🧐 ROTA #9: Intentionally broken ornaments, wooden relics, and recently unearthed temples
Hi folks, this is issue #9 of Rhythm of the Ancients. We’ve got lots of ancient news to cover this week, so let’s get into it.
🗞 Ancient Beat
8,500-Year-Old Rare Wooden Relic at Çatalhöyük in Turkey — Çatalhöyük is a fascinating proto-city that was active between 7500 and 6400 BCE. Residents lived in mud-brick homes which they entered through the roof. While it has been assumed that they entered via a ladder or staircase, none had been discovered until now. An 8,500-year-old fragment of a ladder made from a juniper tree was found in a building that was intentionally filled-in. They also found markings in the plaster showing where it was positioned.
Purposeful fragmentation of ornaments during the Stone Age — A recent study matched pieces of slate ring ornaments found in different places and found that they were not only worn but broken intentionally. Furthermore, fragments of the same ornament were found in two different locations. Researcher Marja Ahola suggests that, “perhaps they wore the ornaments as a symbol of a connection established.” One ring fragment was found in a settlement while another other was in a burial site, so it may also indicate a “connection between the living and the dead.”
Egypt: Ruins of ancient temple for Zeus unearthed in Sinai — A temple for Zeus has been uncovered in the Tell el-Farma archaeological site in northwestern Sinai. The site dates back to Greco-Roman and Byzantine times. The temple was made of mud-brick but had marble columns at the gate, which apparently fell during an ancient earthquake. Excavations have been taking place since inscriptions were found indicating the temple’s existence in the early 20th century, but it was only recently unearthed.
Study Suggests Neanderthals Adapted to a Changing Climate — A study found that Neanderthals adapted their stone tools to work better in changing climates. At the end of a warm phase 90,000 years ago, weather in modern-day Germany got colder and forests thinned. Tools designed to process plants and work with wood changed over the next 20,000 years.
Marine mollusc shells reveal how prehistoric humans adapted to intense climate change — The “8.2 ka event” was the “largest and most abrupt climatic event of the past 11,700 years.” It occurred in 6200 BCE. A study of the shell midden site of El Mazo Cave in Spain showed that availability of different types of shellfish changed at this time thanks to colder seawater. It also showed an intensification of mollusk exploitation by humans. Interestingly, though, these people rarely harvested mollusks below the size of our current regulations, which we put into place to ensure the survival of these species.
Ancient goddess sculpture found by farmer in Gaza Strip — A 22-centimeter limestone head was found by a farmer in Gaza. The 4,500-year-old sculpture is believed to represent the Canaanite goddess Anat.
Girl finds rare ancient fork at 1,500-year-old dig site near Sea of Galilee — Members of the public found an earring and rare bronze fork at an archaeological excavation site of a 1,500 year-old Jewish town near the Sea of Galilee. The fork would have been a valuable possession, as indicated by the complicated decoration.
New study reveals landscape 4,000 years before Stonehenge construction — A recent study found that the pre-Neolithic landscape of what would become Stonehenge was not densely wooded, as previously thought. Instead, it was open woodland which was perfect for supporting aurochs an other herbivores. Mesolithic hunter-gatherers would have used these open conditions to their advantage until farmers eventually took their place.
Sewer system found in ancient city of Mastaura — A sewer system believed to be 1,800 years old has been uncovered in the ancient city of Mastaura in modern-day Turkey. It’s large enough for people to walk through and “represents an early example of municipality work” according to researcher Umut Tuncer.
Archaeologists debunk theories on early human migration to North America — As you’re probably aware, more and more researchers claim to have found evidence that humans populated the Americas before the migration from Asia about 14,000 years ago. A recent study challenges these claims, stating that the data from the sites in question have been “poorly disseminated.” The researchers do not rule out earlier habitation, but state that it “should have produced stratigraphically discrete occupation surfaces, some of which would be expected to have large numbers of artifacts.” The word “debunk” in the title may be a stretch.
❤️ Recommended Content
This video covers the enigmatic monoliths of Asuka Nara, Japan. Strange shapes carved into granite are found throughout this area, including the famous Rock Ship of Masuda.
This article discusses a 3,200-year-old ostracon that covers reasons why people missed work over a 280-day period. Reasons include brewing beer, feasting, scorpion stings, making offerings, and a wife’s menstruation.
This article is about a study showing that dogs were bred selectively over thousands of years, specifically for facial expressions that were similar to their own. This benefited communication between the two and, well, it was cute. Side note: The oldest undisputed evidence of a domesticated dog (which was buried with humans) is from 14,200 years ago, but there are disputed remains going back to 36,000 years.
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Until next time, thanks for joining me.
-James
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