ARCHAEOLOGY

Pots are likely the most plentiful and often the most illuminating artifacts an archaeologist will find while in the field. Once pottery-making technology had been developed, wherever ancient people lived they left behind pots—or at least sherds from broken pots—which they had used for activities as varied as drinking fine wine, making offerings to the gods, and, of course, cooking family dinners. I am sure that many of you have wondered who made the first pot. In “Pottery’s Origin Stories,” you will find the surprising answer to that question and follow the fascinating story of how hunter-gatherers from Ice Age Japan to the woodlands of North America used pottery not just to cook hearty stews and store supplies in preparation for harsh winters, but as a catalyst to come together…

The Russian invasion of Ukraine is a vivid reminder of the devastating effects of war. In times of conflict, safeguarding human lives and human rights must take top priority. Protecting heritage is also critical, though, because heritage represents the heart of a community. It is how a nation or group of people sees itself, its past, and its future. Cultural material also helps communities recover from trauma once the conflict has ended. Ukraine has a rich cultural legacy, ranging from Scythian art of the seventh through third centuries b.c. to exquisite works of Byzantine art, Viking artifacts from the medieval kingdom of Kievan Rus, and important relics of the democratic and social revolutions of the twentieth century. Six cultural sites in Ukraine are already inscribed on the World Heritage List, and…

SIZE ADVANTAGE There are many advantages to smaller horses (Around the World: England, March/April 2022). Faster mounting and dismounting are important in battle and much easier on a small steed. Better clearance while charging through woods is of prime concern when chasing or being chased. Small horses also live longer, and, finally, you’ll take a shorter fall. Thanks for your fine publication. Christi S. Driggs Tucson, AZ A FATHER’S LEGACY I read with great interest “Mapping ARCHAEOLOGY welcomes mail from readers. Please address your comments to ARCHAEOLOGY, 36-36 33rd Street, Long Island City, NY 11106, fax 718-472-3051, or e-mail letters@archaeology.org. The editors reserve the right to edit submitted material. Vol ume precludes our acknowledging individual letters. a Vanished Landscape” (March/April 2022)—a broadly fascinating article with appeal to students of multiple disciplines. While I myself have…

When the skeletal remains of more than a dozen hominins were first uncovered in the Dinaledi chamber of South Africa’s Rising Star cave system in 2013, researchers believed they had discovered a species that lived around two million years ago. The species, which scholars named Homo naledi, shared characteristics with early hominins such as Lucy (Australopithecus afarensis), including a wide-flaring pelvis, apelike shoulders adapted for climbing, and a brain around one-third the size of a modern human’s. But it also exhibited some traits that are very much in line with modern humans, such as the feet and long legs typical of a biped and hands and wrists suited to making tools. Dating of H. naledi remains in 2017 determined that these hominins actually lived between 335,000 and 236,000 years ago—at…

During excavations at the necropolis of Abusir, Egyptologists discovered an unusual funerary monument embedded in an Old Kingdom mudbrick mastaba tomb dating to the 4th Dynasty (ca. 2575–2465 B.c.). The recently uncovered stela, however, dates to the first half of the 5th Dynasty (ca. 2465–2323 B.c.) and memorializes a scribe of the treasury named Sekhemka and his wife Henutsen. “Sekhemka was probably a rather lowlevel official and died much younger than expected,” says Egyptologist Martin Odler of Charles University. This may be why an older tomb was reused. The white limestone stela is 3.5 feet tall and 1.5 feet wide and depicts the couple standing in a doorway. In a relief atop the doorway, the pair is seated at an offering table covered with 12 loaves of bread. Hieroglyphic inscriptions around…

Inhabited as a colonial city by Macedonian soldiers in the third century B.c., the hilltop settlement of Blaundos in western Anatolia is surrounded by a deep canyon on all sides into which its inhabitants carved hundreds of burial chambers. Although the necropolis has been known for centuries, it is only recently that a team led by archaeologist Birol Can of Uşak University has begun to systematically investigate the unexplored tombs. In 2021, the team documented around 400 burials dug into the canyon walls. According to Can, the chambers were initially built as single rooms and some were expanded over the generations to make room for sarcophagi holding additional family members. Some eventually held as many as 30 burials. Coins and pottery fragments found in the tombs, as well as the style…