Jezebel: archaeology

Venus Was Her Name

Sadie — Wed, 13 May 2009 17:20:00 EDT

We can do no better than to quote the NY Times on this one: "Ancient Figurine of Voluptuous Woman Is Found." (Sadly, not pictured. That's another Venus.) [NYT]

Remains Of Cleopatra's Murdered Sister Identified

hortense — Sun, 15 Mar 2009 17:30:00 EDT

Archaeologists claim that they have found the skeletal remains of Princess Arsinöe , who was put to death by her sister, Cleopatra, in 41 BC. The remains have also shed new light on Cleopatra's ethnic background.

Cleopatra directly ordered Arsinöe's death in order to protect her claim to the Egyptian throne. Scientists are now using her remains to piece together an image of what she may have looked like—and what the famous Queen of the Nile may have looked like, as well. "Evidence obtained by studying the dimensions of Arsinöe's skull shows she had some of the characteristics of white Europeans, ancient Egyptians and black Africans, indicating that Cleopatra was probably of mixed race, too," writes Daniel Foggo of the Times of London. [Times Of London]

Portrait Of A Lady

Sadie — Tue, 16 Dec 2008 15:30:00 EST

Shockingly, Cleopatra did not, in fact, resemble a Hollywood actress. Cambridge's Sally Ann Ashton has put together a portrait of the Queen based on the image on an ancient coin and her probable ethnic makeup.

Says Ashton, "She probably wasn't just completely European. You've got to remember that her family had actually lived in Egypt for 300 years by the time she came to power." The composite is described as having a "shallow forehead, pointed chin, thin lips and hooked nose," and bearing no resemblance to either Elizabeth Taylor or Sophia Loren. [Telegraph]

Toiletries Of The Bible

Sadie — Thu, 11 Dec 2008 17:40:00 EST

Highly dubious archaeological find: a group of Franciscan archaeologists have discovered "vials of perfume similar to those that may have been used by the woman said to have washed Jesus' feet" in "the biblical town of Magdala" (read: the Israeli town Migdal.) While the find is undeniably fantastic — the oils were uncovered intact alongside other cosmetics and hair accessories — a priest's claim that "it's very likely that the woman who anointed Christ's feet used these ointments, or products that were similar in composition and quality," seems harder to prove — even if this was Mary Magdalene's home town. [Reuters]

Found Art

Sadie — Mon, 10 Nov 2008 18:45:00 EST

A 2,000 year old gold earring was just found beneath a parking lot near Jerusalem's Old City. And it's nice: "A large pearl inlaid in gold with two drop pieces, each with an emerald and pearl set in gold," which would obviously have belonged to someone of status. Because Jerusalem was sacked so many times, and most precious metals were melted down or sold, such intact finds are rare — especially Roman ones. The piece is valuable not merely for its beauty but because it "brings attention to the life of women in antiquity." [LiveScience]