Reported August 25
An enormous walled settlement topped with a stepped pyramid was recently found in China at a site called Shimao, and was originally mistaken for part of the infamous Great Wall. The massive pyramid, totaling eleven separate platforms, was just one feature of this Bronze Age site that was built on at least six pits full of decapitated human heads which served as a building sacrifice. Read more from Forbes.
Stream China’s Terracotta Warriors on Passport:
Reported August 29
A 1600s Native American fort uncovered as part of a rail bridge replacement project is shining some light on a tribe’s first dealings with Europeans, archeologists said on Tuesday during a tour of the site. Read more from The Seattle Times.
Reported September 7
Potterymaking in ancient Greece was a male-dominated profession, but about 3000 years ago, one woman from the island of Crete broke the mold to become the only known female master ceramicist in antiquity. The finding, based on a lengthy biomechanical analysis of her skeletal remains, sheds light on the elevated roles played by women in at least some parts of the classical world. Read more from Science Mag.
Image: Wikimedia Commons
Reported September 8
About 300 gold coins, dating back around 1,500 years to a time when part of the Roman Empire was collapsing, have been discovered during construction at an abandoned cinema in Como, in northern Italy, the Italian Ministry of Cultural Heritage and Activities said in a series of statements. Read more from Live Science.
Reported September 11
For thousands of years, a necropolis has been lurking under the desert near the village of Lisht in Egypt, just south of Al Ayyat. Located at the edge of the Sahara, the ancient cemetery is no secret; today, a pair of pyramids rises above the landscape in the north and south of the burial grounds. But many of the site’s ancient tombs have long been concealed under feet of sand—until now. Read more from National Geographic.