Germany’s Paleolithic Wooden Weapons Analyzed

GÖTTINGEN, GERMANY—According to a statement released by the University of Göttingen, the wooden hunting weapons discovered among animal bones in 300,000-year-old deposits on what had been a lakeshore in northwestern Germany’s Schöningen site have been studied by researchers from the University of Göttingen, the University of Reading, and the Lower Saxony State Office for Cultural Heritage (NLD). The wood objects were examined with 3-D microscopy and micro-CT scanners, which revealed that wood was split and sharpened using a wide variety of techniques and sophisticated work processes. The researchers think that the wooden hunting weapons were then carried to the Schöningen site, where evidence suggests that broken tools were repaired and recycled. “Wood was a crucial raw material for human evolution,” commented team leader Thomas Terberger of the University of Göttingen and the NLD, “but it is only in Schöningen that it has survived from the Paleolithic period in such quality," he concluded. For more on these weapons, go to "Weapons of the Ancient World: Hunting Equipment."

2,300-Year-Old Tomb Discovered in Greece

ATHENS, GREECE—Work on a sewerage system has unearthed a tomb in the ancient Macedonian city of Aegae in modern Vergina, Greece, according to an All That’s Interesting report. The tomb is thought to have belonged to a noble couple and date to the third century B.C., according to Angeliki Kottaridi, Honorary Superintendent of the Ephorate of Antiquities of Imathia. The doorway into the tomb, which measures about 12 feet long and nine feet wide, had been blocked by a pile of stones. Paintings on the tomb walls resemble gold ribbons with bows. The man was buried with a shield reinforced with iron parts and well-made weapons. A woman’s remains, thought to belong to his wife, may have been added to the burial at a later date. She was buried with beads, necklaces, and a golden myrtle wreath, Kottaridi explained. To read about the contested location of a Macedonian king's burial, go to "In Search of History's Greatest Rulers: Alexander the Great, King of Macedon."

Roman Wall Unearthed in Western Germany

AACHEN, GERMANY—Live Science reports that traces of a 1,700-year-old Roman fort have been found under a cobblestone street in western Germany’s city of Aachen. “The way the wall was built left no doubt it had to be of Roman origin,” said archaeologist Donata Kyritz. “The concrete-like mortar and the choice of rock was typical for the Roman period. Also, the dimensions and the way the foundation was built differed from the technique used in medieval times,” she explained. The section of surviving wall is about 23 feet long and 35 inches wide. The structure may have surrounded the city in the third century. For more on Roman Germany, go to "The Road Almost Taken."

Medieval Belt Hook Unearthed in Poland

WEST POMERANIA, POLAND—According to a Science in Poland report, a medieval belt hook for hanging keys or a purse has been unearthed in northwestern Poland by a metal detectorist. Archaeologist Grzegorz Kurka of the Kamień Land History Museum said that similar rare belt hooks have been found in Hungary, Austria, and Germany. This one is in the shape of a person with his hands resting on his hips and elbows out, creating two holes. A hole for another hanging item was placed at the bottom of the figure. A face and clothing are engraved in the metal. To read about the burials of medieval knights near the village of Cieple, go to "Viking Knights, Polish Days."

Ice Age Lineage Detected in Genetic Study of Blackfoot Peoples

URBANA, ILLINOIS—Science Magazine reports that the analysis of DNA samples from six living members of the Blackfoot Confederacy, and samples taken from the remains of four ancestors held at the Blackfeet Tribal Historic Preservation Office and three ancestors held by the Smithsonian Institution, supports Blackfoot oral history and archaeological evidence indicating that Blackfoot people have occupied areas of what are now Montana, Alberta, and Saskatchewan for more than 10,000 years. The Blackfoot Confederacy is made up of the Blackfeet, Kainai-Blood, Peigan-Piikani, and Siksika nations. Radiocarbon dating of the ancestors’ remains in the study shows that they are between 100 and 200 years old. Information on the provenance of the remains held at the Smithsonian is incomplete, but they are thought to have been stolen from burials on Blackfoot land in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. The results of the study, which was conducted as a collaboration between the Kainai-Blood Nation and geneticists at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, indicate that modern Blackfoot people are closely related to these ancestors. The study has also determined that modern Blackfoot people descended from a previously unknown genetic lineage. This lineage split from the major known lineage, the ancestors to all other studied Indigenous people living in North and South America, about 18,000 years ago. The researchers also noted that the ancestors’ remains that were sampled as part of the study may be repatriated in the future. Read the original scholarly article about this research in Science Advances. For more on the Blackfoot, go to "Letter From Montana: The Buffalo Chasers."

