Unusual-ology

by

Unusual-ology: “Amazonian Warrior” Burial Unearthed In Russia.

Archaeologists from the Russian Institute of Archaeology, led by Roman Mimohod, have made a fascinating discovery whilst supervising the construction of a new airport near the city of Rostov-on-Don. They have unearthed what seems to be a burial of an “Amazonian Woman”, but it is in fact the burial of a Sarmatian noblewoman, whose belongings have remained unlooted.

amazonian burial

he noblewoman’s grave remained intact and during the excavation over one hundred arrowheads were discovered along with numerous gold jewellery pieces.

The Sarmatians were nomadic people who once occupied the steppes north of the Black Sea between 5th Century BC and 4th Century AD. They were famous due to their fierce female warriors who are thought to be the inspiration for the legendary ‘Amazon Warriors’ of Greek Mythology.

The noblewoman’s grave remained intact and during the excavation over one hundred arrowheads were discovered along with numerous gold jewellery pieces, which date between 1st Century BC – 1st Century AD, and a gem that has a Phoenician inscription.

“It is rather unique, I have not seen such a combination before and have not heard about it,” Mimohood commented on the find. Due to the unusual long date range of the gold items discovered, Mimohood has remarked that “this can mean the most ancient things were handed down for a long time and finally were buried with this noble woman.”

If you’re a student – check out our ‘Quick Tips’ posts where we breakdown topics of AAFS into bite-sized chunks. We’re currently covering how to age and how to estimate the biological sex of skeletal remains, and also how to identify dental diseases! or you’re needing sturdy and reliable references, or wondering “what archaeology or anthropology textbooks are good?” Check out our new ‘Useful Literature’ page for suggestions from peers and professors!

 

Unusual-ology: Strange 6,500-year-old Neolithic Burials Discovered in Egypt.
by

Unusual-ology: Strange 6,500-year-old Neolithic Burials Discovered in Egypt.

A team of archaeologists, led by Jacek Kabaciński from the Polish Academy of Sciences, have discovered the burials of sixty adults in a cemetery in Gebel Ramlah, Egypt.

Egypt Neolithic Burials

The unusual thing about these burials is the discovery of a grave that contained the skeletal remains of two individuals, one of which has deliberate cuts on their femur. These cut marks have not been seen in other Neolithic burials that have been unearthed in North Africa. But this particular grave wasn’t the only odd one they found. Kabaciński’s team found another two unusual graves one which was found to be lined with stone slabs, but it’s the third burial they discovered which is the oddest.

In the third grave, the skeletal remains of a man were found to be covered in pottery fragments, stones and lumps of red dye. Near his head a fragment of a Dorcas gazelle skull was found, which may have been used as a ceremonial headdress. The skeletal remains also showed signs of abnormal bone adhesions and fractures, leading Kabaciński to believe this man may have performed hunting rites.

by

Unusual-ology: Wasn’t Curiosity That Killed The Baboon… – Ancient Egyptian Pet Cemetery Found.

A team of archaeologists in Hierakonpolis have unearthed an ancient Egyptian animal cemetery, which has uncovered the remains of numerous exotic animals. The skeletal remains of numerous baboons, hippos, and other animals, have depicted a dark past for these companions of the ancient Egyptian elite.

The skeletal remains of the pets, thought to have been buried more than five thousand years ago, revealed numerous broken bones and fractures, which points to them having received harsh beatings. At least two of the baboon skeletons that were discovered had parry fractures, a common fracture of the ulna, caused when a victim is trying to shield their heads from damaging bones.

The skeletal remains of the pets, thought to have been buried more than five thousand years ago, revealed numerous broken bones and fractures, which points to them having received harsh beatings. ©Renee Friedman

The skeletal remains of the pets, thought to have been buried more than five thousand years ago, revealed numerous broken bones and fractures, which points to them having received harsh beatings. ©Renee Friedman

The skeletal remains of a hippo calf showed evidence of a broken leg, which is thought to have been caused from the animal trying to free itself from a tether. This isn’t the only tether related injury that was discovered at the site; an antelope and a cow also showed similar injuries. The excavations at the Hierakonpolis site also revealed the remains of two elephants, two crocodiles, a leopard, and nine other exotic species. It is thought that the burial ground near to the Nile is the only archaeological evidence of such a wide assortment of zoo animals within ancient Egypt.

