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explorator 23.31 November 22, 2020
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You can read explorator online at:

https://exploratornews.wordpress.com/


Thanks to Arthur Shippee, Dave Sowdon, Edward Rockstein, Kurt Theis,
John McMahon, Barnea Selavan, Joseph Lauer, Mike Ruggeri, Hernan Astudillo, Richard Campbell, Barbara Saylor Rodgers, Bob Heuman, David Critchley,
Richard Miller, Kris Curry, Rick Heli, Richard C. Griffiths, Frank MacKay, Lampros Kallenos,
Don Buck, mata kimasitayo, and Ross W. Sargent for headses upses this week
(as always hoping I have left no one out).

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EARLY HOMINIDS
================================================================
Feature on the debate over where modern humans first appeared:

https://www.discovermagazine.com/planet-earth/where-was-the-birthplace-of-modern-humans

Suggestion that stone handaxes had a 'practical and spirtual' side for early hominids:

https://www.haaretz.com/archaeology/.premium-hand-axes-made-of-bone-indicate-spiritual-motive-archaeologist-posits-1.9313914

More on that recently-found Paranthropus robustus skull:

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/newly-unearthed-skull-reveals-how-ancient-hominids-evolved-survive-changing-climate-180976282/

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AFRICA
================================================================
Evidence of repeated occupation of the West African coast 62 000 - 25 000 years bp:

https://www.shh.mpg.de/1911161/middle-stone-age-populations-repeatedly-occupied-west-african-coast?c=1606725
https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2020-11/mpif-msa112020.php https://phys.org/news/2020-11-middle-stone-age-populations-repeatedly.html https://archaeologynewsnetwork.blogspot.com/2020/11/middle-stone-age-populations-repeatedly.html

In case you missed the news about the underwater sites found near Tunis (various periods):

http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/TheArchaeologyNewsNetwork/~3/SeTet0wwjn0/underwater-archaeological-sites.html

An interview with Maeve Leakey:

https://www.theguardian.com/science/2020/nov/21/meave-leakey-definitely-africa-is-where-it-all-began

Feature on the ancient kingdom of Kerma:

https://www.heritagedaily.com/2020/11/kerma-the-ancient-african-kingdom/136144 ================================================================
ANCIENT NEAR EAST AND EGYPT ================================================================
Last week we mentioned original pigments at the temple of Esna had been found:

https://www.archaeology.wiki/blog/2020/11/16/original-pigments-of-inscriptions-at-the-temple-of-esna-found/

... and this week we're reading about conservation of the temple:

http://english.ahram.org.eg/NewsContent/9/40/390113/Heritage/Ancient-Egypt/EgyptGerman-archaeological-mission-resumes-conserv.aspx

... and how the temple is revealing the names of some previously-unknown (name-wise) constellations:

https://www.livescience.com/ancient-egyptian-star-constellations.htm

More on the 100 or so more 2500 years bp sarcophagi revealed at Saqqara last week:

http://english.ahram.org.eg/NewsContent/9/40/393774/Heritage/Ancient-Egypt/In-Photos-Egypt-announces-the-biggest-archaeologic.aspx
https://www.livescience.com/more-mummies-saqqara-egypt-burial-shafts.html https://www.nytimes.com/2020/11/15/world/middleeast/egypt-discovery-mummies.html
https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/treasure-trove-of-mummy-coffins-in-egypt-saved-from-desert-2-500-years-on-cdl6ng88h
https://www.scmp.com/news/world/africa/article/3109892/egypt-showcases-scores-2500-year-old-coffins-found-saqqara
https://www.theartnewspaper.com/news/egyptian-archaeologists-make-the-biggest-discovery-in-2020
https://www.cnn.com/style/article/100-coffins-mummies-saqqara-scli-intl-scn/index.html
https://www.9news.com.au/world/egypt-unveils-ancient-coffins-statues-found-in-saqqara/32086bb0-7a96-4009-91d4-bbcba8ce6322
https://www.sciencetimes.com/articles/28224/20201115/100-more-coffins-found-egypts-necropolis-saqqara.htm
https://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/uncategorized/egypt-unveils-100-sarcophagi/ https://archaeologynewsnetwork.blogspot.com/2020/11/egypt-finds-treasure-trove-of-over-100.html
https://www.archaeology.wiki/blog/2020/11/16/more-than-100-sarcophagi-were-presented-last-saturday-in-saqqara/
https://www.archaeology.org/news/9209-201116-egypt-saqqara-coffins