New Thoughts on a 16th-Century Ship’s Cargo

ESPOSENDE, PORTUGAL—ArtNet News reports that a study of artifacts that washed ashore in Portugal about 10 years ago suggests that they did not come from the wreckage of the Nossa Senhora da Rosa, an Iberian vessel carrying wine that sank in 1577, as had been previously thought. The artifacts include 490 pewter fragments, and 254 pewter plates, porringers, and spoons. Marks on these pewter objects indicate that they were made in European workshops in the sixteenth century. The researchers also determined that the 125 copper fragments recovered on Portugal’s Belinho Beach came from 34 plates. Biblical and religious decorations, including images of Adam and Eve and St. George fighting a dragon, suggest that these were alms dishes resembling those produced in Nuremberg, Germany. X-rays of seven highly degraded iron items among the collection identified two ax heads, at least two swords, and one nail. Cannonballs of various sizes and two pieces of glazed ceramic were also identified. Researchers now think the ship belonged to a sixteenth-century merchant who was transporting goods made in northern Europe for use on other ships. The study also suggests that the ship’s cargo was loaded all at once. Its destination remains undetermined, however. Read the original scholarly article about this research in Journal of Maritime Archaeology. To read about examination of artifacts recovered from a seventeenth-century shipwreck in the Wadden Sea, go to "An Elegant Enigma."

Bronze Age Fort Identified Off Ireland’s West Coast

COUNTY MAYO, IRELAND—The Irish Independent reports that an island in Clew Bay may actually be the remains of a large Bronze Age fort. Archaeologist Michael Gibbons said that several large ramparts faced with limestone blocks are visible on the tidal isthmus linking the island of Collanmore to Ireland’s west coast during very low tides, when the island is accessible by foot. But, he added, the structures are covered with seaweed, and are hidden from site during high tides. The structures were known to locals, he noted, who were not aware of their age or significance. “We were lucky on the day as there were men cutting seaweed in the same area,” he said. Gibbons explained that the fort was probably strategically important between 1100 and 900 B.C. “Similar ramparts are visible at a number of other coastal and lake promontory forts throughout the west of Ireland,” he said. “They were built by warlord dominated societies and we have very good evidence they were in active use during periods of warfare between various tribes.” To read about sites in western Ireland where people began to farm and raise animals some 3,500 years ago, go to "Off the Grid: Rathcroghan, Ireland."

Sandstone Object Found on South African Coast May Depict a Stingray

CAPE TOWN, SOUTH AFRICA—IFL Science reports that an evaluation of a sandstone object discovered in 2018 on South Africa’s coastline suggests that it may be an image of a stingray, a creature native to Africa’s southern coast. Optically stimulated luminescence dating indicates that the sand forming the stone, whose surface is about 14 inches long and 12 inches wide, was last exposed to sunlight some 130,000 years ago. To test the object’s resemblance to a stingray, a team of researchers led by Charles Helm of Nelson Mandela University laid images of a blue stingray (Dasyatis chrysonata) on it and found that the two closely matched in size and proportion, except for the tail, which is missing from the artifact. Helm and his colleagues think the object could have been formed when an early human came across a stranded stingray on the beach and traced around it in the sand. “This is the first and thus far the only example that suggests tracing from this time period,” Helm said. “The chances of something like this being preserved and amenable to our interpretation are remote, so it is possible that this may be the only example ever identified, but we can always hope that more will become apparent,” he concluded. Read the original scholarly article about this research in Rock Art Research. To read about the earliest known rock art, go to "World's First Artists," one of ARCHAEOLOGY's Top 10 Discoveries of 2021.

Medieval Papal Seal Recovered in Poland

WEST POMERANIA, POLAND—Science in Poland reports that a third medieval seal has been found in northwestern Poland. This lead seal was discovered by a group of metal detectorists looking for World War II artifacts. The preserved letters and iconography on the seal suggest that it was used to sign papal bulls, or decrees issued by the pope, the leader of the Roman Catholic Church. The name on the seal is incomplete, but researchers from the Kamień Land History Museum estimate that the seal is about 650 years old. The popes who ruled between 1303 and 1352 include Benedict XI, Clement V, Benedict XII, and Clement VI. The seal may have been transported to the site with dirt from another location during road construction, or it may have been discarded at the side of the road as the bull was being transported to fourteenth-century bishops who lived in a castle about seven miles away. To read about the popes depicted on late medieval coins found in a box uncovered beneath a fifteenth- or sixteenth-century house in France, go to "A Catalog of Princes."

Researchers Review Viking Body Modifications

MÜNSTER, GERMANY—Matthias Toplak and Lukas Kerk of the Viking Museum Haithabu and the University of Münster examined filed teeth and deformed skulls found in Viking Age burials on the Swedish island of Gotland, which is located in the Baltic Sea, according to a Newsweek report. Vikings may have also had tattoos, piercings, scarification, or hair and beard styles to signal affiliation with certain social, religious, or cultural groups, the researchers explained, but these forms of body modification do not survive in archaeological contexts. In all, more than 130 men buried in the cemetery between the late eighth and eleventh centuries were found to have horizontal grooves in their teeth. The researchers suggest that the teeth filings may have been used as a rite of initiation into a social group of men, perhaps a closed group of merchants that offered commercial advantages, protection, or other privileges. Meanwhile, the skull modifications were only found on women’s remains, and may have signaled beauty, social status, or membership in a particular group. These women may even have come to Gotland from southeastern Europe, perhaps through trading networks, Toplak and Kerk explained. Two of the three women were buried with more jewelry than is usually found in women’s burials in the region, they added, and these artifacts may reflect their prestige. Read the original scholarly article about this research in Current Swedish Archaeology. For more about the Vikings of Gotland, go to "Hoards of the Vikings."