Wim Van Neer, a zooarchaeologist from the Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences, noted that the ancient zookeepers “clearly had difficulty maintaining these animals”. The analysis of the skeletal remains showed that “the practical means of keeping animals in captivity were not so sophisticated as nowadays,” which would account for the numerous injuries sustained by the animals. The animals’ injuries showed signs of healing, which suggests that they were kept in captivity for a further several weeks or longer, rather than being killed immediately after obtaining them.

It is thought that the burial ground near to the Nile is the only archaeological evidence of such a wide assortment of zoo animals within ancient Egypt. ©Renee Friedman

It is thought that the burial ground near to the Nile is the only archaeological evidence of such a wide assortment of zoo animals within ancient Egypt. ©Renee Friedman

It is argued by Richard Redding, an archaeologist of the University of Michigan’s Kelsey Museum, that the animals’ struggle whilst being captured could have led to the injuries. Van Neer agrees that some of the injuries could have been caused by the struggle, but the forty-plus broken hand and feet bones observed on the baboon remains are just “too numerous to be due to capture”. Van Neer also pointed out that an escaping baboon would have been more likely to break the long bones rather than the metatarsals and metacarpals, whilst escaping the capturers. It is also stated that the baboon remains from more recent tombs display fewer signs of harsh treatment, which may be due to the ancient zookeepers developing better animal keeping techniques.

References:

Van Neer, W. 2015. International Journal of Osteoarchaeology, 25:3. Pg 253-374.

If you’re new to the realm of archaeological, anthropological and forensic sciences (AAFS), or are a student needing sturdy and reliable references, or wondering “what archaeology or anthropology textbooks to buy?” Check out our new ‘Useful Literature’ page!

by

Nine-ton Block of Sandstone Unveils Six Utahraptor Remains.

Archaeologists in Moab, Utah, have discovered the remains of six Utahraptors within a nine-ton block of sandstone. This discovery is regarded as the biggest fossil find ever of the Utahraptor, a giant predatory theropod dinosaur who roamed the earth during the early Cretaceous period. The massive excavation, led by Utah state palaeontologist James Kirkland, has been undertaken over the past decade upon the Utah Mountain.

The nine-ton sandstone block revealed the skeletal remains of a 16ft-long adult, four juveniles and a baby Utahraptor which was approximately 3ft long from snout to tail.

The nine-ton sandstone block revealed the skeletal remains of a 16ft-long adult, four juveniles and a baby Utahraptor which was approximately 3ft long from snout to tail.

The sandstone block revealed the skeletal remains of a 16ft-long adult, four juveniles and a baby Utahraptor which was approximately 3ft long from snout to tail. The block also revealed bones belonging to a beaked, bipedal herbivore known as an Iguanadon. It is hoped that the Utahraptors died whilst hunting as a group, which may provide evidence of pack hunting. Another hypothesis claims that the Utahraptors may have wandered into quicksand and died at different times, due to the fossils being stacked 3ft thick.

It is hoped that the Utahraptors died whilst hunting as a group, which may provide evidence of pack hunting.

It is hoped that the Utahraptors died whilst hunting as a group, which may provide evidence of pack hunting.

Kirkland thinks that the Utahraptors were enticed by the promise of the unwary Iguanodon which stumbled into the quicksand itself. Unable to move, bellowing and struggling, the trapped Iguanodon lured the Utahraptors who then, one after another, tried to ‘nab an easy meal’ only ending up stuck and meeting the same fate as the Iguanodon.

Utahraptors are the largest known member of the family Dromaeosauridae, with some specimens reaching 23ft-long weighing around 500kg. They bare a resemblance to their ‘cousins’ – the Velociraptor but are covered in feathers, with a sickle like claw on each of their second toes.

Size comparison of an average sized adult Utahraptor with an adult male human (5.9ft).

