I hate when that happens . . .

Gladiators Rescued from Tomb Raiders Lie Forgotten under Sheets

Capena – fifth-century artefacts hidden from visitors. Superb finds at
Lucus Feroniae abandoned after 2007 rescue by financial police

ROME – Anyone who cares about Italy's cultural heritage should drop
everything and rush to Lucus Feroniae. Go into the museum courtyard and
lift the canvas sheets. Underneath are seven funerary panels of
gladiators, rescued three years ago from the clutches of tomb raiders
near the overgrown archaeological site. You'll be shocked. Is that any
way to look after a masterpiece?

The site a few kilometres north of Rome on the Via Tiberina is the right
place to get an idea of how much attention is given to Italy's
archaeological heritage. Today, it is heart-breaking to visit what
remains of the "lucus" (sacred wood) of Feronia, the goddess to whom the
famously wealthy ancient sanctuary, pillaged by Hannibal in 211 BC, was
dedicated. As the protectress of freed slaves, Feronia was believed by
her devotees to have the power to heal wounds of the body and soul.

This major religious centre was abandoned, probably in the fifth century
AD, and discovered accidentally in 1953 on the estate of Prince Vittorio
Massimo, owner of the castle of Scorano in the municipality of Capena.
The site, a few hundred metres from the busy Autostrada del Sole, is now
overgrown with weeds that no one clears away.

Once, this was a Roman town with its own forum, basilica, amphitheatre,
temples, shops and workshops, as well as an imperial-age bath complex
that was warmed by steam passing under the floor and behind the walls.
Today, you will find it only if you know that it exists and you are
sufficiently stubborn to seek out the battered, hard-to-read sign.

Obviously, the Capena municipal authority takes pride in its ancient
origins. Its home page quotes Cicero's Epistulae ad Familiares: "Si vis
pingues agros et vineas perge Capenam", which translates as "If you want
fertile fields and vineyards, head for Capena". Yet there is little or
nothing about the archaeological site. To give you some idea, there are
three photos of Lucus Feroniae, three of the opening of a car park,
three of the inauguration of a new school hall, six of the new school
canteen and twelve of the new sports field.

You can see the results. Entrance to the archaeological site and museum
is free but clearly this is not enough to attract the occasional
tourists. A peak was reached in 2001, when as many as 3,934 people came
to Lucus Feroniae, after which numbers steadily declined. Last year's
total was 1,337, or an average of 3.6 visitors a day. It's humiliating,
and even more so since the 2007 discovery of the magnificent funerary
monument decorated with incredibly accurate bas-reliefs of gladiatorial
combats.

They were recovered in the Fiano Romano countryside by the financial
police's archaeological heritage protection group before they could be
taken elsewhere – abroad, of course – to be sold. This is all too
often the fate of Italy's archaeological treasures when they fall into
the hands of unscrupulous traders. When the officers saw them, they
realised the bas-reliefs were one of the most important recovery
operations of recent years. The quality, state of conservation and above
all the subject are exceptional, as are the size and completeness of the
find. The monument was discovered by accident by workers preparing the
ground for a new house who turned into spur-of-the-moment tomb raiders.
The arts superintendency was not informed. Instead these "predatori
dell'arte perduta" [raiders of the lost art], as Fabio Isman calls them
his book, dismantled the funerary monument, burying the thirteen pieces
prior to selling them on the black market. Miraculously, the financial
police operation thwarted their plans.

Such large panels are beyond price on the international antiquities
market and any of the world's great museums would be proud to exhibit
them in a place of honour. Significantly, it was proposed to take the
sections of the monument to Rome when they were found, perhaps for
display at the Palazzo Massimo alle Terme museum.

However, it was not to be. In compliance with the principle that
archaeological finds should stay in their place of origin, the
superintendency opted to assign the monument to the small museum at
Lucus Feroniae. Unfortunately, the museum was only able to put six of
the blocks on public view and the other seven were placed under a
portico. Ironically, the pieces had been recovered from the thieves'
underground hiding place only to be concealed by canvas sheets. That was
in January 2007, since when they have not been moved.

There may have been little choice, given the lack of space in the tiny
museum, but it is incomprehensible to visitors who happen to see the
superb, canvas-covered panels. Equally incomprehensible is the
negligence of whoever put the six bas-relief panels on display without
so much as a card to explain to any visiting tourists what they are,
where they come from or when they were carved. There is no information
at all. Zilch.

It's the same story for the magnificent headless, handless statues that
accompany the gladiators. These extraordinary finds are extremely rare,
if not unique. Their heads were interchangeable and a new one could be
screwed on depending on who was in charge in Rome at any time.
It's shameful. Yet those statues are a metaphor for the condition of
Italy's archaeological heritage. An immense treasure with no head in
Rome actually looking after it.

Sergio Rizzo, Gian Antonio Stella
07 marzo 2011© all rights reserved - unauthorized reproduction
forbidden
English translation by Giles Watson
www.watson.it
Article in Italian
http://www.corriere.it/english/11_marzo_07/rizzo-stella-gladiators-archaeologica\
l-site-rome_719e6312-48be-11e0-b2f1-0566c0fae1de.shtml

Here's some grist for the mill . . .

