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CNN —Construction workers have unearthed a white marble head in the historic center of Rome, the city’s mayor has revealed on social media. It said that the head was found on the eastern side of the area currently being worked on. “The newly found head, of elegant craftsmanship, sculpted in Greek marble, probably belongs to a statue of a female divinity, perhaps Aphrodite, of natural dimensions. He explained that the head was unearthed, intact, in the foundation of a late antique wall. The head was found to be in the foundations of this wall.

Persons: Roberto Gualtieri, Roma, Piazza Augusto Imperatore, ” Gualtieri, Augustus, Aphrodite, ”, Claudio Parisi Presicce, Parisi Presicce, conservators Organizations: CNN, Roma Press, Roma Locations: Rome, Piazza, ”

☆ Spain's entombed 'Ivory Lady' reveals leadership role of women in antiquity
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-06 | by ( Will Dunham | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Researchers said on Thursday an analysis of tooth enamel showed that the body entombed at the site near Seville was not a man as previously thought, a finding that indicates the leadership role women played in this ancient society that predated the pyramids of Egypt - and perhaps elsewhere. In the British Isles, it is the peak time of Stonehenge, a major megalithic monument and sanctuary," García Sanjuán said. The 'Ivory Lady' reflects all these elements," García Sanjuán said. "This study throws new light on a problem we know preciously little about: the social and political role of women among early complex pre-state societies," García Sanjuán said. The "Ivory Lady" shows that women may have held high leadership positions during the Copper Age, a transitional period between the Stone Age and the more technologically sophisticated Bronze Age.

Persons: Miriam Lucianez Trivino, Leonardo García Sanjuán, Lady, García Sanjuán, Miriam Luciañez, Triviño, Will Dunham, Rosalba O'Brien Organizations: Reuters, REUTERS, University of Seville, University of Seville's, University of Seville's Department of, Thomson Locations: Handout, Spain, African, Seville, Egypt, Mesopotamia, Iberia, University of Seville's Department, Washington

☆ Dior showcases haute couture inspired by classical Rome
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-03 | by ( Mimosa Spencer | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/3] Models present creations by designer Maria Grazia Chiuri as part of her Haute Couture Fall/Winter 2023-2024 collection show for fashion house Dior in Paris, France, July 3, 2023. REUTERS/Sarah MeyssonnierPARIS, July 3 (Reuters) - For her fall show, Dior designer Maria Grazia Chiuri reined in the volumes often associated with haute couture fashion and sent out a line-up of slender dresses and capes in neutral tones and touches of gold and silver. Embellishments were kept to a minimum, and included pearls and flat braids, while metallic threads added texture to jacquard fabrics. The show kicked off the first day of Haute Couture Week in Paris, drawing crowds, photographers and celebrities to the entrance of the Rodin museum. Haute Couture shows run until July 6 in the French capital, and include fashion houses Chanel, Balenciaga and Valentino.

Persons: Maria Grazia Chiuri, Dior, Sarah Meyssonnier PARIS, Maria Grazia Chiuri reined, Chiuri, Rodin, Marta Roberti, Chanel, Balenciaga, Valentino, Mimosa Spencer, Rosalba O'Brien Organizations: Couture, REUTERS, Reuters, Haute Couture, Thomson Locations: Paris, France, Rome, Haute

☆ European telescope launched to hunt for clues to universe's darkest secrets
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-01 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, with the European Space Agency Euclid space telescope, lifts off from pad 40 at the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Cape Canaveral, Fla., Saturday, July 1, 2023. The Euclid mission is designed to explore the evolution of the dark universe. A European space telescope blasted off Saturday on a quest to explore the mysterious and invisible realm known as the dark universe. SpaceX launched the European Space Agency's Euclid observatory toward its ultimate destination 1 million miles (1.5 million kilometers) away, the Webb Space Telescope's neighborhood. "It's more than a space telescope, Euclid.