... and some overviewish things about recent finds at Saqqara:

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/archaeologists-are-just-beginning-unearth-mummies-and-secrets-saqqara-180976301/
https://www.iol.co.za/travel/africa/why-egypts-saqqara-region-continues-to-give-up-its-sarcophagi-aaebd7ee-2156-542f-8269-fe90fb40356d

An interesting 1800 years BCE tomb reveals evidence of a possible ancient Egyptian gynaecological treatment:

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-8961247/Gynaecology-ancient-Egypt-REVEALED.html
https://www.archaeology.wiki/blog/2020/11/20/ancient-egyptian-tomb-yields-gynecological-treatment-evidence/

More on the recent analysis of the First Book of Breathing papyrus:

https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/ancient-egypt-gods-death-archaeology-book-of-the-dead-books-of-breathing-1.9316371

Feature on Amarna:

https://www.heritagedaily.com/2020/11/amarna-the-city-of-the-heretic-pharaoh/136111

An archaeologist is urging for conservation of the Achaemenid-era Bostan Khani Dam:

https://www.tehrantimes.com/news/454693/Archaeologist-accentuates-proper-maintenance-of-Achaemenid-masterpiece

Feature on efforts to preserve Iraq's antiquities from theft and the like:

https://www.ft.com/content/56289a8e-5f68-4163-9bb2-c457000dd263

Evidence that folks in Israel were contending with lead pollution some 3000 years bp:

https://www.haaretz.com/archaeology/.premium-people-in-biblical-israel-3-000-years-ago-suffered-lead-pollution-1.9318265
https://gath.wordpress.com/2020/11/19/haaretz-piece-on-pollution-article/

Interesting evidence found of Iron Age silver counterfeiting prior to the invention of coinage:

https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/dirty-old-money-researchers-reveal-iron-age-silver-forgery-649864
https://www.haaretz.com/archaeology/.premium-counterfeiting-began-even-before-money-was-invented-archaeologists-deduce-1.9322163

Feature on toilets in ancient Israel:

https://www.israel21c.org/lifting-the-lid-on-israels-best-ancient-toilets/

More on the Iron Age fort in the Golan:

https://archaeologynewsnetwork.blogspot.com/2020/11/iron-age-fort-discovered-on-golan.html

More on those four 1000 years bp gold coins found in the Western Wall Plaza:

http://www.sci-news.com/archaeology/gold-coins-fatimid-period-israel-09068.html https://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/1000-year-old-gold-coins-found/ ================================================================
ANCIENT GREECE AND ROME (AND CLASSICS) ================================================================
The big news this week appears to be the find (and casting) of two more victims of Vesuvius at Pompeii:

https://www.ansa.it/english/news/lifestyle/arts/2020/11/21/pompeii-gives-back-whole-bodies-of-two-fugitives_775c9f93-2ce6-4a2f-8826-44abfd1390ad.html
https://phys.org/news/2020-11-bodies-slave-unearthed-ashes-pompeii.html https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/nov/21/pompeii-dig-reveals-almost-perfect-remains-of-a-master-and-his-slave
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-55029538 https://www.dw.com/en/workers-in-athens-find-ancient-head-of-the-greek-god-hermes/a-55677876
https://apnews.com/article/entertainment-volcanic-eruptions-37e83ba403c7bbd871c6c33c57c0a051
https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/europe/bodies-of-man-and-his-slave-unearthed-from-ashes-at-pompeii/2020/11/21/77589e9c-2bfa-11eb-9c21-3cc501d0981f_story.html
https://www.reuters.com/article/instant-article/idAFKBN2810JI https://www.cnn.com/2020/11/21/europe/pompeii-rich-man-slave-bodies-scli-intl/index.html
https://www.jpost.com/archaeology/pompeii-ruins-slave-and-rich-mans-bodies-found-lying-side-by-side-649817
https://www.dw.com/en/pompeii-archaeologists-discover-bodies-of-man-and-his-slave/a-55686844
https://www.timesunion.com/news/article/Bodies-of-man-and-his-slave-unearthed-from-ashes-15744602.php
https://www.startribune.com/bodies-of-man-and-his-slave-unearthed-from-ashes-at-pompeii/573152431/
https://www.thedailybeast.com/two-corpses-of-master-and-slave-discovered-at-pompeii
https://archaeologynewsnetwork.blogspot.com/2020/11/the-bodies-of-cloaked-man-and-his-slave.html

