Latest news with #AustrianAcademyofSciences
Yahoo
22-04-2025
- Yahoo
Archaeologists Excavated Mysterious Ruins—and Uncovered an Ancient Roman Fort
Austrian ruins previously known as the Desolate Castle were actually once a Roman bridgehead fort. The site served as a strategic trade crossing for the Danube River as part of the historic Amber Road. This is the first Roman bridgehead fort ever discovered in Austria. Archaeologists solved the mystery of the ruins of the Desolate Castle, determining that the mysterious site on the Danube River shore was once part of a crucial Roman trade route. Located two miles from the Roman legionary fortress of Carnuntum along the Danube River and long known in Austria as 'Odes Schloss' (which translates to the 'Desolate Castle'), the 'castellum'—a Latin word for fortlet or tower—was the subject of recent archaeological work. The well-preserved, nearly nine-foot-tall tower walls had long been thought to be some sort of Roman structure, and the team of experts that confirmed the suspicion have opened a new window in the history of Roman military and trade habits. The site is Austria's only known Roman bridgehead fort. Around 1850, the still-visible walls at the site were dubbed the Desolate Castle, but experts were never sure what the area represented—that is, of course, until now. Experts, according to a translated statement from the Austrian Archaeological Institute of the Austrian Academy of Sciences, believe castle construction occurred in two phases. The first was around 170-180 A.D., when Emperor Marcus Aurelius reinforced the Roman border against the Germanic tribes during the Marcomannic Wars. The site's location—on the shore of the Danube River and along the trade route known as the Amber Road, which led from the Baltics via Carnuntum to the Roman Empire—offered a critical trade crossing at the river, which was a natural border of the empire. The second phase of construction, which occurred around 260 A.D., saw a renovation under Emperor Gallienus. Since that time, troop levels manning the fort dropped. During the excavation, archaeologists unearthed stamped bricks from the Roman legion groups XIV and XV, along with small bronze pieces, ceramics, and coins. 'They prove the great strategic importance of Carnuntum within the Roman military system and provide new insights into the military security of the north-south connection,' Eduard Pollhammer, archaeologist and scientific director of Carnuntum, said in a statement. Roman military strategy commonly called for the construction of forts on the opposite side of a border river. From these bases, troops observed both the passage across the river and the surrounding area. The Amber Road would have crossed the Danube at this spot, and having a military presence on the river gave Romans defensive control of comings and goings. Experts believe no physical bridge ever stood at the site—rather, a prominent ferry crossing was the transportation of choice all the way into the 18th century. The Danube River was an important location for Roman border security and control of trade routes. Now, this newly understood castle has been designated part of the Danube Limes, which has been a UNESO World Heritage Site since 2021. 'This impressive find proves the importance of Bernsteinstraße [the Amber Road]—and the Lower Austria region—as an important traffic artery,' Johanna Mikl-Leitner, Lower Austria's governor, said in a statement, 'and as a center in the midst of various dominions, function that Lower Austria still holds today.' You Might Also Like The Do's and Don'ts of Using Painter's Tape The Best Portable BBQ Grills for Cooking Anywhere Can a Smart Watch Prolong Your Life?