From: Romanfederation@yahoogroups.com Date: Mon, Mar 14, 2011, 11:27am

Lucus Feroniae & M(a)enates   (Fw: [RROME] Reversing an AN ligature
 

Posted by: "Mark Passehl" mpassehl@... vanitasappietatis  
Date: Sun Mar 13, 2011 5:15 am ((PDT))

The Lucus Feroniae was 21 Roman miles (XXI milia passuum) from Rome, as
indicated by the second milestone of the 2nd century, or early 1st
century, aedilis pl. P. Menates found there, published in 1999. In a
recent note to the Republican coinage list (reproduced below) I've
suggested that P. Menates belonged to the same family as the mint
magistrate of the mid 130s B.C. (RRC no. 249), whose legends are usually
resolved: P. MAE(nius) ANT(ias).

According to conventional wisdom an Antias (or Antiaticus) cognomen
reflects the moneyer's descent from C. Maenius P. f. P. n., who held the
clan Maenia's only consulate, with L. Furius Camillus, in the momentous
year (334-3 B.C.) when Antium was captured and the Latin Name submitted
to Rome rule, and was twice dictator supremo (rei gerendae causa, in 318
and 312). The 130s B.C. was the period when, probably under the impact
of the publication of the initial books and decades of the Annales
Maximi, the mint magistrates first abandoned traditional designs on the
denarius reverses in favour of dramatically innovating family and
community ancestral motifs. Now few families were better placed to do
this than the Maeni descended from the cos. 334. Besides the iconic, and
easily depicted columna Maenia, the conquest of Antium was readily
symbolized by one of the most noted and enduring ikons of the imperial
free state, the Rostra in the forum Romanum, which was named from its
decoration with the beaks of the captured ships of the Antiates in the
consulate of Maenius and Camillus. Ship's prow was the principal reverse
symbol of every denomination of Roman bronze coinage. The rostrum on its
own could be cut easily and simply too, if a noble scion should wish to
combine tradition with allusive reference to the family history and his
own (putative!) cognomen. Thus only a decade later than P. MAE no. 249,
the Q. Fabius Labeo (RRC no. 273) denarii combine a Jupiter quadrigarius
reverse design with a little rostrum on the exergual line, in reference
to the naval triumph of his homonymous grandfather.

Instead the P. MAE denarii exhibit a wholly unremarkable Nike
quadrigaria, in the same style as his contemporary moneyers C.
Numitorius of Fregellae (RRC no. 246) and L. Opimius the destroyer of
Fregellae (RRC no. 253). So the contextual evidence also looks decisive
that the Antias resolution of the monogram (interpreted as) ANT owes
more to modern invention that reality.

The more so because no other Maenius is attested with the cognomen
Antias, nor indeed with any cognomen at all. Some noble houses simply
refused to use them. There were other ways to distinguish a family and
individuals within it. The consular Maeni without cognomen were in tribe
Lemonia (RDGE 23). There is also plenty of evidence for the forenames
they used: Publius, Gaius, Titus, Quintus. But not Marcus.

Better then a Tuscan Roman P. Maenate(s) M. f., without a Roman heritage
to be found in any Roman annals, unless perhaps as enemies of Rome.

Better than anything online (especially the mind-numbingly boring media
notices combining modern politics and neglected antiquities), the ager
Capenas, with speculations about the location of Lucus Feroniae in the
vicinity of Mt. Soracte, are the focus of one of the most entertaining
chapters in George Dennis' classic old guide for travellers and
antiquarians, The Cities & Cemeteries of Etruria (vol. I, ch. X:  
Feronia and Capena).
Mark K.P.

(forwarded from RROME list)
----- Original Message -----
From: "Mark Passehl" <mpassehl@...>
To: <RROME@yahoogroups.com>
Sent: Thursday, March 03, 2011 12:50 PM
Subject: [RROME] Reversing an AN ligature

First a simple proposition, then the reasons. The RRC no. 249/1 legend
resolved P.MAE ANT and understood as Mae(nius) Ant(ias), or Ant(iaticus)
can be read otherwise and probably should be. The evidence of two
inscriptions from much the same period as the moneyer (second half of
2nd century B.C.) urges the exclusion of the cognomen here and instead
the nomen gentilicium Maenate(s).

The name legends on the denarii consist of forename P. then two
monograms groups, MAE followed by ANT. The latter can just as easily
resolve NAT. There's no problem with a nomen split in this fashion; it
also occurs in the closely contemporary legends of the Aburi Gemini
moneyers (RRC 244/1, 250/1).

So close indeed that a pure silver 249 / 250 hybrid was produced at the
Moneta (RRC, 63 n. 1), and Crawford groups them in the same year (132
B.C.). 249 and 250 share another unusual onomastic feature: their
filiations (which are
the same: M. f.) only appear on their bronzes, and expressed in the same
way, another ligature: M and F conjoined without separating punct. The
filiations should also appear in the same place, the invariable place
for filiation under the Republic, immediately following the gentilicium,
as we see everywhere in the literature, epigraphy and coin legends,
including 250 M. Aburius M. f. Geminus. The putative Maenius
Antias(etc.) seems to be the only example where the filiation appears
after the cognomen. But since that is only the result of non-ancient
interpretation, we'd do better to reinterpret the legend to match the
universal custom.
It's notable too that while Crawford normally accepts the longest form
of a name where the legend is in good order, in the case of 249 the
longest form (on a Paris bronze) is consigned among the blunders. In
every other respect this legend looks fine (as reproduced at RRC, 279),
but instead of the usual NAT (ANT) monogram a fourth letter sprouts from
the right side to form NATE. While ANTE is not much use for a cognomen
solution like Antias, NATE works ok for the nomen Maenates.

