21 FEVRIER 2017 NEWS: Walakpa - Nanchang - Ngati Porou - Daufuskie - Breteuil - Carentan - Hartshorne - Zhenghan -
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CANADA – 
Walakpa- Aboriginal hunters from Arctic Canada have a couple of names for what they say is an extremely rare polar bear that is huge, narrow-bodied, fast-moving and lithe: "tiriarnaq" or "tigiaqpak," meaning "weasel bear." Now the thawing and rapidly eroding Chukchi Sea coastal permafrost has produced evidence that one of these legendary weasel bears — or some other strange kind of bear — roamed Arctic Alaska centuries ago. A huge, fully intact and unusually shaped polar bear skull emerged in 2014 from an eroding archaeological site about 13 miles southwest of Utqiaġvik (Barrow). It is one of the biggest polar bear skulls ever found — and quite different from most modern polar bear skulls. It is slender, elongated in the back and has unusual structural features around the nasal area and other areas. Through radiocarbon dating and subsequent analysis, Jensen and her colleagues estimate that the big bear skull — which appears to be the fourth largest ever found — is from a period between the years 670 and 800. It is possibly the oldest complete polar bear skull found in Alaska, inspiring a name for the departed creature that owned it: The Old One. The Old One's skull was only one of several treasures newly found at the now-eroding site, which is called Walakpa and has been known to archaeologists for at least half a century.
CHINE – 
Nanchang - A mirror that has been unearthed in a Western Han Dynasty (206 BC-AD 24) cemetery bears the earliest known image of Confucius, the Nanchang Daily reported. The object was discovered in the tomb of the Marquis of Haihun, which archaeologists began to excavate in 2011. The burial chamber, near Nanchang, Jiangxi province, covers about 40,000 square meters and is one of the few imperial tombs that have not been looted. It contains eight small tombs and a burial site for chariot horses. The mirror, which is made of bronze, is believed to have been used by Marquis Liu He, the grandson of Emperor Wu. On its cover is a picture of Confucius looking "learned and refined" and "dressed like a commoner" with two of his students, according to the report. The cover is broken into more than 10 pieces, but a fragment of writing that survived suggests Marquis Liu often read Confucian classics and looked at the image to understand how the philosopher kept calm under pressure, the newspaper quoted an unidentified expert as saying. Confucius, who lived from 551 BC to 479 BC, was an educator and philosopher whose teachings have influenced generations of Chinese society.
http://www.ecns.cn/2017/02-20/246100.shtml
NOUVELLE ZELANDE - Ngati Porou pa – A project to excavate and map a historic Ngati Porou pa near Te Araroa that was the site of a major battle in the 1860s resumed this week. The pa was the last line of defence for Ngati Porou Hauhau, who adopted the Maori religious movement Pai Marire, founded in Taranaki, which rejected Christianity and British colonisation. The Hauhau Wars raged in the 1860s, when government forces and Ngati Porou who had pledged allegiance to the crown, moved to drive Hauhau from pa sites in Gisborne and on the Coast. The Hauhau finally fortified themselves at Hungahungatoroa. It was a fortified stronghold, regarded as impregnable, settled deep in the bush and surrounded by cliffs. The government force, led by Lieutenant Biggs and Ropata Wahawaha, was relentless in its attack and eventually about 500 Ngati Porou Hauhau were compelled to surrender. The survivors taken were made to swear allegiance to the Queen and the 16 chiefs were shipped to the Chatham Islands for imprisonment. They later escaped in 1868 with the infamous Te Kooti Rikirangi Te Turuki. Heritage NZ will provide the completed pa drawing to the whanau, hapu and Te Runanganui o Ngati Porou.
