Recent Archaeological Finds

[Soldier4Christ]

Ancient Church at Armageddon
The Christian world is buzzing with news of a major find. Israeli archaeologists have uncovered the ruins of a third or fourth century church in northern Israel, which they believe could be the oldest ever found in the Holy Land. The church contains a well-preserved mosaic with references to Jesus Christ and images of fish—an ancient Christian symbol. “This find is once in a lifetime,” chief archaeologist Yotam Tefer told israel today.

“It’s very, very exciting. It’s a very dramatic discovery because an old building of this type has never been found in the Land of Israel.” The church was found during renovations at a prison in Megiddo—what the New Testament calls Armageddon— the site where all the armies of the world will meet for the final showdown between good and evil.
“Then they gathered the kings together to the place that in Hebrew is called Armageddon” (Revelation 16:16).

The word Armageddon is derived from the Hebrew Har Meggido— Mount Meggido. It overlooks the Jezreel Valley, a vast area where the armies of the nations will gather for the last battle. “Multitudes, multitudes in the Valley of Decision! For the day of the Lord is near in the Valley of Decision” (Joel 3:14).

“This is the place, the site of the last battle, Armageddon,” Tefer said. “Of course, this is the place. So this is why it’s so important to the Christian world.” Word of the find has electrified Christian believers across the denominational spectrum.

[Shammu]

Archaeologists Find Ancient Israel Tunnels

By LAURA RESNICK, Associated Press Writer 2 hours, 2 minutes ago

JERUSALEM - Underground chambers and tunnels used during a Jewish revolt against the Romans nearly 2,000 years ago have been uncovered in northern Israel, archaeologists said Monday.

The Jews laid in supplies and were preparing to hide from the Romans during their revolt in A.D. 66-70, the experts said. The pits, which are linked by short tunnels, would have served as a concealed subterranean home.

Yardenna Alexandre of the Israel Antiquities Authority said the find shows the ancient Jews planned and prepared for the uprising, contrary to the common perception that the revolt began spontaneously.

"It definitely was not spontaneous," Alexandre said. "The Jews of that time certainly did prepare for it, with underground hideaways here and in other sites we have found."

The underground chambers at the Israeli Arab village of Kfar Kana, north of Nazareth, were built from housing materials common at the time and hidden directly beneath the floors of aboveground homes — giving families direct access to the hideouts. Other refuges found from the time of the revolt are hewn out of rock.

"This construction was very well camouflaged inside one of the houses," Alexandre said. "There are three pits under this house and one tunnel leading to another pit. There are 11 storage jars in that pit."

Built like igloos, the chambers are wide at the base and small at the top. The tunnels between them are short and the ceilings are too low for standing upright.

Zeev Weiss, a professor of archaeology at Hebrew University in Jerusalem not connected to the discovery, said the find "can give us more information about life in the Galilee in the first century and the preparations Jews were making on the eve of the revolt." Weiss is director of excavations at Sepphoris, which was the largest city in the Galilee at the time of the revolt.

The Jewish revolt against Roman rule ended in A.D. 70, when the Romans sacked Jerusalem and destroyed the Second Temple.

The ancient Jews at the Kfar site built their houses over the ruins of a fortified Iron Age city, reusing some of the stones from the original settlement. Then they dug through 5 feet of debris from the ruins to build their hideaway complex. "It was quite a lot of work," Alexandre said.

The original settlement, which dates from the 10th and 9th centuries B.C., is also a new discovery.

Alexandre attributes current dating of the original city as an Iron Age settlement to pottery remains, which are plentiful. The excavators have also found large quantities of animal bones, a scarab depicting a man surrounded by two crocodiles and a ceramic seal bearing the image of a lion.

The excavation of the city's architecture has uncovered fortified walls which still stand 5 feet tall in some places. "It's magnificent," said Alexandre. "You can walk among them."

Archaeologists Find Ancient Israel Tunnels

[Shammu]

Culture Destroyed by 1815 Volcano Rediscovered

Listen to this story... by Christopher Joyce

February 28, 2006 · It's not often someone stumbles over a "lost kingdom." But that's what a volcano scientist has done on a remote island in Indonesia. The kingdom, called Tambora, disappeared in a matter of minutes in 1815, under billions of tons of rock and ash during a violent volcanic eruption.