Against this the bronze legends which provide both the filiation and the
E appended to NAT also seem to invariably include a punct between the
MAE and NAT monograms, which in normal circumstances would clearly
demonstrate a separation of nomen and cognomen fragments.

However the circumstances of the 249 legends were abnormal; first
because the nomen was so highly irregular (it was not Roman and still in
process of Latinization) and second because this punct is a feature of
the bronzes alone
not the denarii. Most likely the slightly wider than normal gap between
the two monograms on the denarii misled the celators of the bronzes (or
the mint official who drew up the die plans used in common by several
bronze celators).
In any case the issue of the bronzes-only punct between monograms must
be weighed against the issue of the unique misplacement of the
filiation.

The relevant inscriptions are on two cippi recording the road building
of the aedilis plebis P. Menates in southern Tuscany, at 30 and 21 miles
from Rome; one old text from Nazano (CIL XI, 6616 = ILS 5802 = ILLRP
463):
P. MENATES P.F. / AID.PL. / XXX
and a second recently found at the Lucus Feroniae in the ager Capenas
(E. A. Stanco, Epigraphica 61, 1999, 191-6 no. 2 = AE 1999, 626): [P.
Men]ATES P.F. / [ai]D.PL. / ROMA XXI

So it looks like P. Menates was from a recently Romanized Etruscan
family, looking to do favours for his national heritage with the
resources of his new
political home. While P. Maenate(s) is not quite identical with P.
Menates, there's no real problem in the context of a Tuscan name in the
process of Latinization. Several analogies spring to mind; Caelius
Vibenna  of lore and the early books of Roman a.u.c. annals was
originally something like the Celes Vibenas label on a painting in the
Francois or Vel Saties tomb at Volci; and the Ceicna clan were Romanized
as Caecina, by the time of Cicero's pro Caecina speech at any rate.

Both forms of full Latinization, Menatius and Maenatius, appear in later
epigraphy.
One example is known only from a photograph of an inscribed stone at
Perusia, where A. Cutius A. f. adds his maternal filiation in the Tuscan
fashion: "Maenatia natus". The Cutu were a great house of Perusia with a
long history, and there's a military officer of some distinction in
later imperial monarchy times named

P. Cutius Aburianus (AE 2000, 386), perhaps indicating long term
connections of Aburi and M(a)enati.

A similar approach might also capture the Ceicna name in process of
Latinization on the coins. RRC no. 321 L. CASSI(us) CAEICIAN(us) can be
read as Cassi(us) Caeicina. The date is still pre-classical, and once
again the N and A are in ligature, so the order in which they are read
open to question.

Mark K.P.
Messages in this topic (1)

Amphora fragments found at Junnar excavation site
The Times of India, Mar 7, 2011

Fragments of amphoras - the two-handled jar with narrow neck used by
ancient Greeks and Romans to carry wine or oil - have been found in
Junnar, about 80 km from the city, confirming ancient trade links
between the Romans and the Satavahanas, the earliest rulers of
Maharashtra in 230 BC. Also, for the first time, huge brick structures
have been excavated at the site.

http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2011-03-07/pune/28665024_1_excavatio\
n-work-junnar-shreekant-jadhav

I love when that happens . . .

Pompeii Couple Reunited in Marble Inscription
Discovery News [USA], Mar 7, 2011

A married couple from Pompeii have been reunited with the recovery of a
missing piece of a 2000-year-old marble puzzle made of several inscribed
fragments. Broken apart and buried during the eruption of Mount Vesuvius
in 79 A.D., the pieces belonged to a tomb inscription. They were
unearthed in 1813 along the Via dei Sepolcri in Pompeii near a burial
tomb known as "Tomb of the Marble Door." "Most likely, the inscription
had been displayed in some temporary fashion to be later embedded in the
face of the tomb once the structure was completed," Peter Kruschwitz and
Virginia Campbell at the University of Reading wrote in the journal
Tyche. Kruschwitz and Campbell identified the missing spouse by
scrutinizing photographs of various fragments of inscriptions stored at
the Naples museum. "According to the original excavation report, the
fragmentary inscription consisted of seven pieces of marble. The missing
piece was in the same museum, but until now, has not been recognized as
part of the same inscription," Campbell told Discovery News.

http://news.discovery.com/archaeology/pompeii-vesuvius-inscription-110307.html

imperialrome2@... Iv comes across something you might want to know
about http://bit.ly/fVRTjo Iv done more in one week then I have in my entire
life this is what you been advised about everyday there’s new surprises just
take it as it comes you will be able to break all of your past expectations

imperialrome2@... Never stop believing in yourself
http://j.mp/ebUBNg come see for yourself how easy n quick it is to get started
don’t just think about it come on and try it never have to worry about ever
going into debt this will allow you to have freedoms in your life

Italy debuts 40 Etruscan masterpieces in Cortona Pieces on loan from
Louvre

15 March, 15:18
Guarda la foto1 di 1

(ANSA) - Cortona, March 15 - More than 40 masterpieces of Etruscan art,
never before seen in Italy, have returned to ancient Etruscan territory,
in Cortona, Tuscany. The pieces, on an extraordinary loan from the Paris
Louvre, are on show at the Etruscan Academy's Maec-Museum until July 3.

