Ancient Snake-Shaped Handle Uncovered in Taiwan

TAOYUAN CITY, TAIWAN—A snake-shaped handle to a pottery vessel has been uncovered in northwestern Taiwan, at a site where a large-scale stone tool processing center has also been found, according to a Newsweek report. Researchers led by Hung-Lin Chiu of National Tsing Hua University found the artifact in a sand dune. It has been radiocarbon dated to some 4,000 years ago. Chiu said the snake handle resembles a cobra, with its head raised and bulging skin folds on its head and neck. “Snakes are often regarded as symbolic animals in religion, mythology, and literature, and are considered to be the bridge between heaven and man,” due to their ability to shed their skin, he added. To read about an Egyptian tomb at Abusir whose entrance wall was carved with magical spells intended to ward off serpents, go to "Spells Against Snakes." 

Faces of Scots From the Past Recreated in Digital Portraits

PERTHSHIRE, SCOTLAND—The Guardian reports that the faces of four people whose remains were uncovered in central Scotland have been recreated by forensics and facial reconstruction expert Chris Rynn, with information obtained through the analysis of DNA, the chemical composition of bone, radiocarbon dating, and reconstruction forensics. The first digital reconstruction reveals a medieval man thought to have been killed by a traumatic injury between the ages of 18 and 25. His remains were found in a small, hastily dug pit. “He could have been stomped on by a horse or bludgeoned in the chest with some sort of mace-like object,” said bioarchaeologist Marc Oxenham of the University of Aberdeen. The second, a Cistercian nun who lived in the sixteenth century, likely limped from a broken foot. The face of a Bronze Age woman whose remains were found in a farmer’s field in 1962 represents the third reconstruction. She is thought to have been between 30 and 40 years old at the time of death, and she likely had lower back pain. Signs of trauma to her forehead may have caused her demise. The last reconstruction depicts a Pictish man who moved to central Scotland later in life and died in his 40s between A.D. 400 and 600. The analysis of his remains suggests that he grew up on the west coast of Scotland, or possibly in Ireland, ate a diet largely of produce, and suffered from osteoarthritis probably brought on by heavy agricultural work. The portraits will be displayed at the Perth Museum. For more on the Picts, go to "Letter from Scotland: Land of the Picts."

Replica Stone Axes and Adzes Tested

TOKYO, JAPAN—According to a Cosmos Magazine report, Akira Iwase of Tokyo Metropolitan University and his colleagues made 75 replica ax heads and adzes with a stone hammer, anvil, and grindstones from semi-nephrite collected in Japan’s Matsukawa River and Oumigawa River; hornfels from the Abo River on Yakushima Island; and tuff taken from the Fujikawa River. Thin strips of wood and fibrous grass were used to bind the stones to wooden handles. The tools were then tested in 15 different activities, including felling trees; shaping and scraping wood, antler, bone, and hides; and butchering animal carcasses. The macroscopic and microscopic wear marks on the tools were then recorded over the course of the experiments. The researchers also noted wear and tear on the stones that occurred during the manufacturing process, sharpening, transporting them in a bag with other tools, and trampling. Four of the axes remain unused for comparison. Iwase and his colleagues identified nine different types of fractures in the tools that resulted from different uses. The analysis could help future researchers determine how stone artifacts were used, and if early humans were able to fell and shape timber, which rarely survives in archaeological sites. Read the original scholarly article about this research in Journal of Archaeological Science. To read about shell fishhooks uncovered in a cave in Okinawa, go to "Japan's Early Anglers."

