24 JANVIER 2022 NEWS
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ITALIE – 
Monterozzi - Archaeologists in Italy are just now announcing the discovery of ten spectacular Etruscan tombs found in the Autumn of 2021 in the Monterozzi necropolis. Carried out in what the archaeologists called an “emergency campaign” to save the complex, the finds date back to between the Villanovan and Archaic periods (8th-5th centuries BC). They are located just a few dozen meters from the Tomb of the Bulls and the Tomb of the Augurs.The tomb dates back to the first half of the seventh century BC. It is of the ‘twin’ type, i.e. consisting of two independent chambers side by side, almost identical to each other and open to the south-west on as many open vestibules, which can be accessed via a steep staircase. The roof of both chambers is of the slit type, with an ogive vault carved into the rock, closed at the top by a series of nephrite slabs, while along the left wall is a bed, carved in stone which, in the case of the northernmost chamber, is decorated with carved legs. The doors of the tombs had been sealed with slabs of nephrite, which had unfortunately been broken by the grave robbers so that they could gain access to the tombs – however, in a very unusual twist, they had been carefully closed again after they had been plundered. Perhaps this was part of a belated show of respect for the dead – or hoping that there wouldn’t be divine retribution for the desecration. Unfortunately, however, the looters failed to break through the slab protecting the north chamber, prompting the looters to also remove two blocks from the roof of the tomb, causing it to collapse over time.Working beneath the remains of the Gemina Tomb, sifting through the loose earth, archaeologists collected such treasures as fragments of glazed impasto vases, sometimes with incised decorations or configurations and a clay statuette depicting a weeping woman.In addition, they also came upon several Etruscan-geometric engraved and painted bucchero vases, including jugs decorated by the man known as the Painter of the Palms, as well as ancient Euboic cups. Sadly, they also found the fragments of a thin sheet of gold, which the archaeologists believe was all that remained of a thicker coating of the precious metal, which the ancient grave robbers had indeed stolen.
https://greekreporter.com/2022/01/22/excavation-etruscan-tomb/
PEROU- Machu Picchu. - On ne connaît pas tout de Machu Picchu. La preuve, des archéologues ont découvert dernièrement une zone encore inconnue du site grâce à des drones équipés de lasers. La densité de la jungle péruvienne rendant par endroit les fouilles très complexes, l'équipe d'archéologues a pu s'appuyer sur les nouvelles technologies pour faire ces découvertes. Ainsi, ce sont une douzaine de petites structures sur lesquelles les archéologues ont pu mettre la main, à une dizaine de kilomètres de la cité inca datant du XVe siècle, aux abords d'un site cérémonial du nom de Chachabamba. De plus, ils ont découvert un système de canalisation qui couvrait toute la zone. Ces découvertes nous en disent plus sur les personnes qui habitaient en ces lieux. Dominika Sieczkowska, l'archéologue qui a mené ces recherches explique : "Seulement les personnes les plus privilégiées pouvaient se rendre au Machu Picchu. C'était un endroit très spécial. En y allant, ces personnes devaient s'arrêter à Chachabamba pour procéder à un bain spirituel afin de se purifier."
VIDEO = Pérou : des archéologues découvrent une partie cachée de Machu Picchu (maxisciences.com)
CHINE – 
Zoucheng - The remains of tea leaves discovered in a royal tomb in Zoucheng, eastern China’s Shandong province, have been dated to 453-410 B.C., the early Warring States Period, making them the oldest known brewed tea in the world. The leaves were found in an overturned porcelain cup during the 2018 excavation of tomb No. 1 at Xigang in the Ancient Capital City Site of the Zhu Kingdom in Zoucheng City. Archaeologists suspected at the time of the find that the charred remains of plant matter in the cup were tea. That was confirmed when scientific analyses — among them calcium phytoliths analysis, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and gas chromatograph mass spectrometry — compared the ancient matter to modern tea and steeped tea residue. The Shennong Ben Cao Jing, the earliest surviving Chinese medical treatise written between 200 B.C. and 220 A.D., records a legend that tea was discovered as an antidote to poison by Emperor Shen Nung in 2737 B.C., and references in agricultural almanacs from the Warring States Period refer to tea being used in religious sacrifices.
http://www.thehistoryblog.com/archives/63185
ANGLETERRE – 
Blackgrounds - Archaeologists have uncovered the exceptionally well-preserved remains of an Iron Age village that grew into a bustling ancient Roman trading town — an archaeological gem with more than 300 Roman coins, glass vessels and water wells — in what is now the district of South Northamptonshire. The ancient hotspot — known as Blackgrounds for its black soil — has an abundance of ancient artifacts and structures spanning different time periods, including depictions of deities and Roman game pieces. For instance, archaeologists learned that during the Iron Age, the village had more than 30 roundhouses sitting near a road. Over time, the settlement became more prosperous and expanded. During the Roman period, for instance, Blackgrounds people built new stone buildings and roads.The transition from Iron Age village to Roman town happened so quickly, it's likely that Blackgrounds' inhabitants stayed the same, adapting to the Roman Empire's ways — a transition known as Romanization. This included using Roman customs, products and building techniques, the archaeologists said. One of these building techniques is a 33-foot-wide (10 meters) Roman road, which is "exceptional in its size," according to the statement, as most Roman roads were no more than 13 feet (4 m) wide, West said. Such a vast road would have been filled with animals and people loading and unloading goods from carts. This road, as well as the nearby River Cherwell, likely helped make Blackgrounds a thriving trade hub. The excavation revealed that the settlement was divided into different sections, including a domestic sector filled with building foundations, and an industrial park that had workshops, kilns and preserved wells. One part of Blackgrounds had fiery red dirt, an indication that burning had happened at the site — for example for bread baking, foundries for metal work or a kiln for pottery. Other artifacts indicative of Blackgrounds' prosperity include Roman weaving accessories, decorative pottery and a Roman snake head-shaped brooch. The archaeology team even found galena, a lead sulfide mineral that ancient Romans crushed and mixed with oil to concoct makeup.
