Part of an 18th-Century Water System Found in Scotland

EAST RENFREWSHIRE, SCOTLAND—According to a report in The Glasgow Times, a circular structure made of blonde sandstone was uncovered during a construction project in Barrhead, which is located in west-central Scotland. The eighteenth-century structure is thought to have been part of a gravitational system to provide fresh water to the town. Local residents are advocating for the preservation of the feature and its incorporation into the new construction, while a team from the West of Scotland Archaeology Service look for any additional surviving structures. To read about artifacts uncovered at the site of an eighteenth- and nineteenth-century tavern near Brora, go to "Around the World: Scotland."

Islamic-Era Sword Identified in Spain

VALENCIA, SPAIN—Newsweek reports that a sword discovered in 1994 in a historic section of Valencia has been dated to the tenth century A.D. by the Archaeology Service of the Valencia City Council (SIAM) through analysis of the sediment layers at the site. Islamic rule of the Iberian Peninsula began in A.D. 711 and ended in 1492, making the sword the first Islamic-era weapon to be found in Valencia. The sword has a slightly curved blade and measures about 18 inches long. Its hilt is decorated with bronze plates. Because of its size and its lack of a hand guard, SIAM researchers suggest it may have been used by a horseman. Based upon the shape of the weapon, it had been previously thought to have been crafted by the Germanic Visigoths, who ruled the region from the fifth to the eighth centuries A.D. To read about a twelfth-century Islamic bathhouse discovered in Seville, go to "Bathing at the Bar."

Gweagal Spears Repatriated to Australia

CAMBRIDGE, ENGLAND—The Sydney Morning Herald reports that the Gweagal spears, a collection made up of one hunting spear and three fishing spears that were taken from the Gweagal people of Kamay in 1770 by James Cook, have been repatriated to the La Perouse Aboriginal Community. Cook, a British naval lieutenant at the time, traveled to Australia on the HMB Endeavour. He recorded removing 40 spears from the Gweagal people during his eight-day stay at Botany Bay. Cook also wrote in his journal that two of the men threw rocks and spears at the ship’s crew while the British fired a warning shot. This meeting is thought to be the first contact between the British and Aboriginal peoples of Australia, said Ray Ingrey of the Gujaga Foundation. “I have an ancient and unbroken connection to Sydney,” Ingrey said. “I heard from my elders, particularly my great aunty, who told us of the arrival of the Endeavour. She would talk about the conflict and also some of the artifacts and materials that were taken,” he added. The spears were given to Cambridge University's Trinity College in 1771, and have been held at the Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology since 1914. The weapons will be soon be kept at a new visitor center in Kamay. “Ultimately, they’ll be put on permanent display for everyone to go see, at the very spot they were taken from 250 years ago,” Ingrey said. To read about Europeans' disastrous first voyage to Australia, go to "Letter from Australia: Murder Islands."

Charred Scroll From Herculaneum Read With AI

NAPLES, ITALY—Graziano Ranocchia of the University of Pisa and his colleagues have used infrared and ultraviolet optical imaging, thermal imaging, tomography, and artificial intelligence to decipher text on pieces of charred papyrus recovered from Herculaneum, a Roman town destroyed by the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in A.D. 79, according to a Live Science report. Some of the fragments, which have been held at the National Library of Naples, belong to a scroll containing a work called “The History of the Academy” by the Epicurean philosopher Philodemus of Gadara, who lived from about 110 to 30 B.C. In this work, Philodemus offered details about the life of Plato, a Greek philosopher who lived in the fourth century B.C., including that he had been buried in a private garden reserved for the Platonic school of the Academy in Athens, near a small shrine sacred to the Muses. Prior to this discovery, it had only been known that Plato had been buried at the Academy, the researchers explained. To read more about the library from the so-called Villa of the Papyri, go to "The Charred Scrolls of Herculaneum."

