30 JANVIER 2019: Kweneng - Tel Kom al Trogy - Lahore - Lisbonne - Roye - Lunel -
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AFRIQUE DU SUD – 
Kweneng - The stone settlement of Kweneng used to exist on the outskirts of Johannesburg. Now, thanks to technology, archaeologists are being able to reconstruct the lost city. Soraya Ali reportsrts
EGYPTE – 
Tel Kom al Trogy - archaeologists recently uncovered wine cellars dating back to the Greco-Roman period (a.k.a. the time from Egypt's fall to Alexander the Great in the 4th century B.C. to the Islamic conquest in the 7th century) in the Nile Delta. According to the Egyptian Ministry of Antiquities, the dig took place in Tel Kom al Trogy, a region north of Cairo known for similar discoveries (its ancient residents were all about fine wines). Sadly, there was no actual wine left in the cellars. But we do have some details on how ancient Egyptians kept their bottles fresh: the storage rooms, which were constructed from mud-based bricks, had irregularly-shaped limestone blocks inside to control the temperature. Archaeologists recently uncovered ancient storage rooms in a 2,000-year-old winery, at a site in Egypt's Nile Delta to the north of Cairo. Inside these rooms — which appeared to be climate-controlled for keeping wine — archaeologists also found coins, pots used in winemaking and other pottery objects, said officials with the Ministry of Antiquities for the Arab Republic of Egypt (MOA), who shared the find in a Facebook post today. The rooms were linked to a larger winery complex, which had already been partly unearthed during earlier excavations. Based on evidence gathered during this latest dig, experts suspect that there may be additional buildings nearby, which housed the winery's employees and their supervisors thousands of years ago, according to the Facebook post. The winery was built in what is now the Beheira governorate on Egypt's northern coast, during the Greco-Roman era — which lasted from the fourth century B.C. to the seventh century A.D., the Associated Press reported. During that time, this region of the Nile Delta was renowned for producing some of the finest wine in Egypt, Ayman Ashmawy, head of ancient Egyptian artifacts at MOA, said on Facebook. Walls that made up the newfound storage chambers were thick and built from mud bricks; in some places, the walls incorporated limestone slabs of different sizes. This building technique probably helped to cool the chamber and regulate the temperature of the stored wine, Mostafa Waziri, general secretary of Egypt's Supreme Council of Antiquities, said on Facebook. A set of kilns and assorted pottery artifacts associated with daily activities was found alongside coins that spanned centuries: from the time of Ptolemy I Soter, a successor of Alexander the Great who ruled Egypt from 323 B.C. to 285 B.C., to the Islamic conquest from A.D. 639 to A.D. 646, MOA reported. Archaeologists also found painted shards that may have once covered a building's walls, as well as fragments of a mosaic layer that could have decorated the floor. These decorative elements hint at the presence of yet another building in the winery complex — possibly a residential structure for people who worked there, Ashmawy said.
https://www.livescience.com/64613-ancient-winery-egypt.html
PAKISTAN – 
Lahore - Archaeologists have unearthed a shahi hammam (royal bath) from Mughal Emperor Akbar’s reign in Shahi Qila. Officials from the Lahore Walled City Authority (LWCA) discovered the ancient bath after clearing over 100,000 cubic feet of rubble, Express News reported. The bath is situated behind the area where Emperor Jahangir’s living quarters were located. The structure is largely well preserved as it was constructed using red sandstone bricks. The original water channels and chimneys to let out steam are still intact and clearly visible. The design of the grand bath at Shahi Qila is similar to the royal bath built at Delhi Gate, with the former being relatively smaller. Open baths similar to this one had been found inside Shahi Qila before. However, they could not be restored by archaeologists owing to the intensive damage to the structures.