Persons: Webb, Josef Aschbacher, Carole Mundell, Euclid, It's, Rene Laureijs, Europe's, Giuseppe Racca Organizations: SpaceX, European Space Agency, Cape Canaveral Space Force, Space, NASA Locations: Cape Canaveral, Fla, Germany, Florida, Guiana, South America, Ukraine

☆ California man convicted for smuggling Byzantine-era Hercules mosaic
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-01 | by ( Zoe Sottile | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

CNN —A California man has been convicted for illegally importing an ancient floor mosaic, believed to have been made in modern-day Syria nearly two thousand years ago and valued at almost half a million dollars. The ancient artwork arrived at the port in Long Beach as part of a shipment from Turkey in August 2015. Alcharihi only paid about $12,000 for the antiquity, which an appraisal expert valued at $450,000, according to the US Attorney’s Office. The mosaic weighs a whopping 2,000 pounds and is about 15-feet long and 8-feet tall, according to the release. Alcharihi’s false declarations about the mosaic came just months after the United Nations Security Council passed a resolution condemning the destruction of cultural heritage in Syria.

Persons: Mohamad Yassin Alcharihi, Alcharihi, Prometheus Organizations: CNN, US, Office, United Nations Security, ISIS Locations: Syria, Long Beach, Turkey, Los Angeles

☆ The secret queer history of flowers
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-25 | by ( Aj Willingham | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

Many of these flowers have deep connections to queer icons or are echoed in other queer symbols. (Even more complex emotions like, say, bashfulness, were associated with their own flowers, which surely wasn’t confusing at all.) It makes sense, then, that queer communities would find both beauty and belonging by continuing this interesting tradition. Today, the lavender flower still appears in newer symbols of queerness. The Japanese word for rose is pronounced “bara,” and experienced a resurgence in queer media in the 1960s and 1970s.

Persons: CNN —, Lavender, Sappho, Betty Friedan, Violet Violets, “, violets, Lesbos ”, Renée Vivien, Edouard Bourdet, Pansy “ Pansy ”, pansy, ”, Paul Harfleet, Rose, Japan’s, Oscar Wilde, Windermere’s Fan, ” Wilde Organizations: CNN, Stonewall, National Organization for Women Locations: Europe, New York City, Lesbos, Paris, British, ”

☆ Put a Bird on It? Ancient Egypt Was Way Ahead of Us.
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-06 | by ( Franz Lidz | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

A century ago, archaeologists excavated a 3,300-year-old Egyptian palace in Amarna, which was fleetingly the capital of Egypt during the reign of the pharaoh Akhenaten. Situated far from the crowded areas of Amarna, the North Palace offered a quiet retreat for the royal family. On the west wall of one extravagantly decorated chamber, today known as the Green Room, the excavators discovered a series of painted plaster panels showcased birds in a lush papyrus marsh. The artwork was so detailed and skillfully rendered that it was possible to pinpoint some of the bird species, including the pied kingfisher (Ceryle rudis) and the rock pigeon (Columba livia). Among the riddles they tried to solve was why two unidentified birds had triangular tail markings when no Egyptian bird known today has them.

Persons: Akhenaten, Columba livia, Chris Stimpson, Barry Kemp, Stimpson, Kemp, Nina de Garis Davies Organizations: Oxford University Museum of, University of Cambridge, Metropolitan Museum of Art Locations: Egypt

Almost any of the 16 Giorgio de Chirico paintings in “Horses: The Death of a Rider” could sustain an exhibition by itself. A couple from the late 1920s are less polished, and you could reasonably call “Two Horses on a Seashore,” 1970, a little glib. As the exhibition title suggests, every canvas also holds one or more horses, often backed by one of the mysterious landscapes he’s known for. The majestic white steed in the title piece, “Death of a Rider,” rears up on a twilit beach, letting its rider tumble off like Icarus behind it. In the distance stands a city on a hill; nearby, two voyagers or gods watch from a rowboat.

