominins.

Stone Tools Responsible for Marks on Fossil Bones in Dikika

After extensive analysis using statistical methods and experimental data to recreate trampling on bones, a new study published in the Journal of Human Evolution has concluded that the marks on two animal bones were made by stone tools in a form of butchery rather than by trampling.

The fossil bones that are over 3.4 million years old were found in Dikika, Ethiopia in 2010 and had started a heated debate regarding the origins of stone tool use in our early hominin ancestors that has had scientists butting heads for 5 years.

The study conducted by Emory University assistant professor of anthropology Jessica Thompson has not only confirmed the use of stone tools, but has also developed novel methods of analysis in fieldwork for paleoanthropology.

The Beginning and End to the Stone Tool Versus Trampling Controversy

The newest analysis of the two fossils bones has ended the controversy of the origin of the 12 marks scraped into the specimens. One specimen is a long bone believed to come from a medium-sized animal such as an antelope, while the other is a rib bone from a considerably larger animal, maybe similar to a buffalo.

The study says the marks were made with a combination of cutting and hitting. Thompson believes the bones were hit multiple times with a tremendous force. Imagine you had a crude tool, a sharpened stone perhaps, and needed to hack off meat from the bone. You’d get marks that resemble the ones found on the ancient bones.

The findings support the original study published in the journal Nature in June 2010. It also refutes the belief that the bones were trampled, as suggested by a rebuttal study published in December 2010 in the Proceedings of National Sciences (PNAS).

While the original interpretation was groundbreaking as it had effectively pushed back the understanding of stone tool use by early hominins by 800,000 years, this study has fueled the flames to the radical discovery that our genus Homo may have not been the first to use butchery tools.

Homo wasn’t the first hominid to use stone tools

The importance of these 12 marks on the two bones over 3 million years old is that they will change our current views of stone tool use and human evolution.

Previously, the earliest evidence of stone tool use has been found to be only 2.6 million years ago, which coincides so well with the emergence of our genus nearly 2.8 million years ago. It is believed that as we evolved, our diets and our brain size evolved simultaneously, possibly from the use of stone tools to allow us to eat more meat.

However, the bones from Dikika come from the same area and same time frame as the hominid species fossils of Australopithecus afarensis. This finding can completely set back human evolutionary studies by over one million years in regards to stone tool use and the origins of meat-eating in early hominids.

Stone Tools Used on Fossil Bones at Dikika Represent Turning Point in Paleoanthropology

In order to examine the effects of trampling, the researchers analyzed over 4,000 bones from the same area. Some of these bones’ surfaces revealed evidence of trampling, while the researchers used experimental techniques to make trampling marks to compare them to the original specimens.

The two bones’ marks were unique to the trampling marks of the others from a number of factors, including something as tiny as the angularity of sand grains against the bones. It was found, conclusively, that these bones had not been trampled.

Though these are only two bones out of thousands that have yet to be studied or even found, this study and the proceeding, original one represents a huge milestone for paleoanthropology. Whether the use of stone tools was still rare at the time or whether there is more evidence to find, our understanding of stone tool use in hominin evolution has already started to evolve.

Title picture of bone marks analyzed from the Dikika site is credited to Zeresenay Alemseged.

Additional image of Australopithecus afarensis, Credit to Tim Evanson.

Ancient Bones Marks Confirmed as Butchery from Stone Tools, Not Trampling

Italia has realized they"ve an underwater #Stonehenge to for #Atlantis hopefuls. - http://clapway.com/2015/08/09/an-italian-atlantis-archaeologists-reveal-underwater-stonehenge-near-coast-of-sicily-245/

A man-made monolith over 10,000 years old has been uncovered by archaeologists in Italy, prompting some to dub it the underwater Stonehenge. The monolith, which was completely submerged off a small island near Pantelleria, may reveal clues to ancient civilizations living in the Mediterranean basin.

Submerged Monolith Compared to Stonehenge Is More Like Atlantis of Italy

Off the coast of Sicily, submerged about 40 meters deep in the Sicilian Channel, archaeologists have come across a man-made monolith created during the Mesolithic age over 10,000 years ago.

The study authors, Zvi Ben-Avraham from Tel Aviv University and Emanuele Lodolo of the National Institute of Oceanography and Experimental Geophysics, believe the archaeological find will unveil information about significant human activity in the now-submerged regions of Italy’s coast.

The study was published in the Journal of Archaeological Science.

Monolith Found in Sicilian Channel Submerged over 9,500 Years Ago

The monolith found was a total of 12 meters long, but it had been broken into two parts. The archaeologists say the monolith was a regular shape and featured three holes of a similar diameter, one at the end and the other two on the sides of the stone.

After studying the holes, the researchers concluded that no natural process could have produced the holes.

The researchers aged the rock samples of the monolith to around the Late Pleistocene age. After sampling the shoals around the monoliths, the researchers noted the limestone and sandstone were completely different than the materials of the monolith.

Once again, they concluded no natural process would have accounted for this change in stone.

The structure had been created from a single block of stone and weighed an estimated 15 tons. The process of creation probably involved cutting, extracting, transporting, and installing the structure, all of which proved whoever constructed the underwater masterpiece had engineering skills.

With all this evidence, the presence of the monolith points to human activity over 10,000 years ago within the region that is currently underwater.

How the Italian Underwater Stonehenge Became Submerged

While today it is over 40 meters under the ocean surface, the Italian “Stonehenge” had once been above ground.

During the Last Glacial Maximum, sea levels rose dramatically. This had a tremendous impact on the Mediterranean region of what was called the Adventure Plateau, the northwestern region of the Sicilian Channel that had been connected to Sicily as a broad peninsula.

Today, of course, you wouldn’t recognize the Adventure Plateau as the sea levels from the Last Glacial Maximum flooded the peninsula, creating several islands in the shallow sea.

The monolith’s particular island, the Pantelleria Vecchia Bank, had been one of these islands that thrived with ancient human life. However, they wouldn’t remain there long as the entire island would be covered around 9,500 years ago by the still-rising seawaters.

What the Italian Atlantis Can Reveal About Ancient Civilizations

Both researchers believe the discovery will lead to more studies in the Sicilian Channel region to unveil more Mesolithic human activity.

Though the function of the monolith is still unknown, the researchers believe it was a functional structure to aid the people of the community who relied on fishing and trading.

