Early Settlers of Rapa Nui Had Contact With South America

SANTIAGO, CHILE—According to a report from Live Science, researchers have found evidence that early settlers of the southeastern Pacific island Rapa Nui had contact with South America as much as a millennium ago. Exactly when people first settled Rapa Nui, which is also known as Easter Island, as well as whether the first settlers came from Polynesia or South America, remains a matter of debate. The researchers studied 20 obsidian blades excavated at Anakena, the island’s earliest known settlement, which was occupied from roughly A.D. 1000 to 1300. On the blades, they identified starch grains belonging to breadfruit, cassava, taro, purple yam, sweet potato, Tahitian apple, achira, and ginger. A number of these, including purple yam, taro, breadfruit, and Tahitian apple, were native to Polynesia. Achira, sweet potato, and cassava, however, would have come from South America. “Our results show that, by the time that people were living at the Anakena site, they already had voyaged to the South American coast and been in contact with South American peoples,” said Andrea Seelenfreund, an archaeologist at the Academy of Christian Humanism University. Read the original scholarly article about this research in PLOS ONE. To read about another research project focusing on ancient starch granules, go to “Letter from the Four Corners: In Search of Prehistoric Potatoes.”

Massive Eruption Set Human Migration in Motion

AUSTIN, TEXAS—About 74,000 years ago, the Toba volcano on the island of Sumatra in Indonesia erupted in one of the largest supervolcanic eruptions in history. According to a statement released by the University of Texas at Austin, archaeologists working in the Horn of Africa in present-day northwestern Ethiopia believe that some of the Middle Stone Age humans who survived the aftermath of the supervolcano may have been spurred to disperse from the Horn in search of food along “blue highways” created by seasonal rivers during arid intervals, such as the one created by the eruption. The site where the archaeologists have been working is known as Shinfa-Metema 1 and was one of the seasonal waterholes these early humans inhabited. Although the researchers say that these individuals are unlikely to have been the ones to leave Africa, the resilience and flexibility they developed during the climactic changes precipitated by the eruption were crucial to humans in their eventual migration. Small, well-crafted points found at Shinfa-Metema 1 are also remarkable evidence of these people’s hunting practices. “Analyses show that the points are most likely arrowheads that, at 74,000 years in age, represent the oldest evidence of archery,” said UT Austin anthropologist and earth and planetary scientist John Kappelman. To read about the earliest known hunting weapons, go to "Weapons of the Ancient World: Hunting Equipment."

First-Known Neolithic Boats Discovered in the Mediterranean

ROME, ITALY—According to a statement released by the Public Library of Science, archaeologists have uncovered the oldest Neolithic ships known to have traversed the Mediterranean Sea at the site of La Marmotta, a lakeshore village near Rome. A team of archaeologists led by Juan F. Gibaja of the Spanish National Research Council in Barcelonaanalyzed five "dugout" canoes dated to between 5700 and 5100 B.C. and crafted from hollowed-out trees, which are burned and made up of four different kinds of wood. According to the researchers, the structurally sound seagoing vessels will help pinpoint the origins of sailing and provide a schema to better understand the specialized labor employed at the time. The La Marmotta canoes and occupation of many eastern and central Mediterranean islands during the Mesolithic and early Neolithic periods, they explained, not only offer irrefutable proof of such societies traveling across water, but also provide insights into the societal complexity as well as social and technological organization required for such feats.Read the original scholarly article about this research in PLOS ONE. To read more about ancient boatbuilding and shipwrecks in the Mediterranean, go to "A Stitch in Time."