... while a fresco of Theseus and Ariadne was also revealed:

https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/stunning-fresco-of-ariadne-and-theseus-unearthed-at-pompeii-qbjxv23th

A Punic tomb from Zejtun:

https://www.independent.com.mt/articles/2020-11-17/local-news/Punic-tomb-complete-with-skeleton-and-pottery-unearthed-in-Zejtun-6736228728
https://archaeologynewsnetwork.blogspot.com/2020/11/punic-tomb-unearthed-in-maltas-zejtun.html

Turkish fishermen netted a large bronze statue of a woman off the coast of Marmaris:

https://greekcitytimes.com/2020/11/20/turkish-fishermen-300kg-statue/ https://eu.greekreporter.com/2020/11/20/missing-sister-of-kalymnos-lady-statue-discovered-on-aegean-seabed/
https://archaeologynewsnetwork.blogspot.com/2020/11/turkish-fishermen-net-300-kilo-ancient.html

Recent finds from Vryokastraki (near Kythnos) ... various periods:

https://greekcitytimes.com/2020/11/17/archaeologists-excavations-vryokastraki/

Red figure pottery from Gravina (Italian):

https://www.barinedita.it/cronaca/n4141-gravina-sulla-collina-delle-meraviglie-rinvenute-anfore-millenarie-e-la-tomba-di-un-atleta

Possible remains of Caligula's palace have been revealed beneath a 19th century office building:

https://www.wantedinrome.com/news/rome-unearths-remains-of-caligulas-lavish-palace-and-gardens.html
https://www.thetimes.co.uk/edition/news/caligulas-ancient-rome-house-of-infamy-revealed-qhnht5djh
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-8953225/Lavish-home-indulgent-Emperor-Caligula-discovered-Rome.html

... and a feature on Caligula:

https://www.historyextra.com/period/roman/caligula-facts-life-biography-horse-consul-incitatus-little-boots-how-die/

A inscriptional letter of Severus and Caracalla found at Nicopolis ad Istrum in the 1920s has been reassembled and translated:

http://archaeologyinbulgaria.com/2020/11/12/roman-emperor-lied-thanked-city-for-bribe-reveals-newly-decoded-inscription-from-ancient-nicopolis-ad-istrum-in-bulgaria/
https://www.archaeology.org/news/9211-201116-bulgaria-imperial-letter

37 burials and remains of hypogea from Marsala (date?):

https://itacanotizie.it/2020/11/21/sepolture/

A Late Roman 'burgus' from excavations at the Pomodiana Fortress in northwest Bulgaria:

http://archaeologyinbulgaria.com/2020/11/16/archaeologists-unearth-burgus-tower-fort-in-lesser-known-roman-danube-fortress-bulldozed-by-treasure-hunters-in-northwest-bulgaria/

Europa Nostra has called for Thessaloniki antiquities to be preserved on site:

https://news.gtp.gr/2020/11/20/europa-nostra-calls-thessaloniki-antiquities-preserved-on-site/

Anthony Barrett's new book on Nero is spawning some revisionist commentary by various folks:

https://www.the-tls.co.uk/articles/was-nero-that-bad-blog-post-mary-beard/ https://www.washingtonpost.com/outlook/what-was-nero-really-doing-while-rome-burned/2020/11/19/4118bd20-029d-11eb-897d-3a6201d6643f_story.html

... and an article with a similar spin seems unaware of Barrett's book:

https://www.deseret.com/faith/2020/11/19/21570601/daniel-peterson-nero-fiddle-while-rome-burned-possibly-history-agrippina-shakespeare-richard

Feature on Jennifer Stager's mosaic course:

https://magazine.krieger.jhu.edu/2020/11/syllabus-past-meets-present-among-the-tiles/