Perhaps the monolith functioned as a lighthouse or anchoring system of some sort. Or perhaps it was a part of a larger complex, less of a Stonehenge and more of an Atlantis.

The archaeological record of the ancient civilizations whose homes are now resting on the seafloor of the continental shelves is mostly a blank for now. But the researchers have found an important start in the uncovering of the prehistoric cultures when they revealed this monolith.

Whether an underwater Stonehenge structure in Sicily or a small part of an Italian Atlantis, the monolith may soon uncover more of the origins of Mediterranean peoples in the Mesolithic age.

Images used have been found from the study in the Journal of Archaeological Science with credit to Emanuele Lodolo and the other researchers.

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An Italian Atlantis? Archaeologists Reveal Underwater Stonehenge Near Coast of Sicily

Archaeologists Uncover Gates to Biblical City Gath - http://clapway.com/2015/08/04/archaeologists-uncover-gates-to-biblical-city-gath-225/

Archaeologists conducting excavations in the Tel Zafit National Park have unearthed the entrance gate and fortifications of the Biblical city Gath, belonging to the Philistines and thrived during the 10th-9th centuries BCE.

City Gates of Gath and Fortification Walls Found by Archaeologists

Archaeologists of the Ackerman Family Bar-Ilan University Expedition have come across the entrance gate to the ancient, influential city of Gath during an excavation of the area near the Judean Foothills.

Led by professor Aren Maeir of the Martin (Szusz) Department of Land of Israel Studies and Archaeology, the dig has revealed one of the biggest city gates in Israel at the city of Gath.

The city gate that Maeir’s team found is an important part of biblical archaeology as it was referenced in the Bible, 1 Samuel 21, where David was fleeing from King Saul and seeking shelter with the king of Gath.

Gath’s Significance in Biblical Archaeology

Maeir and fellow archaeologists at the archaeological site believe the large gates show the ancient city’s important status during the period it flourished. Other evidence of the city’s influential power were seen in the magnificent fortification walls and the buildings within the city gates.

Along with the gate and walls, a temple and a building believed to be involved in iron production were found by the Ackerman Fellows. Though the ancient city had been destroyed in 830 BCE by Hazael, a king of Damascus, the archaeologists managed to uncover some of the city’s rich history thanks to the expedition, which has been an archaeology project that has been going on for 20 years.

Included among the cool findings at the site at Philistine temples that date back to the 11th century BCE and may have been referenced in the Bible (Amos 1:1). Other biblical finds include items from Philistine culture and the earliest legible inscription that may have the giant Philistine warrior Goliath’s name on it.

Ongoing Excavations at Gath

With the help of archaeologists and researchers from universities all over the world, Maeir and the Ackerman Fellows have been able to study Israel’s archaeological importance in Gath through the expedition.

To read more about the project and to get the most up-to-date information, check out the Ackerman Fellows blog.

The blog may say “unofficial” on the front page, but it’s official that the archaeologists and their work at Gath has contributed significantly to Israel’s archaeology.

(Credit to Griffin Aerial Imaging for the Aerial Image Shot of Gath).

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Archaeologists Uncover Gates to Biblical City Gath

Body Size Increase Not A Major Factor for Evolution in Homo Genus - http://clapway.com/2015/08/04/body-size-increase-not-a-major-factor-for-evolution-in-homo-genus-324/

According to a new analysis, body size may not have been the contributing factor that gave rise to the Homo genus, a theory that is quite contrary to many current evolutionary studies hypotheses that indicate a body size increase provided the boost that led to the origin of humans.

Body Size Does Not Matter In Evolutionary Sciences Suggests Study

Evolutionary studies may soon be rocked by a new study published by Mark Grabowski, assistant research professor at George Washington University’s Center for the Advanced Study of Human Paleobiology (CASHP).

Grabowski’s research in essence explains that early hominins of the Homo genus may not have been much larger than other early hominins from other species. His analysis is revolutionary in the field of evolution as almost all theories regarding the origins of Homo rely on the purported body size increase at specific times in the evolutionary chain.

The Myth of Body Size and the Origin of the Homo Genus

The study analysis has used the latest methodologies and also the largest fossil samples of early hominins to create the most comprehensive data set on body mass estimations, focusing on species averages in general as well as by sex for each hominin.

The data revealed that the body size increase didn’t occur between Australopithecus and the earliest hominins of Homo, but rather showed up in the fossils much later in Homo erectus.

As a Fulbright scholar at the University of Oslo’s Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Synthesis, Grabowski believes the most important findings in the study are knowing that increase in body size was not the the factor that set us (modern humans and our Homo genus) apart from our earlier hominin ancestors.

Because body mass did not set us apart from them, many other assumptions about the jump from the past hominins to our genus will be seen as myths now,  too. These unconfirmed theories that might be included in the myth debunking is that earlier hominins were small in stature because of dietary restrictions.

The last major publication on hominin body mass was published in 1992 by Henry M. McHenry and in the two decades that have since passed, many fossils have been found that would add to the data set, presenting more conclusive details about early species of humans.

The study researchers drew on McHenry’s results, applying new methodologies of analyzing the fossil data set, and updating the fossil hominin body estimates. This recent study is the largest, most comprehensive fossil data set for early hominins and may be used as the new standard for anthropologists.

Body Size Sexual Dimorphism and The Evolutionary Link

Grabowski’s study didn’t end with updating the fossil collection data set, but instead also revealed that dimorphism decreased very slightly in comparing the early hominins to H. erectus. Only much, much later in our human evolution did the researchers see the modern levels of dimorphism that we currently have.

Though this may seem insignificant after such a major feat in compiling the comprehensive data, the findings could in fact challenge the monogamous social structure of relationships that evolutionary assumptions have attributed to earlier Homo members.

While body size may not have led to the origin of our species, it may lead to some interesting new research in the field of evolutionary studies thanks to Grabowski’s updated fossil data set.

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Body Size Increase Not A Major Factor for Evolution in Homo Genus

Utah: Reburying Ancient Pueblo Pit House to Preserve for the Future - http://clapway.com/2015/08/03/utah-reburying-ancient-pueblo-pit-house-to-preserve-for-the-future-243/

In order to preserve the past, archaeologists in Utah have decided to rebury a 1500-year-old Pueblo pit house in hopes that future technological advancements can shed more light on the ancient way of life of the Anasazi peoples.