Researchers Assemble Ancient Brain Tissue Archive

OXFORD, ENGLAND—According to a statement released by the University of Oxford, researchers surveying all the known recorded instances of the preservation of human brain tissue at archaeological sites have assembled a database of more than 4,000 human brains. Some 1,300 examples, including many dating as far back as 12,000 years ago, were the only soft tissue preserved in the remains of past people, suggesting brains may preserve better in some circumstances than other organs, perhaps due to the brain’s unique biochemistry or environmental factors. The researchers also suggest the sheer number of examples indicates that brain tissue survives at a rate much higher than scholars had previously supposed, and that future study of biomolecules in these brains might yield new insights into the lives of ancient people. "We’re finding amazing numbers and types of ancient biomolecules preserved in these archaeological brains," said study leader and paleobiologist Alexandra Morton-Hayward of the University of Oxford. "It’s exciting to explore all that they can tell us about life and death in our ancestors,” Read the original scholarly article about this research in Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences. To read more about what insights can come from archaeologists' study of human soft tissue, go to “Bog Bodies Rediscovered.” 

Jin Dynasty Tombs Uncovered in Northern China

CHANGZHI, CHINA—Live Science reports that three opulently decorated brick tombs unearthed during salvage excavations in Shanxi Province date to the Jin Dynasty, whose leaders ruled in northern China from 1115 to 1234. The Jin were not ethnically Han—the largest ethnic group in China today—but descended from a seminomadic Tungusic-speaking people from northeastern China. Jin emperors came to power in the wake of a revolt against Liao Dynasty rule in northern China, and controlled what had been Liao territory until they were conquered by the Mongols in the thirteenth century A.D. The tombs feature carved arches, doors, and windows, as well as painted murals of human figures and floral motifs. Inscriptions inside the chambers record information about historical events and geography of the Jin period. Paintings in one of the tombs, however, are rendered in different colors and depict different flora and fauna than the other two. To read more about the turbulent period in which the Jin Dynasty rose to power, go to "Weapons of the Ancient World: Fire Lances and Cannons."

Unknown Building Discovered in Sicily's Valley of the Temples

AGRIGENTO, SICILY—The Valley of the Temples in the Sicilian city of Agrigento is one of the island’s most extraordinary sites—yet it has never been completely excavated. The Art Newspaper reports that archaeologists discovered a previously unknown building during a recent geophysical survey of more than 30,000 square feet of an area near the main temples. The ancient city of Akragas (modern Agrigento) was settled in the sixth century B.C. by colonists from Greece and became a major religious center. “As we are very close to a sanctuary, we thought that there might be remains of unknown monuments in this area, and the geophysical anomalies clearly revealed their existence,” said archaeologist Sebastiano Imposa of the University of Catania. The new building, the researchers explained, may have been connected to the city’s religious workings. Imposa and his team have also conducted a small test excavation at the site and found several blocks of a wall likely belonging to the new structure. They will continue excavations and hope to find more of the newly discovered building in the future. Read the original scholarly article about this research in Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports. To read about the discovery of a lost theater in Agrigento, go to "Sicily's Lost Theater."

Medieval Royal Baptismal Font Found in Germany

QUEDLINBURG, GERMANY—Medievalists.net reports that a Christian baptismal font dated to the tenth century has been uncovered in what is now the crypt of the church on the castle hill in Quedlinburg, which is located in central Germany. The sandstone font is quatrefoil in shape and is thought to have been built during the early years of the rule of the Ottonian dynasty. Researchers from the State Office for Heritage Management and Archaeology Saxony-Anhalt note that the structure is the oldest known baptismal font built in this style to be discovered north of the Alps. They think that Duke Henry I of Bavaria (A.D. 922–955) may have been baptized in the font. He is remembered for his attempt to kill his brother, Otto the Great, during an Easter Sunday attack on Quedlinburg in A.D. 941. Otto the Great’s daughter, Mathilde, may have also been baptized at the site. She became the first abbess of Quedlinburg Abbey, and was followed in that role by Adelheid I, (A.D. 977–1044), daughter of Otto II, who may have also been baptized in the font. To read about excavations of a basilica commissioned by Otto the Great that once overlooked the village of Helfta, go to "Otto's Church."