Persons: Giorgio de Chirico, de Chirico, It’s, Chirico, ”, HEINRICH

☆ Çanakkale: Where ancient Troy sits beside the modern city
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-10 | by ( Nick Hilden | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

CNN —An enormous wooden horse presides over the marina in Çanakkale, a small port city southwest of Istanbul. The clapboard animal is a mock-up of the Trojan Horse of mythological fame. Çanakkale (pronounced cha-na-call-ay) stands adjacent to the archaeological site that was once the ancient city of Troy, best known as the setting of the Trojan War in Homer’s “Iliad.”A giant wooden horse watches over Çanakkale. Today when you visit Truva – either via car or a short bus ride from Çanakkale – a second model of the Trojan Horse looms at the entrance. “We know that there were many wars that occurred at Troy,” Rose explains.

The new Netflix docudrama “Queen Cleopatra,” produced and narrated by Jada Pinkett Smith, has already elicited a passionate response, though perhaps not the kind that publicists hoped for. “Queen Cleopatra” depicts the legendary monarch as Black. Many contemporary Egyptians view her as a key figure in the preservation of their history and even as a role model for contemporary Egyptian women. Scholars have long debated whether certain references in Shakespeare’s “Antony and Cleopatra” suggest that the playwright believed she had dark skin. “Queen Cleopatra,” however, has touched an international nerve.

☆ Harnessing Earth and Fire to Create Natural Vessels
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-03 | by ( Stephen Treffinger | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

This article is part of our Design special section about making the environment a creative partner in the design of beautiful homes. Mitch Iburg, who lives in St. Paul, Minn., makes ancient-looking tableware, vessels and sculptures primarily out of clay that he digs from the earth with his own hands (and some tools). Driving his truck two and half hours to an open valley near the Minnesota River, he comes away with 1,000 or so pounds — a quantity that will last him roughly a year. Born in Wisconsin across the river from Minnesota and raised partly in Iowa City, Iowa, Mr. Iburg, 33, studied painting at Coe College in Iowa. In 2015, he applied for a residency at the Cobb Mountain Art and Ecology Project in California partly because the studio sat on top of a clay bed.

☆ A commuter train excavation near Notre Dame Cathedral has uncovered a 2,000-year-old necropolis containing bodies buried with coins in their mouths and an entire pig skeleton
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-01 | by ( Katherine Tangalakis-Lippert | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Remains of at least 50 men, women, and children were unearthed during excavation for a train line. The burials of a large necropolis, located south of Lutèce in the 2nd century AD , have been unearthed. The burials of a large necropolis, located south of Lutèce in the 2nd century AD, have been unearthed. One pit unearthed by the researchers contained the skeleton of a whole pig, though it is unclear what purpose it may have served. The burials of a large necropolis, located south of Lutèce in the 2nd century of our era, have been brought to light.

☆ Why this rusting industrial city could be Greece’s next tourism hotspot
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-20 | by ( Elinda Labropoulou | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

For 2023, it’s been given the title as a Cultural Capital of Europe – a title it shares with Timisoara in Romania and Veszprem in Hungary. Sergio Tsitakis / Design Farm ProductionsFor the occasion, the city’s magnificent archaeological site has been overhauled, improving its accessibility. Being a Cultural Capital has helped dozens of cities that have previously held the title to foster urban regeneration and find a spot on the travel radar. Among upcoming highlights this summer is a play, “Ma,” by Italian director and playwright Romeo Castellucci, a performance specially created to be staged in Eleusis’ archaeological site. And with the majority of international flights landing in Athens, Eleusis is perfectly located as an easy-to-reach destination.

☆ Rising sea levels may have forced the Vikings out of a successful settlement
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-18 | by ( Katie Hunt | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

Why they abandoned a successful settlement is a mystery that historians never have been able to fully explain. The idea that sea levels would have been rising as temperatures fell is a little counterintuitive, according to the researchers. However, Earth’s oceans aren’t like a bathtub, and the study noted that changes in sea level don’t affect all areas equally. The Greenland Ice Sheet readvanced during Viking occupation of the eastern settlement and peaked in the Little Ice Age. That advance caused sea level rise near the ice margins because of the sinking of Earth’s crust, according to the study.

