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Archaeologists working in southeastern Turkey believe they have discovered the “oldest narrative depiction in history.”

The recent discovery of several dozen bronze statues in Italy may affect how historians understand the relationship between the Etruscans and the Romans.

ScienceDaily: “Using advanced geochemical analyses, a team of scientists has uncovered new answers to decades-old questions about trade of tin throughout Eurasia during the Late Bronze Age.”

Ruth Schuster has written a well-illustrated article about how the “desert kites” mystery was solved.

Archaeologists used LIDAR to discover a Roman temple underneath a church in Croatia.

A 17-minute video produced by the British Museum explains what the Rosetta Stone actually says.

Tim Johnson writes about his visit to Syracuse, the “greatest Greek city,” and one that Paul briefly visited on his way to Rome.

“A number of looted artefacts returned to Turkey and Italy in the past three months have been revealed to be from the private collection of prominent American philanthropist Shelby White.”

George Smith, best known for his work on the Epic of Gilgamesh, is the subject of the latest episode on the Thin End of the Wedge.

Some Roman centurions and gladiators have been arrested after they threatened to beat up tourists at the Colosseum.

Discussion on a agreement between the British Museum and Greece to send the Elgin Marbles to Athens is “at an advanced stage.”

HT: Agade, Arne Halbakken, Gordon Dickson, Keith Keyser, Explorator

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“Archeologists in Egypt have uncovered a vast underground tunnel near the city of Alexandria, and hope it may lead them to the long-lost tomb of Egypt’s last pharaoh and possibly its most famous ruler, Queen Cleopatra VII.”

Archaeologists discovered “an extremely rare and incalculably valuable Roman glass vessel” in a “remarkable state of preservation” in the ancient Roman city of Augustodunum (modern Autun, France).

“Archaeologists in Italy have uncovered more than two dozen beautifully preserved bronze statues dating back to ancient Roman times in thermal baths in Tuscany.”

The Temple of Apollo in Side, Turkey, will be restored as an archaeological museum.

Turkish Archaeological News has a roundup of stories from the month of October, including a report of a well-preserved Byzantine shops and dining area in Ephesus.

The International Herodotus Workshop was held recently in the city of Bodrum, ancient Halicarnassus, the historian’s hometown.

Ádám Németh’s Virtual Reconstructions includes 3D artwork of ancient buildings in Ephesus, including the Celsus Library, Terrace Houses, Trajan’s nymphaeum, theater, agora, and Temple of Artemis.

Digital Maps of the Ancient World: “The aim is to map out all the different aspects of Roman cities so that it can be used as a teaching aid or a guide for those interested in the site.”

“A giant cardboard imitation of the Trojan Horse, which won Greeks the war of Troy in antiquity, broke the Guinness World Record for the world’s largest cardboard sculpture in U.K.”

An American man has returned 19 antiquities to the four countries they came from after reading reports in the Guardian about the repatriation of looted antiquities.”

The Immersive King Tut exhibit is at, or coming to, a dozen US cities.

“Tutankhamun: His Tomb and his Treasures” will open at the Columbus Science Museum on March 18.

On The Book and the Spade, Charles Aling and Gordon Govier discuss King Tut’s Tomb on the 100th anniversary of its discovery.

Leon Mauldin shares a recent photo he took of the Merneptah Stele in the Egyptian Museum.

HT: Agade, Arne Halbakken, Joseph Lauer, Jared Clark, Wayne Stiles, A.D. Riddle, Explorator

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The University of Pennsylvania, in partnership with an Iraqi team, has announced the discovery of seven very fine wall reliefs from the time of King Sennacherib in Nineveh. The team is also actively reconstructing the ancient city’s Mashki Gate, which was destroyed by militants a few years ago.

“An ancient Christian monastery possibly dating as far back as the years before Islam spread across the Arabian Peninsula has been discovered on an island off the coast of the United Arab Emirates.”

Archaeological work is underway near the Church of St. Peter in Antioch on the Orontes.

The fourth of five excavation seasons at Amphipolis has concluded, and this story summarizes the latest discoveries.

“An intact skeleton of a woman lying next to a stunning necklace and other important artifacts from the Early Minoan era (circa 2,600 BC), were unearthed recently at the archaeological site of Sisi on Crete.”

“Archivists have uncovered a long-lost historical relic hidden underneath a Christian manuscript: the earliest known map of the stars.”

“We, a group of Egyptologists, IT scholars and enthusiasts, have started an initiative to promote the digitization of Egyptian texts as open, re-usable data. Inspired by the great ORACC, we call ourselves ORAEC, Open Richly Annotated Egyptian Corpus.”

Brent Nongbri reviews the new exhibition at the Cheater Beatty Library called “First Fragments: Biblical Papyrus from Roman Egypt.” It looks worth adding Ireland to your travel list for 2023.

John DeLancey has posted a 360 Interactive Video in the Colosseum in Rome. It provides a great perspective of this ancient slaughterhouse.

The Greek Reporter lists the top 20 archaeological sites in the country. It is a good list.