Remains of a Possible Roman-Era Family Unearthed in Bulgaria

NOVA VARBOVKA, BULGARIA—According to a Live Science report, a farmer discovered two Roman graves while plowing a field in northern Bulgaria late last year. Archaeologists from the Veliko Tarnovo Regional Museum of History dated the graves to the third century A.D. Both of the brick graves had been lined with plaster and covered with large slabs of limestone. The remains of a man and a woman between the ages of 45 and 60 at the time of death were found in the larger tomb, which measures about 10 feet long. They were buried with jewelry made of glass beads and gold, six coins dated to between A.D. 200 and 225, a lamp, a leather shoe, and vessels made of ceramic and glass. Three of the glass vessels were lacrimaria, or small flasks for collecting the tears of the mourners. The smaller grave contained the remains of a child aged between two and three years old at the time of death. A bronze medallion depicting the Roman emperor Caracalla, who ruled from A.D. 198 to 217, was recovered from this grave. Archaeologist Kalin Chakarov thinks the deceased may have been members of the same family, but DNA analysis of samples of the bones has not yet been conducted. “The discovery of such tombs in the territory of Bulgaria is not a surprise, since the climate and soils are very good for growing agricultural crops,” added museum director Ivan Tsarov. The researchers plan to look for an estate where these people might have lived. To read about artifacts recovered from a Roman frontier camp in northern Bulgaria, go to "Legionary Personal Effects."

Monumental Stone Circle Found in Northern Peru

LARAMIE, WYOMING—According to a statement released by the University of Wyoming, a monumental circular plaza made up of two concentric walls has been discovered in the Andes Mountains of northern Peru by Jason Toohey and Melissa Murphy of the University of Wyoming, Patricia Chirinos Ogata of the University of California, Santa Barbara, and their colleagues. The plaza, constructed with upright megaliths at the Callacpuma archaeological site, measures about 60 feet in diameter and has been radiocarbon dated to 4,750 years ago with charcoal samples uncovered within the plaza. “It was probably a gathering place and ceremonial location for some of the earliest people living in this part of the Cajamarca Valley,” Toohey said. “These people were living a primarily hunting and gathering lifestyle and probably had only recently begun growing crops and domesticating animals,” he added. Read the original scholarly article about this research in Science Advances. To read about an Andean city built in northern Peru's Moche River Valley a millennium ago, go to "Peru's Great Urban Experiment."

New Dates Obtained for Rock Art in Patagonia

BUENOS AIRES, ARGENTINA—Live Science reports that samples of black pigment from rock art in a cave in Patagonia have been radiocarbon dated to 8,200 years ago, making some of the images several thousand years older than previously thought. “[The cave] is not the oldest occupation in South America, but it is the oldest directly radiocarbon-dated pigment-based rock art in South America,” said Ramiro Barberena of Temuco Catholic University and Argentina’s National Research Council. In all, 895 paintings have been recorded in the cave. These paintings have been grouped into 446 motifs, or segments. “These [drawings] span more or less across 3,000 years within a single motif,” Barberena explained. He and his colleagues suggest that the drawings were used to transmit information across generations in a landscape with very little water. “It would’ve been hard to make it on your own, so an exchanging of information was important,” the researchers concluded. Read the original scholarly article about this research in Science Advances. To read about how hunter-gatherers adapted to Patagonia's harsh environments for 13,000 years, go to "Letter from Patagonia: Surviving a Windswept Land."

Study Dives Deep Into Life of Denmark’s “Vittrup Man”

GOTHENBURG, SWEDEN—A new analysis of the skeletal remains known as Vittrup Man has been completed by a team of researchers led by Anders Fischer and Karl-Göran Sjögren of the University of Gothenburg, according to a Cosmos Magazine report. The skeleton, discovered in 1915 in a peat bog in northwest Denmark along with a wooden club, a ceramic vessel, and cow bones, has been dated to between 3300 and 3100 B.C. Vittrup Man is thought to have been between 30 and 40 years old at the time of death. His remains include the pieces of a smashed skull, which may have occurred during a ritualistic sacrifice, a fight, or a murder, the researchers suggest. The study has found that Vittrup Man had a different genetic signature than people who lived in the region, and was more closely related to Mesolithic people from Sweden and Norway. Isotopes in his bones also indicate that he spent his early childhood some 45 miles away across open sea, while isotopes and proteins in his teeth show that his diet shifted during his later teen years from marine mammals and fish to farm foods, such as sheep or goat. The scientists suggest that the young man may have moved from Sweden to Denmark because he was involved in the flint trade, or because he may have been taken prisoner. Read the original scholarly article about this research in PLOS ONE. To read about canine remains recovered from a bog, go to "Denmark's Bog Dogs."