MIKE RUGGERI'S ANCIENT AMERICAS NEWS
News of the Ancient Americas from the Ancient Andes to Mesoamerica to Ancient North America
Peruvian archaeologists have uncovered skeletal remains, pots and mortars, probably from the Wari period, since they are close to the the Wariwillka Wari complex.
https://andina.pe/ingles/noticia-peru-archaeological-remains-found-near-wariwillka-site-in-junin-719750.aspx
INAH has uncovered the remains of a 8 to 10 year old boy at the Temple Mayor. He was sacrificed to the Aztec god of war, Huitzilopochtli, in the late 15th century. He was found with body adornments and Huitzilopochtli symbols. The site is called Offering 176, and it was found under stone slabs near the Temple Mayor. The child was placed in a cylindrical box with volcanic rocks pasted with stucco. Of the 204 tombs found at the site so far, the configuration of the grave is unique. He was wearing jadeite jewelry from Guatemala, rectangular wooden earrings and a wooden breastplate called an anahuatl, bearing insignias of the gods Huitzilopochtli, Tezcatlipoca, Tlahuizcalpantecuhtli and Mixcóatl. The connection to Huitzilopochtli was further enhanced by the presence of the wings of a forest hawk, with their ocher and blue coloring, and the obvious location of the burial – in the west side of a Huitzilopochtli temple.
Archaeological News Network has the story here with good photos;
And further details are here in Ancient Origins;https://www.ancient-origins.net/news-history-archaeology/aztec-child-sacrifice-021990
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There are rows of cairn-like pillars close to an Inca road network that stretched from Columbia to Chile. The mystery was their function. Archaeologists researched 16th century Quechua sources which pointed to calendrical, astronomical and religious purposes. Astronomers at the Atacama Array and the European Southern Observatory ran simulations of sunrises on different dates. And they found the Sun perfectly aligned with the markers. The Incas, then, broadcast their sacred power over large distances. They observed the autumn equinox at several cairn sites and found the sun rose exactly above them.
The Guardian has the report here;https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/jul/16/chile-atacama-desert-saywas-inca-solar-discovery
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Archaeologists found an ancient engraved smoking pipe in 1930 in Alabama. Researchers have now subjected the pipe to new scientific analysis using mass spectrometry. Clear traces of nicotine have been found inside the pipe. The pipe is dated to 1685-1530 BCE. This pushes back the earliest known use of tobacco for smoking by 1000 years. The research is posted in the Journal of Archaeological Science.
Science Magazine has the report here:
http://www.sciencemag.org/news/2018/06/americans-have-been-lighting-more-3000-years-ancient-pipe-reveals
(My note; This is not the first time tobacco has been found in the BCE era. In Utah, a site was uncovered that contained artifacts, including tobacco seeds, that dated to 10,000 years ago. No smoking pipes were found, but the presence of tobacco in that cache obviously raises the question, what were these folks doing with gathered tobacco seeds 10,000 years ago.)
Western Digs has that report here;
http://westerndigs.org/ice-age-hunting-camp-replete-with-bird-bones-and-tobacco-found-in-utah-desert/
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INAH has uncovered 26 graves at a site near Copilco, south of Mexico City. 11 of them are in the form of a truncated cone. The site was also used for storage of grains and artifacts. 130 figurines have been uncovered. Most depict pregnant women and also children painted in red, yellow and black. The site was protected from the huge volcanic Xictle explosion circa 245-315 CE. The site may have been a specialized site for infant care by the women at Copilco. INAH is undertaking chemical and pollen analysis to confirm the pre-natal care idea.
Archaeology News Network has the report here with great photos;
https://archaeologynewsnetwork.blogspot.com/2018/06/2700-years-old-graves-discovered-in.html
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The latest Mexico 7.1 earthquake has unveiled an ancient shrine underneath the pyramid at Teopanzolco. The twin towered pyramid dedicated to Tlaloc and Huitzilopochtli has incurred structural damage to the floor of the top of the temple, leaving the floor sunken and bent. Recovery efforts are underway. And while working on the structure, INAH found a new sunken temple probably dedicated to Tlaloc. There may be a matching one to Huitzilipochtli next to it. They have found that the floor of the newly discovered temple was constructed using reddish volcanic rock and charcoal. They have found ceramic shards and an incense burner.
The new temple dates to 1150-12000 CE. The Teopanzolco pyramid was constructed by the Tlahuica culture, who were later conquered by the Aztecs, who continued work on the pyramid. The site was re-discovered by Zapata’s revolutionary forces in 1910, since it is near Zapata’s home base in Cuernavaca.
Smithsonian has the report here;
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/earthquake-reveals-12th-century-temple-hidden-within-aztec-pyramid-180969619/
The Daily Mail has its usual excellent photographs and a video of the discovery;
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-5948063/Damage-Mexicos-killer-quake-reveals-unknown-temple-built-INSIDE-pyramid.html
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INAH has uncovered a large grey stone yoke near Tamiahua, in Veracruz. It has carvings representing a serpent head and rattle, and human heads, and a feline face. The style is Totonac, and is dated between 350 BCE-650 CE. The aesthetics on the stone are remarkable and well preserved. INAH has posted a great photo of the Yoke, and a great video of its discovery is in the INAH report here;
http://www.inah.gob.mx/es/boletines/7341-hallan-yugo-totonaco-durante-salvamento-arqueologico-realizado-en-tamaulipas-y-veracruz
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Japanese and Salvadorean archaeologists have uncovered a staircase in a pyramidal structure called La Campana. They also uncovered a glass and bowl with animal drawings inside seven pieces of smooth slate placed vertically and in a circle. The structure is darted to 535 CE. Two pieces of jade decorated with two snake heads with their jaws open and tongues forked were also found.
The San Andres Complex is a large site with a monumental area dating to 600-900 CE, with an acropolis, several pyramids and other structures.
Archaeology News Network has the story here with many photos;
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Archaeologists have uncovered a burial site at the Peruvian site of Tucume, which contains 26 pyramids. 24 mummies have been found clothed in finely woven robes. The burial is dated at 1500 CE, within the Ince time period. Ceramics, grains and fabrics were buried with them. 89 archaeologists are working on the find. It now appears the Inca arrived in the Tucume area in 1470 CE. The archaeologists expect to find ten more mummies at this burial site. The tomb appears to contain both men and women. The women are probably buried next to weaving remains and the men are buried next to oars, wooden paddles and shells. Some of the buried are holding spiked spondylus shells. Three or four of the mummies wrapped in fine clothing are probably Inca nobility.
There are intact ceramics that will tell us more about Inca pottery at the time.
The Daily Mail has the report here with their usual fine photos and a video;
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-5920861/Mummified-Inca-corpses-clothed-finely-woven-royal-robes-unearthed.html
Archaeology News Network also has a report here with more photos.
https://archaeologynewsnetwork.blogspot.com/2018/07/archaeologists-find-tombs-of-24-inca.html
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The Page-Ladson site is the first Pre-Clovis site to be documented in the US southeast. Artifacts dating to 14,500 BCE were found in a well dated stratigraphic context. The site is near the Gulf of Mexico. 71 wood samples were carbon dated at Pre-Clovis time periods in conjunction with stone artifacts of coastal plain chert, a knife fragment and a flake. The artifacts are in deposits that contain extinct mammal remains (mastodon, camelid, and bison). A mastodon tusk has marks made by humans to remove the tusk, dated at 14,550 BCE. The Pre-Clovis inhabitants knew where to find freshwater, game, plants, raw materials for making tools, and other critical resources for survival. Further Pre-Clovis investigation in the area is hampered by the fact that most of the area is now underwater. The Page-Ladson site itself is underwater.
The full scientific report is at;
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Archaeological researchers in Louisiana, using sediment coring, radiocarbon dating, carbon-isotope analysis, optically stimulated luminescence at the Grand Caillou mound are trying to find how ancient peoples in the area chose their village sites. The Grand Caillou Mound was built in stages over several hundred years, ending in 800 CE. The village construction began in 1200 CE. They confirmed that building the mound in layers with clay at the bottom, loose sediments in the middle and clay on top was a way that mound builders built mounds to withstand the elements.
Mound building in America began at 4,500 BCE near resource rich waterways. The Grand Caillou Mound village had a population of 500 people at a time. Ceramics there have been dated to 1000-1400 CE when the site was abandoned, due to saltwater incursion at the site over time.
The research appears in the Journal of Island and Coastal Archaeology
Science Daily has the report here;
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2018/05/180522114822.htm
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Archaeologists uncovered 2,000 year old mummies at the site of Wari Kayan in southern Peru in 1925. Researchers are now studying the hair of 14 of the mummies with advanced technology to determine their diet. Using isotope analysis. They found that these coastal dwelling people ate a lot of seafood, corn, and drank corn beer. Their food consumption varied little in the months before their deaths.
The findings were published in the March issue of the Journal of Archaeological Science.
The report is at Live Science;
https://www.livescience.com/49892-peru-mummy-hair-diet.html
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INAH archaeologists found an Aztec human skull rack or tzompantli under a colonial period house behind the National Cathedral. The scale of it suggested it once held thousands of skulls. The racks were the size of a basketball court. They were likely built between 1486-1502. They also found skulls that had been stuck together with mortar on towers.
Several thousand skulls had to have been displayed on these structures. INAH has so far collected 180 almost complete skulls and thousands of skull fragments, which are now being meticulously studied. They show that the skulls were defleshed after death, and the decapitations were clean and precise.
75% of the skulls are males between 20-35 years of age. 20% were women and 5% were children. They were in good health. Some may have been slaves sold in markets for sacrifice. This is the same ration as the skulls found at the nearby Templo Mayor. Strontium and oxygen isotopes in their teeth show they are from all parts of Mesoamerica, and lived in the Aztec capital of Tenochtitlan for some time. Historical accounts show some captives lived with the families of the captors for some time.
The skulls also show intentional dental and cranial modifications that were varied according to the culture they lived in, before being transported to Tenochtitlan. Further scientific studies of the skulls can narrow down the specifics of this whole story by individuals, telling us a lot about the rituals all over Mesoamerica and their genetic diversity.
Science Magazine has the report here with many photos and a video;
http://www.sciencemag.org/news/2018/06/feeding-gods-hundreds-skulls-reveal-massive-scale-human-sacrifice-aztec-capital
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Spanish troops met a great Calusa leader at Mound Key, Florida in 1566. The king lived in a structure that could host 2000 individuals. The Calusa created a non-agricultural complex society based on fishing, hunting, and gathering. They ate sharks, turtles, shellfish, mullet, deer, birds, wild produce, and animals from the coasts, estuaries and mangrove forests. They grew chili peppers, papaya, and gourds in home gardens.
They developed a priesthood, military, canals, extensive trade routes, and tribute gathered from 20,000 people. Mound Key was an artificial island made from oysters and clam shells, topped with the huge royal house. The Spanish were forced to withdraw from the area after three years due to unending hostility. The Calusa burned down Mound Key. The Spanish did not return for another century. But Spanish diseases decimated their population. The remaining Calusa fled into the Florida Keys and Cuba by the end of the 18th century.
An archaeological team has reconstructed the outlines of the Calusa great house. It was oval shaped, 80 feet long and 65 feet wide, held up by 150 wooden posts. It was built in three stages starting in 1000 CE.
The research is published in the Journal of Anthropological Archaeology.
The report is in National Geographic;
https://news.nationalgeographic.com/2018/06/ancient-native-american-kings-house-found-florida-archaeology-science/
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Researchers have studied ancient Peruvian skulls of individuals who had undergone trepanation; drilling, cutting or scraping a hole in the skull for medical reasons; 59 skulls from 400 BCE to 200 BCE, 421 skulls from 1000 CE to 1400 CE and 160 from the Inca period, 1400 CE to 1500 CE were studied. Ancient Peruvian surgeons treated individuals for traumatic injuries to clean up skull fractures and fluid accumulation that causes pressure on the brain. Some skulls had no evidence of traumatic blows, so they may have been trying to relieve headaches and mental illness. If the bones around the hole showed no signs of healing, the patient died. Smooth bone shows the patient survived. The ancient Peruvian success rate for this procedure was 80% in time. In the American civil War, the success rate was at 50%. The ancient Peruvian success rate climbed from 40% in the earliest era to 80% in the Inca period. Many of the Inca period skulls showed multiple trepanations over time due to successive head blows.
Science News has the report here;
http://www.sciencemag.org/news/2018/06/south-america-s-inca-civilization-was-better-skull-surgery-civil-war-doctors
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Researchers analyzing boulders and bedrocks on Alaskan islands found that a coastal migration route was accessible to humans from Asia entering the New World 17,000 years ago. Ancient seal bones in the area of research have been dated to 17,000 years ago. This shows food was available in the area of glacier retreat 17,000 years ago. Four islands were studied 200 miles south of Juneau. Researchers took rocks from that area to determine how long the islands studied had been free of ice. They used a technique called surface exposure dating, which shows the time when the rocks began accumulating chemicals that appear as the ice melts. The date for this chemical change on the rocks was at 17,000 years ago.
The evidence at Monte Verde in Chile has proven humans were living there 15,000 years ago. The same is proven for the Paisley Cave site in Oregon. The coastal route for the First Americans would have been a far easier route to enter areas south of Canada than the treacherous route humans would have to take overland. And that area lacked the resources for human survival long after 15,000 years ago.
The research is published in. The May 30 journal Science Advances.
Science Daily has the report here;
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2018/05/180530144144.htm
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A team from Brussels have found a 1000 year old intact mummy at Pachacamac in Peru. The site itself has three monumental structures, including a sanctuary to local ancestors. The Incas transformed it into a water and healing temple. Since it is so well preserved, they can study the mummy using advanced medical imaging without unwrapping the body.
Eurekalert has the report here;
https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2018-05/uldb-uad052418.php
Scroll down on this page to see multiple articles on Pachacamac and photos;
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Archaeologists working on the northern Peruvian coast have uncovered 50 burials from the Viru Culture (100-750 CE) in the town of Huanchaco. 30 of the 50 burials have additional body parts added to the remains. Additional arms and legs were added to the burials. Many of the burials show cut marks and blunt force trauma. Those with trauma are the ones to be buried with extra limbs. Perhaps the extra limbs were a sacrificial offering. The graves also contain ceramic vessels with human faces, whimsical animal details, jewelry, folded copper sheets inserted into the mouths of the deceased. A copper fishhook wrapped in gold foil was also uncovered.
National Geographic has the report here with photos;https://news.nationalgeographic.com/2018/04/peru-viru-ancient-shark-fishermen-archaeology/
Archaeologists working at the Peruvian Sechura Desert site of Huaca Amarilla for the past three years have uncovered 40 graves and the remains of 74 individuals, 72 of them were children, and 41 fetuses, dated at between 900-1400 CE.
Included in the finds, they found a still working toy whistle next to the body of a child, and a three year old child buried near a camelid. The bodies were buried with llamas, alpacas, dogs, doves, and by small vases and other ceramic or wooden artifacts, sometimes adorned with shell or stone jewels. The site was occupied by the Lambayeque and Chimú cultures.
The 2017 El Nino was intense, and washed out roads to the site. The archaeologists had to reach the site by boat, since the harsh desert area is below sea level filled with salt flats, dune fields and washes. There are two stone structures dating to the Lambayeque period (800-1350 CE). The elite lived on one side, the other side was for production and storage,
DNA testing has begun and the team now has archaeobotanists, archaeozoologists, funerary anthropologists, ceramologists, geomorphologists and others working there. They will learn how life progressed in this harsh desert terrain for 1000 years.
CNRS France News has the report here with a lot of excellent photos;
https://news.cnrs.fr/articles/unique-funerary-site-discovered-in-peru
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140 children and 200 llamas were ritually sacrificed in the Chimu empire of the Ancient Andes. The majority were between 8 to 12 years old and were buried facing west. The sacrifice took place at the site of Huanchaquito-Las Llamas, near the Chimu capital of Chan Chan, dated at 1400-1450. Red cinnabar was smeared on the faces of the children, and their chests were cut open to probably remove their hearts. Remains of two men and one woman were also found nearby, killed by blows to the head. They may have been dispatched right after the sacrifice. Evidence that this was a single event was found in the soil, including footprints. Previous to this, the largest known child sacrifice was at the Temple Mayor at Tenochtitlan where 42 children were sacrificed. Cut marks show the victims were dispatched by trained individuals.
