Archaeology News: June 20, 2012

Prompted by Greece’s severe economic crisis, a growing number of treasure hunters are scouring the country in search of antiquities and other treasures.The trend, which is more evident in the country’s northwestern Macedonia region, is not only driven by economic necessity but also by the cash-strapped state’s failure to protect its ancient heritage.“Illegal digs have always been carried out around the mountains in this area,” Kavala archaeologist Sofia Doukata told Kathimerini. “But the practice has recently turned into a sport,” she added.

An undercover officer from the Bureau of Land Management witnessed the incident, and now two Montezuma County men are facing prosecution for tampering with archaeological resources on federal land.

Though separated by a thousand years, two newfound “emergency hoards” from Israel—including gold jewelry and coins—may have been hidden by ancient families fleeing unknown dangers, archaeologists say.

The archaeological committee of the central administration for confiscated antiquities, led by Youssef Khalifa, verified the authenticity of a collection of ancient Egyptian objects that were found in the possession of three people in Giza.

A complete skeleton of a pre historic man was found for the first time in the country at Fahien cave archeological site, Pahiyangala, Kaluthara the Director General of Archeology confirmed.

Archeologists have managed to estimate the exact age of rock paintings discovered in a cave in northern Spain, and have concluded that these drawings are the most ancient examples of rock painting in Europe, as reported by the Independent newspaper in London on Friday, June 15.

French scientists have suggested a sensational hypothesis: according to archaeologist Marc Azéma from Toulouse University and artist Florent Rivère, prehistoric artists who painted on the walls of caves were the first animators.

Archaeologists have discovered the remains of an Elizabethan theatre where some of William Shakespeare's plays were first performed. The remains of the Curtain Theatre, which opened in 1577, were found behind a pub in Shoreditch, east London, as part of regeneration works.

Bristol Cathedral, in partnership with the Department of Archaeology and Anthropology at the University of Bristol, is to carry out an archaeological survey of College Green.

French researchers have unearthed the oldest natural pearl ever found at a Neolithic site in Arabia, suggesting that pearl oyster fishing first occurred in this region of the world.

In ancient Roman times A.D., Palmyra was the most important point along the trade route linking the east and west, reaching a population of 100 000 inhabitants. But its history has always been shrouded in mystery: What was a city that size doing in the middle of the desert? How could so many people live in such an inhospitable place nearly 2 000 years ago? Where did their food come from? And why would such an important trade route pass directly through the desert?