Hypish on Eric Rebillard's book on ealry marthyr narratives:

https://news.cornell.edu/stories/2020/11/roman-historian-views-early-martyr-narratives-living-texts

Feature on the Pantheon:

https://www.cnn.com/style/article/pantheon-history-test-of-time/index.html

Feature on what ancient Romans ate:

http://blogs.getty.edu/iris/what-did-ancient-romans-eat/

Feature on death in ancient Greece:

https://www.thegreatcoursesdaily.com/death-in-ancient-greece/

... and a related piece:

https://www.thegreatcoursesdaily.com/living-the-ancient-greek-death/

... and ancient Greek ideas about the afterlife:

https://www.thegreatcoursesdaily.com/the-ancient-greek-afterlife-and-its-evolution/

An Ecce Romani love story:

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/11/20/style/a-perfect-introduction-for-two-latin-lovers.html

More on that head of Hermes (?) found in downtown Athens last week:

https://www.culture.gov.gr/el/Information/SitePages/view.aspx?nID=3570 https://greekcitytimes.com/2020/11/15/head-of-ancient-statue-found-athens/ https://apnews.com/article/entertainment-athens-greece-3aa06a6d022a737170a45612c00ca97f
https://www.dw.com/en/workers-in-athens-find-ancient-head-of-the-greek-god-hermes/a-55677876
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-8953053/Ancient-Greek-gods-bust-Athens-sewage-work.html
https://www.dailysabah.com/life/history/ancient-statue-of-greek-god-hermes-dug-up-in-athens
https://naftemporiki.gr/story/1658594/ton-theo-ermi-apeikonizei-i-arxaia-kefali-pou-brethike-sto-kentro-tis-athinas
https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3109963/ancient-bust-greek-god-hermes-found-during-athens-sewage-works
https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2020/11/15/ancient-bust-greek-god-hermes-found-during-athens-sewage-work/6306713002/
https://abcnews.go.com/Entertainment/wireStory/ancient-greek-gods-bust-found-athens-sewage-works-74222854
https://www.archaeology.wiki/blog/2020/11/16/head-of-hermes-found-in-downtown-athens/
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/ancient-bust-hermes-was-discovered-drainage-duct-180976320/
http://www.archaeology.org/news/9210-201116-greece-hermes-sculpture

More on figures of Demeter and Persephone being found at Anapa (Russia):

https://greekcitytimes.com/2020/11/18/statuettes-goddess-demeter-anapa/ https://eu.greekreporter.com/2020/11/19/figurines-of-demeter-and-persephone-found-in-russias-black-sea-town-of-anapa/

More on the (Roman) Barbegal mlll complex in France:

https://www.uni-mainz.de/presse/aktuell/12510_ENG_HTML.php https://phys.org/news/2020-11-unique-hydraulics-barbegal-mills-world.html https://www.archaeology.wiki/blog/2020/11/16/the-worlds-first-industrial-plant/ https://archaeologynewsnetwork.blogspot.com/2020/11/the-unique-hydraulics-in-barbegal-water.html
https://www.archaeology.org/news/9223-201119-roman-water-wheels

More on that Roman-era glass vase from Autun:

https://www.artnews.com/art-news/news/roman-vase-found-grave-site-france-1234576634/
https://www.archaeology.org/news/9213-201117-france-roman-glass

More on that Apollo seal from Israel's Tzurim Valley National Park:

http://www.sci-news.com/archaeology/apollo-seal-09061.html

More on MEPs asking the UK to return the Parthenon Marbles:

https://www.argophilia.com/news/european-parliament-members-plead-with-the-uk-for-parthenon-marbles/227682/
https://archaeologynewsnetwork.blogspot.com/2020/11/30-meps-ask-boris-johnson-to-return.html

More hype for the LEGO Colosseum coming out just in time for Saturnalia:

https://hyperallergic.com/601959/rome-wasnt-built-in-a-day-lego-announces-colosseum-model/
https://www.nbcnews.com/shopping/gift-guides/lego-roman-colosseum-set-n1248075 https://www.apollo-magazine.com/giant-lego-colosseum/
-----
Roman Archaeology Blog:

http://romanarc.blogspot.com/

Rogueclassicism:

http://rogueclassicism.com/ ================================================================
EUROPE AND THE UK (+ Ireland) ================================================================
I think we mentioned the find of the 5000+ years bp 'upright' burial of the 'lady of Bietikow':

https://archaeologynewsnetwork.blogspot.com/2020/11/neolithic-skeleton-find-in-germany.html