The exhibit, "The Collections of the Louvre in Cortona: The Etruscans
from the Arno to the Tiber," kicks off a three-year agreement between
the Maec-Museum and the Louvre, to show the complexity of Etruscan
culture in light of recent discoveries, such as the now-celebrated
terracotta figure Arianna of Falerii, which sat anonymously in a Louvre
vault until just ten years ago. It was finally identified by one of the
exhibit's curators, Francoise Gaultier.
Arianna of Falerii dates from the Hellenistic period (3rd century BC),
and is a fragment of a much larger, monumental piece. It shows a bust of
a woman decorated with jewels, a crown of leaves, and a sacred veil
poised on her head. The veil reveals her identity as the bride of
Dionysus.

Other highlights of the exhibit include the Fiesole Head, also from the
3rd century BC, and four Falterona bronzes, a set of votive statues
discovered in 1838. A bronze vase in the form of a woman's head is
thought to have been produced in the workshops of Orvietto, while a
small bronze statue of Minerva, goddess of wisdom, has been traced to an
area near Perugia. There are also exquisite examples of Etruscan gold
work, as well as prime examples of Etruscan funereal arts: a portrait of
a funeral banquet with the deceased lying beside the guests, and an urn
for ashes.

Like much of the collection on display, including Arianna of Falerii,
they were acquired from the great sale of the Campana collection in
1863. Giampietro Campana (1808-1880), a wealthy, cultured Roman
dignitary, amassed one of the largest collections of Greek, Roman and
Etruscan antiquities of his century. The Papal State confiscated his
collection and auctioned it off after he was arrested and condemned for
embezzlement of public funds. Most of the works ended up in major
national museums, such as the Louvre, Russia's Heritage Museum in St.
Petersburg, the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, and the
Metropolitan Museum in New York. The current exhibit follows one put on
with the collaboration of the Hermitage two years ago.

The exhibit is also part of the Etruscan Academy's efforts in recent
years to expand and elaborate its archeological offerings to the public,
including the opening of the museum itself in 2005, and its expansion in
2008. In 1999, work began on an archeological park, giving visitors an
itinerary of Etruscan ruins in Cortona. Work will begin soon to upgrade
and unite the park, as a local canal and a provincial road currently
split its attractions.

http://www.ansa.it/web/notizie/rubriche/english/2011/03/15/visualizza_new.html_1\
555336752.html

Morgantina Venus returns home

Priceless statue returned after landmark deal with Getty Museum

16 March, 18:41
Guarda la foto1 di 1

(ANSA) - Palermo, March 16 - A famous 5th-century BC statue of the Greek
goddess Aphrodite is set to return to an ancient Greek site in Sicily as
part of a landmark deal between Italy and the John Paul Getty Museum in
Los Angeles.

The so-called Morgantina Venus, stolen by tomb raiders 30 years ago and
later sold to the US museum for $18 million, is flying from LA to Rome
Thursday in three pieces.

It will be taken by truck down to Aidone near Enna next month where it
will be displayed in the town's antiquities museum.

The show is expected to be inaugurated at the start of May, officials
said.

The priceless Hellenistic artefact was returned after a Swiss
antiquities trafficker was convicted in the case and then culture
minister Francesco Rutelli forged a pioneering agreement with the Getty
in 2007, paving the way for similar accords with other US museums.

http://www.ansa.it/web/notizie/rubriche/english/2011/03/16/visualizza_new.html_1\
554502568.html

Northern Cal. ARCE/UCB 03/27/2011 Egyptology Lecture: The Cult of Is  
Posted by: "Glenn Meyer" glenn@... glennrmeyer   Date: Mon
Mar 14, 2011 9:44 pm ((PDT))
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Northern California Chapter of the American Research Center in
Egypt,         the Department of Near Eastern Studies, UC
Berkeley,
                and the Center for
Middle Eastern Studies, UC Berkeley                  
      present the lecture
                                The
Cult of Isis: Ptolemaic through Roman
                                                Dr.
Francesco Tiradritti
                        Director,
Italian Archaeological Mission, Luxor
                                                  Sunday,
March 27, 2011
                                2:30pm
                                                  Room
110 Barrows Hall
                           UC
Berkeley Campus

Parking is available in UC lots after 5 p.m. on weekdays and all day on
weekends for a fee. Ticket dispensing machines accept either $5 bills or
$1 bills. Parking is available in Parking Structure B on Bancroft
between Hearst Gym and Kroeber Hall and just across the street from the
University Art Museum. Parking is also available on the circle drive in
front of the Valley Life Sciences Building, which can be entered from
Oxford Street, or behind Dwinelle Hall, which can also be entered from
Oxford Street at the Track and Field Stadium. A map of the campus is
available online at http://www.berkeley.edu/map/. For more information
please call 650-367-8339 or send e-mail to hebsed@....
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
                                                    glenn@...

Since there's a statue of Minerva in it my guess is that the Emperor is
Domitian.


paying_homage_to_the_emperor.jpg
Address:


http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-eJ1ks5Bn_C0/TYBNfGc8yII/AAAAAAAAEVE/EtmFOSZM-lg/s1600/\
paying_homage_to_the_emperor.jpg

Iron Age road found in Shropshire by archaeologists
BBC, 16 March 2011

Archaeologists think they may have found evidence that Iron Age Britons
were capable of building roads - before the Romans arrived.
Environmental consultants SLR examined a road, thought to be built in
the 1st century BC, at Bayston Hill quarry, Shropshire. Director Tim
Malim said the age of the find suggested its construction was not a
result of Roman influence. However, an academic who has also seen the
road said it seemed "doubtful".

