Two Ancient Teenage Girls

From Nature dot com:

For more than 12,000 years, the adolescent girl’s bones lay deep in a Mexican cave. Now analysis of her skeleton is revealing details of her harsh existence in the early Americas — which probably included pregnancy and childbirth before death at a young age.

The bones show that the girl, whom researchers nicknamed Naia, is likely to have travelled long distances on foot, but didn’t carry much on her journeys. The skeleton also reveals that Naia experienced severe and repeated nutritional stress that scarred her bones and teeth, according to results presented on 30 March at a meeting of the Society for American Archaeology in Vancouver, Canada.

For that work, divers examined Naia in the water-filled cavern in the Yucatán Peninsula where she was discovered in 2007. But intruders subsequently tampered with her remains. To prevent further meddling, the bones were gently carried out of the cave in 2014 and 2016 — which also gave scientists easier access to the specimens.

From Western Digs:

On a ranch near the Santa Maria River in northern Chihuahua, researchers have unearthed more than 18,000 artifacts, including thousands of stone flakes, cores, and hammers, along with 370 projectile points, and a dozen stone ovens.

But the most surprising find has been the grave of a teenage girl, who was interred among the rocks, alone and unadorned, some 3,200 years ago.

Her remains, researchers say, may help unlock the history of the people who brought agriculture to this arid region, and who were the first known farmers of corn in the Chihuahuan Desert.

Early Egyptian Queen Revealed in 5,000-Year-Old Hieroglyphs

From Live Science:

About 60 drawings and hieroglyphic inscriptions, dating back around 5,000 years, have been discovered at a site called Wadi Ameyra in Egypt’s Sinai Desert. Carved in stone, they were created by mining expeditions sent out by early Egyptian pharaohs, archaeologists say. They reveal new information on the early pharaohs. For instance, one inscription the researchers found tells of a queen named Neith-Hotep who ruled Egypt 5,000 years ago as regent to a young pharaoh named Djer. Archaeologists estimate that the earliest carvings at Wadi Ameyra date back around 5,200 years, while the most recent date to the reign of a pharaoh named Nebre, who ruled about 4,800 years ago.

read more here @ Live Science

Egyptian pharaoh Tutankhamun's wet nurse might have been his sister

From The Guardian comes this article on the family life of Egyptian Pharaoh, Tutankhamun:

Archaeologists believe Maia, Egyptian pharaoh Tutankhamun’s wet nurse, may have actually been his sister Meritaten.

Maia was the wet nurse of Tutankhamun, whose mummy was found in 1922 by renowned British Egyptologist Howard Carter in the Valley of Kings in Luxor along with a treasure trove of thousands of objects.

DNA tests have proven that the pharaoh Akhenaten was the father of Tutankhamun. The identity of his mother has long been a mystery, although she is not believed to be Akhenaten’s Queen Nefertiti. Some theories suggest the boy king’s mother was one of his aunts.

“Maia is none other than princess Meritaten, the sister or half-sister of Tutankhamun and the daughter of Akhenaten and Nefertiti,” Zivie said.

The mummy of Meritaten has not been found, but antiquities minister Mamduh al-Damati said on Sunday it could be in a secret chamber inTutankhamun’s tomb.

read more here @ The Guardian

Egypt Uncovers Remains Of Pharaoh's Daughter in 3,700-Year-Old Tomb

From an article in Newsweek

Archeologists have uncovered the 3,700-year-old tomb of an Egyptian pharaoh’s daughter near a newly discovered pyramid in the Dashur royal necropolis south of Cairo. Within the burial chamber, archeologists from Egypt’s ministry of antiquities retrieved an ornately inscribed wooden box containing four pharaonic jars used for the preservation of organs. It is believed the tomb belonged to the daughter of King Emnikamaw (Ameny Qemau), a ruler from ancient Egypt’s 13th Dynasty whose own burial pyramid is located 650 yards away in the same necropolis.