University of Rhode Island volcanologist Haraldur Sigurdsson has spent 20 years roaming the islands of Indonesia, a place known for apocalyptic eruptions. He was especially drawn to a huge volcano on the island of Sumbawa.

"I knew that it was the largest and most important volcanic eruption on the Earth because it caused the year without a summer, a big global climate change, and it also led to the death of about 117,000 people just on this island and on neighboring islands," Sigurdsson said.

Mount Tambora launched 100 cubic kilometers of rock into the air -- 10 times more than Italy's Vesuvius, which buried Pompeii in 79 A.D., and 150 times more than Mount St. Helen's. So much ash and dust filled the air that crops failed and people starved on the other side of the planet.

On one of his expeditions to the island, Sigurdsson's mountain guide told him about a gully where people had found bones and ceramics. They had named it "museum gully."

Sigurdsson visited the site on the last day of his expedition. He didn't have much time there -- night was falling and he had to catch a boat home. "But I saw enough to know this was a very interesting place."

He came back years later with ground-penetrating radar. Under the loose pumice and ash, he located more artifacts. Then he found several burned wooden beams sticking up out of the ground. With Indonesian scientists, he uncovered a collapsed building. Inside were the remains of a woman.

"She was knocked over on her back by the force of the pyroclastic flow, and she appeared to be holding a machete or long knife in one hand. Over her arm was a cloth, and we think it was a sarong, totally carbonized, and her body was extensively carbonized, too," said Sigurdsson.

There was the body of a man, too, and glass bottles that had melted. All had been buried in a white-hot cloud that barreled down the mountain faster than a locomotive.

"Pyroclastic flow is rather like a snow avalanche," said Sigurdsson. "It's composed of particles of ash and pumice and gas -- but at a thousand degrees -- that moves at a high velocity, perhaps up to 100 miles per hour," said Sigurdsson.

Few written records of the lost civilization exist. Colonial British officials visited Tambora shortly before it was buried. About 10,000 people lived there. The officials recorded 48 words of their language. It wasn't Malay, like other Indonesian dialects, but more like the Khmer language of Cambodia.

Sigurdsson will return to the site next year. In the meantime, Indonesian archeologists plan to excavate more of what some hope could be the "Eastern Pompeii."

Culture Destroyed by 1815 Volcano Rediscovered

[Shammu]

 Ancient Jewish Town Discovered Under Arab Village
10:42 Mar 13, '06 / 13 Adar 5766

(IsraelNN.com) An ancient Jewish town from the time of King Solomon has been uncovered beneath the Arab village of Kfar Kana, north of Nazareth in the Galilee.

The discovery, unearthed by Israel’s Antiquities Authority, also includes remnants of Jewish settlement during the Roman period. Among the findings, are underground tunnels excavated by Jews who defended the city against Roman legions during the Great Revolt (66 C.E.).

Ancient Jewish Town Discovered Under Arab Village

[nChrist]

Brothers,

This is a fascinating thread that I really enjoy reading. I just wanted to let you know how much I appreciate it. I especially enjoy the posts that prove the HOLY BIBLE to be true. I know that we already believe that, but there is still hope for hosts of lost people.

Love In Christ,
Tom

Psalms 104:33-34 NASB  I will sing to the LORD as long as I live; I will sing praise to my God while I have my being.  Let my meditation be pleasing to Him; As for me, I shall be glad in the LORD.

[Soldier4Christ]

there is still hope for hosts of lost people.

Amen brother, that is the reason that I first started this thread ..... in the hopes that just one more Doubting Thomas will come to the realization that the Bible is in fact true.

[Soldier4Christ]

More on Underground Tunnels Found in Israel Used In Ancient Jewish Revolt

Underground Tunnels Found in Israel Used In Ancient Jewish Revolt


A series of underground chambers and tunnels recently found in Israel were likely used as refuges during the First Jewish Revolt, archaeologists with the Israel Antiquities Authority announced.