Forbes
18-04-2025
- General
- Forbes
Scholars Decipher Ancient Graffiti In Room Of Jesus' Last Supper
Shai Halevi of the Israel Antiquities Authority documents an Arabic inscription in the Hall of the ... More Last Supper. Biblical tradition holds that the Cenacle — a room on the upper floor of a Jerusalem building historically believed to stand above King David's tomb — is where Jesus shared the Last Supper with his apostles before being crucified. As a result, many Christians consider the site holy and travel great distances to visit it. With the help of technology such as ultraviolet and infrared filters and multispectral photography, a team of international researchers have now deciphered several dozen ancient inscriptions etched on the room's walls between the 14th and 16th centuries. The marks include signatures, phrases and coats of arms, and they shed intriguing light on the medieval pilgrims' identities, and just how diverse they were. 'When put together, the inscriptions provide a unique insight into the geographical origins of the pilgrims,' said Ilya Berkovich, an Austrian Academy of Sciences historian and a co-author of a new article on the research published in Liber Annuus, a yearbook from Studium Biblicum Franciscanum. The Jerusalem research institute focuses on biblical studies, particularly sites associated with the New Testament and early Christianity in the Middle East. A carved coat of arms inscribed with the word 'Altbach.' The image resembles the coat of arms of the ... More modern city of the same name in southern Germany. The graffiti reflects a centuries-spanning record left at the site by Armenians, Czechs, Serbs and numerous Arabic-speaking Eastern Christians. Among the newly deciphered inscriptions, for example, is one in Armenian that reads 'Christmas 1300.' An Arabic fragment reads '...ya al-Ḥalabīya,' a phrase that references the Syrian city of Aleppo. Based on the double use of the feminine suffix "ya,' the researchers concluded that a female Christian pilgrim chiseled the words, making it a rare material trace of a pre-modern woman pilgrim. 'At a time when research literature still tilts heavily to the experience of pilgrims from Western Europe, the Cenacle's inscriptions are a valuable reminder of the diversity of the Christian pilgrim flow to late medieval Jerusalem,' reads the article, which describes the collaborative work of scholars led by Shai Halevi and Michel Chernin of the Israel Antiquities Authority. Multispectral imaging reveals details of a 15th century heraldic coat of arms from Austria. Directly ... More below, the half-erased date 14.. can be seen. The etchings reveal plenty of traces of European pilgrims, too, including the autograph, dating back to the 1400s, of a German pilgrim named Johannes Poloner, who later wrote a detailed account of his journey to Jerusalem. A 15th century heraldic coat of arms depicts the family crest of a nobleman from Styria, a state in Austria, and another coat of arms belonged to Adrian I von Bubenberg, a 15th century Swiss knight, military commander and mayor. Even in cases where the inscriptions couldn't be tied to a specific person, the researchers say they still provide material evidence of who the pilgrims were and where they came from. While some parts of the inscriptions can be seen with the naked eye, others are too faint to detect. That's where technologies such as multispectral imaging came in. The technique captures light across a range of spectral bands beyond what the human eye can see. During the team's 2021 photographic effort to document all the inscriptions and graffiti on the walls of the Cenacle, the technique revealed writing and drawings whose colors had faded beyond recognition. Today, of course, it would be alarming to see the words 'graffiti' and 'church' in the same sentence, and those who deface historic sites often face legal consequences. But as verboten as tagging religious spaces is now, apparently it wasn't unusual for the time. 'Graffiti in Western European churches was widespread since the latter 13th century,' the paper's authors write. 'In the last two generations, it has become a subject of lively research interest.' While most of the deciphered inscriptions appear to have been scribbled quickly with a piece of coal or scratched with a penknife, the prominent position and high artistry level of other messages and drawings indicate that they were made with the full knowledge, if not the blessing, of the monastery. The Cenacle — which has been destroyed and reconstructed many times — is located south of the Zion Gate within the walls of Jerusalem's Old City. Most of the graffiti found there comes from the late Middle Ages, when the Cenacle became the heart of a Franciscan monastery whose monks assisted and guided Catholic pilgrims, though visitors of other faiths made their way to the sacred site. In 1523, shortly after the Ottoman conquest, the Franciscans were expelled from the Cenacle, and it remained in Muslim hands until 1948. Echoes of this period can be seen in the site's epigraphic content. Islamic graffiti identified as part of the project includes an inscription, and a drawing of a scorpion, that honor the Sufi cleric Sheikh al-ʿAǧamī, who was appointed to serve as the first religious overseer of Ottoman Jerusalem. These engravings contribute to the layered spiritual and political history of the site, reflecting its significance across faiths and borders. A chiseled inscription and a drawing of a scorpion in honor of Sheikh Aḥmad al-ʿAǧamī.