http://gisborneherald.co.nz/localnews/2666726-135/historic-te-araroa-pa-is-excavated
USA – 
Daufuskie Island - A team of archeologists from the University of South Carolina took a trip to the Old Daufuskie Crab Company at Daufuskie Island’s Freeport Marina on Friday to check on the stabilization of a wooden dugout canoe dating to the late 18th century and found it in good condition. The team pronounced it ready for the next step of being reassembled and put on permanent display on the island. The canoe, hand-hewn from a cypress tree trunk, was discovered by Daufuskie Island resident John Hill in 2012. A crew of excavators, led by USC underwater archaeologist Jim Spirek, removed the canoe from the muck of Turtle Island, just off Daufuskie’s Bloody Point. Since then, the canoe, which broke into several parts during the removal process, has been entrusted to the care of Freeport Marina owner Wick Scurry by the state, which owns the relic. For the last four years, it has rested in an enclosure at the marina’s Old Daufuskie Crab Company, where it spent three years soaking in a solution of polyethyline glycol, or PEG, and a fourth year slowly drying out. On Friday, the cover was removed and Spirek, along with state archaeologist Jonathan Leader and maritime archaeologist Jessica Irwin, took a closeup look at the canoe and said that the stabilization effort has been a success and the canoe is ready to the next step.
http://www.islandpacket.com/entertainment/arts-culture/article133733159.html#storylink=cpy
FRANCE – 
Breteuil – A l’intérieur de l’ancienne abbaye de Breteuil, les coups des marteaux-piqueurs et burins résonnent dans les salles vides. Mais au fil du chantier, historiens et archéologues ne cessent d’être surpris. Dernière trouvaille en date, une corniche remontant au XVIe siècle. « Une corniche très bien conservée, construite en 1524 », se réjouit Adrien Bossard. A l’origine, elle se trouvait dans la salle du réfectoire des moines, au niveau du plafond. L’historien précise qu’au XVIIIe siècle, le vestige a été couvert sous les remblais, ce qui explique aujourd’hui son bel état de conservation.
http://www.leparisien.fr/breteuil-60120/breteuil-le-chantier-de-la-future-maison-de-sante-revele-un-vestige-du-xvie-siecle-17-02-2017-6689241.php
FRANCE – 
Carentan - La suite des fouilles archéologiques autour de l’église Notre-Dame a permis de découvrir une partie des fortifications qui entouraient la ville de Carentan, jusqu’au XVIIe siècle, et de nombreux ossements. « C’est bien les fortifications, dont on connaît l’existence par des plans anciens, note Pierre Chevet, qui dirige les fouilles archéologiques pour l’Inrap (Institut national de recherches archéologiques préventives) autour de l’église Notre-Dame. On a mis à jour le mur d’enceinte, large d’environ 2,50 m, situé à 2,30 m de profondeur et à 11 m du flanc nord du transept de l’église Notre-Dame, puis le démarrage du bastion, dont on a trouvé des vestiges le premier jour des fouilles, au début de la rue Qui-qu’en-Grogne. »Quant à la datation de l’appareillage, « il est difficile de la préciser pour l’instant », explique Pierre Chevet. Sylvie Baia, son assistante, indique cependant : « En construction militaire, la création du bastion date du XVIe siècle. » Au pied du transept nord, un grand squelette a été découvert, tout contre les fondations de l’église, à seulement 60 cm de profondeur. « Un homme assez grand et costaud », précise Pierre Chevet. Quelques morceaux de grès vernissés y ont aussi été trouvés, ce qui permettra peut-être de dater plus facilement cette sépulture.
ROYAUME UNI – 
Hartshorne - A hand axe dating back thousands of years has been found at an approved housing site in Hartshorne, along with evidence of housing dating back to between the 12th and 16th century. Archaeologist Donald Clark, who has also found broken medieval pottery on the Repton Road site, described the find as the best thing he has discovered during his 10-year career.
VIDEO = http://www.burtonmail.co.uk/watch-neolithic-hand-axe-among-items-found-during-hartshorne-archaeology-dig/story-30149342-detail/story.html
CHINE – 
Zhenghan - The first city gate was recently unearthed after years of excavation. Well preserved and still retaining a clear layout, the ancient gate is rare among discoveries from the unearthed ancient cities of the Spring and Autumn (770-476 B.C.) and Warring States (475-221 B.C.) periods. The discovery is significant to the research of ancient city defense systems. Having served as a capital city for 539 years, Zhenghan was listed as a key cultural relic under state protection in 1961.