5 000 years bp kilns from a site in the Karlovo Valley (Bulgaria):

http://archaeologyinbulgaria.com/2020/11/20/economic-section-of-5000-year-old-settlement-with-%D0%B0-dozen-kilns-found-in-central-bulgarian-valley/

Interesting 4000+ years bp clay mask/figurine from a mound near Providiya (Bulgaria):

http://archaeologyinbulgaria.com/2020/11/15/mouthless-prehistoric-alien-mask-mixing-human-animal-features-found-in-salt-pit-settlement-mound-in-bulgarias-provadiya/
https://archaeologynewsnetwork.blogspot.com/2020/11/mouthless-alien-mask-found-at-late.html

Mesolithic and Bronze Age finds from a dig at an estate in the New Forest:

https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-hampshire-54972027 https://www.dailyecho.co.uk/news/18885588.bronze-age-burial-site-found-new-forest/
http://www.archaeology.org/news/9225-201120-new-forest-prehistory

A massive 8th-11th century Muslim necropolis from near Zaragoza (Spain):

https://www.cnn.com/travel/article/necropolis-muslim-intl-scli-scn/index.html https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/spanish-roadworks-reveal-ancient-islamic-burial-site-fw9qz2rg6
https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20201119-spain-roadworks-run-into-ancient-muslim-burial-site/
https://www.arabnews.com/node/1765436/world https://www.theolivepress.es/spain-news/2020/11/22/archaeologists-find-4500-skeletons-at-8th-century-burial-ground-in-north-east-spain/
https://archaeologynewsnetwork.blogspot.com/2020/11/ancient-islamic-burial-ground.html

Evidence that an 11th century fortress in Bulgaria was destroyed by Crusaders during the Third Crusade:

http://archaeologyinbulgaria.com/2020/11/14/11th-century-byzantine-empire-fortress-in-southeast-bulgaria-destroyed-by-crusaders-from-third-crusade-archaeologists-find/

A 13th century clergyman's burial from Veliko Tarnovo:

http://archaeologyinbulgaria.com/2020/11/17/13th-century-clergymans-grave-with-gospel-of-john-inscription-on-pillow-brick-byzantine-gold-threads-found-in-medieval-bulgarian-capital-tarnovgrad/

An inscribed horse shoulder blade (1300 CE or so) from the Rusocastro Fortress:

http://archaeologyinbulgaria.com/2020/11/19/horse-shoulder-blade-with-mysterious-magic-ritual-marks-from-ca-1300-ad-discovered-in-rusocastro-fortress-in-southeast-bulgaria/
http://www.archaeology.org/news/9226-201120-bulgaria-horse-bone

A study of the impact of the transition from tribal to feudal living in 14th century Poland:

https://phys.org/news/2020-11-transition-feudal-14th-century-impacted.html https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2020-11/sr-att111320.php https://archaeologynewsnetwork.blogspot.com/2020/11/transition-to-feudal-living-in-14th.html
https://www.archaeology.wiki/blog/2020/11/20/transition-to-feudal-living-in-14th-c-impacted-local-ecosystems/

Finds from various periods from a housing development site in East Cambridgshire:

https://www.elystandard.co.uk/news/prehistoric-graves-revealed-on-building-site-1-6935749
http://www.archaeology.org/news/9224-201120-england-cambridgeshire-graves

Remains of a 16th century military person from the bottom of a Lithuanian lake:

https://www.livescience.com/medieval-soldier-lake-lithuania.html https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-8971059/Skeleton-16th-century-solider-discovered-underwater-bridge-inspection-Lithuania.html
https://www.sciencetimes.com/articles/28348/20201120/remains-soldier-medieval-period-found-lithuanian-lake.htm
https://archaeologynewsnetwork.blogspot.com/2020/11/remains-of-medieval-soldier-found-in.html
https://www.archaeology.org/news/9219-201119-lithuania-human-remains http://www.archaeology.org/news/9219-201119-lithuania-human-remains