Not much is know of Ameny Qemau of his reign which lasted only two years.

Hama: Forgotten Queen of Assyria

Who was Hama, queen of Shalmaneser, king of Assyria, daughter-in-law of Adad-nerari?  Very little is known about either Hama or her husband, Shalmaneser IV (r. 783–773 BC).  We conjecture that Hama's husband succeeded one brother and was himself succeeded by another.  However, this was a period of turmoil, of weak central government, and palace intrigue was at its zenith.  Courtiers held power, and Shalmaneser IV's reign was dominated by the powerful Field Marshall, Samsi-ilu, and the Palace Herald, Bel-Harran-belu-usur. The Assyrian Empire was systematically weakened by plague and civil war, and there were rumours that the royal family was murdered due to internal dissatisfaction with the monarchy.  

From an article in USA Today

In a crumbling Middle Eastern palace, a woman’s coffin lay undisturbed for millennia, her remains surrounded by treasure and protected by an ancient curse. Now scientific sleuthing has revealed her identity: she was Hama, queen of an empire.

Hama died young, and perhaps suddenly, hinting at why she was interred in a bronze coffin rather than the usual stone sarcophagus. She was no more than 20, but the gold crowns and other riches in her grave signal her power and wealth.

Seal of Hama

Hama was entombed near other queens at the sprawling Northwest Palace in the Assyrian capital of Nimrud, near present-day Mosul. Discovered by Iraqi archaeologists nearly 30 years ago, Hama’s coffin held a breathtaking array of riches, including chunky gold anklets, a beautifully worked gold jug and jeweled rings.

Amid the hoard was the nearly complete skeleton of a short, slender woman. On her head was a delicate gold crown depicting pomegranates, flowers and female winged genies. By her side was a gold stamp seal like those used to stamp documents. The script on it read in part, “Belonging to Hama, queen of Shalmaneser.”

Near Hama’s coffin was a tablet written with a curse warning, “Anyone later who removes my throne … may his spirit receive no bread!” But the curse, which was installed for another queen, didn’t stop Islamic State fighters. They blew up part of the Northwest Palace with barrel bombs in 2015 and wrecked Mosul’s museum, which held Hama’s bronze coffin.

Mongolian mummy buried in 'Adidas boots'

Intriguing new details have emerged about a medieval mummy known for her 'Adidas' boots - which she wore more than a millennia ago. 

The body of the woman was discovered a year ago this week in the Altai mountains region of Mongolia.  And her body and possessions remained so remarkably preserved that experts are still uncovering some of the secrets they keep.

Now, scientists have discovered that the mummy suffered a significant blow to the head before her death. 

The Mongolian woman - aged between 30 and 40 - hit headlines in April 2016, thanks to her modern-looking footwear, which some likened to a pair of trainers. 

The woman was buried alongside a number of her possessions - including a handbag and four changes of clothes.  A comb and a mirror from her beauty kit were also found, along with a knife.  Her horse and a saddle with metal stirrups in such good condition that it could be used today were buried as well.

They are still seeking to verify the exact age of the burial, but they estimate it took place in the tenth century - more recently than originally thought. 

Read more here @ Daily Mail

Powerful Women Buried at Stonehenge

The remains of 14 women believed to be of high status and importance have been found at Stonehenge, the iconic prehistoric monument in Wiltshire, England.

The discovery, along with other finds, supports the theory that Stonehenge functioned, at least for part of its long history, as a cremation cemetery for leaders and other noteworthy individuals, according to a report published in the latest issue of British Archaeology.

During the recent excavation, more women than men were found buried at Stonehenge, a fact that could change its present image.

Stonehenge, now a World Heritage Site, radiates timeless beauty and achievement, but it seems women's status proved to be more ephemeral.