Rare Turtle Statue Found in Angkor

SIEM REAP, CAMBODIA—A rare sandstone sculpture of a turtle has been found at Bayon Temple in the Angkor Archaeological Park in Siem Reap, according to a report in The Phnom Penh Post. The Bayon temple was built in the late twelfth and early thirteenth century A.D. during the reign of the Khmer ruler Jayavarman VII (reigned 1181–1220) and is best known for the many enormous carved faces of the Buddha that adorn its highly decorated exterior. The sculpture was found beneath a previously unknown pond by archaeologists from the Apsara National Authority (ANA), which oversees the park. “While many believed there was nothing left to find, our archaeological research has uncovered evidence that Bayon Temple actually boasted two ponds on its eastern side,” says ANA spokesperson Long Kosal. “This necessitates a reassessment of the historical significance of these sites.” Bayon Temple is just one of hundreds of structures built by the Khmer rulers from the ninth to fifteenth century, including Angkor Wat and Angkor Thom, that are now inside the 155-square-mile park. To read about a lidar survey of 900 square miles of the greater Angkor region, go to "Angkor Urban Sprawl," one of ARCHAEOLOGY's Top 10 Discoveries of 2017.

Teotihuacan's Pyramids Damaged By Ancient Earthquakes

MADRID, SPAIN—A new study of pyramids at the ancient city of Teotihuacan by a team of Spanish geologists has documented damage to the structures caused by five devastating megathrust earthquakes that hit the site between about A.D. 100 and 600, Live Science reports. At its height, the population of Teotihuacan, which is located northeast of Mexico City, reached some 100,000 residents. Megathrust earthquakes occur at subduction zones of tectonic plates, and though they tend to happen more infrequently than other seismic events, their magnitude is much greater. The researchers recorded the effects of immense ground shaking on the Temple of the Feathered Serpent, the Pyramid of the Sun, and the Pyramid of the Moon. The structural damage included fracturing and dislodging of large masonry blocks used to construct the buildings, as well as chipping of blocks that comprised the pyramids' outer stairs. "The initial response by the Teotihuacanos was to reinforce the Sun Pyramid, the largest structure in their city, along its north-south axis in an attempt to fortify it against future earthquakes," said geologist Raúl Pérez-López of the Geological and Mining Institute of Spain. "Additionally, they repurposed and removed other elements damaged by seismic activity. Interestingly, they opted to conceal one of the most conspicuous signs of earthquake damage: the rotation and displacement of the west staircase of the Temple of the Feathered Serpent." Despite these efforts, he said, the earthquakes were likely a contributing factor to the city's precipitous population decline and later abandonment at the end of the seventh century. "The disruption caused by a devastating earthquake not only shakes the physical foundations of a society but also destabilizes its social and political structures," Pérez-López concluded. "This creates fertile ground for unrest, potentially sparking rebellions fueled by neighboring cities and exacerbating existing tensions." Read the original scholarly article about this research in Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports. To read about liquid mercury found beneath the Feathered Serpent Pyramid, go to "Mythological Mercury Pool," one of ARCHAEOLOGY's Top 10 Discoveries of 2015.

Sacred Spring Unearthed Beneath Roman Ruins in France

PARIS, FRANCE—According to a Live Science report, near the village of Chamborêt north of the French city of Limoges, archaeologists have uncovered a freshwater spring likely dating to between 4,500 and 6,000 years ago below the remnants of a Roman-era pool. The Roman ruins, which date to the third century A.D., probably formed a landscaped basin surrounded by a wall of granite stones. A team of archaeologists from the French National Institute of Preventive Archaeological Research (INRAP) have also recovered Late Roman pottery sherds, coins, and a ceramic fragment that potentially depicts the face of Medusa or a water deity. Prior to Roman occupation, the earliest evidence of structures at the site includes a rectangular dry-stone building, postholes, sandpits, and what may have been a wood building. Such structures, they believe, were likely part of a home and farm that had been abandoned for several centuries before its revival during the Roman era. An ancient pit found beneath the pool alongside several objects date to the site’s earliest occupation during the Neolithic period. Artifacts from that era include fragments of flint, bricks and tiles singed from a fire, and pieces of a Grand Pressigny dagger—named for another Neolithic site in France. The discoveries, according to the team, offer a glimpse into regional life during Late Antiquity and the transition to the early Middle Ages. For more on the archaeology of Roman Gaul, go to “Off the Grid: Vienne, France.” 