https://www.livescience.com/ancient-roman-market-town-excavated-uk
FRANCE – 
Ollainville - La fouille a permis de mettre au jour, dans un secteur très peu exploré, les vestiges d’une occupation gallo-romaine rurale implantée en rebord de plateau, sur le versant nord de l’Orge, en marge de l’agglomération antique d’Arpajon, en territoire parisii. Le site antique se caractérise par une occupation continue dont les premiers vestiges datent du Ier siècle après J.-C et se poursuivent au-delà du IVe siècle. Les structures excavées (fosses, fossés, poteaux) ou construites (un mur, un puits) témoignent d’une occupation rurale dont ne subsistent que peu de vestiges. Le bâtiment lui-même n’a pas été appréhendé mais une grande structure excavée a fourni un mobilier particulièrement riche et diversifié (monnaies, petits objets en bronze, céramique sigillée décorée à la molette), supposant la présence d’un habitat limitrophe ou non conservé. Par ailleurs, un réseau dense de fossés drainants connecté à un important puisard confirme la fonction agro-pastorale du site.
https://www.inrap.fr/une-occupation-antique-ollainville-essonne-16184
ANGLETERRE - Les chevaux de guerre médiévaux sont souvent décrits comme des bêtes massives et puissantes, mais en réalité, beaucoup n’étaient pas plus que la taille d’un poney selon les normes modernes, selon une nouvelle étude. Les chevaux au cours de la période mesuraient souvent moins de 14,2 mains, mais la taille n’était clairement pas tout, car les archives historiques indiquent que des sommes énormes ont été dépensées pour développer et entretenir des réseaux pour l’élevage, l’entraînement et la garde des chevaux utilisés au combat. Les chercheurs ont analysé le plus grand ensemble de données d’ossements de chevaux anglais datant entre 300 et 1650 après JC, trouvés sur 171 sites archéologiques distincts. L’étude, publiée dans le Journal international d’ostéoarchéologie, montre que l’élevage et l’entraînement des chevaux de guerre étaient influencés par une combinaison de facteurs biologiques et culturels, ainsi que par les caractéristiques comportementales des chevaux eux-mêmes, telles que le tempérament. Les représentations de chevaux de guerre médiévaux dans les films et les médias populaires dépeignent fréquemment des montures massives à l’échelle des chevaux Shire, d’environ 17 à 18 mains de haut. Cependant, les preuves suggèrent que les chevaux de 16 et même 15 mains étaient en effet très rares, même à l’apogée du réseau des haras royaux aux XIIIe et XIVe siècles, et que des animaux de cette taille auraient été considérés comme très grands par les médiévaux. Le plus grand cheval normand enregistré a été trouvé au château de Trowbridge, dans le Wiltshire, estimé à environ 15hh, similaire à la taille des petits chevaux d’équitation légers modernes. La haute période médiévale (1200-1350 après JC) voit la première apparition de chevaux d’environ 16hh, même s’il faut attendre la période post-médiévale (1500-1650 après JC) pour que la taille moyenne des chevaux devienne nettement plus grande, se rapprochant finalement des tailles de chevaux de sang chaud et de trait modernes.
PAYS-BAS – 
Nijmegen - Archaeologists excavating the site of a comprehensive housing and green space development in Nijmegen’s Winkelsteeg area have unearthed a spectacular Roman blue glass bowl that is in flawless condition. It is at least 1,800 years old, and there is not a chip or crack on it. Such dishes were made by allowing molten glass to cool and harden over a mold. The stripe pattern was drawn in when the glass mixture was still liquid. Metal oxide causes the blue color. Nijmegen was founded as a Roman military camp in the 1st century B.C., and a civilian settlement of the local Batavi peoples formed next to it. By 98, the settlement of Nijmegen was the first city in what is today the Netherlands to receive the designation of municipium (Roman city rights) making its residents Roman citizens. The bowl was not of local manufacture. It was produced in a workshop of fine glasswares in a large Roman city. The Roman city of Vetera (modern-day Xanten), just over the border in Germania, was known for its glass production, and it too was in Batavi territory so there would have been established lines for the exchange of goods. It is of such high quality, however, that it could well have originated in Italy and been traded north, or have been acquired by a Batavian legionary who brought it home with him when he retired from the Roman army.