Size comparison of an average sized adult Utahraptor with an adult male human (5.9ft).

by

Unusual-ology: 800 year old monk’s skeletal remains found in a cliff face.

The recent winter storms that rocked Britain have uncovered a lot of the isles’ hidden archaeology including a petrified forest in Wales, but it has also damaged many coastal heritage sites. In this case, the storms unearthed the skeletal remains of what is thought to be an 800-year-old medieval monk, which were found poking out of a cliff in Monknash, South Wales.

Image

The femurs belonging to the monk, as they were found within the cliff face.

The skeletal remains were discovered by Mandy Ewington, a member of public out for a walk, who spotted the thigh bones of sticking out the side of a cliff. The femurs were later identified to belonging to a man of good health and in his late twenties, who may have been a monk.

From past excavations in the area and stratigraphic evidence, it is thought that the skeletal remains belonged to a monk from the 1200’s. The Monknash area is well known to have once been the home of Cistercian monks between 1129 and 1535, and was the site of a Middle Age burial ground.

Image

From stratigraphic evidence it is thought that the skeletal remains belonged to a monk from the 1200’s.

But due to the monk’s femurs being badly damaged by coastal erosion and were found unconnected to any other bones, it is difficult to come to a definite conclusion on whether or not the man truly did belong to the Cistercian monastery.

by

Unusual-ology: ‘Rare’ Prehistoric Spider Fossil Found.

A fossil of a large male prehistoric spider has been recently found in the Daohugou beds of Inner Mongolia.  The spider’s species has stumped scientists, who have now proposed a new genus for the discovery called Mongolarachne.

Image

The male prehistoric spider fossil that was found in the Daohugou beds of Inner Mongolia.

This recent discovery comes after the previous unearthing of a female spider fossil in the same area back in 2011. The 165-million-year- old female spider is thought to have belonged to the Nephila species due to its size being close to the modern day Nephilidae (orb-weaver spiders), and was so called Nephila jurassica. But this newly discovered male spider fossil throws a spanner in the works.

While the male spider does resembles the Nephila jurassica, its shape and size has suggested it belonged to another genus. One factor that called for a new genus was its sex appendages, as they did not match those found on modern day Nephila males. Also the male has ‘spirals of hairlets’ that are more feathery than those on modern day orb-weavers.

Image

While the male spider (left) does resembles the Nephila jurassica (right), its shape and size has suggested it belonged to another genus.

These differences have led to Professor Paul Selden from Kansas University, who was part of the teams that discovered both fossils, and other scientists to propose the new genus Mongolarachne from the family Mongolarachnidae. According to Selden’s (2013) paper, these Mongolarachne closely resemble the modern day ogre-faced spiders that belong to the Deinopidae family.

Spider fossils are considered rare because of the soft composure of their bodies, but these two fossils were found within volcanic deposits. It is believed these deposits buried this pair at the bottom of a lake, therefore preserving them in very good condition.

References:

Selden, P.A., Shih, C., Ren, D. 2013. A giant spider from the Jurassic of China reveals greater diversity of the orbicularian stem group. Naturwissenschaften, 100:12. Pg 1171-1181.

If you’re new to the realm of archaeological, anthropological and forensic sciences (AAFS), or are a student needing sturdy and reliable references, or wondering “what archaeology or anthropology textbooks to buy?” Check out our new ‘Useful Literature’ page!

Share Post Sign

by

Unusual-ology: 4,000-year-old Human Brain Discovered.

A ‘petrified’ 4,000-year-old brain has been discovered in the Bronze Age settlement of Seyitömer Höyük, Turkey. The brain was excavated inside a skull that was uncovered in an ancient burial ground.  But how did the brain become ‘petrified’ and well-preserved?

Image

The ‘petrified’ brain found within a skull at the Bronze Age settlement of Seyitömer Höyük, Turkey. © Halic University Istanbul.

