12 0CTOBRE 2021 NEWS
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ISRAEL – 
Yavne - Archaeological work has been taking place at Yavne, which was known in the later Middle Ages as Ibelin, over the past two years. The excavation, conducted by the Israel Antiquities Authority, turned up five magnificent wine presses, warehouses for aging and marketing the wine, kilns for firing the clay amphorae in which the wine was stored, tens of thousands of fragments and intact earthen amphorae (jars), and well-planned access between the facilities. Each of the exposed winepresses covered an area of about 225 square metres. Around the treading floor, where the grapes were crushed barefoot to extract the liquid, compartments were built for fermenting the wine, and next to them – two huge octagonal shaped vats for collecting the wine. A calculation of the production capacity of these winepresses shows that approximately two million litres of wine were marketed every year, while we should remember that the whole process was conducted manually. Between the winepresses, four large warehouses were discovered, which formed the winery of the factory. The wine is aged in elongated amphorae, known as ‘Gaza jars’. The jars themselves, some of which were discovered complete, together with hundreds of thousands of their fragments, were made at the site in large kilns. “Gaza and Ashkelon Wine” was considered a quality wine brand of the ancient world.
VIDEO = https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3uoZsz9DhhI
https://www.medievalists.net/2021/10/medieval-wine-factory-israel/
TURQUIE – 
Ezine - A 2,000-year-old altar has been unearthed in northwestern Turkey near the town of Ezine in Çanakkale province. A hall with a podium, temple, odium, and bathhouse were among the remains that have survived to the present day in the ancient city of Alexandria Troas, an area near the Aegean Sea. Situated on the Dardanelles Strait, Alexandria Troas had a strong and flourishing economy between the first and fourth centuries, after it became a Roman colony seaport. With a population of nearly 100,000 during this period, the ancient city was mostly abandoned in the ninth century after its economy deteriorated. Stating that the structure possibly dates back to the first century, Öztepe said the excavations have reached seven meters (almost 23 feet) below the surface, with a deep foundation beneath.
CHINE - 
Jijiaocheng - Several large wooden constructions dating back to the Neolithic era were unearthed at the Jijiaocheng ruins site, a prehistoric cultural site located in Changde City, central China's Hunan Province. First discovered in 1978, the site used to be an ancient city from the Qujialing culture period (3300 BC-2600 BC) – a Neolithic civilization derived from the middle and upper reaches of the Yangtze River primarily found in today's Hunan and Hubei provinces. Three excavations have been conducted at the southwestern part of the city wall since 2020. More than 30 housing sites were discovered at the 721-square-meter area, with a number of wooden architectural relics unearthed that date as far back as 4,800 years, according to archaeologists. Remains of rice husks were also found at the site, covering an area of 80 square meters, inferring the rice cultivation of the ancestors.
MALTE – 
Tas-Silġ - Remains of another Neolithic structure were discovered at Tas-Silġ in Marsaxlokk by archeologists. This is the site with the longest known use on the Maltese Islands, with remains of at least three temples from the Tarxien Phase of the Maltese Neolithic period. The same temples were also used in the Bronze Age, which was possibly the only period in Tas-Silġ’s history when the site was not utilised for rituals or religious purposes. Upon the Phoenicians’ arrival, a temple in honour of the goddess Ashtarte was erected, which was developed further by the Punics and the Romans until at least the second century AD. Many years later, the temple’s main courtyard was roofed over and turned into a Christian basilica – the first evidence of a church built on our island. As evidenced by the newly-found remains as well as by a sizeable Phoenician cistern accessible from the site, underneath this road there are probably more remains, as yet undiscovered, from the site’s various phases. It would therefore be wise to deviate this road as foreseen in the local plan.
TURQUIE –
Hisardere - Archaeologists discovered mummified skeletons inside two sarcophagi in Hisardere Necropolis, located in the Iznik district of northwestern Bursa province. The necropolis was extensively used during the second and third centuries, and that they have found six sarcophagi in total in the region to date with the addition of the two recent findings. Unique chamber tombs dating back to the third century were also discovered, he said, noting how spectacular the two newly discovered sarcophagi are. The box-like funeral receptacles are embossed with imagery of Eros, the God of love in Greek mythology.
