08 JUILLET 2016 NEWS: Bengaluru - Aydıntepe - Erevan - Leicester -
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INDE – 
Bengaluru - The historian says he has unearthed the earliest pre-historic evidence in Bengaluru for the first time. "The discovery confirms man's existence in this area during the Stone Age," claimed Dr K B Shivatarak, retired professor of ancient history and archaeology, Mangalore Universitiy. Evidence backing the claim was discovered in May 2016 near Kadirenahalli underpass at Bendrenagar, Banashankari II Stage where BWSSB had dug a road to fix water leakage. "I live nearby and out of sheer curiosity, I observed the stones the workers had found while digging. I picked up some stone implements from the spot and washed them. I realized they bore a strong resemblance to the implements I had collected earlier from Tumakuru, Mandya and Chitradurga districts where I have done similar research," said Shivatarak. He collected five stone implements from Banashankari — a hand-axe, scraper, leaf-like implement, hammer stone and miniature hand axe made of quartzite and quartz. They are 7-11cm long and 4-7cm broad. The implements appear to have been used for different purposes by the early man, Shivatarak said. "Those days hunting was the main occupation and man used stones for hunting and peeling off the animals' skin," he explained. "Palaeolithic cultural remains have been found in Bengaluru for the first time. The same type of stones were unearthed near Abhimaan Studio near Kengeri. I am studying these findings in detail," said Shivatarak, who is yet to apprise the archaeological department of his findings. However, other archaeologists are skeptical if the stone age man ever inhabited the area where Benglauru later came up. "There is no scope for palaeolithic stone implements in Bengaluru as no quartzite quarries have been found around the city. In Karnataka, paleolithic stones can be seen only in the north, and Kibbanahalli near Tumkur," Prof Ravi Kori Settar, retired professor of archeology, Karnatak University, said. "Distribution of palaeolithic tools are ruled out and can not be found in granite area. What has been found out could either be pseudolitic (looks like palaeolithic) or erolits (apes palaeolithic due to natural activities where chips come out)," Prof Settar told TOI.
TURQUIE – 
Aydıntepe - An ancient underground city carved directly from the bedrock in the eastern province of Bayburt has become the most popular local attraction, while researchers continue their work to uncover the mystery of its creation and function. The Aydıntepe underground city, which was discovered during construction work in 1988, is located two to five meters below the earth and is made up of galleries, chambers and wide halls carved out of the rock. The chambers open up to nearly one-meter-wide and two-meter-high galleries, which themselves open into wide halls. The one-kilometer-long galleries have conical holes, which are thought to have been used for observation or ventilation. At the entrance of the underground city is a round-shaped stone 1.5 meters in diameter which was used to close the hole if necessary. Why the Aydıntepe underground city was created remains a mystery. Aydıntepe District Governor Yeliz Yıldızhan said that Bayburt had been home to many civilizations throughout history and the traces of these civilizations were still alive in various locations around the city. Yıldızhan said one of the best indicators and remains of these civilizations was in Aydıntepe, and that the district was like a “two-floor city” because of the underground city stretching beneath the district’s center. Yıldızhan said the underground city continued to keep its mystery, and continued: “The most important feature of the city is that it was created without using any construction material. It was carved out of the main rock. The opposing chambers, galleries, water ditches, observation spots, ventilation pipes and holes on the walls for lighting amaze us with the engineering and architecture skills of the era [it was created].” Yıldızhan said the reason why the underground city was built was not exactly known, and added, “It is believed that this was a place for sheltering during hard winters. It is also thought that it was a state dungeon. Only archaeologists’ work will reveal the reality of this underground city.”
http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/aydintepe-bayburts-underground-beauty-.aspx?pageID=238&nid=101332&NewsCatID=375
ARMENIE – Erevan - An Armenian-French-Iranian archaeological expedition has discovered the most ancient street of Yerevan, the head of the Armenian part of the expedition Mikael Badalyan said today. Speaking at a news conference he said the street is located in Erebuni fortress, one of several fortresses built along the northern Urartian border that was one of the most important political, economic and cultural centers of the vast Urartu kingdom. He said the 30 meter-long street paved with beautiful tiles is near the temple of Haldi and is estimated to be 2,700 years old. ‘This is a unique and unprecedented discovery that may change completely our idea of the Urartu civilization,’ he said. The head of the French part of the expedition Stefan Duchamp said the foundations of structures revealed at the site suggest there were three not two temples in Erebuni. According to him, the excavations in Erebuni revealed a lot of things which are important for the understanding the development of civilization in this region in the post-Urartu period.
http://arka.am/en/news/society/archaeologists_discover_oldest_street_in_yerevan/
ROYAUME UNI – 
Leicester - A rare find of a belt of the type worn by a Late Roman soldier or civil servant has been made by archaeologists from University of Leicester Archaeological Services (ULAS). The team recently excavated a Late Roman cemetery at Western Road in Leicester's West End. Among the 83 skeletons recorded by the team was the remains of a middle-aged man wearing an elaborately decorated belt in a style that would have been worn by a Late Roman soldier or civil servant during the second half of the 4th century or the early 5th century AD. The simple grave had been dug into mudstone on the west bank of the River Soar, to the south-west of the Roman town close to the Fosse Way. The find, which is rare in Britain, was positioned at the waist of the skeleton and comprises a belt buckle, belt plate and strap end. Nick Cooper, Post-Excavation Manager at ULAS, said: "The survival of the delicate thin sheet bronze belt plate is remarkable. "It is cast in the so-called 'chip-carved' style decorated with interlocking spirals and would have been riveted to a wide leather belt or girdle with a thinner securing strap running through the buckle and ending with the strap end." The buckle is decorated with dolphin heads and the strap end is decorated with crouching dogs on either side of its tapered end. Parallels for this belt set have been found in other Late Roman cemeteries including those in London, Dorchester on Thames and Winchester, and at the shore fort on the opposite side of the English Channel at Oudenburg in Belgium. Research shows that these belts were worn across north-eastern France, Belgium, and along the eastern frontier of the Roman Empire, running along the Rivers Rhine and Danube, where soldiers were stationed. There is some contemporary pictorial evidence to suggest that this type, specifically, was worn by members of the Late Roman military and civilian elite and that the belts were important symbols of authority. The belt's owner was aged between 36 and 45 when he died. He had survived poor health in childhood to lead a comparatively fit adult life but at some point he had fractured his left forearm; an injury that had healed well but left his wrist weakened. This type of injury is known as a 'parry fracture' and is typically caused by raising the arm to ward off a blow or a falling object. The man had also damaged muscles in his upper right arm and shoulder. Such injuries could possibly be caused by over-use, over-extending the muscles with movements such as throwing and lifting. Whilst it is difficult to identify exactly what caused these injuries, they are consistent with those a soldier might suffer and reinforce the theory that this man was either a member of the late Roman army or, perhaps following retirement, became an important local civil servant.
http://www.leicestermercury.co.uk/rare-belt-find-remarkable/story-29488101-detail/story.html