Vidi X

Cast Iron Shoes. Photo (cc) Laura Mary.

Holocaust Memorial Day

This entry from Comment is Free Confronting our past by Karen Pollock is well-written piece on why the Holocaust Memorial Day matters. You’re probably best skipping the comments on this one.

Religion

There’s evidence of ceremonial feasting reported by Archaeozoology in Funerals and Feasts in Pre-Pottery Neolithic B. The bones found are interesting because it shows that the feasts weren’t simply about quantity, but also the type of food eaten.

Also in the Neolithic, Tim Jones finds that a Goddess has gone missing: Çatalhöyük – Recent Excavations Claimed to Refute Mother Godess Theories.

Troels Myrup Kristensen has found similarities in Christianisation of peoples in the Roman period and 17th Century Mexico. It’s an interesting comparison as Spaniish records of the New World strongly suggest that some rituals were hybrids of native and Christian beliefs. You can read more at Sacred Trees, Christianization, and the Roman Countryside.

More Late Antique syncretism comes from Bill Caraher who looks at Delphi Mosaics and the Late Roman Hybrid. He finds connections between Pagan and Christian belief, but it wasn’t a simple cut ‘n’ paste job.

There’s more Roman Religion than you can shake a stick at this week at V(otum) S(olvit) L(ibens) M(erito). Roman Religion in the Empire is a post in two parts.

The Edge of History

Historical periods are nearly always retrospective. People don’t usually wait up till midnight and then let off fireworks to celebrate the start of the Late Medieval Period or something similar. For people living through changing times, these times are still transitions rather than abrupt discontinuities. One of the most interesting transitions in the past is the transition to literacy, which is the subject of Duane Smith’s Semi-Literates in the Hinterlands of Ugarit?. He’s looking at tablets found in Syria dating from around 1400 BC, I think. What he’s found is that people aren’t equally literate. Important stuff if you want to divide the past neatly between the prehistoric and historic periods.

Another edge to history might be the difference between human and non-human. Where do you draw that divide? One possible line could be between Homo Sapiens and Neanderthals, but Julien Riel-Salvatore shows that might not be a useful division as he’s found Neanderthals, Now in Color!

There’s also this entry from Aydin Örstan that seems relevant. Some insignificant thoughts on statistical versus biological significance might seem to have nothing to do with history, but I think it does if you write history using biological records. If statistical significance does not necessarily translate into biological significance, then perhaps this should also signal some caution for any historical tests using statistical data. This is Brad Schaeffer in a recent paper on archaeoastronomy wrote that if you don’t find something statistically significant during an investigation then you simply haven’t looked hard enough.

Looting, Destruction and Ethics

The raids on Museums in California are the big news this week. You can read about it at Illicit Cultural Property, CultureGrrl, Elginism and the History Blog. The History Blog asks if the curators are as incompetent as they claim, would you really want them in charge of your museum?. Derek Fincham has further thoughts.

The best headline on the topic was Museum attendance by federal agents up dramatically.

eBay shows it has the magic touch. When Napster was found to be a conduit for illegal activity it was shut down. However, while I’d like to make very clear to the public and eBay’s lawyers that eBay does not fence or condone the fencing of artefacts, it does make it much easier. A silver cup stolen from Andover museum was spotted on eBay by a member of the Andover History and Archaeology Society. Do we need a historical RIAA to enforce the law, if other bodies can’t?

The LA Times reports on the continuing destruction of Iraqi archaeological sites. There’s over 2000 comments there. A thousand say (rightly/wrongly) that the USA Coalition of the Willing is winning the war and the other thousand (rightly/wrongly) say that the USA Coalition of the Willing is coming second. Delete according to political taste. There might be a comment in there on the antiquities trade, but I’m not wading through all that to find it.

Looted material isn’t just travelling to the USA. This report from the Tucson Citizen shows that it’s also a victim of looting.

There’s an interesting discussion at the Hall of Ma’at I missed. Doug Weller points to a story in the Telegraph How Da Vinci Code tapped pseudo-fact hunger.

