Future Timeline

Fri 1 Mar 2024 17.31 GMT



In a remarkable discovery at the ancient Roman city of Pompeii, archaeologists have unearthed a fresco depicting the Greek mythological siblings Phrixus and Helle.

Gabriel Zuchtriegel, the director of Pompeii Archaeological Park, described the find as a poignant reflection of history unfolding once more.

“History has repeated itself,” said Zuchtriegel, as he gave an update on excavation and restoration work. “It is a beautiful fresco in an excellent state of conservation. The myth of Phrixus and Helle is widespread at Pompeii but it is topical too. They are two refugees at sea, a brother and sister, forced to flee because their stepmother wants rid of them and she does so with deception and corruption. She [Helle] fell into the water and drowned.”

The fresco showcases vibrant colours and exquisite artistry, with Helle depicted on the verge of drowning, her face obscured by waves as she reaches out to her brother.

Zuchtriegel expressed optimism about making these meticulously preserved homes accessible to the public in the near future, highlighting the cultural and historical significance of this latest uncovering.

Archaeologists have uncovered the "exquisitely" well-preserved remains of a 3,000-year-old settlement in eastern England. So many of the ancient village's artifacts are intact that researchers have dubbed the site "Britain’s Pompeii" for its eerily clear view into Late Bronze Age life.

Officially called Must Farm, the site is in the small town of Whittlesey, Peterborough. Archaeologists found Must Farm at the edge of a quarry pit in 1999, after which the Cambridge Archaeological Unit—east England's wetland and urban archaeology authority—launched a lengthy evaluation of the area. Though the unit wrapped up its excavation in 2016, its findings were published in a pair of papers this month by the McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research at the University of Cambridge.

6 hours ago

A "remarkable" Roman villa has been unearthed on a housing development.

Archaeologists from the Red River Archaeology Group came across the complex while working on a Barratt and David Wilson Homes housing development at Brookside Meadows in Grove near Wantage, Oxfordshire.

The site sits on a landscape inhabited since the Bronze Age which has been described as "artefact-rich".

The group's project officer said it was "an important centre of activities for a long time".

The archaeologists said the villa complex was richly decorated with painted plaster and mosaics.

5 hours ago



Stunning artworks have been uncovered in a new excavation at Pompeii, the ancient Roman city buried in an eruption from Mount Vesuvius in AD79.

Archaeologists say the frescos are among the finest to be found in the ruins of the ancient site.

Mythical Greek figures such as Helen of Troy are depicted on the high black walls of a large banqueting hall.

The room's near-complete mosaic floor incorporates more than a million individual white tiles.

A third of the lost city has still to be cleared of volcanic debris. The current dig, the biggest in a generation, is underlining Pompeii's position as the world's premier window on the people and culture of the Roman empire.

(Eurekalert) The Dura-Europos site in modern-day Syria is famous for its exceptional state of preservation. Like Pompeii, this ancient city has yielded many great discoveries, and serves as a window into the world of the ancient Hellenistic, Parthian, and Roman periods. Yet despite the prominence of Dura-Europos in Near Eastern scholarship, there is another city, only some miles down the Euphrates river, that presents a long-neglected opportunity for study. A new paper in the Journal of Near Eastern Studies, entitled "The Ancient City of Giddan/Eddana (Anqa, Iraq), the 'Forgotten Twin' of Dura-Europos," identifies the city of Anqa as a near mirror image of Dura-Europos, of the same size, comparable composition, and potentially equal value to scholars of the region.

Anqa is located just across the Syrian border from Dura-Europos, in the present-day Al-Qaim district of the Anbar Governorate in Iraq. Its remains include an identifying tell mound, at the northern end of the site, a polygonal inner wall circuit, and a large outer defensive wall, or enceinte. Situated at a point where the Euphrates floodplain drastically narrows, the city would have controlled movement between the populous section of the valley upstream and the trade route downstream linking Syria, Northern Mesopotamia, and Babylonia, giving it great strategic and economic significance.

9 hours ago



A mysterious Roman artefact found during an amateur archaeological dig is going on public display in Lincolnshire for the first time.

The object is one of only 33 dodecahedrons found in Britain, and the first to have been discovered in the Midlands.

It was found in Norton Disney, near Lincoln, in the summer of 2023.

The artefact is also one of the largest found, measuring about 3in (8cm) tall and weighing 8oz (245g).

The 12-sided object was unearthed by a group of local volunteers.

6 hours ago



A groundbreaking discovery of a papyrus scroll buried in AD79 eruption of Mount Vesuvius may reveal more about the final hours of famous Greek philosopher Plato as well as his burial place.

The scroll, known as the History of the Academy and written by philosopher and poet Philodemus of Gadara, has been unreadable since it was found in 1750, in a villa in Herculaneum, now known as Ercolano in Italy.

Now, a team of researchers has used infrared and X-ray scanners to decipher about 1,000 words.

“It is the oldest history of Greek philosophy in our possession,” said professor Graziano Ranocchia, a papyrologist at the University of Pisa and the project’s lead researcher.

“It is an extraordinary outcome that enriches our understanding of ancient history.”