Archaeology · Museums · Ethnography
The funerary rites of Ancient Greece bear some resemblance to the customs of bidding farewell to the dead in many modern cultures. The dead were washed and dressed, a wreath or a precious headband was placed on the head, and only then could one take leave of the deceased at
NB! · Archaeology · Books · Observations · Mores · Humour
One recalls Agatha Christie's remark about the archaeologist husband, who is so good for a woman because the older she grows, the more interesting she becomes to him. The writer lived to 85, and for 46 of those years she was married to the archaeologist Max Mallowan, who
Archaeology · Architecture · Observations
If you look closely at this type of Egyptian column, made in the form of bound papyrus stems with capitals shaped like unopened papyrus flowers, it resembles a pair of mighty hands holding up the architrave on five outstretched fingers. The columns in the photograph are from Luxor. In architectural
NB! · Archaeology · Museums · New York
Archaeology · Science · Ethnography
Many of the Greek shepherds belong to the once numerous Karakachan or Sarakatsani people, settled from Epirus and the Peloponnese to North Macedonia, Serbia, Bulgaria and Romania. There are several versions of the origin of the Sarakatsani. Their history is traced back to the Middle Ages and linked with a
Archaeology · Observations · Heritage · Science
A post of pride in our archaeologists! Scholars of the Centre for Palaeoart at the Institute of Archaeology of the Russian Academy of Sciences have launched the long-awaited project “Petroglyphs of the Lower Amur and Ussuri”, which has been in preparation since 2015 jointly with the Remote Sensing and
Archaeology · Art · Museums
Iphigenia in Aulis. A fresco showing the lovely Iphigenia, daughter of Agamemnon and Clytemnestra, being carried to the altar of Artemis. Agamemnon had offended Artemis by killing her golden hind, and she sent a calm upon the Greek fleet fitted out for Troy. In order to set sail at last,
NB! · Archaeology · Humour
Archaeology · Interviews · Science · People
The lovely Maria Dobrovolskaya, head of the Laboratory of Contextual Anthropology at the Institute of Archaeology of the Russian Academy of Sciences, has spoken on a most unusual subject: vegetarianism and ancient people. Besides such questions as vegetarians among the ancestors of modern man and the influence of diet on
Archaeology · Faith · The East · Art
Created in 2500 BC, already within the first millennium of his long life the Sphinx had sunk into the sand up to his shoulders. Time and again attempts were made to dig him out: the majestic sentinel of the pharaohs buried nearby was cleared both by Thutmose IV in the
NB! · Archaeology · Art · Observations · Heritage
A magnificent mosaic of scenes showing the transport of exotic animals, 4th century AD, Villa del Casale, Sicily. I am particularly struck by the exhaustive information it gives on the clothing of the period, in both colours and details.
NB! · Archaeology · Monarchies · Museums · Science · People · Rome