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-shropshire-12762426

Also:

Medieval discovery: pottery and leather shoes found in dig
The Irish Times, March 15, 2011

REMNANTS of what appears to have been a medieval mill, including "very
well-preserved" timber beams, pottery and leather shoes, have been found
underneath Meeting House Square in Temple Bar, Dublin. The discovery by
archaeologists came as part of the mandatory archaeological survey, as
work got under way on the construction of a retractable rain-cover over
the square. The building works have now been halted. Temple Bar Cultural
Trust is describing the discovery as "very exciting".

http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/ireland/2011/0315/1224292163264.html

Gold coin of Roman era retrieved
The Times of India, Mar 18, 2011

A gold coin said to be belonging to the Roman era and issued by the
VIIth Roman emperor, Nero Caesar, was retrieved by the state archaeology
department during their recent excavations at the Buddhist site in
Phanigiri, Nalgonda district. The coin, weighing about 7.3 grams, was
unearthed along with a handful of teracotta figurines, stucco images,
beads made of conches and some precious stones. "It is for the first
time that a Roman gold coin has been recovered from a Buddhist site in
Andhra Pradesh," said P Chenna Reddy, director, department of
archaeology and museums, in a press release issued on Thursday.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/hyderabad/Gold-coin-of-Roman-era-retriev\
ed/articleshow/7731447.cms

I learned something new today! I was unaware before of such a thing as
"hippica gymnasia".


Hippika gymnasia - Encyclopedia
Address:


http://www.encyclo.co.uk/define/Hippika%20gymnasia

Rare Roman altar stones uncovered in Musselburgh
BBC, 17 March 2011

Two rare, carved altar stones found in East Lothian could shed new light
about the Roman period in Scotland, it has been claimed. The Roman
stones were found during the redevelopment of a cricket pavilion in
Lewisvale Park, Musselburgh. Experts said they may help re-write the
history books on the Roman occupation of Inveresk. Although they were
found in March 2010, it has only now become safe to fully inspect them.
Only the backs and sides were visible until this month, when it was
finally safe to make a full inspection. The first stone has side panels
showing a lyre and griffon as well as pictures of a jug and bowl,
objects which would be used for pouring offerings on the altar. The
front face bears a carved inscription dedicating the altar to the god
Mithras - the furthest north that such dedications have been discovered.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-edinburgh-east-fife-12771243

See also The Scotsman:
http://www.scotsman.com/news/Experts-knocked-for-six-by.6735578.jp

Photo:
http://www.clydeandforthmedia.co.uk/img/2011/03/17/1300355614431.jpg

Reminds me of Sutter's Fort in Sacramento, California.



History in 1/72: Roman Castle
Address:


http://historyin172.blogspot.com/2010/12/roman-castle.html

Inhabited since 3600 Years BC, al-Lajat Region Comprises over 200
Housing Sites
Syrian Arab News Agency, Mar 18, 2011

The archeological surveys of al-Lajat region in Sweida province over the
past three years have revealed the abundance of human settlements since
the Neolithic period (3600 BC) till the Ottoman era. Located in Sweida
Province, 60 km to the south of Damascus, al-Lajat region is a plateau
with interspersing volcanic cones of basalt and pumice, and volcanic
springs, surrounded by agricultural plains. Head of Sweida Antiquities
Department, Wassim al-Sha'rani, indicated to a network of underground
water canals beneath the basalt layer. "Over 200 housing sites over 350
km have been surveyed in the region chronicling life in the early Bronze
and Roman eras," said al-Sha'rani in a statement to SANA, adding that
settlements in the Early Bronze era constituted a transitional stage
between the Chalcolithic period and the urban life which came later.

http://www.sana.sy/eng/35/2011/03/18/337211.htm

Shaqqa, Archaeological Town Full of Ruins of Historic Importance
Syrian Arab News Agency, Mar 16, 2011

Shaqqa archaeological town, 27km northeast Sweida city, assumed an
important position during the 2nd and 3rd centuries AD as the Romans
named it after the name of their emperor Maxim, to be known as
Maximianpolis or the 'City of Maximian'. Director of Sweida Antiquities
Department Waseem al-Sha'rani said one of the most important remaining
ruins in the village is the Kalybe ruins which were built by the end of
the 3rd century AD. The remaining ruins encompass of a part of the main
entrance from the north including the gateway arch with two rectangular
niches topped by arc ends above each others.

http://www.sana.sy/eng/35/2011/03/16/33
6806.htm

http://ilfattostorico.com/2010/07/08/scoperte-piu-di-52000-monete-romane/

Cantor exhibition depicts how ancient world used color, how science
reveals the faded past
PhysOrg.com [USA], March 18, 2011

With the silent attentiveness of a physician, Ivy Nguyen passes her
hands over the recumbent white lady in the darkened lab. She cradles a
handheld black light in her fingers. Though we still think of ancient
Greece and Rome in terms of white marble sparkling under a hot
Mediterranean sun, the new exhibition shows at least one Greco-Roman
lady as she was meant to be seen – in Technicolor. Not everyone may
take to Stanford's painted lady, but first impressions can change. "It's
very different – some have called it kind of garish," admitted
sophomore Nguyen, but she confesses that she's gotten used to it. We've
always known that ancient statues were painted: The Metropolitan Museum
of Art has a vase, circa 360-350 B.C., depicting a man painting a statue
of Herakles. The most important evidence is on the statues themselves
– traces of paint that time did not wash from the creases and crevices
in porous marble.

