🧐 Ancient Beat #131: Lost Silk Road cities, the wheel, and the first hands to wield a tool

Happy Friday, folks! I don’t know about your neck of the woods, but it’s getting chilly here. Perfect day to grab a warm cup of something and enjoy issue #131 of Ancient Beat.

Here’s the latest ancient news. 👇

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🗞 Ancient News: Top 5

• Archaeologist Reveals Factors Affecting Ochre Application in Ancient Burials at Khok Phanom Di — New research revealed detailed insights into the use of ochre in ancient burials at Khok Phanom Di in Thailand (~4000–3500 BCE). The research highlights a transition to ochre as a predominant burial practice after initial settlement and suggests that ochre's application became a unifying element in the community's burial traditions, transcending variations in age, sex, and social status. Initially rare, the use of ochre became widespread, reflecting a growing community identity and continuity in funerary customs. This practice was not influenced by gender, but interestingly, ochre was less commonly found in the burials of very young individuals, pointing to nuanced social or ritual distinctions in the community.

• Lost Silk Road Cities Mapped Using Remote Sensing — Archaeologists have utilized drone-mounted LiDAR technology to uncover two previously unknown medieval cities in Uzbekistan's mountains, revealing their extensive urban structures. Situated in a key area of the ancient Silk Road, these cities were located about 3 miles apart and flourished at an altitude exceeding 6,562 feet. The large-scale settlements featured fortresses, watchtowers, and diverse architectural elements, likely supported economically by local iron ore resources. The cities thrived from the 6th to the 11th centuries and were centers of both trade and pastoral activities.

  

  Image credit: Michael Frachetti

• Researchers Model How the First Use of the Wheel May Have Developed — A collaborative study by engineers and historians explored the potential origins of a wheel that was in a copper mine in the Carpathian Mountains around 6,000 years ago. The study suggests the wheel's development started with the use of log rollers to ease the transport of ore. Innovations such as grooving the rollers to keep cargo in place and modifying them to create a fixed axle likely occurred over several centuries, culminating in the attachment of independently moving wheels to the axles. This sequence of improvements significantly eased the movement of heavy materials, pointing to a gradual evolution of wheel technology driven by practical needs in mining operations.

  

  Image credit: Credit: Royal Society Open Science (2024)

• Ancient Hominin Hands Were a Lot More Like Ours Than We Thought — Recent research on Australopithecus finger bones shows their hands were capable of using tools much like modern humans. The study analyzed muscle attachment sites on the fossilized hands of Australopithecus afarensis, A. africanus, and A. sediba, comparing them to those of modern and ancient primates. Findings suggest that A. sediba and A. afarensis had the anatomical capability for tool manipulation similar to humans, whereas A. africanus displayed a mix of ape-like and human-like hand features. This suggests that sophisticated hand functions necessary for tool use evolved earlier than previously recognized, supporting the notion that advanced manual dexterity was present in early hominins.

• Vast Viking Burial Ground with Ship Burials Uncovered in Halland, Sweden — Near Varberg in Halland County, Sweden, a significant Viking Age burial site has been discovered, featuring 139 graves with unique finds including human and animal remains, ship settings, and cremation sites. Initiated during preliminary work for utility installations, this excavation has revealed extensive burial practices, including ship burials and cremation layers where bodies were burned and then covered with animal sacrifices. Artifacts such as jewelry, ceramics, and even a fragment of an Arabic silver coin dating back to CE 795–806 were found, indicating rich cultural exchanges and the site's historical significance. Despite the challenges posed by disturbed graves, the strategic location of this burial ground suggests it was a key site during the Viking Age, potentially linked to a nearby trading post yet to be precisely located.

• Bonus: Everyone’s talking about a daring pupper who got all the way to the tippy top of the Great Pyramid of Giza. The little buddy was seen by a paraglider, and was later caught on video on the way down.

That’s it for the free Top 5! If you’re a free subscriber, sign up for the paid plan for another 20 discoveries and 8 recommended pieces of content covering 400,000-year-old marrow, digestion, newly revealed Egyptian art, horses, knots, and mental health.

Until next time, thanks for joining me!

-James
Twitter: @jamesofthedrum

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🗞 Ancient News: Deep Dive