☆ 'Magical' nails found in a 2,000-year-old Roman tomb were meant to stop the restless dead from haunting the living, archaeologists say
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-28 | by ( Marianne Guenot | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Archaeologists have found bent nails, lime, and brick near a Roman burial site. These may have been charms to stop the restless dead from interfering with the living, they said. There are signs in burial site that the deceased person was respected at the time of their death. iStock / Getty Images PlusThe nails suggest ancient Romans feared the restless dead and would use various occult practices to protect themselves, archaeologists said in the study. But they were dead nails, and the way they were distributed around the perimeter of the tomb suggests that the placement was purposeful," he said.

☆ In Turkey's quake-devasted city of Antakya, an antiques seller is determined to stay put
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-04 | by ( Timour Azhari | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Close by was a mosaic portrait of Ataturk, the founder of modern Turkey, old magazines and several Turkish flags. "Even before the earthquake, these chairs were outside, I had items outside to show that we run an antique shop ... In one room, a wall collapsed on top of his collection of Turkish antique glassware. A man who has made a living from old things, Sincan said he took a historical view of the earthquake's devastation. Sincan said he was confident the city would rise again.

☆ An elite Bronze Age man who underwent brain surgery 3,500 years ago may have suffered from leprosy, archaeologists believe
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-26 | by ( Isobel Van Hagen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Archaeologists discovered the remains of a man from the Bronze Age who had a rare brain surgery. The two brothers discovered were likely elite or even royal members of their society. "It's hard to overstate Megiddo's cultural and economic importance in the late Bronze Age," he said in a statement. Rachel Kalisher, a Ph.D. student, analyzed the bones of two upper-class brothers who were buried beneath the ancient city of Megiddo. Evidence of brain surgery — angular notched trephination — was discovered in the older brother.

The Codex Sassoon, dating from the late 9th or early 10th century, sold for $38.1 million at Sotheby’s in New York on Wednesday. It is believed to be the earliest and most complete Hebrew Bible. The Codex Sassoon fell short of its high estimate of $50 million, however. A rare findThe Codex Sassoon is believed to be the very first codex, or manuscript in book form, of the Hebrew Bible. Top image: A woman examines the centuries-old Hebrew Bible.

☆ Israeli ultranationalist minister visits flashpoint Jerusalem holy site
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-03 | by ( Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +4 min

An ultranationalist Israeli Cabinet minister visited Tuesday a flashpoint Jerusalem holy site for the first time since taking office in Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s new far-right government last week. The Israeli military said its forces had shot a person involved in violent confrontations with soldiers. Ofir Gendelman, who has long served as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Arabic-language spokesman, released a video showing that the “situation is completely calm” at the holy site following Ben-Gvir’s departure. The Israeli military said Border Police officers came under attack in the Dheisha refugee camp next to Bethlehem. The Israeli army says most of the Palestinians killed have been militants.

☆ An 11,000-year-old carving of a man holding his penis while surrounded by leopards is the earliest known depiction of a narrative 'scene'
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-11 | by ( Alia Shoaib | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

The carving of is the oldest known depiction of a narrative scene. The scene consists of a man standing between two leopards, and the man holding his penis is depicted with a round face, prominent ears, bulging eyes, and large lips. To the side, another man is depicted holding a snake or a rattle while standing near a bull. Although there have been older examples of narrative art discovered, these are the first known to show a progressing narrative structure. "It constitutes the earliest known depiction of a narrative 'scene' and reflects the complex relationship between humans, the natural world and the animal life that surrounded them during the transition to a sedentary lifestyle," according to Antiquity.

☆ Rare American lion fossils discovered in Mississippi
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-06 | by ( Taylor Nicioli | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

The Oxford, Mississippi, resident would soon learn it was a fossilized jawbone from a giant American lion, a species that has been extinct for roughly 11,000 years. ”A rare American lion fossil has been discovered near the Mississippi River. Three days after Prewitt’s find, the Mississippi Fossil and Artifact Symposium & Exhibition hosted an event featuring previously discovered American lion fossils. The American lion stood 4 feet tall at the shoulders and measured 5 to 8 feet in length. Two American lion bone discoveries within a week or so is unbelievable, he said, calling it “just an incredibly rare fossil.”A growing American lion collectionPrewitt plans to donate the fossil he found to the museum in Jackson, which would make it the fourth addition to the institution’s collection of American lion bones, counting the addition of the newly found femur.