Meriç Altinoz, from the Haliç University in Istanbul, has theorised that due to how tectonically active the site is, an earthquake devastated the Bronze Age site. This earthquake would have flattened the settlement, burying everyone and starting a fire. The ancient burial ground shows evidence of the theorised fire due to the presence of charred skeletal remains and burnt wooden artefacts. This fire played a vital key in the preservation of the brain.  Due to the fire consuming a lot of the trapped oxygen within the rubble, the brain would have boiled in its own fluid. This boiling would have burned off the brain’s moisture preventing normal tissue decomposition.

But there is thought to be another factor to how it became so well preserved. The tissue of the brain was found to be full of magnesium, potassium and aluminium. These elements, when mixed with the fatty acids that are present in human tissue, make up adipocere, which effectively preserved the shape of the brain tissue.

This recent discovery of the oldest well-preserved brain tissue has opened up many new areas of study. Frank Rühli, of the Univerisity of Zurich in Switzerland, has noted that ‘the level of preservation in combination with the age is remarkable’ and in such cases could help understand ‘the history of neurological disorders’.

References:

Altinoz, M. A., Ince, B. Sav, A., Dincer, A., Cengiz, S., Mercan, S., Yazici, Z., Bilgen. M.N. 2013. Human Brains Found In A Fire-Affected 4000-years Old Bronze Age Tumulus Layer Rich In Soil Alkalines and Boron in Kutahya, Western Anatolia. HOMO – Journal of Comparative Human Biology, 64. Available from here.

Barras, C. 2013. Human brain boiled in its skull lasted 4000 years. New Scientist. 2937, page 11. Available from here. 

Fossum, M. 2013. 4,000 Year Old Preserved Human Brain Found in Turkey. Web Pro News.

Click here to read more Unusual-ology posts!

Share Post Sign

Unusual-ology: Beheaded Massacre Victims Found in 1,400 Year Old Mayan Mass Grave.
by

Unusual-ology: Beheaded Massacre Victims Found in 1,400 Year Old Mayan Mass Grave.

Archaeologists have discovered a 7th-century mass grave in the Mayan city of Uxul, Mexico. The mass grave contained the dismembered skeletal remains of twenty-four victims. Nicolaus Seefield, from the University of Bonn, who made this discovery has interpreted the skeletal remains as those belonging to prisoners of war and the grave being the site of a Mayan water reservoir.

Image

The twenty-four dismembered skeletal remains were found within a Mayan water reservoir.

Due to being covered in a layer of clay, the victim’s skeletons were very well preserved enabling fifteen of the twenty-four skeletons to be chronologically aged and sexed. The age of the skeletons ranged between eighteen and forty-two years old, with thirteen of the skeletons being males. From looking at the skeleton’s dentition there is evidence of severe tooth decay and malnutrition, with a few of the skeletons teeth showing evidence of jade tooth inserts. The jade inserts are thought to be a sign of nobility, which could in the future help identify the victims of this massacre.

Image

A victim’s mandible showing a jade insert within a tooth, which is thought to be a sign of nobility.

The skeletons were badly dismembered with body parts strewn across the floor of the mass grave. Seefield observed ‘complete legs, whose bones were still in the correct anatomical articulation from the hip, to the femur, the kneecaps until the smallest toe-bones. Apart from that I also observed other detached body parts such as severed heads, complete hands, detached feet.’ The skeletal remains also displayed evidence of blunt force trauma on the foreheads, and cuts from sharp Mayan blades on parts of the skull.

Image

A massacre victim’s skull displaying evidence of the top portion of the skull being cut off.

Image

A victims foot displaying proper articulation, which means that the foot was severed from the body before being placed in the mass grave.

Seefield has noted the significance of this Mayan find, ‘It is absolutely rare to find such a mass grave in the Maya area. The only other archaeological evidence of such dismemberment of victims was in the site of Cancuén, Guatemala.’

Lead by Dr Nikolai Grube and Dr Kai Delvendakl from the University of Bonn, and Dr Antonio Benavides belonging to the Mexican National Institute of Anthropology and History (NIAH), archaeologists have been excavating this historical Mayan city for the past five years in search of uncovering the origins and collapse of the regional states in the Mayan lowlands. There are already plans in place to excavate the western half of the water reservoir in the hope that more Mayan artefacts.