https://www.dailysabah.com/arts/sarcophagi-reveal-mummified-skeletons-in-turkeys-iznik/news
ACORES - Biologistes, climatologues, biogéographes… Ils sont trente scientifiques internationaux à avoir croisé leurs disciplines pour parvenir à démontrer que non, les Portugais n'avaient pas colonisé des "îles vierges" en débarquant aux Açores au 15e siècle (en 1427 sur l'île de Santa Maria et en 1452 sur celles de Corvo et Flores). D'après une étude parue le 12 octobre dans les PNAS, les comptes-rendus de l'Académie américaine des sciences, les premiers habitants des Açores sont arrivés dans l'archipel entre 700 et 850 après J.-C., soit quelque 700 ans avant les navigateurs portugais alors en quête de nouvelles routes vers les Indes. Les chercheurs ont daté et analysé cinq carottes de sédiments prélevées au fond des lacs des îles de São Miguel, Pico, Terceira, Flores et Corvo. Ils ont détecté la présence de stérols, marqueurs biogéochimiques bien utiles en archéologie. Très abondants dans les excréments des mammifères (des hommes, des bovins…), leur présence peut être interprétée comme un indice de l'activité humaine. Les auteurs de l'étude avancent également que ces premiers colons venaient d'Europe du Nord. A la fin du Moyen Age, en raison de la prédominance des vents du nord-est et des faibles vents d'ouest, ces peuples nordiques ont vraisemblablement trouvé des conditions climatiques favorables pour naviguer vers ces îles volcaniques de l'océan Atlantique situées à quelque 1 450 km des côtes européennes, précise un communiqué . Des résultats cohérents avec les données archéologiques et génétiques récentes qui suggèrent que les Vikings étaient très probablement les premiers colons des Açores.
ITALIE – Pithekoussai - Les mystères qui entourent la tombe formellement nommée « Crémation 168 » sont encore multiples, plus de cinquante ans après sa découverte. Parmi ceux-ci figure l'identité du ou des occupants de la tombe. Si cette dernière retient autant l'attention, sur le site italien de Pithekoussai, c'est parce qu'elle contient la Coupe de Nestor qui est l'un des plus anciens vestiges archéologiques connus à arborer une inscription grecque. Des restes humains datant du VIIIe siècle avant notre ère avaient déjà été analysés dans cette tombe et semblaient appartenir à un individu âgé de 10 à 14 ans. De nouveaux résultats publiés dans PLoS One bouleversent aujourd'hui cette conclusion. L'analyse conjointe de la structure des tissus ainsi que de la forme de 195 fragments osseux contenus dans la tombe a en effet permis de déterminer que des humains et des animaux avaient été inhumés ensemble. Un minimum de 45 fragments appartenait en effet à des chèvres et d'autres, probablement, à des chiens dont les restes ont pu être disposés pour symboliser la nourriture et les animaux de compagnie. Les 130 restes osseux calcinés d'origine humaine ont ensuite été attribués à trois stades de vie différents, ce qui suggère que la Tombe de la Coupe de Nestor contient les restes d'au moins trois humains distincts. Si le mystère qui entoure l'identité de ces personnes n'a pu être décrypté grâce à cette étude, les méthodes employées offrent des perspectives prometteuses pour comprendre l'histoire d'anciens peuplements humains, comme à Pithekoussai, l'un des premiers sites d'installation des colons grecs en Italie.
https://www.futura-sciences.com/sciences/actualites/archeologie-mystere-tombe-coupe-nestor-94042/
GRECE – 
Nea Styra - A cist tomb from the Early Cycladic period (2700-2200 B.C.) has been unearthed during sewage treatment works in the village of Nea Styra on the Greek island of Euboea. The tomb was found just two feet below the surface of the road. It is six and a half feet long by one and a half feet wide and made of slabs of local brown slate. Previous road works had disturbed the tomb, removing part of the cover and the slabs of the short sides, but the find was not archaeologically excavated at that time. The long slabs on the south side and the other part of the cover were still in situ. Three burials were found in successive layers inside the grave. Burial A is located 3.6 feet beneath the modern road. It includes the remains of an adult man in supine position with his left arm bent at the elbow, part of a glass vessel and a few ceramic pieces. After archaeologists removed the bones of Burial A, they found skeletal remains from Burial B. This individual was also placed in supine position. Next to him was a bronze coin, and at his feet archaeologists unearthed a bronze basket, a bronze tray with decorative perforations around the edge and six glass vessels with conical and spherical bodies. Burial C emerged under the remains of B, again in supine position. No grave goods were reported.
