News on the Ancient World – May 14th

Here is a rundown of ancient historical anniversaries of the coming two weeks(I normally do one, but a)there isn’t much going on in the next couple weeks and b)I’ll be out of town and thus unable to write one of these next weekend) and news on ancient history from the past week. As always, the news articles come from http://www.ablogabouthistory.com/, which is well worth looking at.

-          May 20^th marks the anniversary of the beginning of the First Council of Nicaea in 325CE, the first ecumenical council of the Christian church. It was called by the Roman Emperor Constantine who, having recognized the Christian religion, called the council to decide matters of doctrine and orthodoxy and hopefully end some of the schisms and infighting with the young religion. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_Council_of_Nicea

-          May 22^nd is the date often given for the Battle of Granicus, in which the Macedonian armies of Alexander the Great defeated the army of the Satraps of Asia Minor. This was the first of Alexander’s three battles against the Persian Empire and gave him virtually free reign to seize control of Asia Minor, the first part of his conquest of the Persian Empire. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_the_Granicus

-          Excavation for a sewage system in the Faneromeni area of Larnaca, a city on the island of Cyprus, discovered two ancient tombs dating to the 4^th and 6^th century BCE, the period when the Phoenicians ruled the island. Archaeologists working site think these tombs might be an extension the ancient carved tomb, or catacomb, which is beneath the church of Faneromeni Virgin Mary.  The area has been inhabited for the past 4000 years at least and is full of such tombs and sarcophagi. The sewer system’s construction is being halted until the value of the site can be assessed. Who knows what material will be found at the site that might shed more light on the Phoenicians, a group with great historical importance but about which we know little, in comparison to some of their historical contemporaries. Source: http://greece.greekreporter.com/2012/05/01/two-ancient-phoenician-tombs-discovered-in-larnaca/

-         German scholars have speculated that their might have been more contact between the Ancient Egyptians and the German tribes than has been previously thought. The evidence in question is a particular type of chair that originated from Mesopotamia and was very popular in Egypt. The stool is built of two foldable wooden legs with animal skin stretched along the top. Such chairs have been found in Germany and previously the theory went that such a design originated independently in the two regions. However, a Dr. Bettina Pfaff, an archaeologist from Nebra, has posited that the design and dimension is too similar for that to be the case. The most obvious explanation would be that traders brought the design to the Germans, the trading networks of the time were certainly broad enough to have. However, no examples of this type of chair have been found in the regions between so Dr. Pfaff has proposed that there must have been some direct contact between the Germans and the Egyptians(the Egyptians had reached the height of their power under Thutmose III(1479-1426BCE), reaching as far as what is now Turkey). This is certainly within the realm of possibilities, it was uncommon but an enterprising trader certainly could have made the journey to Egyptian controlled lands and back again. However, as always, it should be cautioned that with anything in ancient history, especially stuff largely known through archaeology, simply because there is no evidence, doesn’t mean it didn’t happen, and there are certainly other explanations of why this type of chair did not become popular in the areas between Egypt and what is now Germany. Therefore, there is no way of conclusively proving whether traders brought the design, or there was direct contact, but there is no denying that it is an interesting theory and it is certainly worth thinking about just how interconnected the ancient world was. Source: http://www.spiegel.de/international/zeitgeist/0,1518,830958,00.html

-          Archaeologists working in the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous District in China have discovered, after two months of careful excavation, the ruins of a Buddhist temple which they believe dates back about 1500 years to the Northern and Southern Dynasties(420-589CE). Dr. Wu Xinhua, the lead archaeologist of the project, reports that it is the best site, thus far, which illustrates how the Buddhist religion came from India to China. The temple was found in the Damago Oasis, which is in the south area of the Taklimakan Desert in the Tarim Basin. The ancient silk road once traveled through the region, which was also once home to the ancient, Buddhist kingdom of Khotan, which dates to the 3^rd century BCE. Because of the wide variety of archaeological finds and artifacts unearthed in the region, it is sometimes known as the ‘sea of death.’ Source: http://www.newstrackindia.com/newsdetails/2012/05/07/334-Ancient-Buddhist-temple-found-in-China-s-Taklimakan-Desert-.html

-          Anthropologists have discovered a way to use dental plaque known as tartar, or dental calculus, to gain information on the diet of ancient people. The idea is based on the fact that only protein contains nitrogen, so chemically processing the plaque reveals the ratio of carbon and nitrogen isotopes present, which  give indications of the amount of meat the particular person had in their diet. The method is still in its testing stages, but it shows potential. The information is useful as ready access to meat, for much of human history, was indicative of higher social status, and also indicated a prosperous region or society in general. Source: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120502184838.htm

-          Student at the University of Bonn, in Germany, have discovered a 2000 year old Roman Temple, with artifacts on floor level dating back as far as 800BCE, while participating in a practice dig set up by their professors, who knew nothing of the ruins existence. They believed that the only Roman settlement in the region of North Rhine-Westphalia was closer to the Rhine river, reinforced by the fact that only one other Roman temple had been found in that region, into which Roman culture had made fairly little headway among the German tribes. This just further proves what can still be found, and how often these discoveries are by accident. Source: http://www.thelocal.de/national/20120504-42341.html

Jon Holtgrefe

Jon is a recent graduate of the University of Oregon with a Masters in Ancient History. His interests include studying the Ancient Mediterranean, why people remember and record things the way they do, World History, Medieval History, and just about anything else that strikes his fancy.

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