This may have been an attempt to appease the gods to stop an El Nino catastrophic event that occurred at this historical time. There is evidence of severe flooding near the site. Preliminary DNA evidence shows the victims were brought from far flung places in the Chimu Empire.
National Geographic has the report with many photos;
https://news.nationalgeographic.com/2018/04/mass-child-human-animal-sacrifice-peru-chimu-science/#close
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A tool kit dated at 1,600 BCE or older containing sharpened turkey bones and mussel shells were unearthed in 1985 in a Native American Cemetery in Tennessee. A pair of researchers took a look at the find beginning in 2013 to study it as an example of a possible medicine bundle. They saw the turkey bones as possible needles and the mussel shells as possible ink pots, when they saw red and black pigments on the shells. They referenced the work of a researcher in Montreal who tattooed pig skin with pre-historic tools to see the markings it left on the tools. They looked at the artifacts under microscopes and found a bright polish at the tip and saw the same wear patterns as the pigskin tattoo.
The evidence that this is a tattoo kit is now clear. And this would make the Tennessee find the oldest tattoo kit ever found in the world. The previous oldest kit was found at a Lapita site in the Solomon Islands using obsidian pieces dated at 1000 BCE,
Hyperallergenic.com has the story here;
https://hyperallergic.com/438579/worlds-oldest-tattoo-kit-fernvale-native-american/
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The prehistoric Caddo village of Crenshaw in southwest Arkansas has a burial ground that contains at least 114 human skulls and 238 additional jawbones, but no bodies. A new theory about the remains is published in the Journal of Archaeological Science. The burial contains the remains of those who lived in the village or farming areas nearby. The jaws and skulls were possibly returned to the village for ceremonial burials. This would have been easier than transporting full bodies. Crenshaw was inhabited from 700-1400 CE. The remains are dated to 1253-1399 CE. The data was drawn from a study of lead isotopes in the dental remains of the buried.
ArkansasOnline has the report here;
http://www.arkansasonline.com/news/2018/apr/22/researcher-digs-into-ancient-caddo-myst-1/?f=news-arkansas
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Peruvian researchers have found 50 undiscovered geoglyphs in the Nazca area, and in Palpa province, using drone and satellite technology. Many known geoglyphs have also been mapped with the new technology in much greater detail. Some of the newly discovered geoglyphs were drawn by the Nazca culture between 200-700 CE. Others were carved by the earlier Paracas and Topara cultures at 500 BCE-200 CE. The Paracas glyphs are drawn on hillsides and often depict humans, most are warriors. So there is a geoglyph tradition preceding the Nazca by 1000 years in Peru.
Satellites can capture a foot wide object from 383 miles above the earth, equivalent to seeing a single human hair from 650 feet away. Low flying drones flying at 200 feet can see objects a half inch wide in great detail. The new research will continue into the future.
National Geographic has the news here with photos and a video;
https://news.nationalgeographic.com/2018/04/new-nasca-nazca-lines-discovery-peru-archaeology/
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New research into the ancient Amazon has discovered 81 sites in the upper Amazon, which was thought to be very sparsely inhabited in ancient times. As it turns out, millions of people lived there. The 81 sites were discovered by satellite imagery, and the effects of deforestation. The archaeological team investigating the satellite imagery then searched the area on foot at 24 of the locations so far, and found they were all inhabited sites. The peak of the activity has been dated to 1250-1500 CE. They have found ceramics, polished stones, and soil engineered by the inhabitants for abundant crops. Some of the sites are not near major rivers, but close to smaller streams, creeks and springs. The southern rim of the Amazon alone could have been home to 500,000-1 million people. What were thought to be isolated villages were actually connected by a stretch of human settlements 1,100 miles long, east to west. Ceramic styles differ along this stretch, thus showing that peoples along this stretch had differing cultures. 60% of this stretch has yet to be researched.
European arrival killed off the majority of these people with devastating diseases.
The Guardian has the report here;
https://www.theguardian.com/science/2018/mar/27/lost-amazon-villages-uncovered-by-archaeologists
Archaeologists working at the Sican and Chimu site of Chotuna-Chornancap in Peru have found a dozen tombs suggesting human sacrifice in 17 graves dating back 600-700 years. There was one high status burial found, and it is not unusual to find individuals sacrificed to the noble at the time of the funeral or thereafter. Many of the buried are children. Six children were found in paired graves to the north, east, and west of the temple at the site, two were footless. They may have been sacrificed as guardians to the main tomb.. Other graves had adult men and women with bone damage that was like other sacrificed victims of the era. Fifty individuals were buried in the graves. Some of the children had their rib cages opened to possibly tear out the hearts of the victims.
Clay pottery a smiling man sculpture, and a vessel depicting a person chewing coca leaves, ceramics with maritime themes, coastal animals, and geometric shapes, reflecting the connection to the sea felt by the ancient culture, and fishing tools such as weights, hooks and needles have also been found have been found as grave offerings.
Live Science has the report here;
https://www.livescience.com/62108-ancient-child-sacrifices-found.html
And the Daily Mail has its usual good photos and a video;
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-5535565/Ancient-Peruvian-child-sacrifices-treasures-uncovered-tombs.html
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Mike Ruggeri’s Ancient Andean Cultures from the Paracas to the Inca Magazine
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The cemetery is near Lima’s main zoo. Four human burials have been found so far. The remains date to 100-650 CE, and belong to the Lima Culture.
A ceramics oven, earthenware, and two spindle whorls were buried with them. The cemetery has artifacts from three civilizations.
The Lima culture people built their first structures in Huaca El Rosal. In 2016, adobe walls and mud floors were discovered in the lower part of the huaca, and the walls of an oven between 400 and 500 AD. The new finds are contemporary with burials found in 2016-17.
Archaeology News Network has the story here with great photos and a video;
https://archaeologynewsnetwork.blogspot.com/2018/03/1300-year-old-cemetery-found-in-lima.html
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INAH has found 100 petroglyphs, with assorted iconographies and cultural affiliations, covering a period of over 3000 years (1700 BCE-1520 CE) at the site of La Campana in Colima. This is one of the few sites in Mesoamerica that has evidence of all the stages of Mesoamerican history. These petroglyphs are within the new La Campana archaeological park. This will protect the entire pre-Hispanic city for future research. The glyphs represent zoomorphs, stripes, numerals flowers, hearts, faces.
There is a stone with faces from 400 BCE, a Teotihuacan style glyph from 400-600 CE for example. INAH also excavated a retaining wall with steps next to the Colima River. The area is served by two rivers and was a good space for cultivation and trade.
INAH has the report (in Spanish) here with a good slide show (click on the small green camera icon);
http://www.inah.gob.mx/es/boletines/6957-localizan-108-petroglifos-en-la-zona-arqueologica-de-la-campana-en-colima <http://www.inah.gob.mx/es/boletines/6957-localizan-108-petroglifos-en-la-zona-arqueologica-de-la-campana-en-colima
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Ancient Rock Art depicting whale hunting has been found in the Atacama Desert of Chile at the site of Izcuna. The art shows how hunters used multiple harpoon lines. The rock art also shows hunting strategies, numbers of sailors involved, hunting devices and prey selected. The new discovery is of 328 paintings on 24 slabs of rock. The artists depicted the prey as the antagonist. The art is dated to 500 CE.
The people who lived here specialized in marine hunting. They used fish-hooks made from shell, bone, cactus spines and copper, and rafts made of sea lion skin. The paint is iron-oxide red. And they depict whales, swordfish, marlin, squid, sea lion, turtles and sharks.
Yahoo UK has this report with photos:
https://uk.news.yahoo.com/ancient-rock-art-depicting-marine-130002696.html
And the Daily Mail adds more info to the report, with their always good collection of photos. The research was published in American Antiguity.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-5408369/Ancient-Chilean-rock-art-suggests-hunters-killed-whales.html
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LIDAR technology has revealed a giant ancient Tarascan (Purepechan) city near Morelia, Mexico. It was double the size of the Tarascan capital, Tzintzuntzan. The city is known as Angamuco. 40,000 structures have been found within the newly discovered city. This would make the city the size of Manhattan. Pyramids and open plazas are concentrated in eight zones around the city’s edges. 100,000 people lived in the city from 900-1350 CE. The city was first excavated in 2007, and 1,500 structures had been located. On the ground mapping would take a decade. LIDAR will be finding even more about the city.
The Guardian has the story here;
https://www.theguardian.com/science/2018/feb/15/laser-scanning-reveals-lost-ancient-mexican-city-had-as-many-buildings-as-manhattan
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INAH has uncovered a 2000 year old mummified macaw at a cave at Avendaños ejido in San Francisco de Borja, in Chihuahua. This is the oldest example of this type of macaw ever found in Northern Mexico or the Southwest. INAH is joined in ancient macaw research by Penn State University and the University of Oklahoma. Strontium and DNA research is being done on all the ancient macaws in the Southwest, and now the Avendanos Cave, to determine how many of the macaws came from Paquime and how many from the rest of Mesoamerica.
So far, 670 skeletal remains of macaws have been found along with feathers of macaws. 504 came from Paquime as trade items. The rest were from the ancient Southwest sites of Chaco, Grasshopper, Turkey Creek, Salado, Gila Cliff, Kiet Siel, Sinagua-Wupatki, Pueblo Grande and Snaketown, among others. 90% are red macaws and 10% are military macaws. The newly discovered macaw is the first to be found in Mexico outside of Paquime. The macaw trade spanned 800 CE-1400 CE. The newly discovered macaw may be 800 years earlier than any ancient trade macaws that have been found in the Southwest or Mexico, if confirmed by carbon-14 dating.
INAH has the report here (in Spanish) with a great slide show of the cave, and the artifacts in the cave (click on the small green camera icon to see the slides).
http://www.inah.gob.mx/es/boletines/6856-datan-en-2000-anos-de-antigueedad-cabeza-momificada-de-guacamaya-hallada-en-cueva-avendanos-chihuahua
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Archaeologists using lidar technology have found houses, palaces, elevated highways, and defensive fortifications under the Guatemalan jungle. Millions more lived in this area than previously believed.
Speaking to the BBC, top archaeologists had this to say about the discovery;
“I think this is one of the greatest advances in over 150 years of Maya archaeology,” said Stephen Houston, Professor of Archaeology and Anthropology at Brown University.
“Everything is turned on its head,” Ithaca College archaeologist Thomas Garrison told the BBC.
“He believes the scale and population density has been "grossly underestimated and could in fact be three or four times greater than previously thought”.
"The archaeologists were struck by the "incredible defensive features”, which included walls, fortresses and moats.“
"They showed that the Maya invested more resources into defending themselves than previously thought, Mr Garrison said.”
60,000 new structures have been identified.
Th lidar survey also showed longer and more numerous raised highways than archaeologists knew about, connecting many more sites, showing a heavy trade pattern.
And a previously unknown seven story pyramid was uncovered by the survey.
The site of Tikal was found to be three to four times larger than previously thought.
Archaeologists are not finished with their lidar survey. The new discoveries will take many decades to research.
The BBC gives this report on the discoveries; with photos;
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-42916261
The Daily Mail has its usual great collection of photos and a video here;
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-5343567/Thousands-Mayan-pyramids-palaces-Guatemala.html
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INAH has found the remains of nine young adults, a child and a month old baby at the site of Tlalpan. The remains date to 400 BCE. They have been found intertwined in death, laid out in a spiral pattern, their sides and arm bones interlocked. Their heads were damaged and their teeth mutilated. Bowls, pots, ceramics were placed as grave goods. Tlalpan lasted for 500 years. The site was first excavated in 2006. The area excavated is under a metropolis, which will make it difficult to explore this area in more detail.
National Geographic has a short report here;
https://news.nationalgeographic.com/2018/01/burial-pit-found-mexico-city-archaeology-pre-aztec-spd/
And INAH has a much more detailed report here (in Spanish) with a video and an extensive slide show. (Click on the small green camera icon).
http://www.inah.gob.mx/es/boletines/6865-descubren-en-tlalpan-un-entierro-multiple-de-los-primeros-aldeanos-de-la-cuenca-de-mexico
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A group of international researchers have studied the remains of 55 turkeys dated at 300 BCE-1500 CE in Mesoamerica. The DNA showed European turkeys are descended from Mexico. The researchers found that the Mesoamerican turkeys were consuming increasing amounts of corn which shows more intensive farming of turkeys. Turkey bones are rarely found in domestic refuse, and none of the 55 turkeys studied had been eaten. Some were buried in temples and human graves, perhaps as companions in the afterlife. Turkeys have been depicted in Mesoamerica as gods and calendric symbols. The turkey was the first animal to be domesticated in Mesoamerica after the dog.
Some of the 55 turkeys analyzed were Ocellated turkeys, but they were left to roam free and never domesticated. The reason for this is a mystery.
The new research is published in the Royal Society Open Science
Archaeological excavation unearths evidence of turkey domestication 1,500 years ago
More information: Aurelie Manin et al. Diversity of management strategies in Mesoamerican turkeys: archaeological, isotopic and genetic evidence, Royal Society Open Science (2018). DOI: 10.1098/rsos.171613
Physorg has the report here;
https://phys.org/news/2018-01-ancient-human-turkey-relationship.html
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The Underwater Exploration Group of the Great Maya Aquifer Project (GAM) has discovered a connection between two large flooded cave systems, Sac Actun and Dos Ojos, in the Yucatan. This joined cave system is the largest flooded cave system in the world, stretching 215 miles. There are more than a hundred archaeological contexts contained within the cave, from the remains of some of the First Americans to the Maya culture. The director of the project has been looking for this connection for 14 years. Project researchers are looking for more connections to three more underwater systems. They will study the water quality of the system and continue mapping the cave system.
National Geographic has the report here with a video;
https://news.nationalgeographic.com/2018/01/largest-underwater-cave-system-in-the-world-discovered-in-mexico-spd/
Daily Mail has its usual great photos of the site here;
Mike Ruggeri’s Maya World
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Peruvian archaeologists have uncovered a Moche site dated at 500 CE that may have been a meeting site for ancient desert leaders. The site was found at the Limon archaeological complex in Lambayeque. Two rooms may have been used for political purposes. One appears to be a banquet hall with two thrones, which could have been for hosting feasts. The other room has a circular podium where announcements may have been made. There are murals of fish and sea lions. The site itself is depicted on Moche ceramics, and now the place depicted on the ceramics is found.
Construction appears to have halted abruptly in the sixth century. There was a super El Nino sometime between 536-594 with flooding, followed by extreme drought.
International Business Times has the report here with photos;
http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/1500-year-old-painted-banquet-hall-offers-rare-insight-into-perus-ancient-moche-culture-1654375
The Daily Mail has its usual great photos and a video of the site;
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-5249119/Ancient-finding-Peru-sheds-light-desert-society-archaeologist.html
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Researchers have studied the the remains of an infant girl called Xach’itee’aanenh T’eede Gaay, by the indigenous people at the Upward Sun River site in Alaska. Her remains are dated to 11,500 years ago. But her genomes show a previously unknown population, and is the earliest known population of Native Americans. She was buried next to another infant in a ceremonial grave, and they were covered in red ochre. They are members of a group now known as the Ancient Beringians. Their population split from East Asians 36,000 years ago.