Evidence of a 'coverup' of a massacre at Shelford during the English Civil War:

https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-nottinghamshire-54973017

Plans to restore Lindow Man's peat bog:

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/environment/2020/11/15/lindow-mans-peat-bog-restored-former-glory/

In case you were wondering why the Stonehenge tunnal was a controversy:

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/controversial-stonehenge-tunnel-approved-180976319/

... and more coverage of it being approved:

https://www.euronews.com/2020/11/20/anger-at-plans-to-build-a-dual-carriageway-beneath-uk-s-prehistoric-stonehenge
https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/rival-factions-battle-for-soul-of-stonehenge-3wn5vfxfv

Feature on five Scottish stone circles:

https://www.heraldscotland.com/news/18880908.five-scottish-stone-circles-brodgar-callanish-calanais-arran-lewis-bronze-age/

Scientists are trying to recreate the smell of 16th century Europe for some reason:

https://www.livescience.com/scents-old-europe-history.html https://www.theguardian.com/science/2020/nov/17/scents-of-history-study-hopes-to-recreate-smells-of-old-europe

Concerns for the Davidank Orthodox monastery:

https://fr.aleteia.org/2020/11/16/haut-karabakh-le-sort-incertain-du-monastere-millenaire-de-dadivank/

On how profits from slavery impacted the Scottish Highlands:

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/new-research-investigates-how-enslavement-profits-changed-landscape-scottish-highlands-180976311/

More on finds being made in the vicinity of the Gjellestad ship (and their implications):

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/excavation-viking-ship-burial-continues-new-research-reveals-history-elite-scandinavian-society-180976273/
https://www.theartnewspaper.com/news/archaeologists-discover-incredible-1000-year-old-viking-burial-site-in-norway

More on the cache of musket balls associated with Bonnie Prince Charlie:

https://www.obantimes.co.uk/2020/11/18/trio-of-metal-detectorists-uncover-secret-jacobite-hoard-on-shore-of-lochaber-loch/
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/musket-balls-18th-century-jacobite-rebellion-found-scotland-180976366/
http://www.archaeology.org/news/9221-201119-scotland-jacobite-ammunition

More on the Henry VIII jousting yard find:

https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/637556/henry-viii-accident-jousting-yard-discovery
https://www.express.co.uk/news/science/1362733/royal-news-archaeology-henry-viii-jousting-accident-evg

More on remains of a medieval port in Eindhoven:

https://nltimes.nl/2020/11/15/remains-medieval-port-found-eindhoven http://www.archaeology.org/news/9212-201117-netherlands-gate-canal

More on the burial of those 30 000+ years bp twins:

https://archaeologynewsnetwork.blogspot.com/2020/11/oldest-known-identical-twins-found-in.html

----------
Archaeology in Europe News:

http://archaeology-in-europe.blogspot.com/

Medievalists.net:

https://www.medievalists.net/category/news/

Viking Archaeology Blog:

http://viking-archaeology-blog.blogspot.com/

================================================================
ASIA AND THE SOUTH PACIFIC ================================================================
Neolithic finds (mostly ... some later items too) from China's Anhui province:

http://www.xinhuanet.com/english/2020-11/16/c_139519892.htm http://www.china.org.cn/arts/2020-11/16/content_76915880.htm

Song Dynasty porcelain from a family cemetery in Shaanxi:

http://www.xinhuanet.com/english/2020-11/17/c_139522686.htm

A 10th century 'romanesque' bathhouse from Xinjiang:

http://www.ecns.cn/news/culture/2020-11-19/detail-ihaeatyh1833494.shtml

More on those 3000 years bp leather balls from China:

https://www.zmescience.com/science/3000-year-old-leather-balls-from-china-might-point-to-the-origin-of-polo/

Feature on the Terracotta Warriors:

https://www.discovermagazine.com/the-sciences/the-terracotta-army-what-these-life-size-clay-warriors-tell-us-about-ancient

Feature on the Silk Road:

https://www.discovermagazine.com/the-sciences/the-silk-road-was-more-than-a-vast-trade-route