Archaeologists Rebury an Ancient Pueblo Pit House

Early in 2015, a group of engineers in the middle of conducting surveys for a development project stumbled upon a Pueblo pit house in southern Utah. The plans came to a quick halt to allow archaeologists access to research the site for the time being.

Volunteer archaeologists and researchers worked on the excavation and studied the site closely. They documented the site through photography, meticulous notes, and digital mapping techniques in order to precisely record the finding.

After four months of studies, the team decided to rebury the ancient Pueblo pit house to allow future archaeologists with better, more advanced technology the chance to find out more information from the remnants of the Anasazi culture in the Dammeron Valley.

Pueblo Pit House Reveals Life 1,500 Years Ago

The researchers found that the house was 1,500 years old and had belonged to the Puebloans, an ancient civilization also referred to as the Anasazi peoples. Upon further investigation, the archaeologists discovered bone fragments and tools that indicated the group had links to corn farming.

The volunteer archaeologists who worked on the excavation appeared to gain quite a bit of knowledge from observing the pit house and the remains of ancient life within it. Though no advanced technologies were used, the Anasazi way of life had been easily glimpsed just by observing the archaeological site.

Greg Woodall, one of the volunteers, explained to local media outlets that the inhabitants of the pit house had most likely built the home by digging a rather large pit about 10 feet deep, placing a roof over it, and accessing it via ladder.

Before entombing the Washington County house again, the research team carefully layered protective fabric over the floors and walls. This step would act as a preventative measure to protect the excavated house from erosion and also to signal to future researchers where their studies had ended.

Preserving the Pueblo Artifact for Future Technology

Though many abandoned Anasazi sites may have been built long ago in Utah, many of them haven’t been discovered and won’t be, as land developers have demolished the ancient houses without knowing of their historical significance.

Luckily, for this particular home, the developer is adamant that he should protect the recent archaeological find. Brooks Pace, the future owner of the land, has agreed to preserve the site by selling the rights to the lot that contains the Puebloan pit house to the Archaeological Conservancy.

Local news reports say that the conservation group may also have plans to create a museum to explain to visitors the site’s significance in ancient Anasazi life.

Maybe burying the past isn’t a bad thing, especially considering that in the future, archaeologists may have the technological advances needed to reexamine the house, unlocking the mystery and the secrets to the Pueblo people and why they abandoned the house sometime around 1500 years ago.

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Utah: Reburying Ancient Pueblo Pit House to Preserve for the Future

#MagneticFields may have #reversed in this region. - http://clapway.com/2015/07/30/south-africa-fires-show-how-magnetic-field-reversed-earths-poles-356/

An ancient practice of ritualistic cleansing in South African agricultural communities has led researchers to record a magnetic field history of the region that is believed to play a major role in the reversal of Earth’s magnetic poles. The study, which was the first of its kind, was published in the journal Nature Communications.

Study is First to Record Magnetic Field History in South Africa

Three universities teamed up to acquire the first record of magnetic fields in South Africa using minerals from the Iron Age and archaeological data from ritualistic burning ceremonies in agricultural settlements.

Research findings revealed that with the archaeological evidence and the current weakening of the magnetic fields, South Africa’s core region may be the genesis of the most recent (as in 800,000 years ago recent) and even future pole reversals, which take nearly 15,000 years to complete once started.

The study was led by John Tarduno, geophysicist from the University of Rochester, and carried out by researchers from South Africa’s University of the Witwatersrand and University of KwaZulu-Natal.

Their data is groundbreaking in the field of earth sciences and geophysics because it suggests that pole reversals don’t begin in random locations as previously thought.

How Archaeology and Minerals Revealed the Importance of the Magnetic Fields

Tarduno and his research team wanted to collect concrete evidence to accurately record South Africa’s magnetic fields from the Iron Age rather than use estimates from models using approximate data collected around the world. They turned to archaeologists for extra help.

These experts on ancient African rituals and practices explained the early practices of cleansing villages through burning huts and grain bins. While it seems like a rather unimportant event for geophysicists, this practice of igniting the village would have created a fire that reached over 1000 degrees Celsius as it consumed the clay floors of the structures.

This fire would be so scorching hot it would burn through, erasing the old information stored in the magnetite while creating a new record of magnetic information, like field strength and direction.

So, in other words, they would be able to actually see when the magnetic intensity in the area had increased or decreased thanks to the practices of these ancient Africans.

That’s exactly what happened too! Tarduno’s team found a 30% decrease in magnetic field intensity in the Iron Age (1225 to 1550 AD). This parallels what is happening today in the region, leading the researchers to the conclusion that this gradual weakening may reappear every few (thousand) years.

Earth Sciences, Geophysics, and Even More Technical Understanding of the Magnetic Fields

The research data was collected from sites along Zimbabwe and Botswana, focusing near the Limpopo River. The sites were all within a region with an extremely weak magnetic field strength called the South Atlantic Anomaly (SAA).

Other research has shown Earth’s magnetic field in the North and South Poles has decreased 16% of the past nearly 200 years with most of the weakening has occurred in the SAA. Some scientists believe this is the first sign of the Earth going into a pole reversal. However, the research team has said that weakening fields may recover without the poles reversing. It happens all the time!

Meanwhile, their study has proven, for the first time, that the low magnetic field strength in the Southern Hemisphere’s SAA is a result of geology. This region features a core that is overlain with hot, dense mantle rock that is 3000 km below the surface and 6,000 km across the region.

So How Does South Africa Fit Into This?

The researchers hypothesized that the specific region in South Africa actually affects Earth’s magnetic field as the liquid iron within the Earth shifts its flow near the region thanks to the special feature of the hot, dense mantle rock. This shift causes irregularities in the field, which results in lesser magnetic intensities.

The area, which is called a Large Low Shear Velocity Province (LLSVP), is theorized to perhaps be the trigger for magnetic pole reversals as the weak magnetic field gets larger.

However, the research team pointed out that though the new data is interesting, it cannot predict or conclusively say that we are in a reversal or will soon be in one. Instead, it simply suggests that the latest research on magnetic fields in South Africa shows a possible pattern in Earth’s pole reversals, which in itself is pretty impressive.