Miami Herald
16-04-2025
- Science
- Miami Herald
175-year-old theory about riverside ruins in Austria turns out to be true
On a riverside in eastern Austria sat a mysterious set of ruins. Some believed it to be an abandoned, run-down castle. Others thought it could be the remnants of a unique, ancient Roman structure. When archaeologists finally excavated the ruins, they confirmed a 175-year-old theory. Locals referred to the ruins near Stopfenreuth as 'Ödes Schloss,' a German nickname that roughly translates as 'Desolate Castle.' One archaeologist explored the still-visible ruins around 1850 and interpreted it as a Roman military fort, but later researchers who tried confirming this theory left the site still uncertain of its identity, the nearby Carnuntum Archaeological Park said in an article. By the late 1800s, Ödes Schloss had become overgrown, buried and hidden from view. Yet the mystery of the odd, semi-circular structure lingered. A joint team of archaeologists decided to revisit Ödes Schloss in 2024, the Austrian Academy of Sciences said in an April 14 news release. They took soil samples, excavated the site and started analyzing their finds. The team soon realized Ödes Schloss wasn't a castle at all: It was a specific type of ancient Roman military base known as a bridgehead fort, the academy said. The 1850s archaeologists were right. Roman bridgehead forts were typically built near key river crossings to control trade and secure borders, archaeologists said. As their name suggests, the forts often sat at the head of bridges but not always, such as in the case of Ödes Schloss. Archaeologists identified the Roman bridgehead fort as a first-of-its-kind find for Austria. Photos show the well-preserved ancient Roman ruins. In some sections, the walls still reach over 8 feet high, the academy said. Park officials identified one section of the ruins as 'an internal corner tower and adjoining walls,' a 'particularly striking' find. Archaeologists also found several bricks stamped with the names of Roman military units, coins, pottery and other metal artifacts. A photo shows some of these finds. Based on the recent excavations, archaeologists identified two main phases in the fort's history, the academy said. The first phase began around 170 to 180 A.D. when the Romans built the fort as a reinforcement against Germanic tribes. The second phase took place around 260 A.D. when another Roman emperor renovated the fort. Around the time of the fort's second phase, the nearby ancient Roman city of Carnuntum began to decline, park officials said. The fort's importance declined as well, and it was eventually abandoned. Much about Ödes Schloss remains unknown. Archaeologists plan to continue analyzing the site and their finds. Stopfenreuth is a small town in eastern Austria, a roughly 30-mile drive east of Vienna and near the border with Slovakia. Google Translate was used to translate the news release from the Austrian Academy of Sciences.
Filipino Times
22-03-2025
- Science
- Filipino Times
Archaeologists discover remains of 5 mammoths in Austria, dating back 25,000 years
Archaeologists from the Austrian Academy of Sciences (ÖAW) have uncovered the remains of at least five mammoths in Langmannersdorf, Lower Austria. The site, located northeast of St. Pölten, is believed to have been a hunting ground used by ancient humans 25,000 years ago. Researchers found two main areas around 15 meters apart, each containing layers of bones, stone tools, and waste from tool-making. One area had remains of three mammoths, including tusks, but few large bones, indicating that ivory was likely processed on-site. Bones of dismembered mammoths and stone tools in excavation area 2. Courtesy: ÖAW-ÖAI/Marc Händel The second area lacked ivory but showed large bones and vertebrae from at least two more mammoths. Both sites had no rib bones, suggesting that the hunters sorted and used different parts of the mammoths separately. Evidence of fire pits and small pits in the area also showed that hunters stayed there for some time, processing meat and making tools. These signs point to the presence of Upper Paleolithic people, the group of humans living during the late Ice Age. Marc Händel, from the Austrian Archaeological Institute (ÖAI), explained that mammoth herds roamed the Perschling Valley as a grazing and transit route. He added that ancient hunters likely used this area to trap and butcher the animals.
CBS News
21-03-2025
- Science
- CBS News
Bones of mammoths butchered for their ivory tusks 25,000 years ago unearthed by archaeologists
Bones of mammoths butchered for their ivory tusks 25,000 years ago were unearthed by archaeologists in Austria. Remains of five mammoths were found archaeologists from the Austrian Academy of Sciences said Thursday in a news statement. Researchers found mammoth bones in two areas, in Langmannersdorf an der Perschling, Lower Austria, located between St. Pölten and Tulln. Both zones, discovered about 50 feet apart, were densely packed with bones. In one area, researchers found evidence that the mammoths were butchered with stone tools. The bones were left in several layers. Remains of three mammoths were discovered in the second area, their tusks dismembered and complete. The discovery of the tusks indicated that the area was used for ivory processing, researchers said. The ivory from the tusks likely would have been turned into spearheads, researchers said. The find leads to a greater understanding of how humans and mammoths lived in the valley before the peak of the last Ice Age, according to senior researcher Marc Händel. The discoveries suggest humans living during this time period had a thorough understanding of mammoth habits and used this knowledge specifically for their hunting expeditions. "The new discoveries provide valuable insights into the hunting and lifestyles of people of this period," Händel said in the news release. Humans hunted mammoths 25,000 to 40,000 years ago, but researchers have very little knowledge of how they brought down the enormous beasts. Millions of mammoths roamed the earth before an onslaught of Ice Ages and human interactions led to their extinction about 10,000 years ago. Mammoth remains have been uncovered in the United States, with researchers unearthing more than 20 bones in North Dakota last year after miners found a 7-foot-tusk.