https://tribune.com.pk/story/1899105/1-mughal-era-bath-unearthed-lahore-fort/
PORTUGAL – 
Lisbonne - Portuguese archaeologists digging near one of Lisbon’s most iconic restaurants, the Solar dos Presuntos (Manor of Hams), have discovered a large Roman cemetery holding 2,000-year-old skeletons and various ancient artifacts. The necropolis was found after the restaurant owners decided to expand their establishment, founded in 1974 in Lisbon’s historical center. “What we found was a big surprise,” said Nuno Neto, an archaeologist at Neoepica, the company that carried out the digging at a depth of around six meters (20 feet). “The level of preservation is excellent, and the set of artifacts is fabulous.”The necropolis was found to hold 25 skeletons, 35 sets of cremated remains, pottery and coins used in ancient burial rituals.
https://nypost.com/2019/01/28/roman-cemetery-found-next-to-one-of-portugals-best-restaurants/
FRANCE – 
Roye - Trois secteurs différents ont livré des vestiges archéologiques. 1. Dans le plus densément occupé, se trouve les vestiges de plusieurs occupations successives. Un enclos funéraire de l’âge du Bronze est limité par un fossé circulaire en U d’une largeur de 0,90 m et d’un diamètre extérieur d’environ 16 m. Une occupation du Bronze final-premier âge du Fer n’est appréhendée que par quelques tessons résiduels recueillis dans une fosse postérieure. Une occupation de La Tène ancienne est matérialisée par quelques tessons recueillis dans des structures mal définies (fosses ou chablis ?) réparties irrégulièrement sur la moitié sud de l’emprise. Des fossés de parcellaire sont datés de la Protohistoire récente. Un ensemble de trous de poteaux correspond probablement à deux bâtiments quadrangulaires disposés le long d'un fossé ainsi qu’à une palissade. Une sépulture à incinération double de La Tène D1 renfermait les restes osseux de deux individus (immature dans une en urne et adulte dans contenant périssable ). Outre l'urne, elle a livré 5 vases, du mobilier en fer (forces, fibule, pince à épiler en fer, rasoir, serpette) et des offrandes de faune. La période romaine est structurée par une voie secondaire traversant l’emprise du nord-est au sud-ouest. Elle devait probablement desservir la voie romaine Amiens-Noyon. Large de 9 m, ayant encore conservé son damage en craie par endroits, elle est bordée de fossés de drainage conservés sur 1,30 m de profondeur. Plusieurs fossés de parcellaires sont alignés sur ce chemin. Un enclos quadrangulaire et un puits appartiennent également à cette période. 2. Au sud-est, une occupation du Bronze final-premier âge du Fer est appréhendé par quelques tessons résiduels recueillis dans le comblement d'un fossé postérieur. Une occupation de La Tène ancienne est matérialisée par quelques tessons recueillis dans un fossé curviligne recoupé par un fossé laténien. Enfin, une tranchée de la Grande Guerre a été mise au jour. 3. Localisée au nord, une petite unité domestique (Protohistoire ancienne?) est matérialisée, sur 47 m², par une série de huit poteaux et un silo.
Roye. Diagnostic sur 20,3 ha. N. Soupart (Inrap) 2018.
FRANCE – 
Lunel -Pendant trois mois, la future zone d’activités du Dardaillon, située entre Lunel et Lunel-Viel, a été fouillée. Si au Nord du site, ce sont surtout des traces de culture qui ont été découvertes, plus au Sud c’est un ensemble funéraire qui a été déterré. "On estime qu’il y a environ une centaine de tombes". Des tombes dont la datation a été estimée autour de la fin du IIIe siècle, début du IVe, et l’organisation se fait par rapport à un grand fossé. "On a une sélection assez représentative de la population : des adultes comme des enfants", ajoute Jérôme Hernandez. Reste à voir désormais quel type de personnes y était enterré : "C’est stimulant. On a trouvé cet ensemble funéraire alors que le Verdier (NDLR : une autre nécropole antique) à 500 mètres de là, était en plein essor à la même époque". Le chantier s’étant terminé le 18 janvier, des études, anthropologiques, entre autres, devraient être menées pendant plusieurs mois pour en savoir davantage sur ce site antique.
https://www.midilibre.fr/2019/01/28/lunel-mise-au-jour-dune-necropole-au-dardaillon,7978979.php
