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ROYAUME UNI – King’s Seat - Metalwork dating back to Pictish times found in Perthshire is said to be of “huge importance” to the history of the region. The substance, along with a number of rounded stones and walls, was discovered by archaeologists while excavating the King’s Seat hillfort in Dunkeld. And now experts say this could be evidence the area was a seat for elite ruling during the early medieval period. Among the exciting finds included metalworking waste, crucible fragments and stone moulds, which the trust says indicates precious metalworking took place on the site. Gavin Lindsay, an outreach officer with the heritage trust, said: “One of the reasons we’re so excited about these moulds is that their shape is characteristic of metalworking in the early historic or Pictish period (600-900AD). “So, while we wait for the radio carbon dates to come back from the lab, finds like these can help us work out when the activity at King’s Seat was taking place.” A number of small rounded stones were also discovered near the summit, which were probably collected and used with slingshots, and a number of walls and large stone boulders suggest the site had many different phases of historical activity. The upper area of the site was found clear of soil with “interesting” features cut into the rock, which one expert says could indicate the site was a ruling seat of power during Pictish times. Cath MacIver, from AOC Archaeology, explained: “Comparisons can be drawn between the hole drilled into the rock on King’s Seat and St Fillan’s Chair on Dundurn near Loch Earn, where a wide ledge was sculpted from an outcrop to form a sort of rock seat. “The lead archaeologist working on Dundurn theorised that this ‘seat’ could have been an inauguration seat for the rulers of Strathearn. The features at King’s Seat could have served a similar purpose.”Andy Heald, also from AOC Archaeology, said: “Considered together, the material culture recovered from King’s Seat is hugely important and clearly indicates in situ activity on the site. He continued: “The fact that evidence for metal working was identified in every trench certainly suggests that the site was hugely important for the production of prestige metalwork and, similarly to important high status early hillforts such as Dunadd [in Argyll] and Dundurn, may have been a centre of production.;“Dundurn. Dunadd and King’s Seat all share similar characteristics including topographic location, working and utilisation of exposed bedrock outcrops.
http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/local-news/excitement-over-finds-at-hillfort-11758605
FRANCE – Marseille - Après la découverte de murs grecs de 2 400 ans et de sépultures de l'Antiquité tardive, des fouilles préventives débuteront à compter de mai 2018 sur le chantier de l'internat. Le rapport de diagnostic fait le lien avec la carrière de la Corderie.
http://www.lamarseillaise.fr/marseille/societe/66323-la-corderie-plane-sur-les-murs-grecs-du-lycee-du-rempart
ROYAUME UNI – St Albans - Archaeologists have described the discovery of a child's body with what are thought to be rosary beads wrapped round their hand as "a mystery". The remains were unearthed during excavation work at St Albans Cathedral. Experts said rosary beads would suggest a Catholic burial in what appeared to be a Church of England cemetery. Site director Ross Lane said it was "unusual" and was the only one of the 80 excavated graves to have "artefacts associated with them". "This suggests this individual was Catholic in an otherwise majority Protestant burial ground," he said. Mr Lane said the beads were "wrapped" round the right hand of a "young individual" and left "trailing down their leg". "There could be several reasons for it, it could be an earlier burial, or it could be that this was a visitor to St Albans from further afield and they've just been caught in an epidemic and buried." St Albans Cathedral dates from Norman times and is the oldest place of continuous Christian worship in the country.It stands on the site where Britain's first saint, St Alban, a citizen of Roman Verulamium, was martyred by the Romans.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-beds-bucks-herts-42335953
TURQUIE – Çorum - A farmer from Turkey’s central Çorum province found a 2,000-year-old statuette dating back to the Roman period while working in the field, a report said Tuesday. The unidentified farmer discovered the statuette of Greek god Hermes nearly six months ago, İhlas News Agency (İHA) reported.Hermes is known as the ancient Greek god of trade, wealth, thieves and travelers.
https://www.dailysabah.com/history/2017/12/26/farmer-discovers-2000-year-old-hermes-statuette-in-turkeys-corum