08-09 FEVRIER 2014 NEWS:Gaza - Ani - Inde -

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PALESTINE –  Gaza - Local fisherman discovers 500kg. bronze statue of Greek god which Hamas police seize. A local fisherman says he scooped the 500-kg God from the seabed last August, and carried it back home on a donkey cart, unaware of the significance of his catch. Others soon guessed at its importance, and the statue briefly appeared on eBay with a $500,000 price tag -- well below its true value. Police from the Islamist group Hamas, who rule the isolated Palestinian territory, swiftly seized it and say they are investigating the affair. To their great frustration, archaeologists have not yet been able to get their hands on the work of art, and instead are relying on a few blurred photographs of the virtually intact god, laid out incongruously on a blanket emblazoned with Smurfs cartoon characters. From what they can tell it was cast sometime between the 5th and the 1st century BC, making it at least 2,000 years old. "It's unique, said Jean-Michel de Tarragon, an historian with the French Biblical and Archaeological School of Jerusalem.De Tarragon described the discovery of the statue as "astonishing", because of the material of which it's made. "It's very, very rare to find a statue which is not in marble or in stone, but in metal," he said, adding that the apparent pristine condition of the statue suggested it was uncovered on land and not in the sea, as claimed. "The one of Gaza is very special and unique because for us, it has not been, at all, found in the sea... It has been found, we don't know exactly the place, we have a guess you know, in the north of Gaza....But it has been found surely, in the sand," he said, adding that there were no tell-tale signs of metal disfigurement or barnacles that one normally sees on items plucked from water. De Tarragon says the claim the statue was found in the sea is probably just a convenient story told to avoid arguments over ownership, particularly if the treasure was found on someone else's land. But he said it was vital to know the true location of its discovery, as it might throw up other amazing finds.

VIDEO = http://www.jpost.com/Middle-East/WATCH-Mystery-surrounds-discovery-of-Apollo-statue-in-Gaza-340833

TURQUIE –  Ani -Ancient pieces that have been unearthed since 1965 during excavations at the ancient site of Ani, which is located between the border of Armenia and the eastern Turkish province of Kars, are being displayed at the Kars Museum. The pieces date back to at least 2,000 years ago. Kars Museum Director Necmettin Alp said the ancient site of Ani was the first trade city from the Caucasus to the entrance of Anatolia and therefore it had international significance.  He said the pieces unearthed in Ani, one of the most important ancient sites in Turkey, were covering an area of 85 hectares, adding, “Ani had a population of 20,000 people and trade vas very active there. Life continued in the ancient city until the 15th century. During this time, mosques, churches, baths, palaces, structures of civil architecture examples and castles had been built within a five-kilometer long city wall.” Alp noted the whole ancient city was a first-degree archaeological area and continued, “Its vicinity was also declared as a third-degree archaeological area. Excavations have been continuing there since 1965. Earthenware pieces found during these excavations, metal work, glass work and coins are on display at the Kars Museum. Excavations started in 1965 with Professor Kemal Baltan are still ongoing. Between 1989 and 2004, Professor Beyhan Karamağaralı maintained excavations. Since 2005, work continued under the leadership of Professor Yaşar Çoruhlu for five years. The Kars Museum Directorate has also been leading the excavations since 2001.”  Alp said archaeological excavations had been completed at the Ancient Road, Ebu Manucehr Mosque, the Seljuk Bath and Polatoğlu Church in Ani, and for this year’s excavations, they had determined a new area close to the Bostanlı River outside the city walls.
http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/artifacts-from-ancient-site-ani-on-view-at-kars-museum.aspx?pageID=238&nID=62155&NewsCatID=375

INDE –   Selon une analyse génétique, l'Inde n'a pas toujours connu le système des castes. L'étude de David Reich, de l'Harvard Medical School, et de Lalji Singh, de l'IIT BHU à Varanasi, démontre un mélange entre population jusqu'au premier siècle après J-C. Une exogamie qui par postulat reflète l'absence de règles sociales, l'absence de caste. Les scientifiques ont analysé le patrimoine génétique de 73 groupes ethniques, choisis pour leurs origines géographiques et religieuses différenciées, ainsi que leur appartenance à des castes différentes. La même conclusion s'est imposée : entre 1900 ans et 4200 ans en arrière, il y avait un mixage génétique. Et ce, entre les deux grandes populations fondatrices : les Ancient North Indians et les Ancient South Indians. C'est en mesurant la longueur des segments génétiques que le groupe a identifié cette période de mélanges inter-groupes. Plus le mélange est ancien, plus les segments sont désormais courts (au moment du mixage, ils sont caractérisés d'"extrêmement longs"). Depuis, chez certaines populations, l'endogamie a pris le dessus, comme pour les Vysya, d'Andhra Pradesh, qui n'ont connu aucun apport génétique extérieur à leur groupe depuis 3000 ans.

http://www.bulletins-electroniques.com/actualites/74896.htm

http://www.nature.com/nindia/2013/130829/full/nindia.2013.116.html