Storage jars found in one pit were an apparent stockpile of foodstuffs for the uprising against Roman rule that began in A.D. 66.

Archaeologist Yardenna Alexandre directed excavations at the Israeli Arab village of Kfar Kana—a Galilee-region site near the city of Nazareth in Israel (see map).

"The pits are connected to each other by short tunnels, and it seems that they were used as hiding refuges—a kind of concealed subterranean home—that were built prior to the Great Revolt against the Romans," Alexandre said in a statement.

The complex was located underneath homes and was probably accessed through the floors.

In the entire first century A.D. the Galilean community sat atop the ruins of a still-older Iron Age city.

Galilean Jews had to dig through some 5 feet (1.5 meters) of debris from that older settlement to excavate their underground passages. They reused stone from the destroyed city to build the igloo-shaped pits.

The ruins of the Iron Age settlement are also a new discovery. Sections of the city wall and buildings, which date to the tenth and ninth century B.C., have been exposed.

Alexandre suggested that this settlement, too, was likely sacked by some enemy force and only reinhabited during the first century A.D.

So far Alexandre's team has found pottery, animal bones, and other artifacts at the Iron Age site.

A ceramic seal was unearthed bearing the image of a lion, as well as a scarab beetle ornament featuring a man flanked by two crocodiles.

The pit and tunnel complex may offer new evidence about how the First Jewish Revolt was conducted.

"I think it's important and fascinating, because it shows deliberate preparation," said Andrea Berlin, an archaeologist at the University of Minnesota.

"This evidences a kind of organization, planning, and subversiveness that we didn't have any idea was going on."

When Roman armies reached the Middle East to stamp out the revolt, they turned first to the Galilee region, because it was a hotbed of civil unrest.

While southern communities had time to prepare for the oncoming legions, those in the northern region of Kfar Kana probably did not.

The timing suggests that the underground dwellings were prepared prior to the arrival of the Romans in A.D. 67 and therefore might have been used to conduct the revolt.

"When the Romans came from the coast, it was just a matter of weeks before they got to the first siege site," Berlin said. "And I don't think these sort of tunnels could have been constructed that quickly."

But Andrew Overman, an archaeologist at Macalester College in St. Paul, Minnesota, said that the carefully prepared complex might not have had a military purpose.

"[It's] proof of the unrest and the conflict that happened, but it's not necessarily a place where rebels were," he said.

"I think it also may have been a place where people prepared to take cover when they were aware that this grand presence, in the form of the Roman army, was about to be visited on them."

The chronicles of Josephus, a Jewish scholar and priest, are the only literary sources that describe the revolt. Josephus initially led troops against the Romans but later became a favorite at imperial court.

"Josephus describes what it was like at Jotapata [the site of one of the revolt's definitive engagements]," Overman said.

"He claims to have watched the whole battle and the massacre of the village. It's so apocalyptic. So people hid, they got ready for the war to end all wars."

Archaeological research confirms a history of savage fighting and massacres in the region. Some evidence has been found to closely match descriptions given by Josephus to events at the same locales.

Jotapata, the Golan Heights city of Gamla, and several Jerusalem sites have yielded Roman arrowheads, boots, weapons, and other remnants of battle dating to the second half of the first century.

Conquest Boosted Roman Dynasty

The First Jewish Revolt began during the reign of the Roman emperor Nero, who placed a military official named Vespasian in charge of the war against the Jews.

But Nero died in A.D. 68 while Vespasian was in Egypt gathering troops to quell the uprising.

Vespasian became the new emperor at this opportune time. The revolt was essentially crushed two years later when Vespasian's son Titus sacked Jerusalem and left the city in ruins.

Their conquest of the revolt became an important symbol of their family's strength. The victory was heavily exploited on subsequent triumphal arches and coinage.

Overman suggests that the story of the revolt has endured largely because it served the needs of the Flavians—the emperor Vespasian and his son Titus.

"What the Flavian house did was use this relatively minor event on the eastern outskirts of the empire to prop up their image as suitable rulers of the whole empire."