Willis said that the role of women in society "probably declined again towards the 3rd millennium B.C...both archaeological and historical evidence has shown that women's status has gone up and down quite noticeably at different times in the past."

read more @ Seeker

Iceland's "Woman In Blue"

From Message To Eagle dot com:

A Viking-age (9th/ 10th century) woman grave was discovered at Ketilsstaðir, eastern Iceland, in 1938. Her skeleton was very poorly preserved and incomplete. The woman from Ketilsstaðir wore typical copper-alloy Scandinavian oval brooches, one of which was in direct contact with her face, resulting in significant soft tissue and textile preservation.  Now, researchers say that the unknown woman buried with Viking-era objects, was a child of some of the island’s earliest settlers, researchers say. Tooth development and wear suggest she was between 17 and 25 years old when she died. (read more here @ Message To Eagle)

From New Historian:

She’s known as the Icelandic “Woman in Blue” due to the color of the apron she wore to her grave. In less romantic terms she’s a partial skeleton and one of Iceland’s earliest inhabitants. Her grave, including the skeleton and other Viking-era burial goods, was discovered in 1938 in Eastern Iceland near the town of Ketilsstaðir. During a recent annual meeting of the American Association of Physical Anthropologists, researchers presented the results of their ongoing examination and testing of the girl’s remains and the objects found buried with her.

The incomplete and poorly preserved skeletal remains belong to a young woman determined to have been between 17 and 25 years old (radiocarbon testing of the fabric and tooth show she was born around the year 900 CE and the time of her death was sometime around the year 920 CE). Based on the chemical analysis of one of her teeth, the Woman in Blue moved from the British Isles or Scandinavia to Iceland when she was between five and ten years old, a fact indicated by her change in diet from mostly land animals and plants to one that included a large amount of seafood and fish. (read more here @ New Historian)

From Iceland Magazine:

The grave was that of a young woman, most likely in her twenties, who was believed to have moved to Iceland from Scotland at the age of five or ten. She is thought to have died around 920. Buried with her were two silver brooches and an expensive pearl necklace. One of the brooches laid pressed up against the girl’s chin, amazingly preserving part of her skin, enabling researchers to determine her age, origin as well as other information which will be presented at the exhibition. (read more here @ Iceland Magazine)

From Iceland Monitor:

The ‘Woman in Blue’ moved to Iceland as a young child, probably from Scotland. She died at just over twenty years of age around 920.  In a marvellous struck of luck for anthropologists, one of two copper brooches that the ‘Woman in Blue’ took to her grave moved position, covering the cheek of the buried body. The result is that the woman’s jawbone and cheek have been preserved for over 1,100 years.  This material gives us today an inestimable insight into the life of our Viking-age ‘Woman in Blue’, so named as she was found buried in blue clothes of Icelandic wool. (read more here @ Iceland Monitor)

From New York Times:

Though she was dressed in traditional Viking attire for her burial, researchers are unable to conclude whether she was Viking or hailed from Northern Europe. In addition to her clothing and the blue apron, she was also buried with an extravagant pearl necklace and two Scandinavian brooches — and one of the brooches, in an amazing twist of fate, contained the clue that opened to door to her life story. (read more here @ New York Times)

From Archaeology Magazine:

The remains of the “Woman in Blue,” discovered in 1938 in eastern Iceland, have been subjected to a battery of tests that have revealed new details about her origins and life history. Chief among these is that the woman, named after a blue-dyed apron she was buried in, appears to have come to Iceland during its early settlement period. (read more here @ Archaeology Magazine)

Mysterious 'Witch Girl' of Northern Italy

From Huffington Post:

Archaeologists in northern Italy have unearthed the skeleton of a teenage girl who lived there hundreds of years ago. The skeleton itself is unremarkable, but its unusual face-down position in the grave has some calling the child a "witch girl.". The skeleton was discovered in San Calocero in Albenga on the Ligurian Riviera.

