Getty Announces the Return of Terracotta Head of Hades to Italy
Last Thursday, the J. Paul Getty Museum announced plans to “voluntarily return a terracotta head to Sicily representing the god Hades and dating to about 400-300 B.C.”
Hair and Eye Colour Can Be Determined for Ancient Human Remains
A new method of establishing hair and eye color from modern forensic samples can also be used to identify details from ancient human remains, finds a new study published in BioMed Central’s open access journal Investigative Genetics.
Removal of orthodox church’s wall painting set off protests
The violent removal of wall paintings dating back to 1554, made by the famous iconographer Onoufrios, from an orthodox church in Gjinari of Elbasan, caused a series of reactions.
Excavating the ancient theatre of Hierapetra
We owe the fullest up to this day description of the big theatre to the traveler Onorio Belli who in 1586 reports that the theatre was dug in a mound and that its scene was richly adorned with columns, entablatures and other decorative elements.
Ancient Olympia gets facelift
The face of global symbol and most sacred place of ancient Greece, Ancient Olympia, is changing, after the decisions made by the Central Archaeological Council (KAS).
Byzantine chapel came to light in Myra of Asia Minor
The Byzantine chapel that came to light in Myra, at the coast of Asia Minor, was buried under 6 metres of mud, but very well preserved.
Excavations at Ayia Varvara – Asprokremnos completed
The 2012 excavations at the 9th millennium site of Ayia Varvara-Asprokremnos have been completed. The investigations, conducted during October and November 2012, were directed by Dr. Carole McCartney.
Movable monuments of Tatoi
The objects located at the preservable building complex of the former royal family estate at Tatoi (Attica) were characterized as movable monuments.
Identifying the 7th century B.C.E. Athenian ‘Snake Goddess’
Michael Laughy of Washington and Lee University in Virginia presented his findings about the mysterious “Snake Goddess” at the 114th Annual Meeting of the Archaeological Institute of America last week.
Niobides brought to light by Italian archaeologists
Italian archaeologists have unearthed an “exceptional” group of sculptures from the 1st century BC, telling the myth of Niobe.
Gold coins of the Sassanid era found in Iraq
Iraqi archaeologists have found 66 gold coins dating back to the Sassanid era (225 BC-640 AD).
Stolen Matisse painting recovered in Essex
“Le Jardin” disappeared in 1987 from the Moderna Museet in Stockholm. Just before Christmas, a small time art dealer was offered the $1million painting by an elderly Polish collector.
Bulgarian archaeologist claims to have found temple of Priapus
The director of Bulgaria’s National History Museum Bozhidar Dimitrov believes he has discovered a temple devoted to Greek god Priapus in Sozopol.
What excited archaeologists through 2012
Louise Iles at the University of Cambridge prepared for the BBC site a month-by-month of what excited archaeologists through 2012.
Concern about stolen Cypriot treasures
Tasoula Chatzitofi has expressed grave concern for the fate of the religious treasures seized in illicit antiquities dealer Aydin Dikmen's appartment, in Munich.
Cycladic Seminar
The Cycladic Seminar series opens next Monday with a lecture given by Colin Renfrew.
Dead Sea Scrolls Are Now Online and Available to Public
The Dead Sea scrolls include the oldest parchment fragments of the Ancient Testament known to us, in particular the Ten Commandments, Genesis chapter 1, Psalms, the integral Book of Isaiah, as well as apocryphal texts.
Ancient civilization uncovered in Bulgaria
Excavators have unearthed artifacts such as weapons, spondylus jewels, decorated fine ware pottery, shards marked by characters/pictograms, and evidence of structures dated to 4900 BCE.
The largest sarcophagus belongs to pharaoh Merneptah
The decorations on Merneptah's different sarcophagi describing the sun god's journey at night offer a clue as to why he built four of them.
Caracalla baths
It's the dimension and the organisation that amazes – there is no spa as big as this anywhere in the world today
Thessaloniki’s Architectural Trajectory
At the 100th anniversary of Thessaloniki’s liberation, an exhibition illustrates the city's architectural trajectory
Ancient city of Troy rebranded itself after war
If pottery made before the war has a distinct Trojan style but after the war its style is typical of the Balkans, it is because the Trojans were keen to align themselves with the new political elite in the region.
Inauguration of the Iera Odos revealed part
Archaeologists claim the most Athenians had walked the Iera Odos in antiquity. Now, thanks to the metro, modern Athenians will have the chance to follow the same route, only this time underground.