They were genetically changed from their ancestor group 25,000 years ago, probably due to population isolation due to brutal climate conditions, They entered Alaska first by way of Beringia, and their northern and southern offshoots descended from them later.They were trapped in Beringia until around 20,000 years ago. They were either genetically distinct from the rest of the Native Americans before they left Beringia or both groups traveled across, and then split genetically after they arrived in Alaska. This study relies on a single sample. So the real diversity in the gene pool will await more samples. The research is published in Nature;
J. Víctor Moreno-Mayar et al, Terminal Pleistocene Alaskan genome reveals first founding population of Native Americans, Nature (2018). DOI: 10.1038/nature25173
Smithsonian and
have the reports here
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/genetics-rewrites-history-early-america-and-maybe-field-archaeology-180967745/
And
https://phys.org/news/2018-01-reveals-evidence-population-ancient-native.html
(My note; Since this is a single sample, a lot more needs to be learned about these populations, and this needs more samples. And while the “Ancient Beringian” population is now definitely the oldest group to have entered the Americas so far, by way of proven genetic research, we still may find even older groups later in time. And there is still the question of whether even earlier groups made their way into the Americas, and traveled all the way down to Monte Verde in Chile, by way of canoe coastal travel, starting at even earlier dates on their journey south.)
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INAH has found a stone shrine in a pond that depicts the Aztec idea of the design of the universe. The shrine was found at Nahualac, near the Iztaccihuatl volcano. Ceramics, lithic, lapidaries were also found. The stones portray a miniature universe. The stones are placed so that they look like they are floating on the water. The Mexica creation myth saw a world of water. The earth monster, Cipactli, floated on the water, and from his body, the earth was created. INAH believes that there was a ritual control of water from nearby springs to irrigate the pond which made it appear that the structure was floating on the water. The structure evokes the primitive waters and the beginning of time.
The Nahualac site has two parts, the pond shrine and nearby areas with ceramics dedicated to the storm god Tlaloc.
International Business Times has the report here with photos;
http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/depiction-mythical-aztec-universe-discovered-natural-pond-near-mexicos-iztaccihuatl-volcano-1653737
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Archaeologists at the site of Jonuta in Tabasco which dates to 600-1000 CE have studied over 200 ceramic pieces representing females at the site. Females are shown taking care of children, doing domestic chores, cooking and raising animals. Both elite and ordinary women are shown. A figurine named “The Lady of Jonuta” has a long headdress, and other elite markings. Other pieces are being called “oradoras.” They have raised arms, long skirts, earpieces and bracelets, and loose hair linked to fertility. This representation can be found in ceramics along the Gulf of Mexico coast. Female figurines are also shown as musical instruments such as whistles. The site was probably linked to Palenque for trade. And its goods were also traded to Comalcalco and Jaina.
INAH has the report here (in Spanish) with a good slide show of the ceramics. Scroll down to the little camera icon and click on that to see the slides).
http://www.inah.gob.mx/es/boletines/6784-figurillas-revelan-papel-de-la-mujer-en-la-urbe-prehispanica-de-jonuta-en-tabasco
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Archaeologists in Peru, working at the Espiritu Pampa site in the Cusco region, have uncovered an astronomical observatory, massive stone walls, ceramics and other Wari and Inca artifacts at the site. The D-shaped temple found at the site looks Wari in design. A smaller structure inside the temple appears to be an observatory. Two spaces within contained animal teeth, Wari style ceramic bottles, a silver chest piece and a silver crown. Inca architecture lies next to the temple, housing Inca pins, needles and pottery. The pieces will be studied further.
Andina has the report here with many good photos of the finds;
http://www.andina.com.pe/Ingles/noticia-peru-ancient-astronomical-observatory-found-in-cusco-692974.aspx
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The UCL Institute of Archaeology is mapping some of the largest petroglyphs in the world in Amazonas, Venezuela. Some of the panels are 2,000 years old. They depict animals, humans, rituals, and mythical creatures like horned serpents. They are similar to rock art in Brazil, Columbia and further out. In one panel, there is a flautist surrounded by human figures, probably a renewal motif. They show the influence of traders from diverse and distant regions. The study forwards research on the Orinoco River, and its influence on the formation of ancient social networks. Some of the formats can be seen mirrored all the way to the Ancient Southwest much later in time, like the flautist and the horned serpent.
Eurekalert has the report here;https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2017-12/ucl-vra120517.php
The Daily Mail had its usual collection of great photos in its report;http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-5152777/Aerial-images-reveal-2-000-year-old-Venezuelan-art.html
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The Fort Ancient culture lived in southern Ohio and parts of Indiana, Kentucky and West Virginia between A.D. 1000 and 1650. They lived in large villages, grew maize in their gardens, and made distinctive pottery and arrowheads.
Robert Cook, an archaeologist at Ohio State University, in his new book “Continuity and Change in the Native American Village: Multicultural Origins and Descendants of the Fort Ancient Culture,” presents a new interpretation of the Fort Ancient Culture.
He posits that the Fort Ancient Culture developed rapidly as a result of the “Big Bang” that took place in Mississippian cultures that were centered at Cahokia in 1050 CE.
Analysis of human remains at Fort Ancient sites show that some of the people there came from the vicinity of Cahokia, bringing new religious ideas and design ideas with them. Fort Ancient sites at 1050 CE were the largest of the culture with the highest maize consumption, Mississippian artifacts and migrants. Climate change and pressure from the Iroquois led them to abandon their sites at the end of their culture.
The great Brad Lepper reports on this in the Columbus Dispatch;
http://www.dispatch.com/news/20171203/archaeology-cultural-big-bang-helped-form-fort-ancient-society
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A University of Cincinnati archaeologist has taken a look at the supposition that people in the Ancient Southwest between 900-1200 CE were dependent on corn and is taking issue with it. He has taken a look at 2000 sites where pottery and other artifacts have been found and sees very little evidence of any dependence on corn.
He has spent two decades leading field research in the Grand Canyon National Park and the upper basin in the region. His evidence shows the ancient people of the area used fire to promote the growth of edible leaves, seeds, and nuts like amaranth, goosefoot, and chenopodium, wild relatives of quinoa, and calorie rich nuts and berries. Researching thousands of clay pots, he and his students have found 6000-7000 pollen grains and only six were corn. He also found that there was more evidence of wild edible plants then when people left these sites. He also looked at the area after a massive wild fire in 2016, and edible plants were growing there a month later in abundance.
This is not to say that other people in the Ancient Southwest were not more dependent on corn. There is more evidence for it outside of the area in question.
(My note: It seems to me that the same techniques used in this study should be applied elsewhere in the Southwest to test whether corn dependency is as prevalent as we have thought).
Eurekalert has the report here:
https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2017-11/uoc-asf112717.php
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Russian and Ecuadorian archaeologists have found pottery in Ecuador that is provisionally dated to be 6000 years old at the site of Real Alto. They also found human remains there. They belong to the San Pedro culture. Japanese researchers are now testing the dating hypothesis. More work will be done at the site to see how long this dating horizon existed. The Russian group is studying human adaptation on the Pacific rim from East Asia to South America. If the dates hold up, this is probably the oldest pottery in the Americas.
(My note; I include the Wikipedia page on the Valdivia Culture that has mention of the San Pedro site and the fact that this culture pre-dated the Valdivia culture.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Valdivia_culture)
Archaeology News Network has the report here with photos.
https://archaeologynewsnetwork.blogspot.com/2017/11/6000-year-old-pottery-found-in-ecuador.html
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A huge Orca geoglyph has been re-discovered in the Palpa area of Peru, related to the Nazca culture. It was first found in the 1960’s by German archaeologists, but during restoration and research, the records were inaccurate as to the location and dimensions of the geoglyph. It has been found again and re-mapped. The size of the geoglyph is 60 metres long and 25 metres wide. The whole area is now endangered by land traffickers. The Orca is a marine deity that shows up on ancient pottery and ceramics in Peru.
The Bradshaw Foundation has the report here with photos;
http://www.bradshawfoundation.com/news/index.php?id=Orca-geoglyph-rediscovered-in-Peru
Newsweek adds more to the story adding that the Orca geoglyph was first located in 2013, not the 1960’s. The geoglyph is 200 feet long. There are 1,500 geoglyphs in the region dating from 200 BCE-600 CE. The glyph is dated to 200 BCE and may be related to earlier Paracas culture styles (800 BCE-200 BCE).
Newsweek report here:
http://www.newsweek.com/nazca-lines-peru-orca-geoglyph-desert-monuments-712544
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Archaeologist Kasia Szremski has excavated at the Salitre and Campo Libre sites in Peru. She found extravagant artifacts at the Salitre site: decorated pottery, a spondylus shell, ornamented silver. They held huge feasts of mollusks, pumpkins, beans and other items. She believes that the Salitre people, an outpost of the Chancay culture, traded shellfish for access to the Huanangue River. The Chaupiyunginos lived upstream, and could have cut off the water to Salitre and other Chancay villages that needed the water for crops. The feasting at Salitre took place at a time of widespread warfare, in the 15th century, as the area became balkanized after the collapse of the Wari empire. So the Salitre and Chaupiyunginos feasted and traded together to prevent conflict.
The great Tom Dillehay says the two cultures were “highly entangled”—they had a variety of economic, political, and social interactions with each interaction affecting the others. And shellfish for water diplomacy led to peace between them.
The report is here in Haika magazine;
https://www.hakaimagazine.com/article-short/shellfish-diplomacy
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Researchers in Arizona have found that Pre-Columbian turquoise mining at the Canyon Creek mine, on the White Mountain Apache Indian Reservation, was larger than thought in intensity. They found through isotopic analysis of the Canyon Creek turquoise that it has ratios of lead and strontium isotopes unique from other Southwest turquoise. Scientists can now determine where turquoise was mined using these new techniques. They also found that the site was mined between 1250-1400 CE. This new science will help in studying ancient turquoise trading routes. Researchers are now using the same techniques to study the turquoise found at Tenochtitlan, the Aztec capital in Mexico. They may be able to determine the exact location of the mine the turquoise came from in the Southwest, and advance the study of Southwest/Mesomerica trading networks.
The research is published in the Journal of Archaeological Science,
Eurekalert has the story here:
https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2017-10/uoa-rsn101817.php
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Skeletal remains from a ritual platform at the site of Pacopampa in Peru, show the individuals in the grave died of blows to the head that appear to be from ritualized violence, and that the blows probably did not kill them. The studies at this platform began in 2005. To date, they have found 104 people, 66 adults, 38 children whose remains date from 1200 BCE-500 BCE. Many had injuries to the head, limbs, and elbows. There were repeated blows to the heads of many, but signs of healing as well, showing they did not all die from the head blows. They were found on a ceremonial platform and do not exhibit defensive wounds. These may have been controlled acts of violence for elites to show dominance. The site is related to the early Chavin culture.
The research is published in the peer reviewed journal;
Nagaoka et al, PLoS One, 2017
And the report is in Business Insider, with photos;
http://www.businessinsider.com/andean-civilizations-pacopampa-ritual-violence-study-2017-10
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Researchers from the UK and Brazil the UK have discovered that Amazonian people were domesticating rice 4,000 years ago. They analyzed 16 samples of plant remains from 10 different time periods and found the ancient Amazonians grew bigger rice over time. This helped with their diet during flooding seasons. The research was published in the journal Nature Ecology and Evolution.
Archaeology News Network has the report here;
https://archaeologynewsnetwork.blogspot.com/2017/10/amazon-farmers-discovered-secret-of.html
Mike Ruggeri’s The Ancient America’s Breaking News
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Nine sacrificed men, between the ages of 25 and 30, have been found in a tomb alongside an ancient metallurgy workshop at the Huaca de la Cruz site in Lambayeque. They also uncovered an elite grave of a Sican leader. The burial would be circa 1200 CE. Ceramic vessels and ceremonial knives were also found at the site.
International Business Times has the short report with a huge photo display here;
http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/pre-incan-grave-skeletons-1000-year-old-human-sacrifices-found-peru-1640974
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Four wooden carvings were found at the Chan Chan site, three of them are carvings of women. The male carving had its face covered in white clay as a mask. A scepter, metal vessels, textiles and shells were also found in the tomb like area. There was a body next to the carvings they have not yet studied. The carvings would have been placed there circa 1400 CE.
Peru Reports has the story with one photo here;
https://perureports.com/2017/10/03/archaeologists-peru-women/
Andina has the report here with more photos;
Mike Ruggeri’s Ancient Andean World
Archaeologists in El Salvador unearthed the remains of skeletons dating back to 500 BCE at the site of Quelepa in El Salvador. Four pottery pieces and a metate were buried in the tomb. The site is in eastern El Salvador, the region of the ancient Lenca people who lived in the region from 1,200-400 BCE. They had their own language and pottery styles distinct from the Maya in west El Salvador.
Archaeology News Network has the short report here with remarkable photos of the excavation.
https://archaeologynewsnetwork.blogspot.com/2017/09/2500-year-old-burials-unearthed-in.html#LOGZZmFVaUplxZRr.97
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In 2014, archaeologists uncovered a stone structure built in a spiral in Ecuador. The structure contains a tomb dated at 3500 BCE. Ceremonial vessels in the tomb were found to contain cacao starch. There is a second temple similar to the one found in 2014 in the Amazon region found in 2016. It also contains a similar tomb, excavated twice by archaeologists across the river in Peru. So far, no funds have been raised to undergo further excavations at this twin site. If Cacao is found there as well, it will upset the timelines for the cultivation of cacao, and may prove that the people of the Amazon cultivated cacao 1,500 years before the Maya of Mesoamerica.
El Pais has the report here (in Spanish) with a good photo of the spiral tomb.https://elpais.com/elpais/2017/09/22/estilo/1506043289_701424.html
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A Maya ruler’s tomb has been uncovered at the site of Waka in Guatemala. It is dated to 300-350 CE. This is the 7th tomb found at the site, and the oldest. A remarkable jade mask was found in the tomb representing the Maize God. There were also ceramics, jade ornaments, and a shell carved as a crocodile. Most are painted red. The tomb was re-entered after 600 CE, when the objects were probably painted.
PhysOrg has the story here with good photos:https://www.google.com/amp/s/phys.org/news/2017-09-tomb-early-classic-maya-ruler.amp
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Researchers have found 42 obsidian blades alongside the graves of possibly sacrificed children. In one grave the children found were from 2-4 years of age and buried face to face.
In another grave, obsidian blades were placed at the points of the compass with five children aged one to four. More obsidian blades were found on the east-west axis of Ceibal’s main plaza. In May, researchers found the biggest trove of jade artifacts ever uncovered in the Maya world.
The new research is published in the Journal of Field Archaeology,
The Daily Mail has the report here with many photographs;
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-4857802/Mayan-child-sacrifices-buried-supernatural-obsidian.html
Hundreds of shell ornaments have been found in the La Playa and Cerro de Trincheras areas of Sonora, Mexico. And they are similar to those found in Hohokam communities in Arizona.
Cerros de Trinchera was built on the side of a high hill with a central plaza, and walls in the shape of a snail shell spiral. The shell ornaments produced there were worked from 2,800 BC to 1400 AD. INAH and the University of Binghamton researchers have found seven kilograms of sea shells there worked into rings and bracelets with geometric motifs.
The La Playa site had 10,000 years of occupation. Shell ornamentation began there at 850 BCE-200 CE. This jewelry has not been found in burials in the area, so they were trade items sent to people further north and west. They worked shells into hoops worn as bracelets, which were worn by individuals all over northwest Mexico and the Southwestern US. The shell jewelry was exchanged for Paquime pottery and pottery from Arizona and New Mexico.
INAH has the report here (in Spanish) with a beautiful slide show of the jewelry. (Click on the tiny camera icon above the article to see the slide show,)
http://www.inah.gob.mx/en/boletines/6466-brazaletes-de-conchas-daninas-dan-identidad-a-los-pueblos-de-deierto-de-sonora
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Archaeologists at Marcaville in the Cusco region have found a seven meter ring shaped wall built by the Marcaville Culture dated at 1000 BCE. It was used as a dwelling and ritual site. They also found another wall. Probably part of a workshop or warehouse. Potttery, figurines, obsidian points, stone and bone beads were in the structures. This culture was a precursor to the Inca Culture.
Andina has the story here with great photos;
http://www.andina.com.pe/Ingles/noticia-peru-3000yearold-circular-stone-wall-found-in-cusco-678217.aspx
Mike Ruggeri’s Ancient Andean News Magazine
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INAH have uncovered an Aztec structure in the Plaza Pino Suarez in Mexico City. The structure is very close to the Ehecatl Temple inside the Pino Suarez metro station. This was within a calpulli or district of Cuezcontitlan which enabled fast and efficient distribution of agricultural products in the partialities of Teopan (also called Zoquipan or Xochimilca) and Moyotlan. There are fragments of Aztec III and IV ceramics (1430-1521) at the site.