http://www.physorg.com/news/2011-03-cantor-depicts-ancient-world-science.html

Crosby Garrett Roman helmet find prompts national treasure debate
Cumberland News [UK], 11 March 2011

Frustration surrounding the sale of a Roman helmet unearthed in Cumbria
could be set to influence changes to how treasures are declared. There
was disappointment in the county when the uniquely well-preserved bronze
mask was sold at auction to a mystery private buyer. Historians at
Carlisle's Tullie House Museum launched a publicly-backed Keep It In
Cumbria fundraising campaign and bid up to ÂŁ1.7 million for the
helmet. It sold for ÂŁ2m. The 2,000-year-old mask, found by a metal
detector enthusiast in 30 pieces in a field at Crosby Garrett, south of
Appleby, was sold in October. Current rules mean that, despite its
importance, it was not classed as treasure. Had it been made of gold or
silver it would have automatically gone to a museum – rather than into
the hands of a private collector. Now, the Department of Culture, Media
and Sport is planning a consultation which could decide how future finds
are handled.
http://www.cumberlandnews.co.uk/news/crosby-garrett-roman-helmet-find-prompts-na\
tional-treasure-debate-1.817308?referrerPath=news

Canterbury Roman burial ground uncovered
BBC, 25 March 2011

A Roman burial ground has been discovered by archaeologists working on
the site of a former garage in Kent. About 150 graves have been found on
the site in St Dunstan's Street, Canterbury, which formed an important
suburb of the Roman and medieval city. The Roman road from Dover to
London followed the line of St Dunstan's Street, and Roman finds date
from as early as the first century AD. Burials took place from about AD
290 into the late fourth century AD.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-kent-12853889

Also:

Roman quarry in Barry old harbour, claims archaeologist
BBC, 22 March 2011

An archaeologist believes he has discovered the remains of a Roman
quarry in the old harbour at Barry in the Vale of Glamorgan. Karl-James
Langford says the pottery find reinforces his belief that beach man-made
walls may be 1,900 years old. The quarry was operational until the 19th
Century but its origins were unknown. "It's not in the records - it may
have been been completely ignored because it's too obvious," said Mr
Langford. He believes the quarry to be the source of limestone used for
the Roman fort whose remains can be seen in the walls around Cardiff
Castle, although historical records do not mention such a quarry.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-south-east-wales-12809284

I'm reading a biography about Livia, Augustus' wife.


It mentioned the story of Claudia Quinta. And that an Italian painter
did a series seven paintings on virtuous women.


All I've been able to find is info on Claudia Quinta.


Does anyone know who the other six subjects are?


Claudia Casta Quinta, Neroccio de' Landi, 1490--1495, National Gallery
of Art, Washington, DC | Flickr - Photo Sharing! Address:



http://www.flickr.com/photos/byray/2597348899/

Nobody seems to have commented yet on the new movie "The Eagle" based on one of
my favourite books as a teenager The Eagle of the Ninth.
I've seen the film twice already, though it is not the book, many facets and
plot twists are missing, BUT the period detail for the majority of the time is
excellent, though the tribesman north of the Wall look more like they have
wandered in from the set of Last of the Mohicans than Scotland A.D. 117. Romans
are played with American accents (imperialists you see!) and most Britains are
dirty savages. They also include two things that most of us now know are
inaccurate, thumbs up and down in the arena, and the British having scythes on
the spokes of their war chariots. But the sets and locations for Roman Britain
are very convincing and the action sequences very well done. The central
characters have nothing of the homo- eroticism or closeness of the friendship as
in the book, the girl is excised completely, and Marcus doesn't bother with a
disguise when he ventures into barbarian territory searching for the lost eagle.
Stupid that last one if you ask me! He also charges alone straight into a
hundred enemy tribesmen when he first sees the eagle, a plainly stupid reaction
as he has come all that way to steal it. But mustn't carp too much, as I found
it an enjoyable romp.
Paul

Ancient Tablet Found: Oldest Readable Writing in Europe
National Geographic News, March 30, 2011

Marks on a clay tablet fragment found in Greece are the oldest known
decipherable text in Europe, a new study says. Considered "magical or
mysterious" in its time, the writing survives only because a trash heap
caught fire some 3,500 years ago, according to researchers. Found in an
olive grove in what's now the village of Iklaina (map), the tablet was
created by a Greek-speaking Mycenaean scribe between 1450 and 1350 B.C.,
archaeologists say. So far, excavations at Iklaina have yielded evidence
of an early Mycenaean palace, giant terrace walls, murals, and a
surprisingly advanced drainage system, according to dig director Michael
Cosmopoulos. But the tablet, found last summer, is the biggest surprise
of the multiyear project, Cosmopoulos said. "According to what we knew,
that tablet should not have been there," the University of Missouri-St.
Louis archaeologist told National Geographic News.