The skeleton -- believed to be that of a 13-year-old -- was unearthed by a team from the Pontifical Institute of Christian Archaeology near a church built on the site of a burial ground in the town of Albenga. The archaeologists said the prone burial may have been intended to punish the girl, perhaps because she had committed a heinous crime.

read more here at Huffington Post and @ Yahoo News

65 Byzantine Tombs Discovered in Ancient City in Turkey

From an article in January 2017 by David DeMar:

In the remains of the ancient marble-clad city of Stratonikeia in southwestern Turkey, archaeologists have found a staggering 65 tombs dating to the Byzantine era, according to the Hurryiet Daily News.

The researcher, who referred to Stratonikeia as “a living archaeological city”, called the site unique for is various characteristics, which included a high number of ancient structures surviving to the present day. The city, which would have at one time been home to the Carians of central Anatolia before the arrival of the Greeks, also holds ties to the Leleges, a pre-Hellenistic people that were said to have been allies of Troy during the Trojan War, the archaeologist said.

One of the primary finds, according to Söğüt, was the nearly four-foot-long skeleton found within a Byzantine-era tomb that had been undergoing cleaning and preservation works. The remains are thought to have belonged to a young woman who lived nearly 1,300 years in the past.

read entire article here @ the New Historian and @ Daily Sabah History

Clues to an ancient death: bacteria

Gillian Mohney made this report for ABC News in January 2017:

This woman's post-mortem was 800 years in the making, with ancient bacteria providing the critical clue for her likely cause of death, and offering a tantalizing glimpse into the lives of our forebears in the Near East.

In the 800-year-old remains of a Byzantine woman found in Turkey, in what used to be Troy, an archaeologist discovered some nodules the size of strawberries — leading to initial speculation that the woman died of tuberculosis. But the story turned out to be much more complex.

“We speculate that human infections in the ancient world were acquired from a pool of bacteria that moved readily between humans, livestock and the environment,” she said.

Read entire article here @ ABC News

Read more about ancient diseases @ the Scientific American and @ the Science Museum

Egyptian Necklace Found in a Siberian Grave

An amazing archaeological discovery has been made in the Altai Mountains in Siberia - one that could change our perception of ancient peoples and trade:

Made of brightly coloured laminated glass, the priceless jewellery was found gracing the neck of a 25 year old woman in a remote burial mound in the Altai Mountains. Scientists say she died between 2,300 and 2,400 years ago and was a kinswoman of the famous tattooed 'Princess Ukok' (see more about her here), whose astonishing body artwork preserved in the permafrost has led to worldwide interest.

In fact, while it has been nicknamed 'Cleopatra's Necklace', the highly-coloured necklace pre-dates the exotic last Pharaoh of Ancient Egypt and originates around the time that Alexander the Great dominated the world from the Ionian Sea to the Himalayas.

The professor is confident the age of the beads is around 2,300 to 2,400 years old because other artefacts in the burial mound, such as a mirror and a knife, which are far more common to Siberia, are known to belong to this era. Yet the presence of the necklace is totally unique compared with discoveries in all previous ancient Siberian graves.

'There have been similar looking finds in Scythian mounds in Crimea, but these were just single beads - never a complete necklace', he said.

Read more about this fascinating discovery here @ The Siberian Times

Lady of Dai

One of the world’s most preserved mummies, the Lady of Dai, is still soft to the touch, has bendy ligaments, and is 2,100 years old

A Chinese woman was preserved for around 2,100 years and is baffling scientists. She is called the Lady of Dai, and is considered to be one of the best-preserved mummies ever found.

Her skin is still soft, her legs and arms can bend, her internal organs are still intact. She has even retained her Type-A blood. Somehow she still has her own eyelashes and hair.

The Lady of Dai is also known as Xin Zhui. She lived during the Han dynasty from 206 BC through 220 AD and was the wife of the Marquis of Dai.

Her tomb was found inside a hill known as Mawangdui, located in Changsha, Hunan, China. The burial site was found in 1971 when workers were digging an air raid shelter.

