12 AOÛT 2016 NEWS: Ephèse - Istanbul - Sherbrooke -

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ISRAEL –  Ephese - The Roman city of Ephesus was always known to be opulent. Now painstaking renovation of mosaics, murals and other marvels in a sprawling apartment complex showcases its splendor in the era when the city on the Turkish coast was visited by the apostle Paul, nearly 2000 years ago. Now, renovated in their original hues, the wall paintings, mosaics and marble paneling once again radiate in a blaze of colors. In antiquity, Ephesus was famed for its magnificent temple to Artemis, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. The colossal temple was the size of a football field at 115 meters long and 46 meters wide, and had a vast 127 Ionic columns supporting the massive marble structure. The lavish insula (housing complex) with the recovered artworks was a vast 4,000 m² in size. Nestled among public buildings and sacred monuments in the city center, its treasures aside, just its location suggests that its residents belonged to the civic élites who could afford property in this jet-set area of Ephesus. Analysis of the remains indicates that the building was occupied for almost 300 years, allowing us to study how domestic tastes and styles changed over the centuries, from its construction in the 1st century CE, to its destruction by earthquakes in the final third of the 3rd century CE.
http://www.haaretz.com/jewish/archaeology/1.736389

TURQUIE –  Istanbul - The breakwater of the ancient Theodosius Harbor has been broken into pieces by construction equipment, against a decision by the Istanbul Protection Council for its removal with scientific methods under the inspection of experts.  Theodosius Harbor, the best known harbor of the Byzantine era, was discovered during archaeological excavations initiated by the Istanbul Archaeology Museum in 2004 in the city’s Yenikapı district during the construction of a new metro line and the Marmaray tunnel under the mouth of the Bosphorus Strait.  Ancient resources noted ancient-era breakwaters were put to the sea by filling wooden chests with cement and stones. This expensive system is known to have been realized with the support of emperors. But not even one breakwater constructed through this method had survived to modern times. For the first time a solid sample of this breakwater was found in Yenikapı. Only some parts of the Theodosius Harbor, however, were found during the Marmaray and metro excavations, despite information that the extent of the harbor was larger. Both the lighthouse and the breakwater of the harbor were yet to be discovered. Similar architectural structures were found during previous excavations at Yenikapı. A nearly five-meter-wide and L-shaped architectural structure could have been the breakwater of the Theodosius Harbor, according to archaeologists. However, others have suggested that the structure might have been built in the Ottoman era to protect coastal structures from waves.
http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/ancient-breakwater-in-istanbul-broken.aspx?pageID=238&nid=102704&NewsCatID=375

CANADA –  Sherbrooke - Le site archéologique Kruger 2 découvert en 2013, dans l'arrondissement Brompton à Sherbrooke, a été une fois de plus passé au peigne fin et permis de révéler de nouvelles surprises. «On est en train de fouiller un site qui est très important pour la suite des connaissances par rapport à cette tradition-là», a expliqué Éric Graillon, archéologue et animateur au Musée de la Nature et des Sciences de Sherbrooke. Depuis le début des fouilles en 2013, plus de 90 000 outils et débris, dont environ 450 de grosseur considérable, ont été retirés du site localisé aux abords de la rivière Saint-Francois. «On a des pointes, des forets, qui servent à percer l'os, le bois et même la pierre. On a des racloirs, des grattoirs, des couteaux. Il y a vraiment une grande gamme d'outils», a précisé M. Graillon. À travers ces objets, les archéologues obtiennent des informations importantes sur les comportements des gens qui ont séjourné à cet endroit il y a 10 000 ans. Sur leur alimentation et leurs déplacements par exemple. «C'est la première fois qu'on découvrait une vertèbre de poisson sur un site aussi ancien dans le nord de la Nouvelle-Angleterre. C'était donc la première fois qu'on pouvait vraiment faire une association directe à des activités liées à la pêche.» Les nouvelles découvertes vont aider à fixer avec plus de précision l'âge exact du site. «On aurait une date de 9300 ans, plus ou moins 500 ans. Cela nous amène à une braguette entre 9000 et 10 000 ans avant aujourd'hui.»

VIDEO = http://www.tvanouvelles.ca/2016/08/09/nouvelles-decouvertes-archeologiques-a-brompton