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South Africa: Fires Show How Magnetic Field Reversed Earth’s Poles

China: 97 Human Bodies Stacked Inside 20 Square-Meter House - http://clapway.com/2015/07/29/china-97-human-bodies-stacked-inside-20-square-meter-house-245/

Chinese archaeologists uncovered the remains of 97 human bodies stacked in a 5000-year-old burned down house that was a mere 20 square meters. The researchers believe the bodies found at the site named Hamin Mangha in China may have perished of an epidemic that quickly collected its victims leaving no time to bury the deceased.

Grisly Scene as 97 Human Bodies Piled in Just 20 Square Meters

An excavation of a prehistoric Chinese village now named Hamin Mangha revealed a grisly scene as a small house of only 20 square meters held the human bodies of 97 juveniles and middle-age adults. Of the 97 remains, none of the bodies were over the age of 35 and only half of them were over 19 years old, meaning the rest belonged to children and young adolescents.

Though the researchers did not name a specific disease, the number of individuals in the mass grave indicates whatever it was, the disease plucked away these children, teenagers, and young adults faster than the remaining villagers to properly bury them.

The remains were stacked in some areas, jumbled in others, and completely askew in parts as more and more victims were claimed by the mystery disease. The building burned down sometime 5,000 years ago and the deceased have remain in hiding until now.

Though the study was published in Chinese Archaeology, unless you can read Chinese, you won’t be able to access the actual study. Instead, check out the English summary.

Prehistoric Site Hamin Mangha Holds Clues to Mass Grave of Human Bodies

The recent study revealed 29 houses made in a simple design of a solitary room, but the most interesting house was “F40” or the house of horrors containing the mass grave of human bodies.

It appears that F40 had a particular scheme of body arrangement as the archaeologists noted that in the northwest, the remains were complete skeletons whereas in the east, the remains were mostly skulls with missing limbs. Even more chilling is that in the south, the limbs had been thrown into piles up to three layers deep.

Researchers working on the excavation have come from the Inner Mongolian Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology as well as Jilin University’s Research Center for Chinese Frontier Archaeology.

Though the archaeologists didn’t mention the other houses as much, they did mention F40 had burned down at some point, charring and deforming many of the skulls and limbs.

Eerie Similarities in Other Mass Graves in China

Interestingly enough, the victims at Hamin Mangha were very close in age to victims found in another mass grave in a separate village, called Miaozigou. Both villages were in northeast China.

The team concluded that Hamin Mangha remains most likely succumbed to an epidemic that swept through northeast China with a vicious speed. This theory of a fast-spreading infectious illness would also account for the mass burial victims at Miaozigou as well.

Whether the scientists will investigate the possible prehistoric illness or not, the stack of human bodies found in China after over 5,000 years in waiting is a bone-chilling, yet exciting discovery for Chinese archaeologists and anthropologists.

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China: 97 Human Bodies Stacked Inside 20 Square-Meter House

A telling #child #skeleton revealing more about the #BronzeAge - http://clapway.com/2015/07/26/4000-year-old-child-skeleton-in-fetal-position-uncovered-from-bronze-age-235/

Archaeologists from the University of Reading uncovered a 4,000-year-old child skeleton curled into a fetal position at Wilsford Henge near Stonehenge in the United Kingdom.

Bronze Age Child Skeleton Laid to Rest, Curled in Fetal Position

After only a month of excavations at Wilsford Henge, archaeologists from the University of Reading discovered a well-preserved human skeleton from the Bronze Age. The remains are intact and are believed to belong to an adolescent child or teenager who was living while Stonehenge was being built.

The child skeleton was small at around 1.5 meters in length and had been found in the fetal position. The archaeologists believe the skeleton had been positioned in that specific manner: head turned slightly to the right, knees drawn close to its chest and its arms crossed snugly.

What was more intriguing than the childlike position the skeleton had assumed was the amber necklace he or she had been wearing, preserved within the burial plot for thousands of years.

The Well-Preserved Skeleton Will Shed Light on Diet and Disease

The remains were found in the Vale of Pewsey in Wiltshire in between Stonehenge and Avebury. The archaeological and anthropological communities are extremely excited about what the skeleton can reveal to us.

Dr. Jim Leary, Director of the Archaeology Field School at the University of Reading, said the skeleton will undergo analysis to determine age, gender, date of burial. Leary believes additional testing can even point to the exact village where the child had spent its short life before dying.

With this single find, we will learn more about the diets, diseases, and lifestyle of our Neolithic ancestors who witnessed Stonehenge at its height.

Archaeological excavations of Bronze Age ancient monuments

The archaeologists in the excavation studied under the direction of the University of Reading’s Department of Archaeology and came across the find through research in the Archaeology Field School.

The discovery was a part of a three-year dig focusing around the Vale of Pewsey, a historically important region near the prehistoric, iconic Stonehenge. Its aims are to fully understand the peoples who worshiped at Stonehenge and their lifestyles, both work and play.

Within the items unearthed, archaeologists have found necessary tools including flint arrowheads and blades. Perhaps the child skeleton may have been too young to use these, but decorative items have also been uncovered, such as shale and copper jewelry, a Roman brooch, and beautiful decorated pottery pieces, some of which the child may have been familiar.

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4,000-Year-Old Child Skeleton in Fetal Position Uncovered from Bronze Age

How appropriate as today makes 24 years after the #JeffreyDahmer arrest. Evidence of #Cannibalism in new regions found in #osteo traces. - http://clapway.com/2015/07/22/cannibalism-a-feast-for-archaeologists-as-cannibalistic-evidence-emerges-114/

In two separate events, archaeologists have revealed evidence that may suggest human cannibalism in China and in the Canadian Arctic — though the events occurred over thousands of years apart. With the 24th anniversary of Jeffrey Dahmer’s arrest today, it seems only appropriate that cannibalism makes headlines to commemorate the capture of the world’s most notoriously known cannibal.

Cannibalism Evidence in China: 100,000-year-old Human Thigh Bones

Chinese researchers have uncovered evidence of cannibalism on two thigh bones believed to belong to an early human child from 100,000 years ago. The bones belong to an extinct early species of humans that Chinese archaeologists refer to as Xuchang Man, named after the city in the Henan province in which it was found.

Lead archaeologist Li Zhanyang pointed out the evidence of cannibalism as marks that indicate bites and even gnawing of the bones. Though the researchers do not deny that animals could have possibly left the marks, they also cannot rule out that a member of the same species feasted on the hominid’s thigh meat.

