Shipwreck of Revolutionary War frigate resurfaces on Scottish beach
The mystery of the oak hull's provenance was revealed Wednesday by a team of archaeologists and historians: The wreck was probably HMS Hind, a British frigate that once fought in the American Revolutionary War and sank off the island over 230 years ago.
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Gizmodo
9 hours ago
- Gizmodo
Impossibly Intricate Tattoos Found on 2,000-Year-Old ‘Ice Mummy'
For the first time, archeologists have gotten a detailed look at the intricate tattoos on a 2,000-year-old ice mummy, found buried deep within the permafrost-covered mountains of Siberia. These tattoos would be challenging to produce even today, the researchers say, suggesting that ancient tattoo artists possessed a considerable degree of skill. With help from modern tattoo artists, an international team of researchers examined the mummy's tattoos in unprecedented detail and identified the tools and techniques that ancient societies may have used to create body art. The findings were published in the journal Antiquity. Like it is now, getting inked up was a common practice in prehistoric societies. Studying the practice is tough, however, because skin is rarely preserved in archaeological remains. The 'ice-mummies' of the Altai mountains, in Siberia, are a notable exception—they were buried in chambers now encased in permafrost, sometimes preserving the skin of those within. The Pazyryk people were horse-riding nomads who lived between China and Europe. 'The tattoos of the Pazyryk culture—Iron Age pastoralists of the Altai Mountains—have long intrigued archaeologists due to their elaborate figural designs', Gino Caspar, an archaeologist at the Max Planck Institute of Geoanthropology and the University of Bern, said in an emailed statement. Scientists haven't been able to study these tattoos in great detail, due to limitations in imaging techniques. Many of these tattoos are invisible to the naked eye, meaning scientists didn't know they were there when the mummies were initially excavated in the 1940s. Researchers need infrared imaging to visualize ancient tattoos because skin degrades over time, and the colors of the tattoos fade and bleed into the surrounding skin, making them faint or invisible to the naked eye. Infrared light, with its longer wavelengths compared to visible light, penetrates deeper into the skin and reveals what lies beneath the surface. So, until now, most studies were based on drawings of the tattoos, rather than direct images. But advances in imaging technology have finally allowed researchers to take high-resolution images of the mummies and their tattoos. The researchers used high-resolution digital near-infrared photography to create a 3D scan of the tattoos on a 50-year-old woman from the Iron Age age, whose preserved remains are housed at the Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg, Russia. Artistic renderings of the newly discovered tattoos reveal detailed tattoos of leopards, stags, roosters, and a mythical half-lion, half-eagle creature. The researchers found that, like with many modern-day humans, the tattoos on the mummy's right arm are much more detailed and technical than those on the left. This suggests that the two different ancient tattooers, or the same tattooer after they beefed up their skills, were responsible. The scans also suggest that the artists used several tools—with one or multiple points—and that the tattoos were completed over multiple sessions. This suggests that tattooing was not just a form of decoration in Pazyryk culture but a skilled craft that required building skills and technical ability. Many other individuals were buried at the same site, indicating that tattooing was likely a common practice. 'The study offers a new way to recognize personal agency in prehistoric body modification practices,' Caspari said in a statement. 'Tattooing emerges not merely as symbolic decoration but as a specialized craft—one that demanded technical skill, aesthetic sensitivity, and formal training or apprenticeship.'
Gizmodo
11 hours ago
- Gizmodo
Tourist Spots ‘Extinct' Jellyfish Not Seen in 50 Years
Jellyfish enthusiasts rejoice: Depastrum cyathiforme—a wrinkled, barrel-shaped jelly with tiny tentacles for hair—may not actually be extinct, despite being MIA for nearly 50 years. We can thank tourist Neil Roberts, who accidentally came across the jelly while on holiday in South Uist in Scotland. This particular stalked jellyfish was much-beloved during the Victorian and Edwardian eras, appearing in exquisite detail in illustrations by famous naturalists. Historical records suggested the jelly had always been rare, but after one last encounter in France in 1976, D. cyathiforme vanished from the watchful eyes of researchers and casual jelly enjoyers. That is, until June 2023, when Roberts visited South Uist for vacation. 'With some trepidation I put my newly purchased camera under the water and took a few photos,' recounted Roberts to British Wildlife editor Guy Freeman. When Roberts returned from vacation, he realized that the critter in his photos closely resembled the pen drawings and watercolors of D. cyathiforme. Further confirmation with experts revealed that indeed, Roberts had rediscovered a creature thought to be extinct for nearly 50 years. 'When Neil first shared the photos, it was like seeing a ghost,' Freeman told The The Guardian. After seeing Roberts's photos, Freeman led a follow-up search for D. cyathiforme, hoping that the chance encounter wasn't just a one-off but a real sign that the Scottish Island hosted a stable population of these long-lost jellyfish. To his great joy, the answer seemed to be yes. 'You cannot conserve something if you don't know where it is, nor even whether it still exists, Freedman wrote in his essay on the rediscovery. He explained that the particular habitat his team uncovered 'doesn't appear to be remarkable in any way—there must be countless similar shores' in the vicinity that could house even more D. cyathiforme, 'although we shouldn't take this for granted…until more records emerge.' 'This is really a remarkable find, and I was so happy to learn about it,' Allen Collins, a stalked jellyfish expert at the Smithsonian Institute, told the Guardian. 'We can now be certain that this rarely encountered species persists. I am hoping that more individuals will soon be found.' According to Freeman, summer is the best time to encounter D. cyathiforme, and they can typically be found on the underside of boulders or on rocks in shaded gullies in pools. Obviously, this isn't an invitation to pick up every single rock in front of you at a Scottish beach. But continued attention to the presence—and health!—of the jellies' much-welcomed comeback should help ensure we don't lose them again.
Wall Street Journal
20 hours ago
- Wall Street Journal
The Growing Buzz Around Ancestral Wines
In the rolling hills of Valencia in Spain, winemaker Pablo Calatayud has joined forces with scientists and archaeologists to mount a small viticultural revolution—one that reaches back to pre-Roman times to recreate what have become known as ancestral wines. At his Celler del Roure, Calatayud is using large, egg-shaped clay amphorae to make wine pressed from grapes native to the region. The process is reconstructed from old texts and drawings carved into archaeological finds across the Mediterranean, including an ancient Iberian settlement that overlooks his own vineyard.
