From a Wash Post article on evidence humans were in N. America earlier than previously thought. I myself have a mixed-feelings middle-ground view on peer review, but I'm in a very different field.
"The peer-review process is designed to help validate scientific claims, but Lowery argues that in archaeology it often leads to a circle-the-wagon mentality, allowing scientists to wave away evidence that doesn’t support the dominant paradigm. He says he isn’t seeking formal publishing routes because “life’s too short,” comparing this aspect of academic science to “the dumbest game I’ve ever played.”"
#StandingStoneSunday a #Neolithic human-shaped stela with a necklace and a belt, carved in limestone. Found in Montagnac, #France. Dating 3200-2400 BC. In the late neolithic period several cultures living between the Atlantic Ocean and the Caucasus erected human-shaped stone sculptures showing clothing, weapons and jewellery. The stelae were symbols of power and status and were used for ancestor worship and rituals.
Morning news feed includes this delightfully eclectic story (journey?) from WaPo. It includes:
An archaeologist who "isn’t seeking formal publishing routes because “life’s too short,” comparing this aspect of academic science to “the dumbest game I’ve ever played.”
"Sometimes you just have to wait for people to die off"
"15 males go off and get eaten by a short-faced bear"
Ever wondered how you date a standing stone? This one fell down.
Excavation of the stone hole yielded organic material that was dated to 1090BCE +/-100years #StandingStoneSunday (and then it was re-erected. )
That’s late Bronze Age. A fairly typical date for many single stones. So nothing like as ancient as much that we share on here. But why though? What were they for?
Remains of a triconch room in a 4th cent. Roman villa in Patti Marina, #Sicily. The room is comprised of three curved apses and a mosaic floor decorated with geometric patterns and animals.
Is there an Egyptologist in the house? I'm looking for information about the attached glyph. I did a reverse image search and I found indication it is related to the god Ra. Where's a good resource of information for this sort of thing?
For #RomanSiteSaturday the aqueduct of Segovia/#Spain. It was built in the late 1st/early 2nd c. AD and supplied water to the city until the mid 19th century. It's one of the best-preserved #Roman aqueducts and an impressive work of engineering.
Unusually large brown striped chalcedony split-cobble core from an archaeological site (recorded) in north Vernon Parish, Louisiana, & a flake from an almost identical material I flintknapped from a west-central LA Citronelle gravel cobble. Same geologic source? #Archaeology
A comprehensive analysis of 49 silver coins spanning the 7th and 8th centuries CE, revealed the cross-channel connections that shaped early medieval Europe’s economy...
Fascinating world of ancient #glass:
A #Roman glass bottle shaped like a date: dates, figs, and honey were New Year's gifts in Roman times. According to Ovid, they should make the new year a sweet one.
Serrated Alba (L) & heat-treated Scallorn (R) flintknapped this afternoon. Alba is a Caddo & Coles Creek point dating ca. AD 800-1200 in TX, LA, OK & AR. Scallorn dates ca. AD 700-1150 & is found mainly in TX, LA & OK. #Flintknapping#Archaeology
Divers recover chiseled obsidian from Neolithic shipwreck off Italian coast
Divers from the Naples Police underwater unit, based in Naples, Italy, have retrieved a substantial piece of obsidian from the remnants of a Neolithic shipwreck, off the coast of the island of Capri...
A fibula (decorative pin for fastening garments) decorated with a water bird, dating 5th c. BC. Found at the Heidentor near Egesheim.
Water birds frequently appear as ornaments since the Bronze Age. They had a special significance in the perception of the sun’s cycle. The birds could follow the sun, they fly in the sky, walk on the earth, swim, and dive in the water.
Back when #BigData was the fashionable buzz word, I repeatedly had to explain to enthusiasts that archaeological data are not just Big, they are Confused and Patchy and Hairy.
I can't really see how the current generative algorithms could make me obsolete or even speed up much of the work I do. Because I'm in this really niche activity with no commercial potential that demands constant engagement with wildly non-standardised data as well as creative writing about them.
Le menhir d'Ussano à Cavallino di Lecce, en Italie. On trouve une tripotée de menhirs dans la province de Lecce, tout au bout des Pouilles. De façon intéressante, beaucoup ont été resculptés par la suite en forme de colonne.