Whether the researchers will be able to conclusively prove that cannibalism is evident in the thigh bones. The discovery of more bones from the Xuchang man species — a missing link in the human evolutionary timeline — in China is incredible in itself. Also, it’s slightly less morbid than knowing that the hominids that predated our ancestors may have enjoyed feasting on one other.

Trapped in Canadian Arctic Sea, 17th century British Navy Forced to be Cannibals

Over half the world away in the Canadian Arctic sea in 1845, sailors of the British navy met a brutal end as their expedition failed and they were forced to turn to cannibalism to survive. Although plenty of research exists on the 19th century shipwrecked sailors, a new study reveals just how grisly the cannibalism became as the sailors slowly starved to death.

Published in the Journal of Osteoarchaeology, the researchers have suggested that the crew took to a rather brutal and extreme form of cannibalism as the starving sailors not only cut their fellow crew members’ flesh away from the bones, but also snapped the bones, heated the bones in boiling water and sucked out the last bit of nutrition found in the marrow.

The expedition, led by Sir John Franklin, was expected to find a route to the Orient passing through the Canadian Arctic. However, as the seas froze during exceptionally cold winters and heavy sea ice remained for several summers, the crew abandoned the stuck ships, called the HMS Erebus, and perhaps prophetically, the HMS Terror.

The crew could not have expected that their abandonment would lead to one of the most startling, horrific acts of cannibalism for the British.

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Cannibalism: A Feast for Archaeologists as Cannibalistic Evidence Emerges

#CarbonDating reveals the #oldest #Quran ever discovered. - http://clapway.com/2015/07/22/biblical-archaeologists-muslims-rejoice-oldest-quran-may-have-been-found-133/

 

The Well Preserved Quran Sat Among the Mingana Collection for nearly 100 years

The ancient biblical text sat in a vast collection from the Middle East known as the Mingana Collection. The Mingana Collection was named in honor of Alphonse Mingana, a former priest and theologian who collected and preserved the collection of 3,000 manuscripts. When he decided to settle in England in the 1920s, Mingana brought the extensive collection with him.

Though the Mingana Collection contains manuscripts with over 20 different languages written throughout, the well preserved Quran tested had clear, legible text written in an early Arabic script known as Hijazi .

For nearly 100 years, archaeologists had never realized the fragment’s historical significance until performing radiocarbon testing when they realized it may be the oldest quran to date.

The Significance of Carbon Dating the Oldest Quran Fragments

According to researchers, the carbon dating results showed that somewhere between the years 568 and 645, the manuscript was created. These dates prove a great historical significance in Muslim beliefs as they are closely related to the founding of Islam as a religions says David Thomas, a professor at University of Birmingham.

According to Thomas, the Prophet Muhammad received the holy scripture of Islam through revelations between the years of 610 to 632. This means if the radiocarbon testing is correct, the writer of this particular Quran may have known the Prophet personally and even heard him preach.

The researchers did acknowledge the complications of radiocarbon dating as a technique that could not definitively claim the precise age of the parchment. However, as far as science can show, this discovery of what can possibly the oldest Quran is still monumental for Muslims worldwide and biblical archaeologists alike.

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Biblical Archaeologists, Muslims Rejoice! Oldest Quran May Have Been Found

Another reason to #reduce #fossilfuels -- particularly for the #anthroplogists and #archaeologists - http://clapway.com/2015/07/21/bad-news-for-science-fossil-fuels-may-impact-carbon-dating-by-2100/

As early as 2100, fossil fuel emissions may have a huge impact on the esteemed carbon dating technique, leaving archaeologists, paleontologists and researchers in many varied fields unable to tell the difference in age between a new plant and an old fossil from hundreds of years ago.

Burning Fossil Fuels Affects More Than Just Climate Change

Fossil fuels have been a notorious phrase when paired with climate change and ecological systems for quite some time. Now, they may be even more insidious than ever.

New research published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences proves fossil fuels may will ultimately create devastating problems to radiocarbon dating, an important research technique used by a variety of scientists and industries.

From paleontologists dating dinosaur bones to archaeologists uncovering the ages of ancient humans to law enforcement agencies use of identifying human remains, carbon dating is used in many fields. According to the research author Heather Graven of Imperial College London, if fossil fuel emissions continue growing at the rate they have been, the carbon difference between old and new things will be insignificant as an accurate method of dating.

Why Fossil Fuels and Their Emission will Impact Carbon Dating

Graven, a climate physicist whose research focuses on human activities, climate change, and the global carbon cycle, argues that by the year 2100, researchers using the carbon dating technique will be unable to tell apart newly-dead foliage from 2,000-year-old papyrus, like the Dead Sea Scrolls.

Though it may seem inconsequential to those outside of the science fields of paleontology and archaeology, the loss of the carbon dating technique that reveals the age of a particular subject will affect law enforcement, crime labs, meteorologists, oceanographers, and so many more industries.

To fully understand the implications of Graven’s research, the science behind carbon dating must be explained.

The science behind carbon dating

Boiled down as simply as possible, radiocarbon dating in essence measures the ratio of carbon-14 in a sample to carbon-13, the more stable isotope that carbon-14 becomes over time. As the carbon-14 levels fall, so does the ratio, which means the sample being tested is older.

But how does the carbon get into us in the first place? Basically, every day atmospheric nitrogen is converted by cosmic rays into radiocarbon, which then combines with atmospheric oxygen to become carbon dioxide. Every day, carbon dioxide is absorbed by plants via photosynthesis. Animals and humans acquire carbon-14 through eating plants or eating animals that eat plants. When something dies, the carbon-14 within that sample starts to undergo radioactive decay. So the less carbon-14, the older the sample.

How reduced fossil fuel emissions can help save carbon dating

Though the research has shown that carbon dating may be at risk, Dr. Graven has also suggested that reducing fossil fuel emissions is still an option.

Depending on whether we increase or decrease our reliance and use of fossil fuels, we may be able to save one of the most widely-used research techniques in science and keep utilizing radiocarbon dating for much longer.

