Current Archaeology

The Idols of Malta: Neolithic temples

The idols of Malta

The great neolithic temples on Malta, are among the oldest temples in the world.  Many of them were erected before even the pyramids were built.  Yet, what were their purpose, and how were they used?
The temples are sometimes accompanied by underground burial places and one of these, at the Brockdorff stone circle, at Xaghra, on Gozo, has recently been excavated. The worshippers passed through a stone circle, along a processional way, and then down  a stairway into the underground cave. There, lying on the ground in front of the altar, they found a bundle of idols, quite unlike any others known.   What was the purpose, and how were they used?  Were they tribal emblems, held in the hand by the leaders of the different tribes? In issue number seven, we were able to speculate on these rituals, and even offer some tentative answers.

 

Greece: mysterious figurines of Keros

Greece: Massacre at Paros

It is rare that archaeology can combine both written accounts and pictorial evidence with an archaeological excavation. But dramatic excavations on the Greek island of Paros did just that.
This wonderfully simple geometric style vase (left) shows a battle in process, with arrows flying hither and thither, slingers whirling their slings above their heads, a dead man lying on the ground, and archers with their bows shooting off arrows (left).  The dead were cremated and buried in two large graves - 20 in one, 140 in the other - with two very fine painted vases. Do  the vases show the actual battle in which they perished?
Do we have a literary account too? The poet Archilochos, who was a native of Paros, wrote a lament about a battle in which his fellow country-men are slaughtered. Is this the battle?

Pompeii: the city before Vesuvius

Perhaps surprisingly, Pompeii still continues to be at the centre of modern work. Traditionally,  work at Pompeii has been devoted to elucidating the city that was destroyed by Vesuvius in 79 AD,  but by that time it was already over five centuries old, and there is a splendid opportunity to excavate down beneath the destruction and discover the history of Pompeii and indeed the history of Italian towns and to chart the rise of Rome.
Pompeii began surprising early, perhaps even in the 6th century BC,  and the construction of the walls may go back to this early date. However the great expansion began in the third and second centuries BC, when Pompeii came under Rome's influence. The pace of development grew even hotter in the 1st century BC,  despite Pompeii joining the Social War against Rome in 91 BC.
In a special issue devoted to Pompeii, we looked at the excavations in two houses, the House of Amarynthus and the House of the Vestals to chart their history over the centuries before their eventual destruction.