Read More Here @ the Vintage News

Lady of Cao

Harvard University to conduct DNA study on Lady of Cao - Peru this Week

Archaeologist Regulo Franco Jordán announced that specialists from Harvard University began conducting a DNA study of the Lady of Cao, a woman considered by many as the first ruler of Pre-Columbian America. The investigation will also include the 6 occupants who were buried with her.

The Lady of Cao is a name given to a female Moche mummy discovered at the archaeological site El Brujo, an Archaeological Complex, just north of Trujillo.

Read More Here @ Peru This Week

Woman Power in Maya World

In Guatemala’s Laguna del Tigre National Park, the dense forest hides many treasures: endangered scarlet macaws flit among the treetops, while rare jaguars hunt on the forest floor. Only recently has the world learned about one of Laguna del Tigre’s greatest treasures, a 2,500-year-old city that once stood at the crossroads of the ancient Maya world. 

One of the most intriguing people who inhabited Waka’ was a woman of uncommon power and status. The discovery and excavation of her tomb in 2004 by team member Jose Ambrosio Diaz drew a lot of attention to the site.

On the floor of the queen’s tomb near her head, researchers found 44 square and rectangular jade plaques they believe were glued onto the wooden part of the ko’haw. The presence of this helmet in her torab has led the researchers to the conclusion that this queen held a position of power not typically afforded women of the time. 

Read More Here @ Lost Worlds

Another Wife of Neferefre?

Archaeologists unearth tomb of previously unknown Queen in Egypt | Ancient Origins

A team of Czech archaeologists has discovered a tomb in an ancient Egyptian necropolis that belongs to a Pharaonic Queen, who ruled around 4,500 years ago and who was previously unknown to historians, the Egyptian Ministry of Antiquities announced on Sunday.  The tomb was found in  Abu Sir, often called the ‘site of the forgotten kings of the 5th Dynasty’.

The Express Tribune reports that the newly-discovered tomb belongs to a wife of Neferefre, who Antiquities Minister Mamdouh al-Damaty named as Khentakawess III. Two previous queens of Neferefre with the same name had already been identified, but a third queen was not known about.

Al-Damaty said it was the “first time we have discovered the name of this queen who had been unknown before the discovery of her tomb”. He added that her name and rank had been inscribed on the inner walls of the tomb. 

Read More Here @ Ancient Origins

Nefertiti's Secret Grave

More on the possible discovery of the secret tomb of Nefertiti - Egypt's enigmatic Queen.

King Tut's Tomb May Hide Nefertiti's Secret Grave | Live Science

The burial chamber of King Tut has revealed many secrets over the years, but there may be a whopper yet to discover: the tomb of his mother, Queen Nefertiti.

A scan of the wall texture in King Tutankhamun's tomb reveals indentations or faint lines, which could suggest two hidden doors. Based on other aspects of the tomb's geometry, it's possible that Nefertiti is hiding behind the door, said Nicholas Reeves, an archaeologist at the University of Arizona who has proposed the theory of Queen Nefertiti's secret tomb.

Queen Nefertiti may lie buried behind Tut’s tomb | Vintage News

Egypt has unearthed additional evidence of a secret crypt behind King Tutankhamun’s tomb. Some believe this to be the lost burial chamber of Queen Nefertiti, said to be Tutankhamun’s stepmother.

Queen Nefertiti, who died in the 14th century B.C, holds a tremendous appeal internationally, and confirmation of her burial site would be the most extraordinary archaeological find of this century for Egypt.

An examination of radar scans completed at the site last November has revealed the existence of two open spaces behind the walls of King Tutankhamun’s tomb.

The scans have pointed to some items behind the walls, different material that could be metal or could be biological.

Could Queen Nefertiti's Tomb Reveal Secrets From Egypt's Shadowy Past? | National Geographic

She was married to one of the most eccentric pharaohs. But after his death she may have reigned on her own––as a man. If researchers have found her tomb, what's inside could change Middle Eastern history.