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We might still be able to save radiocarbon dating in taking care of the planet. Atmoph celebrates nature in our planet:

Bad News for Science: Fossil Fuels May Impact Carbon Dating by 2100

Is he behind #Tomb #slash #door number one?! - http://clapway.com/2015/07/21/king-philip-ii-stirs-controversy-in-archaeology-world-221/

In the archaeological world, a new controversy has been stirred up by King Philip II of Macedon (also known as Alexander the Great’s father) about whether his skeletal remains are in Tomb I or Tomb II at Vergina in Macedonia.

Old Bones, New Controversy: Opposing Studies Published in Same Year

Within two months, two opposing studies have been published regarding Philip II’s final resting place in the tombs at Vergina in Macedonia. The conflicting articles have ignited a heated debate as to which tomb sheltered the ancient Greek king at the famous UNESCO World Heritage Site.

According to the new article, published by Antonis Bartisokas and fellow colleagues in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), King Philip II’s remains are in Tomb I.

Researchers Have Said King Philip II is Behind Tomb I…

Bartsiokas and the researchers came to this conclusion after bone analysis of the femur and tibia revealed the skeleton in question had a knee injury. An injury, researchers say, that has given away the true identity of the skeleton in Tomb I to be King Philip II.

In several historical accounts, Philip II ((http://www.biography.com/people/philip-ii-of-macedon-21322787) suffered a battle wound in the knee. Though he recovered, he suffered the rest of his life with lameness in the affected leg. The bone analysis showed the femur and tibia had fused at an angle that would support the stories of the king’s leg injury.

… But other researchers are convinced Philip II is Behind Tomb II

While Bartsiokas is satisfied that this analysis is correct, some researchers aren’t convinced. Earlier this year, a pair of researchers, Antikas and Wynn-Antikas, published their own findings from the tombs that concluded the remains of Philip II were in Tomb II, accompanied by a Scythian warrior princess, a woman who is known as his seventh wife.

Antikas’s research revealed other injuries, including a sharp trauma to the bones in the skeleton’s hand, had definitively ruled Tomb II as the correct crypt for the assassinated king. The researchers also pointed out other bioarchaeological evidence of changes to the bony structures that indicated it was truly King Philip.

The Controversy Heats Up as Antikas Takes on Bartsiokas

Knowing that the recent publication in the International Journal of Osteoarchaeology had said the skeleton in Tomb II was Philip II, Bartsiokas and his researchers had some explaining to do once they had defined their King Philip II remains in Tomb I. The researchers suggested that the remains in Tomb II had actually belonged to Philip III Arridhaeus (the king’s son) and his wife.

After PNAS published Bartsiokas’s article, Antikas wrote a letter to the editor indicating a deep concern over the publication and its lack of full disclosure of the other skeletons found in the tomb.

Having studied the tomb himself, Antikas knows there are seven skeletal remains of humans in the tomb and also a few animal remains. For whatever reason, Bartsiokas did not include all of the skeletal findings in his published article. The researchers of the second study only identified King Philip II, Cleopatra, and a set of neonate remains as their newborn.

According to Antikas, this lack of disclosure is speculation enough to warrant the new findings as not being conclusively and sufficiently supported by evidence. Furthermore, the suggestion of the remains in Tomb II belonging to Philip III and his wife were merely based on stories from history rather than skeletal evidence.

So is it Tomb I or Tomb II? Bioarchaeological Analysis and the Future of Philip II

Though Bartsiokas and Antikas may not be on the same page with their conflicting results, the identification of the skeletons may soon come to light with new advances in bioarchaeological analysis techniques.

Though the bones have yet to undergo carbon-14 dating or DNA analysis, in the world of bioarchaeology, it is only a matter of time and testing until King Philip II of Macedon will emerge from either Tomb I or Tomb II.

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King Philip II Stirs Controversy in Archaeology World

Amazing how #technology allows us to decipher #burnt #religious #texts. - http://clapway.com/2015/07/21/israel-1500-year-old-ancient-bible-found-from-charred-scroll-111/

Using advanced digital technology, Israeli archaeologists have deciphered text from an ancient bible found 45 years ago. Though the charred scroll is only the second-oldest biblical writing after the Dead Sea Scrolls, its discovery is quite remarkable because it is the first Torah scroll to have been found in a synagogue.

Ancient Bible Found in Israel Deciphered with Advanced Technology

The Israel Antiquities Authority have announced they have deciphered a 1500-year-old ancient bible found 45 years ago. Thanks to medical advancements and digital imaging software, the scorched scroll has been virtually unrolled to reveal the first eight verses of the Book of Leviticus which are quite serendipitously about burnt offerings.

In 1970, Sefi Porath and Dan Barag headed the archaeological excavation of the synagogue at Ein Gedi. The synagogue, which was in a flourishing Jewish village in the 4th-7th centuries AD, was known for its beautiful mosaic floor and also boasted a Holy Ark.

During the excavation, many great treasures were uncovered along with the scroll including ceramic oil lamps, the community money box containing over 3,500 coins, a bronze menorah, and even vessels of perfume. However, without any kind of technology to analyze the charred scroll, the archaeologists had no idea the significance of what they had discovered–until now.

Most Significant Biblical Finding Since The Dead Sea Scrolls

Radiocarbon dating has dated the charred scroll of the ancient bible to around 500 AD. For archaeologists, this is an extremely important find as it is now the second oldest biblical text after the Dead Sea Scrolls.

Even without its comparison to the Dead Sea Scrolls, the new finding is quite significant for biblical archaeology as it is the first Torah scroll that has been found in a synagogue by an archaeological excavation. To top that, it was also found inside the Holy Ark of the synagogue. However, the importance of the discovery to biblical archaeology may not have been found had it not been for the combination of advanced medical and scientific research technologies.

How Researchers Analyzed the Burnt Writing on the Ancient Bible

The burnt ancient Torah was not an easy text to decipher. It was only through the joint collaboration of several companies, countries, and researchers that the first Torah to be discovered was decoded.

The Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA) along with Merkel Technologies Company, Ltd. first had to scan the scroll with a micro-computed tomography machine, also known as a CT scan. They then delivered the CT scans to the University of Kentucky for further analysis using digital-imaging software.

The software, an amazing creation of author Brent Seales, was able to virtually unroll the scroll to produce a flat, readable image of the text from the CT scan. What Seales found was buried deep within the many wraps of the scroll, a feat that was only possible using his astonishing software.