☆ Prehistoric humans were surprisingly creative cooks
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-22 | by ( Katie Hunt | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

CNN —Stone Age cooks were surprisingly sophisticated, combining an array of ingredients and using different techniques to prepare and flavor their meals, analysis of some the earliest charred food remains has suggested. (From left) Breadlike food was found in Franchthi Cave in Greece; pulse-rich food with wild peas was uncovered in Shanidar Cave in northern Iraq. The charred food remains from Franchthi Cave dated from 12,000 years ago, when it was also occupied by hunter-gatherer Homo sapiens. Much research on prehistoric diets has focused on whether early humans were predominantly meat eaters, but Kabukcu said it was clear they weren’t just chomping on woolly mammoth steaks. A Neanderthal hearth was unearthed at Shanidar Cave, where charred plant remains were also found.

☆ 1,000 year-old Native American carvings of mysterious giant humanoids discovered on the ceiling of an Alabama cave
▼ + stars: | 2022-05-08 | by ( Marianne Guenot | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

A study found large humanoid figures carved on the ceiling of an Alabama cave more than 1000 years ago. Hi-tech technology was needed to see them in the low ceiling cave. It was still a grueling, month-long task to capture more than 16,000 pictures that very slightly overlap to map out the entire cave ceiling. Anthropomorph in regalia (6.8 ft tall) from 19th Unnamed Cave, Alabama. SimekThe style of the drawings in the Alabama cave is reminiscent of figures seen in the midwest and the western US.

☆ Al Jassasiya: The mysterious symbols carved in Qatar's deserts
▼ + stars: | 2021-11-22 | by ( Dimitris Sideridis | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

On a desolate and windswept corner of Qatar’s northeastern coast, among the sand dunes of the barren desert, lies Al Jassasiya, the Gulf country’s largest and most important rock art site. Overall, archaeologists have found a total of some 900 rock carvings, or “petroglyphs,” at Al Jassasiya. Al Jassasiya, about an hour north of Qatar’s uber-modern capital and near the old pearling port of Al Huwaila, was discovered in 1957. “We have no direct clues about the motifs used in Al Jassasiya,” he said. Al Jassasiya is located just south of the popular Azerbaijani Beach, so an excursion there can also be combined with a relaxing day beside the sea.

Persons: Al Jassasiya, Jassasiya, Ferhan Sakal, ”, “, Dimitris, Doha’s Al Bidda, Al Huwaila, Holger Kapel, Hans Kapel, Dimitris Sideridis, Sakal, ” Frances Gillespie, Faisal Abdulla Al, Naimi, ” Gillespie Organizations: CNN, Qatar Museums, ”, “ Ships Locations: Gulf, Al, Qatar, Doha’s, Qatar’s, Danish, Al Jassasiya, ”, Sands

☆ The 'Land of Fire' has been burning for 4,000 years
▼ + stars: | 2018-10-31 | by ( Maureen O'Hare | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

CNN —“This fire has burned 4,000 years and never stopped,” says Aliyeva Rahila. This is Yanar Dag – meaning “burning mountainside” – on Azerbaijan’s Absheron Peninsula, where Rahila works as a tour guide. Yanar Dag is one of the few remaining examples, and perhaps the most impressive. Today, most visitors who arrive at the no-frills Yanar Dag visitors’ center come for the spectacle rather than religious fulfillment. Ateshgah Fire TempleFor a deeper insight into Azerbaijan’s history of fire worship, visitors should head east of Baku to Ateshgah Fire Temple.

Persons: ”, Aliyeva Rahila, Dag, Marco Polo, Yanar Dag, Mammon Organizations: CNN, Silk, UNESCO, Heritage Locations: Absheron, Azerbaijan, It’s, Iran, Baku

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