INAH has the report here in Spanish;
http://www.inah.gob.mx/es/boletines/6331-hallan-vestigio-ceremonial-de-un-calpulli-mexica-en-la-plaza-pino-suarez
Mexico news Daily has the report in English with a good photo;
http://mexiconewsdaily.com/news/another-pre-hispanic-find-in-mexico-city/
Mike Ruggeri’s Toltecs and Aztecs
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Mexican archaeologists have uncovered a wolf sacrificed by the Aztec, adorned with a rich array of gold, in downtown Mexico City. 22 pieces have been found including pendants, a nose ring, a chest plate. They were found in a stone box near the Temple Mayor. The wolf was placed over a layer of sacrificial knives. The wolf was facing west and represented the god of war, Huitzilopochtli. Wolves helped guide fallen warriors across a dangerous river in the underworld. The wolf was buried during the reign of Ahuizotl from 1486-1502.
Reuters has the report here with nice photos;http://www.reuters.com/article/us-mexico-archaeology-aztecs-idUSKBN19S1RA
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INAH has found another possible tunnel underneath the Pyramid of the Moon. It was found by electrical resistivity tomography. The tunnel appears to go from the center of the Moon plaza to the pyramid. This would mirror the tunnels beneath the Pyramid of the Sun and the Temple of Quetzalcoatl. The tunnels equate to the idea of Teotihuacan being related to the underworld and to agricultural fertility.
There are indications there may be other underground sites under the same pyramid. INAH will move to excavate the tunnel. This kind of excavation takes years of slow careful work.
INAH has the best report (in Spanish) of this discovery;
Mike Ruggeri’s Teotihuacan
http://mikeruggeristeotihuacan.tumblr.com
Mike Ruggeri’s Teotihuacan; City of the Gods Magazine
Archaeologists in Peru have found that groups in Peru survived at 12,500 feet before the advent of agriculture despite lack of oxygen, frigid weather and exposure to elements. Excavations have uncovered 16 people and 80,000 artifacts going back 8,000 years. Evidence at several sites puts hunting and gathering groups at this altitude 9,000 years ago. The bones of the individuals at the site studied show the bones of the individuals having oxygen and carbon isotopes that match permanent high level occupation. Travel time to low elevation zones were too long for seasonal occupation. And the presence of women and children at the site makes seasonal migration unlikely. The tools found were made with high elevation material.
The research is in the Royal Society Open Science journal
Science Daily has the report here;
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/06/170628095929.htm
Mike Ruggeri’s The Ancient America’s Breaking News
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Archaeologists have found 650 skulls caked in lime near the Temple Mayor. They were placed in a cylindrical tower. These skulls were placed in one of the skull racks on display at Tenochtitlan. Skulls of women and children were found among the skulls. This was an unexpected surprise. Were the skulls of women and children displayed on skull racks?
The Guardian has the story here with photos;
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/jul/01/tower-human-skulls-mexico-city-aztec-sacrifices
And here is the same story in the Daily Mail with their usual display of many photos.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-4658112/Tower-human-skulls-Mexico.html
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Archaeologists are suggesting that a pyramid in coastal Peru was built to resemble a volcano, and may have hosted ceremonies based on astronomical events. It is now called El Volcan. It was discovered 50 years ago, but in depth investigations have just begun. The pyramid was built between 900-200 BCE. The volcanic cone was either created by erosion or it was deliberately built like this. The preponderance of evidence is that it was deliberate. The last occupation of the pyramid was at 1563 CE. There were total solar eclipses at 1521, 1538, 1539 and 1543 CE. These solar eclipses may have been celebrated at the volcano.
The report was posted in the journal Antiquity.
International Business Times has the story here with photos;
http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/mysterious-volcano-shaped-pyramid-discovered-peru-hosted-celebrations-honour-solar-eclipses-1624111
The oldest carefully crafted copper object ever made in South America has been uncovered in the La Quebrada region of Argentina. The mask is dated to 1000 BCE. It is a delicate copper mask. And the location in Argentina may show that copper technology had more than one place of origin. The mask was cold hammered and re-heated and then deposited as a grave good. The grave the mask was found in had 14 bodies of men, women and children. And then a single grave with a child buried with a bead and copper pendant. So metal working originated in small remote agricultural level communities.
The research is published in the journal Antiquity.
The International Business Times has the report with great photos;
http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/3000-year-old-copper-mask-found-mass-grave-oldest-ever-discovered-south-america-1625586
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A new major discovery of an Aztec Temple and Ballcourt have been excavated near the Zocalo in Mexico City. The excavation uncovered the foundations of a massive circular shaped temple dedicated to the wind god Ehecatl and part of a ball court. The structures were described in the Spanish chronicles. They also found 32 severed male neck vertebrae in a pile next to the court. These would have been the victims of the ball game ritual. The structures were built during the reign of Ahuizotl from 1486-1502. Mexican archaeologist Eduardo Matos said the top of the temple would have resembled a coiled snake with priests entering a doorway that was shaped as the serpent’s nose.
Numerous news stories on this discovery have appeared today. This one is from the Guardian, with photos;
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/jun/08/mexico-city-ancient-aztec-temple-ball-court
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The same story was published in November 2016. Perhaps the Ball Court and the neck vertebrae are new details.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/jun/08/mexico-city-ancient-aztec-temple-ball-court
A new major discovery of an Aztec Temple and Ballcourt have been excavated near the Zocalo in Mexico City. The excavation uncovered the foundations of a massive circular shaped temple dedicated to the wind god Ehecatl and part of a ball court. The structures were described in the Spanish chronicles. They also found 32 severed male neck vertebrae in a pile next to the court. These would have been the victims of the ball game ritual. The structures were built during the reign of Ahuizotl from 1486-1502. Mexican archaeologist Eduardo Matos said the top of the temple would have resembled a coiled snake with priests entering a doorway that was shaped as the serpent’s nose.
Numerous news stories on this discovery have appeared today. This one is from the Guardian, with photos;
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/jun/08/mexico-city-ancient-aztec-temple-ball-court
Mike Ruggeri’s Toltecs and Aztecs
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Mike Ruggeri’s Aztec and Toltec World Magazine
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The same story was published in November 2016. Perhaps the Ball Court and the neck vertebrae are new details.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/jun/08/mexico-city-ancient-aztec-temple-ball-court
Archaeologists have found 3,500-year-old high relief polychrome friezes —similar to those of Chavin de Huantar— at Huaca Garagay site in Lima. They appear to be older than the Chavin Culture. The Huaca had been abandoned for 30 years.
The report is short but the photos are great.
Mike Ruggeri’s Ancient Andean News on Tumblr
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A new large cache of jade and serpentine objects have been uncovered at the Maya site of Ceibal in Guatemala. 72 polished celts made from jade, metagabbro, serpentine and other metamorphic greenstone were found in the new excavation. They were buried in the central plaza at Ceibal near huge structures. These celts were used to give authority to a new elite. Many were aligned with the points of the compass.
The IB Times has the report here of the article published in the journal Antiquity, with very good photos;
http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/treasure-trove-jade-stones-used-mayan-rituals-discovered-guatemala-1623929
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Researchers at the Huaca Prieta site in coastal Peru have found that early inhabitants of the region, living at 15,000 years ago, were far more advanced than thought earlier. Mounds of artifacts have been removed from the site for more than a decade. These include food remains, stone tools, baskets and textiles. Researchers found a variety of fish hooks to carry out a diversity of fishing. The early inhabitants also grew chilis, squash, avocado, and a large amount of a medicinal plant. So these early people would have probably had a bureaucracy and a large organized religion. Baskets made during this period show a variety of complex styles using elaborate dyes.
The latest excavations took six years at 32 excavation units, 32 test pits, 80 geological cores.
(My note, the early dates here fall within the Pre-Clovis time period).
Popular Archaeology has the report here;
http://popular-archaeology.com/issue/june-2013/article/groundbreaking-discovery-of-early-civilization-in-ancient-peru
Mike Ruggeri’s Ancient Peru (13,000 BC-600 BC)
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A new generation of Chaco Culture studies is underway. The impetus for this is a study of a burial at Pueblo Bonito, which included turquoise, shell, and the skeleton of a man buried there between 800-850 CE. Boxes of human bones from Chaco were packed away and carted to various museums decades ago. A researcher is now re-uniting the bones into whole bodies again. As the skeletons were re-assembled, signs of disease like syphilis and TB have been uncovered. Bodies were manipulated with bones placed in very unusual ways.
Recent research concludes that a dynasty based on a maternal line ruled at Chcaco for 330 years, and recent research also points to the idea that the local inhabitants built the large Chaco structures, and not more experienced outsiders. Individuals with six toes were apparently very important as evidenced in the Chaco art work. There is clear evidence of Chaco trading 2000 miles to the south and 50 miles to the west and south.
Room 33 at Pueblo Bonito shows individuals, probably rulers, were buried in layers over 300 years in time. The dates for the emergence of complex society at Chaco have now been pushed back to 900 CE, 200 years earlier than thought. Dental analysis from 61 individuals at Pueblo Bonito shows that folks there were eating plants, animals and water from local sources. This strengthens the idea that the local Chacoans built their own complex society. Wood for the structures came largely from the Zuni Mountains, 75 kilometers to the south, and the Chuska Mountains, about the same distance to the west of Chaco Canyon, provided 70 percent of the more than 240,000 trees that were used for roof beams, doorframes and other features of Chaco great houses. Residue on Pueblo Bonito jars and pitchers comes from a chocolate beverage made from cacao that grew in Mesoamerica. Scarlet macaws from Mesoamerica appear at Chcao at 800 CE.
Once Chaco collapsed in 1300 CE, the people lived in small communities around clans based on maternal descent.
Earlier reports on all of these findings can be found at my web sites;
Mike Ruggeri’s Aztlan World
http://mikeruggerisaztlanworld.tumblr.com
Mike Ruggeri’s Casas Grandes World Magazine
http://bit.ly/1ztd8vF
Science News has the report here;
https://www.sciencenews.org/article/chaco-canyons-ancient-civilization-continues-puzzle
Archaeologists have studied the calcified plaque of Moche individials who lived from 200-800 CE. Plaque hardens over time and turns into micro-fossils. They found the Moche once ate a grain heavy diet, which included amaranth. But they also found sponge spicules, and green and red algae from fresh water and deep sea sources. This means the Moche were eating fish and mollusks, and perhaps seafood from the banks of the Moche River. The researchers also saw an increase in cavities and dental wear showing a shift from a carb-heavy diet to marine protein. And this shift showed up among all classes of people.
Forbes.com has the story here;
http://bit.ly/2qG9bKU
Mike Ruggeri’s Moche/Wari Era Peru
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Mike Ruggeri’s Ancient Andean News Magazine
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In 1945, researchers found 22 beads made from meteoric iron at the Avana Hopewell site in Illinois. The Hopewell culture spanned 200 BCE-500 CE in time. A team from the National Museum of Natural History tried to find a linkage between the beads and a specific meteorite found in North America. Artifacts made of meteorites stretch back 5,000 years acriss the glove. The team found a link between the Havana site beads and iron from a meteorite in Anoka, Minnesota. New masses of Anoka iron have recently been found near the Mississippi River. The team studied three of the iron beads, and a polished section of Anoka iron from a sample excavated in 1983. Using modern technology, they found a close relationship between the beads and the Anoka iron. It would appear to strengthen the idea of long distance trade by the Hopewell of Illinois to Minnesota to obtain the iron for the beads.
The International Business Times has the report here;
http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/scientists-discover-origins-ancient-hopewell-cultures-meteorite-jewellery-1619103
Mike Ruggeri’s Adena and Hopewell World
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A new discovery by Sabine Hyland of St. Andrews University in Scotland about Inca Khipus looked at two khipus kept by village elders and found that they have 14 different colors that allow for 95 unique cord patterns. They could represent syllables and words. The khipus have been kept in a wooden box by elders in the village of San Juan de Collata. Unlike most known khipus which are made of cotton, these two khipus are made from the hair and fiber of vicuna, alpaca, guanaco, llama, deer, and the rodent vizcacha. A Spanish chronicler who claimed that khipus made from animal fiber “exhibited a diversity of vivid colors and could record historical narratives with the same ease as European books.” The problem with the new khipus is that they only date to the mid-18th century.This brings into question how closely related these khipus are to the ancient ones, and if these khipus are influenced by the Spanish alphabet and language. Researchers will now use computer technology to try to unravel more understanding of khipus.
National Geographic has the report here;
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/2017/04/inca-khipus-code-discovery-peru/
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Macaw skeletons in three pueblos in New Mexico show signs of feather harvesting. Macaw feathers have been found all the way north to Utah at sites dating from 300-1450 CE. There is little evidence of macaw breeding in the Southwest. So the birds were imported from Mesoamerica. Researchers found that the macaw bones in the three pueblos show multiple feather loss the entire length of both wings. Thus the feathers were being harvested. Evidence of hand feeding and great care for the birds also showed up in the study. Chaco had an aviary with a 25 centimeter layer of guano. Macaws lived at Chaco around 1050-1120 CE. They saw the birds as tied to the underworld and rain bringers. So the birds were carefully cared for beyond the need for feather harvesting.
Nature.com has the report here;
http://www.nature.com/news/prehistoric-native-americans-farmed-macaws-in-feather-factories-1.21803
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New analysis by INAH of the 12,000 year old skeleton of a girl found in a cenote in the Yucatan in 2007, nicknamed “Naia,” shows that the girl traveled a long distance and suffered severe nutritional stress that scarred her bones and teeth. Half of her bones were recovered. She died at age 15-17 from a fall into the deep pit where she was found. It appears she gave birth.
Nature.com has the report here;
http://www.nature.com/news/ancient-bones-reveal-girl-s-tough-life-in-early-americas-1.21753
And the full research paper is here;
Nature 544, 15–16 (06 April 2017) doi:10.1038/nature.2017.21753
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Stone tools and mastodon bones at the Page-Ladson site in Florida have been dated to 14,550 years ago. People butchered or scavenged a mastodon in a bedrock sinkhole in the Aucilla River. The site has been studied since 1983 but the earlier evidence of a Pre-Clovis date were challenged. Excavations began anew in 2014. The new studies now confirm that the stone artifacts, which include a biface knife fragment made of coastal plain chert, have been dated at the Pre-Clovis date of 14,550 years ago. Tusk marks of the mastodon show stone tool made grooves as humans were extracting the tusk at that date.
Page-Ladson now joins Monte Verde, Chile and Paisley Cave, Oregon as Pre-Clovis sites that have shown evidence of Pre-Clovis human activity beyond just stone artifacts.
Science Advances has the entire research report here;
http://advances.sciencemag.org/content/2/5/e1600375
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The oral history of the Heiltsuk people in British Columbia tells of a coastal strip that did not freeze during the last ice age, and that their people used as a place of refuge during the ice age. Now archaeologists have found an ancient hearth on Triquet Island that is carbon dated to 14,000 years ago. They have also found fish hooks, a hand drill for igniting fires, a wooden device for launching projectiles and a cache of stone tools near the hearth. This bolsters the concept of the entry into the Americas by way of coastal travel. And the date of the site is a Pre-Clovis date.
Smithsonian reports this news here;
http://bit.ly/2nQSRCL
A royal palace has been excavated in Oaxaca dating to 300 BCE. The early date for this palace gives new insight into early state development in Oaxaca. The site is called El Palenque. Researchers have been excavating there since 1993. The palace is multifunctional, with courts and buildings for govenment functionaries, along with the ruler’s residential quarters. An analysis of radio carbon dates on charcoal samples and ceramics in the walls of the palace confirm the early date.
