Archaeology

Da Vinci's Self-Portrait Discovered In Codex Of Flight

During the television program Ulysses which aired in Italy on Saturday the 28th of February, the well-known scientific divulgator Piero Angela stated that a secret drawing, a youthful self-portrait of Leonardo da Vinci, had just been discovered. Actually, ...

Article - News Staff - Mar 8 2009 - 12:23am

Chewing a Brick.

I am continually amazed and amused by the wonderful metaphors and similes generated by users of the English language. The phrase "Are you talking to me or chewing a brick?" is a 'hard-man' phrase, contrastive with 'wet-lettuce' ...

Blog Post - Patrick Lockerby - Apr 7 2009 - 4:16pm

Questioning Cleopatra's Origins

New exciting proof that Cleopatra was of African descent and killed her sister! Really? Yes, if you believe the BBC. The story, reported by AFP, the Times, and the Daily Telegraph, goes like this: In the 1920s a tomb at Ephesus in Turkey was opened which c ...

Article - Erika Hert - Mar 17 2009 - 11:17pm

Columbus In America: What The Teeth Of New World Explorers Can Tell Us Today

In the days of Columbus, dead men could tell no tales.  Today, dead men can tell us a lot and science has just taken that forensic interrogation to new heights. A team of researchers from the University of Wisconsin-Madison is extracting the details of the ...

Article - News Staff - Mar 19 2009 - 1:27pm

Eden unearthed?

May I pass on to you all the following link to an article Do these mysterious stones mark the site of Garden of Eden? which refers to archeological disoveries at Göbekli Tepe in Turkey.  Condensed, it says that the religious significance of the place, ca ...

Blog Post - Erinaceus Europaeus - Mar 26 2009 - 1:22pm

Light In The Pantheon And Ancient Astronomy

A while back there was a news story that the Pantheon may have been constructed to create a special effect in the sunlight at the equinoxes. I'm slow in reacting because I've read the book where the claim appears, and I've been taking time t ...

Article - Alun Salt - Mar 27 2009 - 10:17pm

Pantheon Astronomy II (Sometimes you can be too accurate)

I'm kicking myself for not linking to Judith Weingarten's blog post, Time Gazing at the Pantheon in Rome yesterday. It's good explanation of how the Emperor could have used the Pantheon and it's readably short. The only quibble I have i ...

Blog Post - Alun Salt - Mar 28 2009 - 7:56am

Enormous 'Foot-Shaped' Enclosure Discovered In Jordan Valley

On the eve of the Passover holiday, researchers from the University of Haifa reveal an exceptional and exciting archaeological discovery that dates back to the time of the People of Israel's settlement in the country: For the first time, enclosed site ...

Article - News Staff - Apr 6 2009 - 10:07am

Reinterpret Biblical History? King In Ancient Canaan Was Actually A Woman

The legend is that the great rulers of Canaan, the ancient land of Israel, were all men. But a recent dig by Tel Aviv University archaeologists at Tel Beth-Shemesh uncovered possible evidence of a mysterious female ruler. Tel Aviv University archaeologist ...

Article - News Staff - Apr 6 2009 - 11:44am

It's Time To Put The Shroud Of Turin Back In Its Box

It's spring cleaning time, and while most of us are thinking of packing a way our winter linens and airing out our summer clothes, a historian at the Vatican has decided to drag out another mouldering old bit of cloth to dangle before u ...

Article - Erika Hert - Apr 11 2009 - 12:00am