"Vespasian and especially Titus had never really won battles on their own," Overman explained, "and that was one of the main ways that you could prove that the gods were with you.

"So they promoted the hell out of it."

[Soldier4Christ]

Investigating canals across time, from space
Ur takes a step back to see ancient networks
By Alvin Powell


The view from space of an ancient canal network is recasting archaeologists' understanding of the Assyrian capital of Nineveh and of the farming economy that supported it at its height of power almost 3,000 years ago.

The work of Assistant Anthropology Professor Jason Ur, detailed in the November/December issue of the archaeology journal Iraq, is casting doubt on the long-held belief that canals that brought water from springs and rivers far to Nineveh's north were mainly constructed to support the city's elaborate gardens.

Using declassified satellite photographs taken decades ago, Ur found what he believes is evidence of branches in the canals that indicate extensive agricultural irrigation in the lands north of Nineveh that scholars had thought dependent on rainfall for their annual production.

With irrigation, those fields would have been potentially far more productive than if they had been reliant on the vagaries of natural rain. Ur said the canals indicate that the farming system underlying what was then the Middle East's dominant empire was more complex and organized than previously thought.

There were likely smaller satellite cities in the areas where the canals branched, Ur said, some of which remain undiscovered or buried under modern villages.

"What I would guess is that there are undiscovered population centers there," Ur said. "The irrigation infrastructure is there to support larger settlements. We have to go and find them."

Satellite photographs can be powerful tools for archaeologists in detecting broader patterns of settlement and networks that accompany ancient civilizations, such as roads and canals, Ur said.

An archaeologist trying to piece together these great works can walk the ground, digging to examine a promising mound here or an outcropping there. It helps, however, to step back from the landscape and look for patterns and structures that may be difficult or impossible to detect from the ground, where thousands of years of farming, road building, and urban development obscure all but bits and pieces.

"If you press your nose against a Monet, all you see is a blur. If you take a few steps back, you see lilies, you see bridges," said Ur. "For this reason, remote sensing data is really irreplaceable."

Low-level aerial photographs can serve a similar purpose as satellite photos, Ur said, but some nations don't allow archaeologists in, never mind flying over their countryside with a camera.

Further, he said, Cold War-era photographs allow researchers to look back in time at a landscape that may have been lost in the intervening years through urban development, military action, or other human activities.

Urban sprawl from the nearby Iraqi city of Mosul is a concern around Nineveh, which lies across the Tigris River. Already, Ur said, expansion of Mosul has obscured many features around Nineveh's clearly defined walls that were visible in satellite photos from the 1960s.

In addition to his work on Nineveh, Ur is examining the road system around the Bronze Age city of Tell Brak in northeastern Syria. The roads into the city, about 2,000 years older than Nineveh, probably arose spontaneously, Ur said, as people and goods flowed into and out of Tell Brak. Ur said he's detected a progression from the main city, to smaller satellite settlements, out to farms, to fields, and to pastures beyond.

"I'm interested in urban settlements and in how they were maintained and sustained," Ur said. "Irrigation, agriculture, networks of roads to satellite cities were probably very important to these early settlements because they were too large to sustain themselves."

In contrast to the natural growth of Tell Brak's road system, Nineveh's canals were public works, instigated and controlled by the central government, which at the same time was importing conquered people to act as labor. Ur said the Assyrians brought in not just men from the conquered lands, but whole families and villages, what he called entire "productive units."

"I see this as part of an overall demographic program, not only creating a new landscape, but also importing the labor to work it," Ur said.

Ur is a year into a new project in northwestern Iran, examining a new system of canals there thought to have been built by the Sasanian Empire, which battled Rome and the Byzantine Empire in the Middle East.

The researchers found the Sasanian canals from the satellite photographs, but also noticed small, brightly colored rings of what looked like stones dotting the landscape. On their first field expedition, in January 2005, Ur said they discovered the rings were circles of large holes - each hole about 6 feet wide - dug into the ground with earth mounded around them.

Researchers believe the holes were winter quarters for livestock, and the rings of holes represented winter campgrounds for pastoral people who spent summers in the nearby mountains.