The research is published in the peer reviewed journal PNAS.org
http://www.pnas.org/content/early/2017/03/21/1701336114
The International Business Times has the story here;
http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/giant-ancient-palace-unearthed-mexico-was-rulers-home-seat-government-1613944
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Respected archaeologist Richard Blanton of Purdue has written a research report about the governance of the city of Tlaxcallan founded in 1250 CE. The Spanish documented the ordeals Tlaxcallan leaders had to face to govern the city. They had to stand naked in the central plaza and be beaten by the citizenry, then had to stay in a temple for 2 years while they were educated by the priests on the moral and legal code, starved, beaten with spiked whips, cutting themselves in bloodletting rituals. Having gone through this, they emerged warriors and joined the 100 member senate. Richard Blanton, in his research in Science Magazine, stated that the city was run as a collective. The clues to this are in their repetitive architecture, public places over temples, local production over importation of luxury goods, and a narrower wealth gap. Michael E. Smith, the premiere archaeologist on the areas surrounding the Mexica capital, will now take this data and test it by using the methods Blanton has revealed. This new paradigm contrasts with other major sites in Mesoamerica from the Olmecs to the Maya and Aztecs, where the structure was imperial, and the rulers and elite lived in posh palaces filled with exotic luxury products. Tlaxcallan plazas were scattered in every neighborhood, with no sign of a clear center or hierarchy. Recently, the Olmec center of Tres Zapotes was found to have this style of collective layout and collective artifacts from 400 BCE to 300 CE.
(See) http://www.archaeology.org/issues/249-1703/features/5300-olmec-tres-zapotes-government
The Tlaxcallans successfully defended their city against the Aztecs throughout, and when the Aztecs imposed a trade blockade, the Tlaxcallans were not weakened because their goods were locally produced as was their food.
Science Magazine has the research here;
http://www.sciencemag.org/news/2017/03/it-wasnt-just-greece-archaeologists-find-early-democratic-societies-americas
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Research at the Olmec site of Tres Zapotes shows that the city lasted for some 1,500 years, while other Olmec cities only lasted 300-500 years. Archaeologist Christopher Pool posits that its success was due to a form of cooperative rule. Between 1000-400 BCE, Tres Zapotes was a major site with centralized rulers represented by huge stone heads carved in the rulers likeness. It had a central plaza and elite burials. At 400 BCE, La Venta, the most important Olmec site, collapsed. Traders no longer brought in luxury goods, and the city was abandoned. Many of the inhabitants may have moved to Tres Zapotes, 60 miles away. Tres Zapotes expanded quickly in size at 400 BCE. Now, Tres Zapotes had four separate plazas evenly spaced apart. Each has a temple pyramid on the west side, a long platform on the north, and a low platform in the center on an east-west line. All of the sites were oocupied at the same time, 400 BCE-1 CE. No one group dominated. It appears to be a shared power structure. All the inhabitants had the same types of goods, exotic goods were not imported. Ceramics and obsidian tools were made locally. This is the key to Tres Zapotes lasting so long. But between 1 CE-300 CE, there was a resurgence of centralized rulers. Tres Zapotes declined and was eventually abandoned.
Archaeology Magazine has the story of the research here;
http://www.archaeology.org/issues/249-1703/features/5300-olmec-tres-zapotes-government
Mike Ruggeri’s Olmecs
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Research at the Olmec site of Tres Zapotes shows that the city lasted for some 1,500 years, while other Olmec cities only lasted 300-500 years. Archaeologist Christopher Pool posits that its success was due to a form of cooperative rule. Between 1000-400 BCE, Tres Zapotes was a major site with centralized rulers represented by huge stone heads carved in the rulers likeness. It had a central plaza and elite burials. At 400 BCE, La Venta, the most important Olmec site, collapsed. Traders no longer brought in luxury goods, and the city was abandoned. Many of the inhabitants may have moved to Tres Zapotes, 60 miles away. Tres Zapotes expanded quickly in size at 400 BCE. Now, Tres Zapotes had four separate plazas evenly spaced apart. Each has a temple pyramid on the west side, a long platform on the north, and a low platform in the center on an east-west line. All of the sites were oocupied at the same time, 400 BCE-1 CE. No one group dominated. It appears to be a shared power structure. All the inhabitants had the same types of goods, exotic goods were not imported. Ceramics and obsidian tools were made locally. This is the key to Tres Zapotes lasting so long. But between 1 CE-300 CE, there was a resurgence of centralized rulers. Tres Zapotes declined and was eventually abandoned.
Archaeology Magazine has the story of the research here;
http://www.archaeology.org/issues/249-1703/features/5300-olmec-tres-zapotes-government
Mike Ruggeri’s Olmecs
http://mikeruggerisolmecs.tumblr.com
Mike Ruggeri’s OlmecWorld Magazine
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Mike Ruggeri’s Olmec Art Portfolio
http://bit.ly/1MxliwD
A large Amazon research team studied 1000 forest surveys on a map of 3000 archaeological sites in the Amazon. They focused on 85 tree species domesticated by Amazonian people for food, shelter and other uses. They found extensive use of the Amazon forests by ancient peoples. They were able to show that these species are abundant across the Amazon, thus proving that the ancient peoples planted these trees over wide areas of the Amazon in Pre-Columbian times. Even more tree species were managed by these peoples, but not domesticated. The team will continue to study that aspect of ancient forest management. In the last few years, archaeological evidence of very large ancienrt structures in the Amazon have been uncovered, proving that the ancient Amazon had a much larger population and much more advanced culture than previously believed.
Eurekalert has the report here;
https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2017-03/nbc-aps022817.php
Mike Ruggeri’s Ancient Americas News on Tumblr
http://michaelruggeriancientamericas.tumblr.com
A remarkable jade pendant was uncovered at the Maya site of Nim Li Punit in Belize in 2015. The archaeologist who found it has published a paper in Ancient Mesoamerica on the find and a second paper in the Journal of Field Archaeology about the excavations. It is the only jade pendant inscribed with a historical text. Nim Li Punit was inhabited between 150-850 CE. While excavating a palace there dated at 400 CE, they found a tomb dating to 800 CE. Inside were 25 pottery vessels, a carved stone representing a deity and the jade pectoral. The pendant is in the shape of a T and the front is carved with a T. This is the Maya glyph for “ik.” It stands for wind or breath. It was found in a T-shaped platform. And one of the vessels depicts a Maya god of wind. The inscription on the back says the pendant was first used in 672 CE. Two bas relief slabs at the site show kings wearing the pendant while scattering incense, carved in 721 and 731 CE. The pendant was buried in 800 CE. At this date, the Maya world began to crumble in Belize and Guatemala. The glyphs show the pendant was made for the Maya king Janaab’ Ohl K’inich. His mother was from the Belize site of Cahal Pech and the father probably came from Guatemala. The glyph story may link the king to the huge site of Caracol in Belize. Perhaps royalty arrived at the site with this pendant.
More excavations will continue.
Archaeology News Network has the story here;
http://bit.ly/2kVpa6a
Mike Ruggeri’s Maya World
http://bit.ly/MoAHNA
Mike Ruggeri’s Ancient Maya News Magazine
http://bit.ly/1CeeXyu
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Researchers have found that the Chaco Canyon elite in New Mexico descend from a matrilinear dynasty. Researchers used DNA studies and radio carbon data to investigate the first elite tomb at the Pueblo Bonito structure at Chaco. The initial burial was of a male in his late 40s who died from a blow to his head. He was buried with 1,000 turquoise beads, 3,300 shell beads and other artifacts including abalone shells and a conch shell trumpet originating from the Pacific Ocean and Gulf of California. This is the richest burial ever found in the Southwest. 12 more burials, spanning 300 years, were found on a floor above. All of the buried shared the same mitochrondial DNA, so inheritance was through the mother. So one kinship group controlled Pueblo Bonito for more than 300 years,
Douglas J. Kennett et al, Archaeogenomic evidence reveals prehistoric matrilineal dynasty, Nature Communications (2017). DOI: 10.1038/ncomms14115
Phys.org has the report here;
https://phys.org/news/2017-02-radiocarbon-dating-dna-ancient-puebloan.html
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Researchers at Chaco have analyzed 60 sets of human remains at the Chaco site in New Mexico. The remains were found at the Pueblo Bonito structure of the site. These were elite burials with turquoise, pendants and pottery found in the graves. The researchers found that the vast majority were from Chaco Canyon, and not from more distant areas as many experts thought. So the Chaco phenomenon was brought about by the original settlers in the area. Isotope analysis was done on the teeth of these remains, which are scattered in museums throughout the US. The researchers found that the population of the elite was very homogeneous. There were 3 outliers that still have to be studied further to see where they may have come from among the 61 studied. The remains also exhibit cranial deformation, a sign of elite status throughout the Americas.
The team reports their findings in The Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports.
Price, T., Plog, S., LeBlanc, S., & Krigbaum, J. (2017). Great House origins and population stability at Pueblo Bonito, Chaco Canyon, New Mexico: The isotopic evidence Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports, 11, 261-273 DOI: 10.1016/j.jasrep.2016.11.043
Western Digs has the report here;
http://westerndigs.org/chacos-elites-were-native-to-the-canyon-not-migrants-their-remains-show/
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Researchers at Cahokia had theorized that the large Mississippian sites, including Cahokia, began to build during an unusually warm period and began to decline during the Little Ice Age. New research on ancient layers of calcite crystals in layers of mud in an Indiana lake show that the Mississippi Valley began to get more rain in the 10th century, when corn began to thrive at around 950 CE, as shown in the skeletal remains at the time. Cahokia began to explode with growth at the time. Around 1200 CE, a new Ice Age began with drought at 1350 CE. This lasted for 500 years. Large conflicts began at 1250 CE, with more palisades being built, burned villages, more skeletal injuries like decapitation. Mississippians began to abandon their cities and moved south. A contributing factor would have been in-migration of different groups into the large centers like Cahokia in the good times. When the droughts began, migrant infighting may have also contributed to the collapse.
NPR has the story here;
http://n.pr/2kAkzV6
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INAH has found a large ancient Colima tomb with the skeletal remains of at least 12 male individuals buried at 300 CE. Several have cranial deformation, and the teeth show they had severe dental problems. Several grave offerings were found, including two anthropomorphic sculptures. They are in the traditional Colima art style. This find is an unusual non-looted tomb in the area of the city of Colima.
INAH has the report with a photo here (in Spanish);
http://bit.ly/2k4n1QA
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450 ancient earthworks that look like Stonehenge have been found by discovery drones over Brazil. This further confirms that there was an advanced culture clearing the Amazon in ancient times to build giant earthworks and enclosures. The round earthworks have an outer ditch and inner wall enclosure, just like Stonehendge in the UK. No artifacts have been found there, so these were probably built for sporadic rituals. The research will be published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
The Telegraph has the report here:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/2017/02/06/hundreds-ancient-earthworks-resembling-stonehenge-found-amazon/
JQ Jacobs has published an incredibly researched blot with many photos and videos on his site that references dozens of sources and reminds us that these enclosures have been known for many years. The new work shows the henge type enclosures in a more defined way. JQ Jacobs is a national treasure for archaeological enthusiasts.
Here is his incredible blog on the enclosures;
http://www.jqjacobs.net/archaeology/geoglyph.html
LIDAR images have found an ancient network of reads that run over 150 miles in the Mirador Basin of Guatemala. The site of El Mirador (600 BCE-150 CE) was the largest city-state in the world in size and population at its height. One million lived there in its time. In some years, 200,000 people inhabited the site. The roads have been known since 1967, but the LIDAR images have found structures, terraces, pyramids, canals and 17 roads. The roads are 130 feet wide, 20 feet wide and some extend for 25 miles. The oldest is dated at 600-400 BCE, and the newest from 300 BCE-100 CE. The roads were used to transport food, materials, tribute armies. The Mirador complex collapsed in 150 CE.
Seeker.com has the report here
http://www.seeker.com/ancient-mayan-superhighways-found-in-the-guatemala-jungle-2219303581.html?sf53117998=1
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University of Arizona archaeologist Takeshi Inomata and his team, working at the Maya site of Ceibal in Guatemala (1000 BCE-950 CE), have found evidence of two collapses at the site. They have compared ceramics at the site with radio-carbon dates to form a precise history of the site. They found a collapse happened around 150-300 CE and a second collapse at 800-950 CE. They found that violent warfare intensified at 75 BCE-735 CE. These conflicts led to unrest and disintegration across the Maya lowlands during this time. After the first collapse, centralized power increased with strong dynasties based on divine rulership. The second collapse saw decentralization and more seaborne trade. The research will be published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences Journal.
The report is published here;
https://uanews.arizona.edu/story/archaeologists-uncover-new-clues-maya-collapse
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The bones of horses. bisons, mammoths and other remains at Blufish Cave in the Yukon Territory excavated decades ago placed the bones at 25,000 years old. Anthropologist Lauriane Bourgeon at the University of Montreal believes a few of these bones show clear evidence of human cut marks on the bones of a dozen of the remains. This human cut mark theory was first proposed in 1977. The area of the bones were part of a land mass called Beringia, east of the Bering Strait. This goes further to proving what is called the “Beringian Standstill.” The theory is that a genetically isolated human population lived in Beringia before the last Ice Age. And they moved into the Americas from there, once the ice in front of them receded. The team studied 36,000 bones in the caves using high tech equipment.
15 of the bone samples prove human butchery says the research. The oldest sample with this find was dated at 24,000 years ago. The research is published in PLOS One journal.
Bourgeon, L., Burke, A., & Higham, T. (2017). Earliest Human Presence in North America Dated to the Last Glacial Maximum: New Radiocarbon Dates from Bluefish Caves, Canada PLOS ONE, 12 (1) DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0169486
(My Note; Cut mark evidence in the absence of any other human evidence is not always reliable many archaeologists maintain. Lauriane Bourgeon does state that this is just a beginning theory that has to be buttressed by other evidence such as human DNA evidence. So much more research has to be done. And many questions remain in Pre-Clovis science. Did the inhabitants of Beringia enter the Americas before any other groups? Are they related to the Pre-Clovis folks that lived at Monte Verde in Chile or the Pre-Clovis folks who utilized Paisley Cave?)
Western Digs has the report here;
http://westerndigs.org/bones-in-yukon-cave-show-humans-in-north-america-24000-years-ago-study-says/
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Archaeologist Sarah Newman published a paper in Antiquity called “Sharks in the Jungle: real and imagined sea monsters of the Maya.”
She has explained that the giant teeth of an extinct shark species were used by the Maya as sacred offerings at several Maya sites. Ancient Maya depictions of a sea monster called “Sipak,” also known as Cipactli among the Mexica have a single giant tooth that looks like the tooth of the shark species fossils. The Maya word for shark is “Xook.” This name was taken by some Maya royalty, Yax Ehb Xook ("First Step Shark”) at Tikal and Yax Ehb Xook ("First Step Shark”) at Yaxchilan. The interconnecteness of the shark teeth with myths across Mesoamerica are an indication of long distance religious influences.
Live Science has the report here with photos;
http://www.livescience.com/57202-megalodon-teeth-inspired-mayan-monster-myths.html
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An “Amazon Stonehedge” in Amapa state Brazil has been analyzed recently. Excavations of the site began in 2005. They found ceramic bural urns. When the stone circle was completely excavated, they found 127 blocks of granite standing in an upright circle. The stones appear to be arranged to coincide with winter solstice. The site was first noted in the 19th century but not studied by modern archaeology until recently. The stone circle is dated at 1000 CE. There are multiple explanations for the possible use of this stone circle, ranging from winter solstice or a place of worship, or as hunting markers.
The Daily Mail has the story here with photos and a video;
http://dailym.ai/2hNQkJK
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An “Amazon Stonehedge” in Amapa state Brazil has been analyzed recently. Excavations of the site began in 2005. They found ceramic bural urns. When the stone circle was completely excavated, they found 127 blocks of granite standing in an upright circle. The stones appear to be arranged to coincide with winter solstice. The site was first noted in the 19th century but not studied by modern archaeology until recently. The stone circle is dated at 1000 CE. There are multiple explanations for the possible use of this stone circle, ranging from winter solstice or a place of worship, or as hunting markers.