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2011/03/110330-oldest-writing-europe-tab\
let-greece-science-mycenae-greek/

Millions of Mummy Puppies Revealed at Egyptian Catacombs
LiveScience [USA], March 30 2011

The excavation of a labyrinth of tunnels beneath the Egyptian desert has
revealed the remains of millions of animals, mostly dogs and jackals.
Many appear to have been only hours or days old when they were killed
and mummified. The Dog Catacombs, as they are known, date to 747-730
B.C., and are dedicated to the Anubis, the Egyptians' jackal-headed god
of the dead. They were first documented in the 19th century; however,
they were never fully excavated. A team, led by Paul Nicholson, an
archaeologist at Cardiff University in the United Kingdom, is now
examining the tunnels and their contents, they announced this week. They
estimate the catacombs contain the remains of 8 million animals. Given
the sheer numbers of animals, it is likely they were bred by the
thousands in puppy farms around the ancient Egyptian capital of Memphis,
according to the researchers. The Dog Catacombs are located at Saqqara,
the burial ground for the ancient capital Memphis.

http://www.livescience.com/13473-mummified-puppies-egyptian-dog-catacombs.html

See also The Daily Mail [UK]:
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-1371492/Catacomb-secret-tunnels-p\
acked-mummified-remains-EIGHT-MILLION-dogs-excavated-Egypt.html?ito=feeds-newsxm\
l

8,000-year-old remains of early Anatolians discovered in Istanbul
Hurriyet Daily News [Turkey], March 28, 2011

Two skeletons dating back 8,500 years, making them the oldest ever found
in what is now Turkey, have been discovered during archaeological
excavations in Istanbul’s Yenikapı area. “Such
remains have not been discovered during the excavation before; these are
the oldest graves in Anatolia,” said Dr. Yasemin Yılmaz, an
expert on anthropology and prehistory, who expressed excitement about
the find. According to Yılmaz, the use of wooden blocks â€"
preserved to this day â€" to cover the coffins makes them
distinctive from other finds.

http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/n.php?n=the-oldest-people-of-anatolia-were-disc\
overed-2011-03-28

1830-Era Shipwreck Found in Lake Michigan: Big Pics
Discovery News [USA], March 31, 2011

A 60-foot, single-masted sloop dating back to perhaps the 1830s has been
discovered in Lake Michigan.
Holland-based Michigan Shipwreck Research Associates made the discovery
at about 250 feet down between Saugatuck and South Haven, Mich. The
group worked in collaboration with author Clive Cussler and his sonar
operator Ralph Wilbanks of the National Underwater & Marine Agency
(NUMA). At the time of the discovery, the group was searching for the
remnants of Northwest Airlines Flight 2501, which crashed into the lake
in 1950, killing 58 people. During an exploratory dive to the wreck,
MSRA made note of three features that are significantly different from
sailing vessels dating to the mid- and late-19th century: the lack of a
centerboard, the presence of a raised afterdeck and deadlights (a pair
of openings) in the stern that allowed light to reach the cargo hold.

http://news.discovery.com/history/shipwreck-lake-michigan-110331.html

Archaeologists investigate Iraqi marshes for origins of Mesopotamian
cities

March 31st, 2011 in Other Sciences / Archaeology & Fossils

Three National Science Foundation-supported researchers recently
undertook the first non-Iraqi archaeological investigation of the
Tigris-Euphrates delta in nearly 20 years. Archeologists Jennifer
Pournelle and Carrie Hritz, with geologist Jennifer Smith, carried out
the study late last year to look for links between wetland resources and
the emergence of Mesopotamian cities.

"Mesopotamia"--Greek for "the land between the rivers"--is an area about
300 miles long and 150 miles wide straddling the Tigris and Euphrates
rivers, which now run through Iraq, northeastern Syria, southeastern
Turkey and southwestern Iran. It is broadly considered a cradle of
civilization, because urban societies first developed there, about six
thousand years ago.

Alexander the Great conquered Mesopotamia in 332 B.C.

"This is an important project because it has the potential to shed new
light on the processes by which civilization rose in the Near East,"
said John Yellen, an NSF program director for archeological research.

The researchers proposed the project to probe how the area's gulf
shoreline and marshes contributed to the economic foundation of
Mesopotamian cities. Specifically, they wanted to investigate
archaeological sites from 5,000 B.C. to Islamic times to learn more
about how wetland resources contributed to the locale's towns and cities
during the early- to mid-Holocene period.

"Our interest is in early settlement," said Hritz, an assistant
professor of archaeological anthropology at Penn State. "The early
period of settlement is always linked to the development of
agriculture."

An area of keen interest for the researchers was the Hammar marshlands,
located south of the Euphrates River in Iraq and Iran, which were
drained between 1950 and the 1990s, in part, to facilitate oil
exploration and development. But after the first Gulf War, former Iraqi
President Saddam Hussein diverted the Euphrates River away from the
area, causing the marshlands to almost entirely disappear, while at the
same time making it more accessible to archeologists.

Foreign archeological investigations there stopped, while Iraqis
continued only limited research. "But because their work is unpublished,
we are unsure of where they surveyed," said Hritz.

The three members of the research team were able to get a look--for the
first time in nearly two decades.

"Certainly having pedestrian access to much of the region was a help,"
said Smith, who is an associate professor of Earth and Planetary
Sciences and Environmental Studies at Washington University in St.
Louis. "However, we only got to see a limited and relatively disturbed
portion of the existing remnant marshlands, which made it harder to
develop a real modern analog for past wetland environments."

"One thing that really surprised us was the surface condition of the
dried bed of Lake Hammar. We expected it to be significantly deflated by
wind scouring, like the silty desert areas around other major sites we
visited," said Pournelle. "Instead, it was 'sealed' beneath a layer of
consolidated silt and shell--obscuring any indication of what might lie
below the surface."