The buzz is now as loud as ever, as scans of King Tut’s tomb indicate there may be hidden chambers behind sections of walls. Questions have inevitably arisen about possible links to Nefertiti, and whether archaeologists will peek behind the walls to find room after room filled with the dazzling grave goods of the long-lost queen.

Archaeologist Says He May Have Found Nefertiti's Tomb | Time dot com

A British archaeologist says he may have discovered where ancient Egyptians buried Nefertiti, the Egyptian queen and wife of Pharaoh Akhenaten.

Nefertiti, whose famous bust immortalized her profile, has been the object of searches by archaeologists for decades with little luck. Now, Nicholas Reeves of the University of Arizona says that he has identified the location of her hidden tomb behind a wall in the Valley of Kings. In a research paper, Reeves suggests that Nefertiti may be connected to Tut's tomb through a portal.

See also images from Disclose TV

“The Red Lady of El Mirón”

Red Lady of El Mirón bones stained in 'blood-like' paint baffle archaeologists | Daily Mail Online

A robust, relatively tall, apparently healthy, probably female adult was buried at the rear of the living area in El Mirón Cave in the Cantabrian Cordillera of Spain about 18,700 calendar years ago. She had lived in the cold, open environment of Oldest Dryas, with a subsistence based on hunting mainly ibex and red deer, fishing salmon and some gathering of plants, including some starchy seeds and mushrooms. The technology of her group included the manufacture and use of stone tools and weapon elements made on both excellent-quality non-local flint and local non-flints, as well as antler projectile tips and bone needles. Her burial may have been marked by rock engravings suggestive of a female personage, by red ochre staining of a large block adjacent to her skeleton, and by engravings on the adjacent cave wall, and the burial layer itself was intensely stained with red ochre rich in specular hematite specially obtained from an apparently non-local source. 

Read More Here @ Daily Mail and Here @ Science Direct

Ancient Bling In Tomb of Chinese Woman

Ancient Bling: Exquisite Jewelry Found in Tomb of Chinese Woman

Around 1,500 years ago, at a time when China was divided, a woman named Farong was laid to rest wearing fantastic jewelry, which included a necklace of 5,000 beads and "exquisite" earrings, archaeologists report.

Her tomb was discovered in 2011 in Datong City, China, by a team of archaeologists with the Datong Municipal Institute of Archaeology who were surveying the area before a construction project. The researchers excavated the tomb, conserved the artifacts and reconstructed the necklace.

Her epitaph, found by the tomb entrance, reads simply, "Han Farong, the wife of Magistrate Cui Zhen" (as translated in the journal article). In China, the surname is traditionally written first and the given name second.

While no other burials were found in Farong's tomb, the archaeologists did discover two other tombs nearby that are in the process of being studied.

Read more at Yahoo! News

Ancient tombs in Peru hint at human sacrifice

Archaeologists find ancient tombs in Peru hinting at human sacrifice | Science | The Guardian

Archaeologists in Peru have found more than a dozen tombs suggesting human sacrifice at sprawling ruins on the northern coast, a seat of power for three ancient cultures and the possible center of a pre-Inca legend.

At Chotuna-Chornancap, a coastal ruin complex in the arid valleys far north of Lima, archaeologists with Peru’s ministry of culture found more than 17 graves dating to at least the 15th century.

“There is at least one fairly high-status tomb,” said Haagen Klaus, a bioarchaeologist at George Mason University has worked at Chotuna-Chornancap before. Klaus told the Guardian that he hopes to analyze the new finds, discovered by the ruins of a temple, to confirm whether the victims were sacrificed.

“It’s not unusual that sacrifices are made to those individuals, sometimes during the funeral or even years or generations afterward,” he said. “But we can see that a number of the individuals that were buried were children – and that does fit into the larger pattern of ritual sacrifice.”

Continue reading article here at The Guardian and also at Seeker