The Daily Mail has the story here with photos and a video;
http://dailym.ai/2hNQkJK
Mike Ruggeri’s The Ancient America’s Breaking News
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New evidence at Montezuma Castle, inhabited by the Southern Sinagua culture at 1100 CE-1300 CE, shows the final days of the cliff site may have been violent. 80 years ago, archaeologists found evidence of massive fires in both structures at the site. Building A at the site was found to have been burned between 1375-1395. Jeddito Yellow and Jeddito White pottery was being made right up to the end. A new examination of four dead from the site shows cut marks on their bones, burn marks and three skulls were fractured. Their bones were burned while they were still alive. It appears that the site was burned suddenly as part of a violent attack. The Native American oral histories of this event match the new findings.
The findings are published in the journal Kiva.
Guebard, M. (2016). During the Migration Time: Oral History, Violence, and Identity in the Prehistoric Verde Valley KIVA, 82 (3), 259-277 DOI: 10.1080/00231940.2016.1208632
Western Digs has the report here;
http://westerndigs.org/new-evidence-reveals-violent-final-days-at-arizonas-montezuma-castle/
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3,000 year old Clay figurines found at two sites in Arizona appear to be fertility symbols. They may be the earliest clay figurines ever found in the Southwest. The artifacts were dated to the Early Agricultural period, 1.800-3,500 years ago in the Sonoran desert. Bone and antler material was found with the figurines at one site. The figurines have prominent sexual traits, looking phallic and also some with breasts. They may be dualistic.
The research is published in the Journal Kiva.
Western Digs has the report here with photos;
http://westerndigs.org/earliest-known-clay-figurines-in-the-southwest-may-be-fertility-symbols-study-says/
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INAH has uncovered an Aztec circular temple under a Mexico City demolished department store. The round temple was dedicated to Ehecatl Quetzalcoatl, as the wind god. It will be preserved behind a viewing window inside a shopping mall to be built in the site. Inside the temple, INAH found an infant, bird bones, obsidian, cactus spines and monkey and duck ceramics. White stucco remains on the temple.
The Guardian has the report here with a photo;
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/nov/30/mexico-temple-wind-god-archaeology-supermarket
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At the Lagoa Santo site in Brazil, a 9000 year old skull was unearthed with amputated hands placed over the face at the Lapo do Santo cave at the site. The face had been defleshed. The previous earliest known case of decapitation in South America was in the Peruvian Andes 3000 years ago. The earliest case in North America was in Florida between 6,990-8,120 years ago. The skull belonged to a young man who was a member of the group in the cave and the positioning of the skull and hands suggest a ceremony. The burial ritual does not suggest violence.
Live Science has the report here;
http://www.livescience.com/52278-oldest-human-decapitation-in-new-world.html
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Archaeologists have found that the Pueblo people bred turkeys as far back as 200 BCE during the Basketmaker II era from 400 BCE-500 CE. They were used as a food source and for turkey feathers for blankets. Archaeologist Bill Lipe said that turkeys were primarily eaten at feasts and ritual gatherings. Later in Pueblo history, deers were being hunted out and replaced by turkeys. Archaeologists see that deer bones were being replaced by turkey bones as time went on. Lipe says that raising one turkey a year would require diverting lots of maize to raise the turkey. Turkey consumption peaked in the 1200’s, followed by depopulation. Perhaps the cost of raising turkeys contributed to the exodus, as maize was being used up in times of drought to raise turkeys.
PhyOrg has the report here;
http://phys.org/news/2016-11-turkeys-major-ancestral-pueblo-life.html
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Archaeologists have found that the Pueblo people bred turkeys as far back as 200 BCE during the Basketmaker II era from 400 BCE-500 CE. They were used as a food source and for turkey feathers for blankets. Archaeologist Bill Lipe said that turkeys were primarily eaten at feasts and ritual gatherings. Later in Pueblo history, deers were being hunted out and replaced by turkeys. Archaeologists see that deer bones were being replaced by turkey bones as time went on. Lipe says that raising one turkey a year would require diverting lots of maize to raise the turkey. Turkey consumption peaked in the 1200’s, followed by depopulation. Perhaps the cost of raising turkeys contributed to the exodus, as maize was being used up in times of drought to raise turkeys.
PhyOrg has the report here;
http://phys.org/news/2016-11-turkeys-major-ancestral-pueblo-life.html
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Field Museum archaeologists have found a cache of intact domesticated turkey eggs used as a ritual offering at 500 CE in Oaxaca. This confirms hypotheses that turkeys were domesticated at that date. The turkey eggs were buried by the Zapotec people. The eggs were placed alongside seven baby turkeys. Their bones were found in the offering. Older turkey bones were found nearby. Turkeys are still important in Zapotec society today for gifts and rituals.
The report is published in the Journal of Archaeological Science.
Eurekalert has the report here;
https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2016-11/fm-aeu112116.php
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Archaeologists have found a third pyramid buried underneath the Kulkulkan pyramid at Chichen Itza, Yucatan. A second pyramid had already been discovered underneath. The third pyramid was built between 550-800 CE. The middle one was built between 800-1000 CE. The standing pyramid was built between 1050-1300 CE. The pyramid is also built above a cenote. The third pyramid was found using tri-dimensional electric resistivity tomography.
(My note; In Mesoamerica, there was often ritual destruction of large monuments based upon a religious calendar. New pyramids atop old ones could also be the result of a new leader and a new style of architecture. Building above a cenote probably connotes that the pyramid or person/persons buried in the pyramid are put in touch with the afterlife through the cenote).
The Guardian has the report here;
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/nov/17/mexican-pyramid-has-two-more-inside-scientists-discover
The Daily Mail has its usual fine set of photos of the discovery;
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-3943598/Mexican-experts-say-original-pyramid-Chichen-Itza.html
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Archaeologists have found a rural luxury retreat at the site of Becujal in Guatemala. There is a luxury residence and two pyramids on the site. Inscriptions there link the complex to a Maya ruler called Great Fish-Dog Turtle. His base was five miles away. This is the first country resort ever found belonging to a Maya ruler. A sacrificed baby was found at one temple. Bejucal had two courtyards with residential rooms. A large tomb dated to 350-450 CE was found beneath one pyramid. The site has many looters tunnels too dangeroud to explore for now.
USA Today has the story here;
http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/2016/11/03/ancient-maya-king-had-luxury-pleasure-palace-outside-city-he-ruled/93215340/
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INAH Archaeologists in Chihuahua have investigated a cave where an infant skeleton, the lower half of a man whose ankles were tied, and the remains of a scarlet macaw along with points, textiles, a sea shell, a bag of deer skin. The remains were naturally mummified by the dry desert air. The finds possibly date to 2000 years ago. The site is 250 miles from Paquime, which was a trading hub between Mesoamerica and the Ancestral Puebloans. The finds suggest the site pre-dates Paquime, which was founded around 1,300 years ago. The discovery of a scarlet macaw that pre-dates Paquime may show that long distance trade in exotic goods predate Paquime.
Western Digs has the report here;
http://westerndigs.org/mummified-bird-baby-found-in-cave-shed-light-on-earliest-desert-farmers/
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Researchers have found that humans probably lived alongside an extinct horse species at Paisley Cave. Oregon, 14,000 years ago, in Pre-Clovis times. Dennis Jenkins has shown proof of tools and human feces dating back to 14,300 years ago in earlier research. In the same cave as the humans were extinct fossils of camels and mastodons. Researchers analyzed toe bones of the extinct horse species and computer modeled the finds with five other extinct horse specimens across the US to determine the exact species of the horse fossils.
The research is published in the Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology.
Western Digs has the report here;
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Archaeologists at the site of Holmul have found two unlooted tombs underneath two pyramids. The finds date to 650-700 CE. They found an artifact related to the Snake Kings dynasty named after the snakehead emblem of their house. They lived 100 miles to the north. In one tomb, they found the remains of a middle aged person with jade inlayed teeth and an inscribed tibia. A carved frieze near the tomb depicts five rulers, a conch shell that was used as a scribe’s inkpot, and artifacts made of jade, obsidian, human bone, ceramics and marine shells. The second tomb in a separate pyramid also contained a middle aged person, a masonry bench, ceramics, bone and jade. The jade artifact has the name of a Snake King, “Yuknoom Ti’ Chan from Dzibanche. There appears to have been a civil war among the Snake King, and Tikal eventully overthrew them. New Technology is going to find more great Maya cities.
The Guardian has the story here with great photos;
https://www.theguardian.com/science/2016/oct/14/mayan-tombs-snake-kings-holmul-guatemala
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A large temple, now called the “South Temple, has been found at the site of Cahuachi in the Nazca Velley, Peru. A wall separates it from the great temple at the site. Its function is not understood yet. Five vases that are 2 metres tall and a metre and a half wide have been found there. Perhaps these were funerary urns for kings or priests, but vases are empty. Cahuachi was occupied for eight centuries, from 400 BC until 450 AD., after which time it was abandoned. Between 420-450, the Nazca Valley had two large floods and a large earthquake. The people of Cahuachi may have abandoned their deities after these events, thus closing and sealing the temple. Nazca lines were still being drawn after the Cahuachi collapse.
Archaeology News Network has the report with great photos;
http://bit.ly/2ddyvm6
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Tulane and Del Valle University archaeologists have uncovered more artifacts at El Achiotal in Guatemala. A six foot tall stucco mask was found in the largest pyramid dated at 100 BCE at the site. It still has its polychrome decoration depicting the Bird Deity. Half of the pyramid is still to be excavated.
The same archaeologists, working at Holmul in Guatemala, have excavated two tombs untouched by looters with pottery, a jade jewel with the name of a distant Maya ruler.
Heritage Daily has the report here;
http://www.heritagedaily.com/2016/09/tulane-archaeologists-make-mayan-discoveries-at-el-achiotal/112784
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Past research claimed that the Ancestral Puebloan water management techniques in the Southwest resulted in toxic salt in the water, killing the soil’s ability to grow corn. New research challenges that claim. The new researchers analyzed 1000 year old sediment and found that salts that had accumulated there were non-deleterious sulfate minerals. The Chacoan people gathered water from the surrounding mountains after the spring thaw, and in the rainy season, captured runoff water from small canyons and arroyos. The process helped the water gain essential minerals for rich fertilizer and good irrigation. Water was collected in ceramic jars for storage during droughts. The Chacoans also used sulfates for paint segments and murals, and gypsums from the sulfates were used to whitewash dwellings.
The research is pulished in; Kenneth Barnett Tankersley et al, Evaluating soil salinity and water management in Chaco Canyon, New Mexico, Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports (2016). DOI: 10.1016/j.jasrep.2016.07.014
PhysOrg has the report here;
http://phys.org/news/2016-10-salt-secret-success-ancient-chaco.html
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Archaeoliogists working at the Arroyo Seco 2 site in Argentina have found tools, bones of extinct species and animal bones broken by tools, mammal bones that appear to have been transported dated at 14,064-13,068 years ago, placing the find in the Pre-Clovis era. Taken separately, each find could have been done without human involvement, but it is the confluence of all of the finds together which indicates a human occupation. The research has been published in the peer reviewed Plos One Journal.
(My note; the most important and totally proven Pre-Clovis site is at Monte Verde in Chile dated within the same time period. So far, the researchers have not found human DNA evidence at the site as has been found at Monte Verde).
Popular Archaeology has the report here;
http://bit.ly/2dkNbil
And the full Plos One paper is here;
http://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=info%3Adoi/10.1371/journal.pone.0162870
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Circular geoglyphs have been found near the site of Quilcapampa in Peru dated
to 1050-1400 AD. They may be related to trade routes. The geoglyphs are both
lines and rings within rings. Rock piles and cairns accompany the glyphs.
Perhaps they pointed at trade routes or they mark the end of a journey. At
the time of Quilcapampa, trade between the coast and the highland was very
active. The research will be published in the Journal of Archaeological
Science, and work will continue there.
Ancient Origins has the report here with their usual array of good photos;
http://bit.ly/2dslfqn
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The oldest indigo-dyed fabric ever found has been uncovered in Peru, 6,200 years older than the oldest blu-dyed fabric found in Egypt. Study researcher Jeffrey Splitstoser, an archaeologist and textile expert at George Washington University, explained the finding that was excavated by Tom Dillehay and Duccio Bonavia between 2007 and 2008 from a prehistoric site called Huaca Prieta, on coastal Peru. (Jeffrey is on the Board of the great Pre-Columbian Society of Washington DC). The temple at the site was a mixture of ash, shells and sand, and continually renovated over the centuries. The fabric scraps were found in bundles lining the ramp that led to the top of the temple. They all date to 2000-4200 BCE. Splitsoser had a British chemist test the fabric for indigo, which was not apparent in the first tests. The new tests with advanced equipment confirmed indigo. The fabrics were torn on deposit, probably representing a “ritual killing” of the fabric, just as they did with pottery. The fabrics also contained off-white cotton and white thread from milkweed, and red and yellow ochre. The preparation of indigo day is a very complex process
The research is in the September 14 Science Advances.
Live Science has the report here;
http://www.livescience.com/56099-oldest-indigo-dyed-fabric-discovered-peru.html
Mike Ruggeri’s Ancient Andean World
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Mike Ruggeri’s Ancient Andean News on Tumblr
http://mikeruggerisancientandeannews.tumblr.com
A naturally mummified macaw, two human skulls, textiles, deerskin, baskets, a large sea shell have been uncovered in Chihuahua. Macaws were being bred in the area for trade to the north into New Mexico. The remains have been dated to the period before Paquime, pre-700 CE. Archaeologists began digging deeper and found food remains, corn, beans, housing, 30 arrow points, coprolites, a gourd and rope all dating to the 2,500-1,000 BCE period. Human bone was found on a rabbit skin, two bodies of an adult and baby.
Ancient Origins has the story here with great photos;
http://bit.ly/2cPw70R
Mike Ruggeri’s Aztlan World
http://mikeruggerisaztlanworld.tumblr.com
Mike Ruggeri’s Casas Grandes World Magazine
http://bit.ly/1ztd8vF
Seventeen graves of adults and children have been uncovered at the Chotuna-Chornancap in Peru. Some show possible evidence of ritual sacrifice. The remains were from the Chimu culture. Ceramic offerings were also found in the graves. The child burials were found without their feet. They may have been sacrificed to accompany the adults. At the Moche Lord of Sipan site, a grave was found of a footless warrior sacrificed to prevent him leaving a sentry position for the honored position. in 2011, archaeologists found the remains of 42 children and 76 llamas that showed signs of human sacrifice.
Ancient Origins has the report here with good photos and a video.
http://bit.ly/2cOgYNQ
Mike Ruggeri’s Ancient Andean World
http://bit.ly/VD1spm
Mike Ruggeri’s Sican/Chimu Era Peru
http://mikeruggerissicanchimu.tumblr.com
A monolith carving of a crocodile has been found at the Zapotec site of Lambityeco dating to 500-850 CE. The carving was found after clearing a hidden path on a ball court, that had been barricaded by its inhabitants. Charcoal, burnt human skull, ceramics and incense burners were found in front of it as offerings. It appears that the carving had once been a balustrade on one side of a stairway. The ball court area had been a copy of one of the ball courts at Monte Alban, but it was altered in time, perhaps showing independence from Monte Alban. It is unlikely that the inhabitants ever saw a crocodile in this landlocked valley. They saw representations of it in other art works from outside the valley.
Live Science has a report with a photo of the monolith;
http://www.livescience.com/55971-ancient-mexican-crocodile-carving-discovered.html
Mike Ruggeri’s Zapotecs
http://mikeruggeriszapotecs.tumblr.com
Mike Ruggeri’s Zapotec World Magazine
http://bit.ly/16NhFSI
New dating methods of scarlet macaw feathers imported from Mesoamerica taken at Pueblo Bonito and a Mimbres Site in New Mexico and the Grand Gulch Site in Utah show that six of the Chaco birds date to 885-990 CE, before Chaco had reached its florescence. It was thought these birds reached Chaco during its boom time. Six other birds were dated to 970-1035 CE, shortly before the building boom at Chaco. And some were dated to 1015-1155 during the boom. The dates show importation of the scarlet macaws was sporadic. One of the Mimbres birds was dated to 895-1020 and the other three to 1015-1155 CE as did the two Grand Gulch birds. So Chaco was the first to import these birds into New Mexico. Macaws have been found at Hohokam sites in Arizona even earlier than Chaco, but these have not been directly dated. We still do not know the exact trade routes to the south.