Pnina Shor, the director of IAA’s Dead Sea Scrolls Projects, had previously believed it was a lost cause to scan the scroll seeing as how it was so burned. However, she was quite excited that they gave it a go anyways, which led to the unveiling of the centuries old text.

Without the advances in software and the lucky find 45 years ago, the charred scroll may have gone undetected as rubbish rather than the magnificently historic piece of archaeology it is as the world’s second-oldest ancient bible and the first Torah scroll from a Holy Ark of a synagogue.

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A Moleskine notebook allows you to create your scrolls:

Israel: 1500-Year-Old Ancient Bible Found from Charred Scroll

Funnel Beaker Culture in the fjords. - http://clapway.com/2015/06/28/denmark-archaeologists-find-artisans-5500-year-old-fingerprint-in-ceramic-vessel-233/

Archaeologists have found a 5,500-year-old fingerprint inside a ceramic vessel in Denmark believed to belong to the artisan who crafted the earthenware.

Ceramic Vessel Contains a 5,500-year-old Fingerprint

Archaeologists unearthed pieces of a ceramic vessel from an ancient fjord east of Rødbyhavn near Lolland, Denmark on the south coast. The 5,500-year-old ceramic vessel is known as a funnel beaker because of the characteristic funnel-shaped neck and the accompanying flat bottom of the vase.

Altogether, archaeologists found three beakers at the site. When they were brought to the Danish National Museum, upon closer inspection, experts found a fingerprint just within one of the ceramic vessels.

Ceramic Vessel Tied to the Funnel Beaker Culture

Between 4,000 to 2,800 B.C., the Funnel Beaker Culture flourished. It was a culture representative of the first Scandinavian and north European plains farmers, among them were specialized artisans who handcrafted vases.

Line Marie Olesen, one of the leading archaeologists from the Museum Lolland-Falster believes the beakers were originally used in a ritual. The three vessels quite possibly contained food or liquid as part of the ritual, though the ritual has been lost to the passage of time.

“From the contexts in which they appear, it is obvious that they played an important part in everyday life, be it ritual or profane,” said Olesen.

The artisans who crafted the funnel beakers were known to be meticulously skillful in creating and decorating the vessels. Olesen believes the fingerprint was accidentally left within the interior surface of the pot as the artisan crafted it.

More Findings from the Funnel Beaker Culture

The ceramic vessels found in the fjord aren’t the only artifacts to have been dug out of the site. Last year, Olesen and her colleagues uncovered a flint axe still intact that was dated to be around the same age as the ceramic vessels. Interestingly, the axe appeared to have been struck into where the seabed would have been around the Stone Age.

Also discovered last year were footprints from the people of the Funnel Beaker Culture. The researchers believed that these footprints were left as the people scurried in a desperate attempt to save their fishing system before a massive flooding.

As Olesen and other researchers continuing excavating the fjords near Lolland, more remarkable discoveries will lead to insights of the Funnel Beaker Culture and its peoples’ way of life over 6,000 years ago, quite possibly even the main use of the recently founded ceramic vessel and its intriguing ancient fingerprint.

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A notebook to jot down your strange and wonderful finds:

Denmark: Archaeologists Find Artisan’s 5,500-year-old Fingerprint in Ceramic Vessel

What the oldest North American footprints tell us about our path. - http://clapway.com/2015/06/24/british-columbia-oldest-footprints-in-north-america-belonged-to-family-on-calvert-island-356/

The oldest footprints in North America have been discovered on Calvert Island in British Columbia, Canada. The amazing archaeological discovery features 12 footprints that indicate at least three separate individuals, possibly living as a family group.

Calvert Island’s First Family Found in the Oldest Footprints in North America

On a small island off the coast of British Columbia, a family of two adults and one child huddled around a fire. They circled around the stone-ringed fire pit, warming their hands and faces with the heat coming from their tiny bonfire as their footprints melted into the soft clay under their feet.

13,000 years later, archaeologists have uncovered those very footprints in the soft clay. The footprints were brushed over with black sand, but still so well preserved, it is almost shocking to believe the family had gathered thousands of years ago. Though the family has long since disappeared, they may have just provided archaeologists with evidence of the earliest humans in North America.

Two digs, 12 footprints and 13,200 years of history on Calvert Island

Calvert Island is a small island of British Columbia, situated approximately 500 km north of Vancouver and surrounded by the icy waters of the Pacific Coast. The only way to access the island is via boat, which is how a team of archaeologists from the University of Victoria came to the island in 2014.

The team, led by Duncan McLaren and Daryl Fedje, were looking for evidence of human settlement in North America after the end of the Last Glacial Maximum, which occurred 20,000 years ago. Though the region would have been completely underwater until an estimated 14,000 years ago, the researchers were lucky to find a single footprint near the shore. With support from the Hakai Institute, the team embarked on a second archaeological dig at the same site a few months later.

On the second dig, the archaeologists unearthed the stone-ringed fire pit surrounded by a total of 12 footprints. Radiocarbon dating determined the family group had their bonfire around 13,200 years ago.

The footprints are so defined that archaeologists could identify the toes and even the foot arches in the prints, which was the evidence needed to reveal how many members were in the family.

Oldest footprints reveal clues to North America’s first inhabitants

The footprints in the soft clay have provided much more than an idea of when the first inhabitants roamed around North America’s West Coast. They also support a new theory that the first inhabitants likely migrated to the continent from Alaska by boat.

Most theories argue that the first coastal settlements were founded by humans traveling inland by foot. Although not yet published in a peer-reviewed publication, some researchers believe these findings may support the theory of sea-based travel.

Finding more evidence will prove challenging as the Pacific Coast would have now covered former coastal settlements with its icy waters, if such settlements even existed. But for now, the archaeologists have enough proof to show that human migration happened along the North American coastline as early as 6,000 years after the end of the Ice Age thanks to the footprints in the sand.

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British Columbia: Oldest Footprints in North America Belonged to Family on Calvert Island

"Researchers believe that mythological reasons could easily explain the presence of these animals." - http://clapway.com/2015/06/21/egypt-mummified-dogs-and-puppies-uncovered-in-mass-grave-near-ancient-temple-of-anubis-344/

A team of archaeologists from Cardiff University have uncovered a mass grave of mummified dogs and puppies near an ancient Egyptian temple and catacomb built to honor Anubis, the god of death.