Late Jomon era finds from a dig in Fukushima:

https://mainichi.jp/english/articles/20201116/p2a/00m/0na/012000c

XRay imaging of 3600 years bp pottery shards from Kyushu revealed impressions made by various weevils:

https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2020-11/ku-xio111620.php https://phys.org/news/2020-11-x-ray-imaging-beetles-ancient-japanese.html https://archaeologynewsnetwork.blogspot.com/2020/11/x-ray-imaging-of-beetles-world-in-3600.html
https://www.archaeology.wiki/blog/2020/11/18/x-ray-imaging-of-a-beetles-world-in-ancient-earthenware/
http://www.archaeology.org/news/9220-201119-japan-maize-weevils

A recently-found Edo period document reveals a sort of Hosokawa clan code of conduct:

https://phys.org/news/2020-11-laws-early-edo-japan-peace.html https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2020-11/ku-ndn111820.php https://www.archaeology.wiki/blog/2020/11/19/no-drinking-no-fighting-the-laws-of-early-edo-japan/
https://archaeologynewsnetwork.blogspot.com/2020/11/no-drinking-no-fighting-laws-of-early.html

A 1300 years bp Lord Vishnu temple from Pakistan's Swat district:

https://www.thehindu.com/news/international/ancient-hindu-temple-discovered-in-northwest-pakistan/article33141958.ece
https://zeenews.india.com/world/1300-years-old-lord-vishnu-temple-discovered-in-pakistans-swat-district-2325777.html
https://www.dawn.com/news/1591711/archaeologists-make-new-discoveries-in-ancient-swat-town
https://www.tribuneindia.com/news/punjab/1-300-year-old-ancient-hindu-temple-discovered-in-pakistan-173170
https://www.outlookindia.com/newsscroll/ancient-hindu-temple-discovered-in-northwest-pakistan/1979256
https://www.ndtv.com/world-news/lord-vishnus-1-300-year-old-temple-discovered-in-northwest-pakistan-2328135

An interesting 16th century copper plate documenting abduction of women and their ransom:

https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/madurai/16th-c-copper-plate-inscription-details-abduction-of-women-bribe/articleshow/79251994.cms

Concerns (?) for remains of an unfinished 13th century shrine in the Warangal Urban district:

https://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Hyderabad/unfinished-temple-of-kakatiya-era-lies-in-ruins/article33103827.ece

Excavating an Otago gold-rush cemetery has commenced:

https://www.stuff.co.nz/otago/123405283/excavation-of-human-remains-from-otago-goldrush-era-begins
https://www.odt.co.nz/regions/central-otago/archaeologists-find-six-previously-unknown-graves
A 'road of bones' found in Siberia may be associated with Russia's 1917-22 civil war:

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/nov/17/russia-uncovers-road-of-bones-on-frozen-highway-in-siberia

Another apology from an Australian mining company ... nothing destroyed though (yet):

https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2020/nov/17/fortescue-regrets-causing-offence-with-threat-of-legal-action-during-bid-to-destroy-aboriginal-sites-in-pilbara
================================================================
NORTH AMERICA
================================================================
Evidence that ice melt was a major source of water for Ancestral Pueblans in New Mexico:

https://www.usf.edu/news/2020/usf-led-geosciences-team-discovers-ancestral-puebloans-survived-from-ice-melt-in-new-mexico-lava-tubes.aspx
https://phys.org/news/2020-11-geoscientists-ancestral-puebloans-survived-ice.html
https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2020-11/uosf-gda111720.php https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/11/201118080741.htm https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/clues-to-puebloan-history-drip-away-in-melting-ice-caves/
https://archaeologynewsnetwork.blogspot.com/2020/11/geoscientists-discover-ancestral.html
https://www.archaeology.wiki/blog/2020/11/19/ancestral-puebloans-survived-from-ice-melt-in-new-mexico-lava-tubes/
http://www.archaeology.org/news/9222-201119-water-ancestral-puebloans

A 170+ years bp (i.e. pre-contact) artifact of some sort from a Kelowna beach:

https://www.kelownacapnews.com/news/artifact-estimated-more-than-170-years-old-found-on-kelowna-beach/
https://www.similkameenspotlight.com/news/artifact-estimated-more-than-170-years-old-found-on-kelowna-beach/