The research is published in:
Watson, A., Plog, S., Culleton, B., Gilman, P., LeBlanc, S., Whiteley, P., Claramunt, S., & Kennett, D. (2015). Early procurement of scarlet macaws and the emergence of social complexity in Chaco Canyon, NM Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 112(27), 8238-8243 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1509825112
Gambler’s House has the report here;
https://gamblershouse.wordpress.com/2016/07/31/dating-the-macaws/
Mike Ruggeri’s Aztlan World
http://mikeruggerisaztlanworld.tumblr.com
Mike Ruggeri’s Casas Grandes World Magazine
http://bit.ly/1ztd8vF
Cacao originated in the Amazon and was being grown in Chiapas by 1900 BCE. In 2011, cacao residue was found on pottery from Chaco Canyon, New Mexico. Then cacao was found on “Abajo Red on Orange” pottery in Utah in 2013. The pottery was tested to 780 CE. This adds to the story of extensive trade in cacao, scarlet macaws, pyrite mirrors, and turquoise, among other items, between Mesoamerica and the Southwest, which included repeated migrations. A new group of researchers are now testing pottery from areas near the site of the original cacao residues find in Utah. They have found mug bases, corrugated jar bases, white ware bowls and Abajo red-pon-orange pottery with cacao residue at three different sites within 10 miles of the original find, thus validating the original find.
Natural History Museum of Utah has the report here with nice photos;
https://nhmu.utah.edu/chocolate;
Mike Ruggeri’s Aztlan World
http://mikeruggerisaztlanworld.tumblr.com
Researchers at Teotihuacan may have bred rabbits and hares for food, fur and bone tools. Large mammals suitable for animal husbandry did not exist at Teotihuacan. So the researchers studied the remains of 134 rabbits at Teotihuacan using stable carbon and oxygen isotope analysis. They found that the rabbits had a higher level of maize and other human crops in their diet than wild rabbits. The research is published in the peer reviewed journal PLOS ONE.
Somerville AD, Sugiyama N, Manzanilla LR, Schoeninger MJ (2016) Animal Management at the Ancient Metropolis of Teotihuacan, Mexico: Stable Isotope Analysis of Leporid (Cottontail and Jackrabbit) Bone Mineral.
EurekAlert has the report here;
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2016-08/p-pmc081116.php
Mike Ruggeri’s Teotihuacan
http://mikeruggeristeotihuacan.tumblr.com
Mike Ruggeri’s Teotihuacan; City of the Gods Magazine
http://bit.ly/1z57bpL
Researchers from Denmark have taken samples from nine former lake beds in British Columbia and radio carbon dated the sediments. In the deepest layers from 13,000 years ago, they found no evidence of life in the area of the “ice free corridor” First Americans would have used to come to the New World. The area was naked and barren at 13,000 year ago. At the 12,600 years ago layer, they found traces of bison, hare and sage brush. So the area was not open to human travel at 13,000 years ago. There was a physical corridor, but it would be 400 years before humans could have traveled that corridor. So people entering the Americas could not have done so unless they traveled along the Pacific Coast. We know that people with stone tools had populated the Americas before 13,000 years ago. Before 12,600 years ago, there was no wood for fuel and tools, game animals for food, clothing and shelter in the so called ice free corridor. So the Clovis Culture that had established itself in the Americas by 13,000 years ago, had to have arrived by way of coastal travel by canoes. There were earlier Pre-Clovis peoples who arrived by the same coastal route at Monte Verde in Chile and Paisley Cave in Oregon before the arrival of the Clovis Culture immigrants 1,500 years before the arrival of the Clovis people.
The Daily Mail has the story and photos here;
http://dailym.ai/2boeqp7
Mike Ruggeri’s Pre-Clovis and Clovis World
http://bit.ly/11wqze5
Mike Ruggeri’s Pre-Clovis and Clovis World Magazine
http://bit.ly/1uAWdvk
Mike Ruggeri’s Pre-Clovis and Clovis News on Tumblr
http://mikeruggerispreclovisnews.tumblr.com
Researchers have analyzed the “beaded burial” at Cahokia and have found that the burial contains both males and females of high status, and not just males. Mound 72 had five mass graves, each containing 20-50 bodies, 270 bodies in all. The burials date to 1000-1200 CE. Twelve of the bodies are associated with a shell design in the shape of a bird. It was assumed that this meant the burials were of male warriors of chiefs. The new research found that the beaded burial area contained 12 bodies and not 6 bodies and that the 2 central bodies are of a male and a female. Other male and female pairs have now been found. The researche is published in American Antiquity. This puts a new light on the role of females at Cahokia.
PhysOrg has the report here;
http://phys.org/news/2016-08-fresh-burials-mass-graves-story.html
Mike Ruggeri’s Moundbuilders/Ancient Southwest News on Tumblr
http://mikeruggerisancientnorthamerica.tumblr.com
Mike Ruggeri’s Ancient Southwest/Mound Builders News Magazine
http://bit.ly/16PP9jH
The largest tomb of a Maya ruler ever found in Belize has been uncovered at Xunantunich. Archaeologists have found the skeletal remains of the ruler, a male between 25-30 years of age. Buried with him are the remains of a deer or jaguar, ceramics and jade stones. Archaeologists have been working at Xunantunich for a century and this is the first tomb they have ever found there.
The National Reporter of Belize has the report;
http://www.reporter.bz/general/largest-mayan-tomb-discovered-at-xunantunich/
Mike Ruggeri’s Ancient Maya News Magazine
http://bit.ly/1CeeXyu
Mike Ruggeri’s Ancient Maya News on Tumblr
http://mikeruggerisacientmayanew.tumblr.com
Researchers have found a campsite dated to 10,300 BCE in the Utah desert salt flats. There is a hearth, spear point, and tobacco seeds, possibly the earliest evidence of tobacco use in North America. There had been no evidence of the use of tobacco in North America past 3000 years ago. Bones of ducks and geese were found in the trash. The inhabitants were carrying their big game tool kits. The spear point was adapted for big game hunting. The team had found 1000 large points nearby in 2015. The remains contained elephant residue. At the time of this site, the Utah salt flats were wetlands with rivers and lakes. The inhabitants hunted mammoths and giant bison. The tobacco seeds are a mystery. Where did they come from?
Western Digs has the report here;
http://westerndigs.org/ice-age-hunting-camp-replete-with-bird-bones-and-tobacco-found-in-utah-desert/
Mike Ruggeri’s Ancient Americas News on Tumblr
http://michaelruggeriancientamericas.tumblr.com
INAH Archaeologists have found underground water tunnels under the Temple of Inscriptions at Palenque. They believe that the pyramid was deliberately built atop the spring. The tunnels led water from under the funeral chamber of Pakal into the esplanade in front of the temple, giving Pakal a path to the underworld. The tunnel is two feet wide and tall. Tunnels like this have been found at Teotihuacan. The tunnels were detected in 2012 with geo-radar. They were worried about pyramid collapse. They found three layers of stone over the top of the tunnel. A robot has been sent to veiw the shaft.
PhysOrg has the news;
http://phys.org/news/2016-07-mexico-tunnels-pakal-tomb-palenque.html
Mike Ruggeri’s Maya World
http://bit.ly/MoAHNA
Mike Ruggeri’s Ancient Maya News Magazine
http://bit.ly/1CeeXyu
Mike Ruggeri’s Ancient Maya News on Tumblr
http://mikeruggerisacientmayanew.tumblr.com
Archaeologists in Texas have uncovered 90 stone tools that date back 16,700 years, along with human teeth, and 160,000 flakes from the tool making process at the Gault Site. The teeth are from a young adult female. The teeth have been sent to a lab for analysis. The stone tools are completely different from Clovis tools. And so are the flakes. To prove the dating assertion, the soil the stone tools were found in was tested using optically stimulated luminescence dating, and the dates showed an age of 13,200-16,700 years old. Radiocarbon and relative dating of the artifacts were in agreement with these dates. The team presented their findings at the 2015 meeting of the Plains Anthropological Conference.
Western Digs has the news here with photos;
http://westerndigs.org/16000-year-old-tools-discovered-in-texas-among-the-oldest-yet-found-in-the-west/
Mike Ruggeri’s Pre-Clovis and Clovis World
http://bit.ly/11wqze5
Mike Ruggeri’s Pre-Clovis and Clovis World Magazine
http://bit.ly/1uAWdvk
Mike Ruggeri’s Pre-Clovis and Clovis News on Tumblr
http://mikeruggerispreclov
Archaeologists in Texas have uncovered 90 stone tools that date back 16,700 years, along with human teeth, and 160,000 flakes from the tool making process at the Gault Site. The teeth are from a young adult female. The teeth have been sent to a lab for analysis. The stone tools are completely different from Clovis tools. And so are the flakes. To prove the dating assertion, the soil the stone tools were found in was tested using optically stimulated luminescence dating, and the dates showed an age of 13,200-16,700 years old. Radiocarbon and relative dating of the artifacts were in agreement with these dates. The team presented their findings at the 2015 meeting of the Plains Anthropological Conference.
Western Digs has the news here with photos;
http://westerndigs.org/16000-year-old-tools-discovered-in-texas-among-the-oldest-yet-found-in-the-west/
Mike Ruggeri’s Pre-Clovis and Clovis World
http://bit.ly/11wqze5
Mike Ruggeri’s Pre-Clovis and Clovis World Magazine
http://bit.ly/1uAWdvk
Mike Ruggeri’s Pre-Clovis and Clovis News on Tumblr
http://mikeruggerispreclov
INAH has found 30 Aztec era incense burners at the site of Cuautitlan. The artifacts have polychrome handles and snake heads representing Xiuhcoatl as the fire serpent. They have also found graves and a temple at the site. The handles of the burners have balls of clay that emit a sound like rain when shaken. The site and offerings are dated to 1350-1519 CE. Cuauhtitlan was an Aztec tributary and trading center. The burials included 3 skulls and long bones. A stack of obsidian blades, black and red pots. A young girl was interred in a seated position. She was buried with dishes, whistles, and a mask of the God of death, Mictlantecuhtli.
Ancient Origins has the report taken from the INAH page, with photos of the finds and a video.
INAH archaeologists have uncovered the skeleton of an upper class women with intentional cranial deformation (a practice often reserved for upper class people in Mesoamerica). Her teeth are encrusted with mineral stones as a form of dental jewelry. The jewels are foreign to the region. She has a lower tooth made of serpentine, and pyrite stones encrusted in two top teeth. The cranial deformation and dental jewelry is in the style of southern Mesoamerica, perhaps Maya in style. The skeleton was found in a town near Teotihuacan. She was 35-40 years old at death. She was buried with 19 jars. The date of her burial is at 400 CE.
The Daily Mail has the report here with their usual great photo collection of the find.
http://dailym.ai/29wzQS5
Ancient Origins has a video of the find, (in Spanish) now called the “The Woman of Tlailotlacan”
http://bit.ly/29AyiH5
Mike Ruggeri’s Teotihuacan
http://mikeruggeristeotihuacan.tumblr.com
Mike Ruggeri’s Teotihuacan; City of the Gods Magazine
http://bit.ly/1z57bpL
Archaeologists from the University of Arizona and from Belize have discovered two stelae at the site of Xunantunich. One of them is a panel with heiroglyphs on it. The glyphs show a date of 638 CE commemorating the death of Lady Baz’ek, the wife of the ruler of Caracol, Lod Kantu. He made an alliance with Calakmul, where Lady Baz’ek is from. Caracol was eventually defeated with the help of Xunantunich.
Belize news has the report here;
http://bit.ly/1XyaMNa
Mike Ruggeri’s Maya World
http://bit.ly/MoAHNA
Several bronze and copper objects found in Alaska are the first evidence of metal trade with Asia in Pre-Columbian times. They are smelted alloys made in Eurasia and traded from Siberia to Alaska. Two of the items, a bead and buckle, are heavily leaded bronze dated to 1100-1330 CE. What was a backwater area of Alaska was engaging in trade with Siberia. The buckle could have been part of a horse harness in use in China around 1100 CE.
EurekAlert has the story here;
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2016-06/pu-owm060716.php
Mike Ruggeri’s The Ancient America’s Breaking News
http://bit.ly/UbLO7x
Resarchers are studying the 30 gruesome skull masks created by the Aztecs at the Templo Mayor. They have found that all were adult males between 30-45 years of age. Their dental record shows they were of high status and probably warriors. They may have been captured warriors or nobility from defeated towns. There were unmodifed skulls that show they came from poorer classes.
The Daily Mail has the report here with extensive photos;
http://dailym.ai/1spZrC1
Mike Ruggeri’s Toltecs and Aztecs
http://mikeruggeristoltecsandaztecs.tumblr.com
Painted human mandibles used as necklace pendants dating to 700 CE, along with whistles and figurines, have been uncovered at the Zapotec site of Dainzú in Oaxaca. Some of the figurines were of the god of the flayed skin Xipe Totec. Dainzu had been inhabited for 400 years by family clans. The inhabitants exhumed the bones of their ancestors and painted and modified them to show a linkage to important ancestors of the past. The ceramic pieces were smashed in thousands of pieces deliberately, probably as part of a Mesoamerican wide practice of ritual destruction.
Live Science has the report here with a photo;
http://bit.ly/1TYHmBe
Mike Ruggeri’s Zapotecs
http://mikeruggeriszapotecs.tumblr.com
Mike Ruggeri’s Zapotec World Magazine
http://bit.ly/16NhFSI
A new Olmec style bas-relief feline image has been found at Chalcatzingo, Morelos dated at 500 BCE. This is the 8th feline image found on five monuments at the site. The feline image contains speech scrolls. The reliefs are oriented east-west and are related to the mountains where water is born. The style of the time would have been influenced by the Olmec heartland site of La Venta. The bas-relief has been named Monument 45 and will be scanned for preservation.
INAH has the report here with a slide show. Press on the camera icon under the cover photo to see the slides.
http://bit.ly/1spNjki
Mike Ruggeri’s Olmecs
http://mikeruggerisolmecs.tumblr.com
Mike Ruggeri’s Olmec World Magazine
http://bit.ly/1E4bDrG
Archaeologists in New Mexico have uncovered a village dated to around 1100 CE that has ties to the Chaco complex. It contains some 120 sites and a two story great house with 85 rooms. It is a mixture of Chaco and independent styles. The stonework is of volcanic black rock, and there are intricate trails leading outwards from it. The settlement is called Las Ventanas. The Great House is built along the lines of Chacoan architecture, but the structures are not built of sandstone, like Chaco, but of black volcanic rock. Some of the ceramics showed affinities to the south as well as to Chaco. The trails cover 62 miles in length, and do not appear to lead anywhere. This is similar to the trails found at Chaco. So they were ritual features. Many artifacts were placed along the trails and look like they were related to lava flow ritual.
Western Digs has the story here with good photos;
http://bit.ly/1rO9AIz
Mike Ruggeri’s Moundbuilders/Ancient Southwest News on Tumblr
http://mikeruggerisancientnorthamerica.tumblr.com
Radiocarbon dating at the Page-Ladson sinkhole site in Florida has shown that ancient tools, including a knife, alongside extinct animal bones were Pre-Clovis, dated to 14,550 years ago. They found a mastodon tusk with cut marks made by humans using stone tools. This proves that these extinct mastodons were not wiped out by human hunters as quickly as believed, but lived alongside of them for 2000 years. The artifact dating, stratigraphy dating and other scientific dating is unequivocal for Pre-Clovis. 71 samples of wood all matched at being 14,500 years old and they were found in the dated stratigraphy layers as matching.