Inside the ancient Egyptian temple of mummified dogs

The catacomb was built in the fourth century BC in North Saqqara, an ancient burial ground. Though the temple was discovered in the 19th century, it has not been fully explored until recently when a team of archaeologists from Cardiff University unearthed the catacomb’s secrets and its immense number of mummified inhabitants.

Archaeologists believe the mummified dogs and puppies found inside were sacrifices to the god of death, Anubis. The researchers estimated around eight million mummified remains had been in the temple at one point, although many had disintegrated from the passage of 2,500 years along with human interference in the form of grave robbers.

Mummified dogs and puppies sacrificed to Anubis

Lead researcher Dr. Paul Nicholson, archaeology professor at Cardiff University, studied many of the mummified remains from the ancient catacomb. Nicholson noticed while some dogs had proper burials, though others were puppies and merely hours old when they were sacrificed.

Nicholson’s team of researchers have theorized these young offspring were most likely reared for the specific purpose of sacrifice to Anubis. Although it may seem a barbaric practice to raise puppies for sacrifice, a silver lining in their mummification is the lack of evidence of physical harm to the young pups. Unlike many cat burials where broken necks are prevalent, Nicholson and his team believe that these puppies died from dehydration and starvation.

Other Mummified Animals and Findings in the Mass Grave

Along with the mummified dogs and puppies, archaeologists made a rather shocking discovery of other animal mummies. Some four-legged animals like foxes and cats were among the sacrifices, which researchers say could have been seen as interchangeable for the dog sacrifices.

But even odder choices of sacrifices were found among the four-legged animals, including falcons and mongoose. Researchers believe that mythological reasons could easily explain the presence of these animals.

Another interesting find inside the catacomb was the fossil of an ancient sea monster. The mummified dogs may have been the main attraction for the archaeologists, but with the finding of a 48 million year old marine vertebrate inside, the ancient Egyptian temple has revealed an even bigger mystery.

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Egypt: Mummified Dogs and Puppies Uncovered in Mass Grave near Ancient Temple of Anubis

Archaeology find: the World’s First Murder Victim? - http://clapway.com/2015/05/27/archaeology-find-the-worlds-first-murder-victim123/

Forensic evidence has uncovered the most fascinating find: archaeologists have found a pre-Neanderthal skull dating back 430,000 years that shows two very significant cranial fractures. Using specialized techniques to examine the skull, scientists have concluded that the murder victim was very likely killed by two blows to the head, after which he was tossed down a 42.6-foot cave system.

Found in the “Pit of Bones”: earliest instance of human violence

The recovered skeletal remains of the murder victim were dug up from a cave system in northern Spain, popularly known as Sima de los Huesos, or “Pit of Bones.” The site is located in the Atapuerca Mountains, where fossils and stone tools belonging to the earliest known Hominins in western Europe have been discovered. 52 fragments of the skull were uncovered. Two holes, close together in distance, appear on the skull. Both sit above the left eye, made by two different impacts from the same object. These two separate injuries were identified as closely matching in the shape of their fractures and size. The different orientations of the injuries mark distinct trajectories made by the weapon, and strongly suggest a face-to-face combat between the murder victim and his killer.

Cruel intentions: a study in human behavior

The case of this murder victim sheds light on what could very likely be the first known instance of deliberate, lethal, interpersonal aggression in the Hominin record. This only strengthens the theory that acting upon instinctual violence was a part of the earliest humans on Earth.

Known as Cranium 17, the remains of the skull neatly identify with the remains of 6,700 bones of at least 28 other individuals who date back 430,000 years. All were found in a chamber at the very end of the cave shaft. So far, however, the only indications of intentional murder are carved on Cranium 17. Researchers are more or less positive that a weapon such as a wooden spear or stone hand axe caused the fractures — a lot of force would have been needed to have the dense bone knock into the brain.

Only two possible cases of murder have been studied in the fossil record. One is a Neanderthal who died weeks after suffering a penetrated bodily wound. The other was identified as an early modern human from the Upper Paleolithic period, who likely experienced an injury from sharp trauma.

Archaeology find: the World’s First Murder Victim?

Israel: Early Bronze Age Art Depicts Oldest Musical Scene - http://clapway.com/2015/05/26/israel-early-bronze-age-art-depicts-oldest-musical-scene456/

Archaeologists in Israel have finally deciphered the depiction on a 5,000-year-old seal impression, which they discovered portrays a sacred marriage rite. The Early Bronze Age art relic was originally unearthed in the 1970s during an archaeological survey conducted by Dr. Rafi Frankel of the Israel Antiquities Authority, at the Early Bronze Age ruins in Beit Haemek near the Western Galilee. It is now deemed the most ancient artifact to depict a music scene.

Symbolic meaning derived from Early Bronze Age Art

Archaeologists deduced that the impression was made by rolling a cylinder seal along the surface of clay before firing it up. The repeating designs on the relic show a musical scene from the marriage rite between a Mesopotamian king and a goddess. The fragment shown above in the image depicts a seated lyre player and two standing women. The important thing about this discovery is that it sheds light on the symbol-laden ritualistic world of Early Bronze Age Israel.

The “sacred marriage” rite, like the one depicted on the artifact, would typically be a scene ripe with musical revelry — there would be dancing, a banquet, a meeting between the bride (who would be represented by a priestess) and groom, leading up to the consummation. All of these rites form the complex marriage ritual that once took place in ancient Mesopotamian times.

The first identifiable musical scene in Early Bronze Age Art

The IAA reported that this finding proves indeed to be the first identifiable relic dating to the 3rd millennium B.C. that depicts a figure playing an instrument. There have been other “cultic” impressions uncovered from the Early Bronze Age era that depict scenes from feasts, in which men and women face each other before the consummation rite.

Many seals dating back to the Early Bronze Age depict scenes from the sacred marriage rite, but this recently-identified seal is the only one found at Beit Haemek to concretely show a musical scene. Other seal impressions that have been found at the same site most commonly show geometric patterns. The recovered seal has given archeologists and historical researchers an additional peek inside the musical and traditional rites of the sacred marriage ritual.

The archaeologists of the IAA are planning to present the finding on Thursday, as part of a symposium titled, “Sex, Drugs and Rock & Roll” at The Hebrew University of Jerusalem.

Israel: Early Bronze Age Art Depicts Oldest Musical Scene