Latest from the dig at Colonial Williamsburg's First Baptist Church:

https://www.dailypress.com/virginiagazette/va-vg-firstbaptist-latest-1114-20201116-jgnzmtybt5e3lbuawgvv5uff3i-story.html
http://www.archaeology.org/news/9216-201118-williamsburg-church-site

Plenty of finds from Revolutionary-War era site in Wethersfield (CT):

https://www.courant.com/news/connecticut/hc-news-connecticut-museum-archaeology-wethersfield-20201116-zadbiod5gvgedfq56o4se4hv34-story.html
https://news.yahoo.com/recently-discovered-trove-artifacts-changing-111400589.html
http://www.archaeology.org/news/9214-201117-connecticut-pequot-war

Some more remains from Fort Douglas have been found on the University of Utah campus:

https://www.fox13now.com/news/local-news/excavation-in-salt-lake-city-uncovers-secrets-from-1870

Another possible lost Black cemetery site on MacDill Air Force base:

https://www.tampabay.com/life-culture/history/2020/11/13/possible-black-cemetery-found-on-macdill-air-force-base/
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/possible-remains-early-20th-century-black-cemetery-found-florida-180976326/
http://www.archaeology.org/news/9215-201117-florida-lost-cemetery

Erosion revealed a possible 200 years bp shipwreck from Crescent Beach (Florida):

https://thestreetjournal.org/2020/11/200-year-old-florida-shipwreck-found-when-erosion-washed-away-sand/
https://www.firstcoastnews.com/article/news/local/shipwreck-revealed-as-waves-erode-sand-from-crescent-beach/77-522bd594-e0bc-40c2-ab4d-d8a46fa0bf3f
https://www.firstcoastnews.com/article/news/local/more-of-a-shipwreck-on-the-beach-is-visible-archaeologists-have-theories-about-where-it-came-from/77-efe0f284-63fb-40c2-a449-0028a3324518
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/shipwreck-exposed-florida-coast-could-be-200-years-old-180976351/
http://www.archaeology.org/news/9218-201118-florida-beach-shipwreck

Feature on 'hobby archaeologists' in Ohio:

https://www.dispatch.com/story/news/columns/2020/11/22/archaeology-amateurs-have-much-offer-searching-ohios-past/3778247001/

Feature on the Chicago Fire:

https://www.americanheritage.com/olearys-and-great-chicago-fire?fbclid=IwAR1A4alYosoL50eTwHcXQzaJlmkHgkqA1h7lW0W087ssvd3fUgCdFyG4rGQ

Challenging the slave-holder claim regarding Alexander Hamilton:

https://dailygazette.com/2020/11/15/hamilton-descendant-speaks-out-against-schuyler-mansion-report/

More on the search for the home of Harriet Tubman's father:

http://www.wboc.com/story/42919108/maryland-archaeologists-search-for-home-clues-of-harriet-tubmans-father

Reviewish of Thomas Ricks, *First Principles*:

https://whyy.org/episodes/what-the-greeks-and-romans-taught-the-founding-fathers/
================================================================
CENTRAL AND SOUTH AMERICA ================================================================
Feature on LIDAR locating Maya sites:

https://www.bbc.com/reel/video/p08rwhzr/the-maya-world-untouched-for-centuries http://www.bbc.com/travel/story/20200914-in-guatemala-the-maya-world-untouched-for-centuries

Pondering the Dominican Republic's African past:

http://www.bbc.com/travel/story/20201117-santo-domingo-the-city-that-kept-slavery-silent

-----
Mike Ruggeri's Ancient Americas Breaking News:

http://goo.gl/1VdeA

Ancient MesoAmerica News:

http://ancient-mesoamerica-news-updates.blogspot.com/ ================================================================
OTHER ITEMS OF INTEREST ================================================================
Not sure where to put this one on whether Jesus was 'ugly' and how the early church portrayed Him:

https://www.thedailybeast.com/was-jesus-ugly-the-early-church-thought-so

... or this one on the lessons of France's wars of religion and the US:

https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2020/11/wars-religion-france-polarization.html

Suggestion that a piece of 'graffiti' on the Palazzo Vecchio in Florence may have been done by Michelangelo:

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/new-research-says-michelangelo-may-have-made-carving-palazzo-vecchio-180976310/


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