The Daily Mail has good photos with the story;
http://dailym.ai/228WaDy
The LA Times includes a video with the story;
http://lat.ms/1Wx6SEp
Mike Ruggeri’s Pre-Clovis and Clovis World
http://bit.ly/11wqze5
Mike Ruggeri’s Pre-Clovis and Clovis World Magazine
http://bit.ly/1uAWdvk
Mike Ruggeri’s Pre-Clovis and Clovis News on Tumblr
http://mikeruggerispreclovisnews.tumblr.com
INAH is excavating under the Pyramid of the Moon at Teotihuacan. They uncovered holes with green stone stelae inside them. They found passages that show the Mesoamerican symbol of the center of the cosmos with the four corners of the universe, the “quincunx.” River stones were also present. They have also found many more modifications of the pyramid in ancient times. They have found the evidence of a plaza bordered by 13 bases. Five stelae have been unocovered so far. The green stone of the stelae appears to be from Puebla. The dating on these holes are from early Teotihuacan, 100 CE. The link to green stones and water deities is strengthened here. Atop the pyramid was the statue of the goddess of fertility Chalchuitlicue (my note; which many have mistakenly identified as Tlaloc. This would also be the reason for the presence of river stones, since Chalchuitlicue was also the goddess of running water). Two canals have also been found that would have been symbolic for running water.
Ancient Origins has the report here with good photos and a video of the finds.
http://bit.ly/1UKFyRj
The original INAH report in Spanish is here with a slide show (click on the camera icon at the top).
http://bit.ly/1VPvp78
Mike Ruggeri’s Teotihuacan
http://mikeruggeristeotihuacan.tumblr.com
Mike Ruggeri’s Teotihuacan; City of the Gods Magazine
http://bit.ly/1z57bpL
Mike Ruggeri’s Teotihuacan Art Portfolio
http://goo.gl/riSg2
Japanese researchers have found a new geoglyph between Nazca and Palpa in Peru. It shows an imaginary spotted animal with many legs and sticking out its tongue. The glyph was formed by pulling up stones to form the image. It may date to 500 BCE.
The Daily Mail has its usual excellent collection of photos and the report here. They also repeat the story I posted last week about the mysterious holes called pulquios which form a straight line stretching for miles.
http://dailym.ai/1UwOaem
Mike Ruggeri’s Ancient Andean World
http://bit.ly/VD1spm
Archaeologists are discovering that Pre-Columbian settlements in the Amazon of Brazil exist in areas not near rivers. 110 settlements in an inland region of the Amazon have been researched for 10 years. Water storage depressions and ponds enclosed by berms of clay and middens have been found at these sites. There was a 14th century inland expansion as water management and agriculture developed in the Amazon, accompanied by population growth. River banks are flooded during the 6 month rainy season, so the inland areas were farmed during the wet season.
The organization compiling this research has a website here;
http://www.cultivated-wilderness.org/
PhysOrg has the story here;
http://phys.org/news/2016-04-storage-prehistoric-settlement-expansion-amazonia.html
Mike Ruggeri’s The Ancient America’s Breaking News
http://bit.ly/UbLO7x
Researchers have been working on the artificial islands constructed by the Calusa culture at Mound Key and Vineland in Florida. The Calusa were terraforming islands from heaps of shells, bones and midden. Researchers used coring, test and block excavations and radiocarbon dating. They have found that some of the older material was on top of younger material, indicating the Calusa were reworking their deposits to create new landforms. The tallest of the mounds is 32 feet above sea level. This would have taken hundreds of millions of shells. When sea levels fell, the Calusa abandoned the island. When sea levels rose, they returned. The Calusa economy was based on fish, shellfish and seafood. 1000 people would have lived on Mound Key. The researchers also studied the second largest artificial island city, Vineland. The Calusa built canals, water storage facilities, and traded widely. The researchers will continue at these sites during the summer. The research is published in PLOS One.
“From Shell Midden to Midden-mound: The Geoarchaeology of Mound Key, an Anthropogenic Island in Southwest Florida, USA,” PLOS One, journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371%2Fjournal.pone.0154611
PhysOrg has the report here;
http://phys.org/news/2016-04-shells-interdisciplinary-unraveling-mysteries-calusa.html
Mike Ruggeri’s The Ancient America’s Breaking News
http://bit.ly/UbLO7x
A band of holes stretching north to south across the Pisco Valley in Peru are now being researched by archaelogists. They believe they may have been used by the Incas to collect taxes. The rock lined holes would have been used to keep food cold and dry, and to keep track of where food tributes came from. The food would then be allocated to the people of the Inca state. Using drones, they have created a map of the band of holes, some 6000 of them. Each hole would measure specific amounts of tribute owed by each farmer or family. The holes appear to be constructed alongside of a road that went to a huge Inca center. So far, no remains of crops or khipus have been found in the holes. The holes may pre-date the Incas and may have been used to store guano as a fertilizer.
The Daily Mail has the report with its usual excellent photos and videos;
http://dailym.ai/1SNt0WK
Mike Ruggeri’s Ancient Andean World
http://bit.ly/VD1spm
Archaeologists have uncovered the remains of a woman in Peru buried at 2,500 BCE. With her remains were eight flutes made of animal bones, a pot with vegetable fragments and seeds, a mollusk necklace and pendant, and four brooches with bird and monkey motifs. She was found at the Caral civilization site of Aspero. The remains show motifs from both coastal and jungle animals. Her burial indicates gender equality was present in this society. Aspero has two large monumental buildings that are among the oldest in the Americas.
Ancient Origins has the report here with good photos and videos;
http://bit.ly/1T4MBzb
Mike Ruggeri’s Ancient Peru (5000 BC-600 BC)
http://mikeruggerisancientperu.tumblr.com
Researchers have studied 9,566 bones, bone fragments and teeth found in the “Midnight Terror Cave” in Belize from 2008-2010. They have found that most of bones were of children ages 4-10. It is suspected that the children were sacrificed to the rain god. The bones were deposited over a 1,500 year period beginning at 1000 BCE. 114 bodies were dropped near an underground stream, which would have been seen as a path to the underworld. There is no evidence of disease or regular burial present. An underground cave at Chichen Itza, in the Yucatan, was found years ago where the bones found were largely children’s bones.
The findings were presented at the American Association of Physical Anthropologists conference this month.
Science News has the report here;
http://bit.ly/1MJzwOY
Mike Ruggeri’s Ancient Maya News on Tumblr
http://mikeruggerisacientmayanew.tumblr.com
Mike Ruggeri’s Ancient Maya News Magazine
http://bit.ly/1CeeXyu
Nazca holes or puquios have been analyzed by satellite imagery. Researchers now believe they are part of a hydraulic system to retrieve water from underground aquifers. They funneled wind into canals below to move water. They are close to the city of Nazca. The puquios allowed for intensive agriculture in this very arid part of the world. They channeled wind into the corkscrew holes into underground canals filled with aquifer water. The wind moved the water into channels for irrigation. The puquios would date from 200 BCE-500 CE.
The Daily Mail has its usual excellent photos and a silent video here of these structures;
http://dailym.ai/1ScOwSr
Mike Ruggeri’s Ancient Andean World
http://bit.ly/VD1spm
Australian, Harvard, and California genetic researchers have studied 92 Pre-Columbian mummies and skeletons that were dated at 500-8,600 years old. They show the almost total extinction of Pre-Columbian populations and their gene pools by European contact. They also found that the First Americans entered the Americas in Pre-Clovis times, 16,000 years ago, via the Pacific Coast, skirting around the ice bound Beringia blockage. They reached Chile at 14,600 years ago as Tom Dillehay has proven at Monte Verde. The research was published in the peer reviewed “Science Advances.“
Popular Archaeology has the report here;
http://popular-archaeology.com/issue/spring-2016/article/ancient-dna-sheds-new-light-on-early-americans
Mike Ruggeri’s Pre-Clovis and Clovis World
http://bit.ly/11wqze5
Mike Ruggeri’s Pre-Clovis and Clovis World Magazine
http://bit.ly/1uAWdvk
Mike Ruggeri’s Pre-Clovis and Clovis News on Tumblr
http://mikeruggerispreclovisnews.tumblr.com
Workers at a Hydroelectric Power Project in Costa Rica had uncovered 66 human
settlements dated to 12,200 years old in 2006. The Costa Rica archaeological
commission began uncovering artifacts from the sites this year. They have
found petroglyphs, dwellings, stone tools, pottery, walkways and perhaps
small scale farming.
The Archaeological News Network has the report here with good photos.
http://bit.ly/22uuJYG
Mike Ruggeri’s The Ancient America’s Breaking News
http://bit.ly/UbLO7x
Researchers are studying the fossilized teeth of ancient inhabitants of Casas Grandes (Paquime), in Chihuahua. The first conclusive evidence of the use of corn beer in the ancient Southwest has been found in the teeth of the inhabitants. Paquime housed 3000 people at its height in the 14th century. It was a major trading post between Mesoamerican and the Southwest. The tartar on the teeth of the dead traps elements that have been ingested and mineralize over time. 110 individuals remains were tested, buried between 700-1450 CE. 63 had mineralized remains. 10% of the samples yielded corn smut (huitlacoche), an edible fungus that is still a delicacy today. Three samples showed fermentation that would have been used to make chicha, a corn beer that was in use for 5000 years in Mesoamerica and South America. The fermented granules dated to 1200-1450 CE.
Western Digs has the report here;
http://bit.ly/1QKvN3j
Mike Ruggeri’s Aztlan World
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Mike Ruggeri’s Casas Grandes World Magazine
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Archaeologists in Belize are working at the cave of Kayuko Naj Tunich, where there is a group of manmade mounds. The cave is believed to have been the site of accession ceremonies for the Maya Uxbenka polity. Caves are seen as portals to the underworld in Mesoamerica. The researchers believe the mounds were erected for one event or series of events due to the way they were constructed. There is a shrine built at the cave site dated to 240-339 BCE, and it was kept stable till 600 CE. Uxbenka had a population of 1500-2600 at the beginning of the Early Classic. They calculate that 50 people working five hours a day for 30 days were needed to construct the mounds.
Ancient Origins has the story here, with good photos;
http://www.ancient-origins.net/news-history-archaeology/researchers-explore-role-prehistoric-kayuko-mounds-maya-royal-accession-020752
Mike Ruggeri’s The Ancient America’s Breaking News
http://bit.ly/UbLO7x
Archaeologists in northern Chihuahua have uncovered a 10,500 year old hunting camp. They have found 18,000 artifacts including stone flakes, cores, and hammers, along with 370 projectile points, and a dozen stone ovens. The 370 points represent 30 different styles from the Paleoindian to the Archaic. They found the remains of a teenage girl interred 3,200 years ago. Radiocarbon dates on the teeth of the girl date to 1360 BCE.
In the 1990’s, archaeologists had found the earliest remnants of corn in Chihuahua at the nearby site of Cerro Juanaqueña. The maize dated to 1150 BCE. If the girl is related to this culture, more can be known about the people of the region. Strontium isotope analysis of her teeth may yield information about where she was born and raised and her diet.
Western Digs has the report here;
http://westerndigs.org/grave-teenage-girl-southwest-earliest-farmers/
Mike Ruggeri’s Ancient Southwest Magazine
http://bit.ly/1AU3vwE
Mike Ruggeri’s Ancient Southwest/Mound Builders News Magazine
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Most Classic Maya cities fell between 850-925 CE, a time corresponding with a century of drought. Maya cities in the Yucatan survived. Archaeologists have now studied all 900 Maya sites in the Yucatan by way of calendar inscriptions and radiocarbon dating. The new study changes our understanding of what happened in the Yucatan. There was a 70% decline in calendar inscriptions in the Yucatan during the time of the southern drought. Radiocarbon dates also show that wooden construction also dwindled at this time. There was a short recovery in the 10th century during a time of increased rainfall. Then another slump from 1000-1075 CE during a time of severe drought. The 10th century drought was even larger. After this drought, Maya society in the north collapsed. Chichen Itza and other important centers were abandoned. Low crop yields due to severe drought could not sustain the large population.
There was also inter-city warfare. The Maya had dug huge canal systems to produce new arable land. And they cleared huge forests to make room for their centers. This may have led to more serious problems during the droughts.
The BBC has the full report here;
http://www.bbc.com/earth/story/20160222-severe-droughts-explain-the-mysterious-fall-of-the-maya
Mike Ruggeri’s Maya World
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Mike Ruggeri’s Ancient Maya News Magazine
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Mike Ruggeri’s Ancient Maya News on Tumblr
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The National Geographic team has dug up 200 artifacts from a site in Honduras now known as the Jaguar City. Ornate sculptors of animals, vessels, metates that may have been thrones have been uncovered. Metate legs show Maya style sky bands and unknown glyph styles. The artifacts had been placed on a red clay floor around the sculture of a vulture. Some vessels had death god imagery on them. Signs of mutual breaking of artifacts when the city was abandoned have also been found. The team has found earthworks, plazas, pyramids, irrigation canals, reservoirs and mounds. The culture that created this site is unknown, but it is Maya related in some of its art work, and (my note), some of the art work looks more similiar to Central American art from Nicaragua and Costa Rica. The city was discovered by using lidar technology to peer through heavily canopied jungle from above.
Ancient Origins has the story with photos here;
http://www.ancient-origins.net/news-history-archaeology/hundreds-intriguing-artifacts-unearthed-ancient-white-city-ruins-honduras-020738
National Geographic has more photos and a slideshow here of the digs;
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/2016/02/160209-honduras-lost-city-archaeology-discovery-jaguar-sculptures-photos/
(My note: There is a lot of controversy surrounding this dig because of the belief the team was claiming they had found the legendary “White City” of fable. And some folks disliked the Honduran government seeing this as a tourist attraction. At no point did the professional team digging there now make this claim. And all interesting archaeological sites in Mesoamerica are promoted by their host governments for tourism. There is the concern that this pristine wilderness may be ruined by this kind of promotion. And that is a real concern. But archaeologists dig in pristine areas all the time to uncover the ancient history of the Americas. This is real archaeology. The finds are illuminating this culture which has many ties far afield. And the team has announced they have found an even larger site nearby.)
Mike Ruggeri
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Archaeologists have found 19 sites in Nevada that were in use by hunter-gatherers 12,000 years ago. They uncovered stone points, biface blades and other artifacts at these sites. Clovis, Lake Mojave and Silver Lake points have been found in these caches. They used predictive modeling to find the sites. The know that human activity in this area are found near water and marshlands, and the shores of lakes and channels. So the archaeologists used predictive modeling and GIS technology for signs of Pleistocene-Holocene era life. They mapped with GIS, aerial photos and other tools, and pinpointed likely spots. The spots were then ground truthed. These new tools are now a proven method for finding ancient sites.
Western Digs has the report here;
http://westerndigs.org/nearly-20-stone-tool-sites-up-to-12000-years-old-discovered-in-nevada/
Mike Ruggeri’s The Ancient America’s Breaking News
http://bit.ly/UbLO7x
Archaeologists have found footprints of a family of farmers embedded in the soil at a site in Tucson dating to 500 BCE, making these the oldest footprints ever found in the Southwest. A flash flood at the time had covered these prints over, preserving them. The farmers were ancestors of the Hohokam culture who built elaborate irrigation canals. The Hohokam grew cotton, tobacco, maize, beans and squash. The footprints show adults, children and a family pet walking across their fields. They are making 3D scanning videos of the prints and casts of the footprints before they are covered over to build a highway. The site also shows evidence of irrigation canals and earthworks. The prints show the farmers moving from canal gate to canal gate and building mud dams to divert rain and river water to maize plants. Archaeologists will now study the soil nearby for futher evidence of these early farmers.
(My note; Footprints dated at more than 13,000 years ago have been found on an island off of British Columbia, and Tom Dillehay found human footprints at the site of Monte Verde in Chile that date to 1000 years before Clovis times. These are the first Pre-Clovis footprints found so far. The dates for these prints have been validated by all other researchers who have come to the site to verify the find.)
Daily Mail has the report here with many videos, 3D Scans and great photos;
http://dailym.ai/1ZV2lIE
Mike Ruggeri’s Ancient Southwest/Mound Builders News Magazine
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