Ferrell Jenkins posts a photo of the Appian Way south of Rome.

Robert Miller died last month.

HT: Agade, Arne Halbakken, Ted Weis, Joseph Lauer, Wayne Stiles, Explorator

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Behind the Bible (Gesher Media) has released its premiere episode in the Vanished Views series (6 min). Chris McKinny explores a fascinating photo taken in the village of Zerin (biblical Jezreel).

Excavations at Tell Zira’a in northern Jordan point to the presence of an elite class in the Late Bronze Age.

“An International Colloquium on the ancient city of Zoara (also known as Zughar) in the Ghor Safi was inaugurated in Athens on Wednesday.”

“Archaeologists trying to reconstruct an ancient site bulldozed by Daesh terrorists discovered extraordinary 2,700-year-old rock carvings in the ruins in Iraq’s northern city of Mosul.”

The Faida Archaeological Park has opened, and this 1-minute video gives a preview.

“Enheduanna, a Sumerian 3rd millennium BC high priestess, is the focus of an exhibit on the lives of women in Ancient Mesopotamia at The Morgan Library & Museum.

A three-day international symposium on “Yahwism under the Achaemenid Empire” will be held at the University of Haifa on December 20-22.

Zoom lecture on Nov 9: “On Nimrud Bowls and Nimrud Ivories,” by Dirk Wicke

Turkish archaeologists believe that they have discovered the tomb of Saint Nicholas underneath a church in Demre (biblical Myra).

Ferrell Jenkins shares photos of the sacred pool at Hierapolis and the Valley of Lebonah.

Harvard Magazine has a profile of George Reisner, excavator of Samaria and 23 archaeological sites in Egypt and Sudan. Harvard naturally calls Reisner out for not being ahead of his time in his colonialist attitude.

Full transcripts of all episodes from the Thin End of the Wedge podcast are now available.

HT: Agade, Charles Savelle, Arne Halbakken, Alexander Schick, Ted Weis

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A team excavating in Luxor has uncovered a mummy in a wooden sarcophagus that dates to 1600 BC.

“Archaeologists have discovered a shrine in a temple in Egypt that describes a ritual never seen before.”

Six thousand artifacts taken from the Kerak Castle will be displayed in the city museum.

Syria announced the uncovering of a large, remarkable 1,600-year-old mosaic depicting scenes of the Trojan War.

New mosaics with various figures were unearthed during the ongoing excavations in the ancient city of Hadrianopolis, which is called the ‘Zeugma of Black Sea.’”

“Archaeologists may have found the sanctuary of the Samian Poseidon while they were conducting excavations at the Samicum Acropolis in Greece.”

The British Institute for the Study of Iraq is hosting an online international conference to mark the 100th anniversary of Sir Leonard Wooley’s first season of excavations at Ur.

Shai Gordin and Avital Romach explain the benefits of using computers to study ancient cuneiform texts.

New release: A Companion to the Hellenistic and Roman Near East, edited by Ted Kaizer (Wiley, £159; Amazon).

International Archaeology Day on October 22 will be celebrated at the Nashville Parthenon with a number of activities.

“An American tourist knocked over two ancient Roman busts in the Vatican Museums after he was told he couldn’t meet with Pope Francis.”

Our team has been working on a special little project, and we look forward to sharing that this week. By way of preview, I will say that it is a powerfully beautiful celebration of one of the most loved passages in all the Bible.

HT: Agade, Arne Halbakken, Ted Weis, Explorator

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Egyptian archaeologists do not often find a complete sarcophagus in its original tomb, but they did recently while National Geographic cameras were rolling. The tomb of Ramses II’s treasurer was discovered at Saqqara at the bottom of a 25-foot shaft that was filled with sand.

“Hieroglyphics: Unlocking Ancient Egypt” is a new exhibition at the British Museum.

“The mode of writing used in Ancient South Arabia, the legendary realm of the Queen of Sheba, was especially unique. The Sabaeans and their neighbours did not write on common materials such as leather or papyrus but rather on something surprisingly simple: branches of fresh wood just cut off the tree.”

Zoom lecture on Oct 11: “The Jordan Museum: More Than 10,000 Years of Human Resilience and Innovation,” by Ihab Amarin.

Excavation work on the Sardis synagogue is complete after 60 years, and all major finds will be displayed in the Manisa Museum.

Archaeologists discovered a Roman-era gymnasium north of Konya (biblical Iconium). The Laodicea mentioned in the article is not the same one mentioned in the New Testament.

Turkish Archaeological News has a roundup of stories for September.

A statue of Hercules from the 2nd century AD has been discovered in excavations at Philippi.

Mercenaries were an important part of Greek armies in the 5th century BC, a fact ancient Greek historians fail to mention.

Archaeologists are using Apple’s iPad Pro to gather data, analyze objects, create a database and come to conclusions about the ancient site of Pompeii.”

“Entertainment among the Romans” is a new exhibition at the Lugdunum Museum in Lyon, France.

HT: Agade, Arne Halbakken, Alexander Schick, Ted Weis, Explorator, Paleojudaica

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