Penny Bazaar has a complaint over the lack of respect for submarine archaeological sites. She admits, You can probably tell what lectures I’ve been in today…

The (Maltese) Independent reports that the Xagħra stone circle is now going to host the construction of a villa. Archaeologists are horrified as not everyone is convinced that what a 6000 year old burial site really needs is a swimming pool.

The reason for unethical practices? As Duane Smith says: Follow the Money.

Lee Rosenbaum also sparked some debate this week with her column in the LA Times, Make art loans, not war. She argues that countries rich in classical artefacts should make loans of artefacts to those which lack a classical past. From each according to his ability, to each according to his need springs to mind. David Gill and Derek Fincham respond, with Lee Rosenbaum adding her reply to these comments on her own blog.

The History / Sci-Tech Crossover

Carl Pyrdum tackles the issue of Medieval Climate Change. It seems there’s a connection between wine and whining.

Dismanibus156 looks at the collapse of the Roman Empire and the part playing by the plumbing in Lead and the decline of Empire.

At Obiter Dictum the questions is of Ladders, bulls and other things. What is the sense of having a door in the roof of your house? You’ll find a reason, but it’ll make you very wary of surprise parties in the future.

Discoveries

From the New Zealand Herald is news that old fashioned sexism could have its advantages if you were Mayan: Ancient Maya sacrified boys not virgin girls.

Elvis has been found in A Corner of Tenth-Century Europe. It might be Creative anachronism, but I’m convinced.

A big news story in the UK was the discovery of a Bronze Age Axe hoard which I wanted to blog about, but probably won’t get the time. I read the story at the Times. Derek Fincham did blog about the Axes! and read the Daily Mail to do so, thus saving a lot of people much anguish.

…but surely the award for discovery of the week should go to the anonymous blogger of Obiter Dictum who found something very odd, Rainy Amphorae.

Publishing

There’s Thoughts on Open Context, Omeka and the Digital Revolution in Archaeological Publishing at The Archaeology of the Mediterranean World. It sounds like it could be a major step forward for archaeological publishing and re-interpretation if the system is adopted.

From Michael E Smith comes the plea Do this when a journal accepts your paper. It’s a neat little piece of work which tackles the issue “What are you publishing for if not money?”

Travel

Brett Holman has some brilliant photos of Hadrian’s Wall or at least the best bit, Vindolanda and Housesteads. It includes an imaginative bit of graffiti.

From BAJR comes the news that the best way to get photos might well be to fly. Sadly it’s a Remote Control Plane, but it is triggering my gadget impulse.

The Hindu has a report On the Roman Trail. Roman Terracottas have been found in the sub-continent showing the empire’s reach through trade and exchange was far beyond its borders.

Thinking about the Past

Rachel Leow thinks about what it is that makes something an explanation in post hoc ergo propter hoc. If one thing follows another is that a cause?

Simone Bonzano outlines the ideas of a Social Archaeology of the Highlands. It’s a systemic approach and I’m looking forward to seeing how it works.

Mary Harrsch has blogged about a surprisingly difficult topic to study. The Role of Music in Ancient Civilizations is the Topic of a New Exhibit at the Bible Lands Museum in Jerusalem. Sound is a constant companion for humans, and if Steven Mithen is right, the origins of language might be found in music. Unfortunately it’s impossible to accidentally bury a sound.

Beaman may have found a problem with some attempts to create virtual archaeological sites. They’re often in Tedious Second Life. The answer is, in my opinion, to make the sites social, and if people can crack that problem they could be on to something special.

It’s always important to read the whole blog post. If you just read the title of a post then you can go off with entirely the wrong idea. Mark Rainsley has blogged about the Cornwall and West Devon Mining Landscape being a World Heritage Site. Worst. Idea. Ever.

Congratulations!

Finally congratulations go to Troels Myrup Kristensen. He’s won an “EliteForsk” Fellowship from the Danish Ministry of Science. It’s big news.