"It surprised me that sometimes features clear on the imagery were
virtually indiscernible from the ground, Smith added, pointing out the
paleochannels as an example. "It is exceedingly important to use both
remote sensing and groundtruthing in these incredibly flat regions."
Smith was a co-principal investigator for the study.

Restoration of the Hammar marshes is now a high national priority in
Iraq. The
researchers say if they do not act quickly, the window of opportunity
for conducting future work in the region will close.

"Iraq holds a wealth of significant archaeological sites and it has a
long history of archaeological research," said Yellen. "Hopefully, this
project will help reinvigorate this rich tradition."

But getting to the sites to carry out a survey in a country at war can
be a bit tricky.

"Ultimately, we found that the only way to get into the country that was
cost effective was to go on a tour with a British tour company," said
Hritz. "While in Bagdad, we met with the State Board of Antiquities and
Heritage (SBAH), and they encouraged us to visit the sites with a SBAH
representative and report back to them any observations."

"We never imagined the degree of cooperation and openness," said
research principal investigator Pournelle, a research assistant
professor in the Environment and Sustainability Program of the School of
the Earth, Ocean, and Environment at the University of South Carolina.
"All of the ministries, universities and faculties involved were
incredibly generous with their time and resources."

The researchers used local Iraqi security for their trip rather than a
foreign security firm. They spent a week travelling with Hinterland
Tours from Bagdad to Basra, the capital of Basra Province in Iraq. While
in the Basra area, they then spent five days with a private guide
conducting a geoarchaeological survey.

"We saw everything we intended to see, except for one area that was
flooded," said Hritz. "We did not have the proper equipment to enter the
flooded area."
The researchers hope to conduct more studies in Iraq.

"Next is systematic seismological study, coring and survey in order to
relate past and future archaeological excavations and surveys to an
explicit paleoenvironmental record," said Pournelle. "Amazingly, this
has never been done. We need to work quickly on the ground-based
operations, because some of this area is scheduled for re-flooding."

Provided by National Science Foundation
"Archaeologists investigate Iraqi marshes for origins of Mesopotamian
cities." March 31st, 2011.

http://www.physorg.com/news/2011-03-archaeologists-explore-iraqi-marshes-urbaniz\
ation.html

Interesting . . .

[dailywritingtips.com]

Both Greek and Roman cultures used palindromes. The Sator Square, for
instance, confounds scholars to the present day, with over fifty
published books or academic articles seeking to explain this four-ways
Latin palindrome:

ROTAS
OPERA
TENET
AREPO
SATOR

The words literally mean, "The farmer Arepo uses his plough as his form
of work"ť, and have been discovered etched onto several Roman
buildings across Europe. Some have suggested that the graffiti is
evidence of an early Christian household – the letters, stretched out,
make the phrase PATER NOSTER ("ur Father"ť) in the shape of a cross,
with a spare A and O (representing Alpha and Omega). Alternatively, it
has been described as a piece of magical incantation, used in
Greek-inspired mystery religion. The word Abracadabra was used in a
similar way in the second century as a triangular chant believed to
possess healing properties.

Whatever the meaning, the graffiti shows that palindromes were part of
the culture of the classical civilizations. Writers locating their
stories in those worlds could do worse than slip in the odd
back-to-front phrase – if they can create or find one.

Read more:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sator_Square

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Talk_-3ASator_Square

I love when that happens . . .

Prehistoric Fossil May Have Inspired Greek Myths
Discovery News [USA], Mar 31, 2011

The bone of a large extinct creature, once treasured by the ancient
Greeks, has finally found a permanent home in England. Known as the
Nichoria bone, the blackened fossil is part of the thigh bone of an
immense extinct mammal that roamed southern Greece perhaps a million
years ago. The bone was collected by ancient Greeks and may have even
helped inspire certain beasts in Greek classical mythology. It was then
rediscovered 40 years ago. Since then the fossil had largely vanished
from the public eye. "It was presumed lost until 1998. Following my
inquiries, the fossil was found stored in a cellar at the University of
Minnesota. It then spent last decade in various U.S. labs," Adrienne
Mayor, a research scholar in Classics and History of Science at Stanford
University, told Discovery News. The historic fossil has been welcomed
by curators at the Ashmolean Museum in Oxford, England.

http://news.discovery.com/archaeology/fossil-ancient-greeks-mammal-110331.html

I hate when that happens . . .

Greek ruins of Cyrene draw goats, cows, few tourists
Kathimerini [Greece], April 2, 2011

A toga-clad statue that would be a prize museum piece elsewhere lies
half buried among cow dung at the ancient Greek city of Cyrene in
eastern Libya, where tourism has suffered decades of neglect. Goats and
cows graze among the towering Greek and Roman columns of the ruined
city, a UNESCO world heritage site perched on a mountainside with
stunning views over verdant plains and the Mediterranean Sea beyond.
Founded in the 4th century BC by ancient Greeks and later ruled by Rome,
the site lacks the protective barriers, souvenir kiosks and restaurants
usually found at such places. Instead, it is surrounded by the
dilapidated, ugly village of Shahaat. "ťIt's been the same here since
the revolution in 1969. There's been investment in oil, but none at all
in tourism,"ť said Shahaat tourism policeman Hamdy Hamed. The people
of east Libya complain that there has been little investment in their
part of the country since Muammar Gadhafi came to power in a military
coup 41 years ago.

http://www.ekathimerini.com/4dcgi/_w_articles_wsite4_3_29/03/2011_385054