Giraffe Anyone? Interesting Menu Items from Pompeii

Pompeii’s enigmatic history has long captivated archaeologists and tourists alike. While its name often conjures up images of its violent end, new research into Pompeiians daily lives is broadening our understanding of this ancient Roman culture, particularly their eating habits, before Mt. Vesuvius brought it all crumbling down nearly 2,000 years ago.

Skulls Under Mexico City

Archaeologists in Mexico City made a grisly and awesome discovery this week, after a subway extension project uncovered a stretch of pre-Hispanic development—including four skulls that were once displayed on a broad rack of bones from sacrificial offerings.

Imagine how many archaeological sites would be lost if we didn’t do these surveys and research during construction projects.  Every major city in Europe sends in teams to perform their work before construction begins and their results are impressive.  I’m thinking of the city of York in England, it has a known rich Viking background, further enhanced by this type effort.

The Value of Old Lead

Wasn’t there a salvage documentary on Discovery a while ago which discussed this, especially the value  (from relatively modern salvage sites).  From Archaeolology.org:

The lead is a perfect shield for detectors that look for dark matter and other rare particles because of its lower radiation levels—on the order of 1,000 less noise than modern lead. The material is currently employed in the Cryogenic Dark Matter Search (CDMS) experiment taking place in Minnesota and in an Italian effort, the Cryogenic Underground Observatory for Rare Events.

Related articles

• Underwater Archaeologists Fight Particle Physicists on Using Ancient Roman Ingots (news.softpedia.com)
• Archaeology vs. Physics: Conflicting roles for old lead (gizmag.com)

10 Top Archaelological Discoveries of 2013

They year’s almost run it’s course so this list is it:

The most celebrated archaeology story in recent memory is the 2013 confirmation that bones thought to belong to King Richard III, found beneath a parking lot in Leicester, were, in fact, those of the infamous English monarch. Naturally, it leads our Top 10 Discoveries of 2013 .  From Archaeology.org.

 

 

Related articles

• Discovery of King Richard III win the University a prestigious award! (listmeleicester.wordpress.com)
• 4 Major Historic Artifacts Found Under Parking Lots In The Past Year (forbes.com)

10 Greatest Shipwrecks

For the archaeology fans out there. History’s greatest shipwrecks from Archaeology.org:

Like Khubilai Khan’s great invasion fleets of the thirteenth century, the Spanish Armada sent by King Phillip II against England in 1588 is legendary not only for its size and power, but also for its defeat and near-annihilation by courageous English sea dogs and the notorious storms along the rock-fanged British coast that lashed the Armada as it fled.

 

 

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• A robot turtle will help underwater archaeologists to inspect shipwrecks (nanowerk.com)