burials

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.

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 5^th Century BC and 4^th 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 1^st Century BC – 1^st 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.”

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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.

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.