“Porcelain Gallbladder” Identified in Mississippi

JACKSON, MISSISSIPPI—According to an Atlas Obscura report, a “porcelain gallbladder” has been identified among a woman's 100-year-old bones exhumed from the cemetery at the site of the Mississippi State Lunatic Asylum, which operated from 1855 to 1935. A porcelain gallbladder forms through calcium build-up in the wall of the organ, which causes it to harden. Upon initial examination during the course of excavations, researchers did not know what the object, which was approximately the size of a quail egg, was. “Someone thought it was a calcified cyst, someone else thought it was a gallstone, and I thought, ‘that’s way too big to be a gallstone,’” said bioarchaeologist Jennifer Mack of the University of Mississippi Medical Center (UMMC). A retired surgeon who was a member of the team was able to identify the object. Mack added, “He came over, and as I was opening the bag, he said ‘I think that’s a calcified gallbladder.’ Because as a surgeon, he had seen them on multiple occasions before." A micro-CT scan conducted at the UMMC showed that the woman’s gallbladder also contained a large gallstone. Gallstones were detected in another five people buried in the asylum cemetery, where as many as 7,000 people may have been buried. For more on archaeology in Mississippi, go to "Letter from the American Southeast: Spartans of the Lower Mississippi."

18th-Century Foundation Uncovered at Colonial Williamsburg

WILLIAMSBURG, VIRGINIA—The foundation of an eighteenth-century house was uncovered during an excavation at Colonial Williamsburg, according to a WAVY report. The Colin G. and Nancy N. Campbell Archaeology Center is scheduled to be built on the site. Archaeologist Jack Gary of the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation said that the house had plaster walls, casement windows, a chimney on at least one side, and a cellar. The thousands of artifacts recovered during the excavation will be conserved, housed, and exhibited in the new facility. The new building may also be constructed so that visitors can see the site while strolling the hallways, Gary explained. To read about evidence of a seventeenth-century fire that destroyed a church in Jamestown, Virginia, go to "Burn Notice."

Miniature Portrait of Alexander the Great Found in Denmark

RINGSTED, DENMARK—Live Science reports that a miniature bronze alloy fitting bearing a portrait of Alexander the Great was discovered on an island in Denmark by a pair of metal detectorists who were conducting a survey. Alexander the Great succeeded his father as the king of Macedon and eventually created a far-flung empire before his death in Babylon in 323 B.C. at the age of 32. The one-inch round fitting, known as a bracket, shows an engraved image of a man with wavy hair wearing a crown made up of twisted ram horns, which are typical imagery of the ancient ruler. “The image is almost identical to another bracket portrait found years ago that contains the same stylized image,” said archaeologist Freerk Oldenberger of Museum West Zealand, where the newly unearthed bracket is being held. It has been dated to the early third century A.D., during the rule of the Roman emperor Caracalla (reigned A.D. 211–217), and its metal has a high lead content, similar to metal found in Roman bronze statuettes. “It’s possible that a statuette was melted down to make this portrait,” Oldenberger explained. “We know that [Caracalla] was completely obsessed with Alexander the Great and was interested and inspired by him, since he was the greatest conqueror of that time period,” he added. This bracket may have decorated a Roman shield or a sword belt. To read about the search for Alexander's tomb, go to "In Search of History's Greatest Rulers: Alexander the Great, King of Macedon."