Share Post Sign

by

Unusual-ology – Medieval ‘Poison Ring’ Found in Bulgaria.

Unusual-ology is a new post type which focuses on weird new articles/science areas that have cropped up and caught my eye.

A medieval ring which could have once been used to poison unsuspecting dinner guests has been unearthed by archaeologists. The ‘poison ring’ has a hidden compartment which an envious attendee could fill up with poison and sneakily tip into his targets drink – unbeknown to them.

Image

The medieval ‘poison ring’ discovered in a fortress on Cape Kaliakra, Bulgaria.

The 14th Century ring was discovered by Bulgarian archaeologists at the site of a medieval fortress on Cape Kaliakra, Kavarna situated close to the Bulgarian Black Sea coast. The ring is thought to have belonged to a wealthy but power hungry male, that had political ambitions and so wished to ‘take out’ some of his competitors silently and discretely.

This is the first ring of its kind to have been discovered in Bulgaria according to the director Boni Petrunova, of the National Archaeology Institute and Museum in Sofia. Dr Petrunova has interpreted the find as a ‘poison ring’ due to the positioning of the hole being easily covered by another finger so that the poison could be dropped at a ‘moment’s notice.’

Image

The hole in which the poison would be poured into the ring to be easily ‘dropped at a moment’s notice’ into unsuspecting diners drinks.

This ring provides evidence that poison was used in politically-motivated murders in Medieval Bulgaria, but the poison found preserved inside would have originated from Spain or Italy. The ring also improves existing knowledge about the life on Cape Kaliakra, by further identifying that it was home to local aristocracy.

However, there are some disagreements between historians on whether the ring truly was used to deliver poison. Some archaeologists suggest that it was an unusual reliquary ring which was once used to store the remains of Saints.

If you want to read more unusual science posts click here, or to read the Unusual-ology post on the Ancient Egyptian use of lettuce as an aphrodisiac, click here. Or to read about the newly discovered ‘Entrance to Hell’ click here!

by

Unusual-ology: Ten Year Old Boy Finds ‘Egyptian Mummy’ In Grandmothers Attic.

Alexander Kettler, a ten year old boy from Diepholz in northern Germany, had a startling discovery in his grandmother’s attic when he stumbled upon what appears to be an Egyptian mummy in a mysterious wooden chest. The wooden box, which is covered in ancient hieroglyphs, was apparently bought in Africa around during the 1950’s by his late grandfather. But this Egyptian mummy isn’t all he found in the wooden chest. The chest also contained a death mask and a canopic jar, where the organs removed during the mummification process are stored.

Image

Image of the suspected Egyptian mummy in the hieroglyph covered sarcophagus.

The boy’s father now plans to take the mysterious box to Berlin to get it examined by experts to see whether this is a genuine mummy or a fake. He believes that the sarcophagus and jar are fake but the mummy might prove to be the real deal as it’s not “something you could buy at a shop around the corner”.

If the mummy is sent off for verification it will be subjected to MRI and CT scans, which may come back negative as mummies tend to be so dehydrated that there is a lack of hydrogen atoms – which the scans rely on. The use of carbon dating will be fundamental in identifying whether this is a true Egyptian mummy or a fake.

There are lots of problems occurring in the archaeological world, from fake mummies or mummies being wrongly labelled as something there not. One such example is my Unusual-ology post focusing on the topic of a lecture I had during my undergraduate degree. The lecture explored the past of a decapitated head which had preserved soft tissue, that was on display in a Wiccan and witchcraft museum under the guise of an execution victim, which was later stored in a decorated wooden box in a Church.

References:

BBC. 2013. German boy finds ‘a mummy’ in grandmother’s attic. BBC News. Available here. 

Daily Mail. Mummy there’s a mummy in grandma’s attic! Boy discovers ‘Egyptian body’ inside an old wooden chest. Available here. 

If you’ve enjoyed this new ‘Unsual-ology’ post feature – leave a comment or a like!

If you want to read more unusual science posts click here, or to read the Unusual-ology post on the Ancient Egyptian use of lettuce as an aphrodisiac, click here. Or to read about the newly discovered ‘Entrance to Hell’ click here!