Many of these ancient campsites have been destroyed by farming and development in the years since the photographs were taken, Ur said, making the satellites a valuable resource to understand how the land was used by ancient people. Without evidence from the photographs and a visit to investigate remaining campsites, the visible canals would have left evidence of the landscape's agricultural past, but remained silent on the land's use by ancient herding people.

"This is what I find interesting," Ur said, "how structures emerged."

[Shammu]

Ancient Sarcophagus Unearthed in Cyprus

By GEORGE PSYLLIDES, Associated Press Writer 2 hours, 51 minutes ago

NICOSIA, Cyprus - A 2,500-year-old sarcophagus with vivid color illustrations from Homer's epics has been discovered in western Cyprus, archaeologists said Monday.

Construction workers found the limestone sarcophagus last week in a tomb near the village of Kouklia, in the coastal Paphos area. The tomb, which probably belonged to an ancient warrior, had been looted during antiquity.

"The style of the decoration is unique, not so much from an artistic point of view, but for the subject and the colors used," said Pavlos Flourentzos, director of the island's antiquities department.

Only two similar sarcophagi have ever been discovered in Cyprus before. One is housed in New York's Metropolitan Museum of Art and the other in the British Museum in London, but their colors are more faded, Flourentzos said.

Flourentzos said the coffin — painted in red, black and blue on a white background — dated to 500 B.C., when Greek cultural influence was gaining a firm hold on the eastern Mediterranean island. Pottery discovered in the tomb is expected to provide a precise date.

Experts believe the ornate decoration features the hero Ulysses in scenes from Homer's Iliad and Odyssey — both hugely popular throughout the Greek world.

In one large painting, Ulysses and his comrades escape from the blind Cyclops Polyphemos' cave, hidden under a flock of sheep. Another depicts a battle between Greeks and Trojans from the Iliad.

Archeologists think the scenes hint at the status of the coffin's occupant.

"Why else take these two pieces from Homer and why deal with Ulysses? Maybe this represents the dead person's character — who possibly was a warrior," Flourentzos said.

Other drawings depict a figure carrying a seriously injured or dead man and a lion fighting a wild boar under a tree. These are not believed to be linked with Homer's poems.

Reflecting a long oral tradition loosely based on historic events, Homer's epics were probably composed around 800 B.C. and written down in the 6th century B.C.

The tomb was found in an area containing several ancient cemeteries which belonged to the nearby town of Palaepaphos, 11 miles inland from modern Paphos.

First settled around 2800 B.C., Palaepaphos was the site of a temple of Aphrodite — the ancient goddess of beauty who, according to mythology, was born in the sea off Paphos.

Ancient Sarcophagus Unearthed in Cyprus

[Shammu]

Bangladesh discovers ancient fort city

By Nizam Ahmed Wed Mar 15, 5:59 AM ET

WARI, Bangladesh (Reuters) - Archaeologists in Bangladesh say they have uncovered part of a fortified citadel dating back to 450 B.C. that could have been a stopping off point along an ancient trade route.

So far, a moat round the citadel has been uncovered along with parts of an ancient road at Wari, 85 km (53 miles) northeast of the capital Dhaka.

"The citadel and a raft of artifacts may help redefine history of India," said Sufi Mostafizur Rahman, head of the department of archaeology at Jahangirnagar University, near Dhaka.

"The well-planned road with even manholes proves that the citadel was managed by a very efficient administration," Mostafizur added.

"I am confident further excavation will lead us to residue of a palace," he said.

Archaeologists have been excavating the ancient roads and unearthing artifacts for several years. Tests by a Dutch university revealed the objects dated to around 450 B.C.

Artefacts found in the 600 x 600 meter (1,800 x 1,800 ft) include metal coins, metallic chisels, terracotta missiles, rouletted and knobbed pottery, stone hammers and bangles. Ornaments suggested Buddhism dominated life in the urban centers. Mostafizur said the citadel was believed to be a part of Harappan civilization and a prime trade center might have flourished there, possibly serving as a link between contemporary South Asian and Roman civilizations.

The Harappan civilization flourished in the Indus and Ganges valleys between 2,700 B.C. to 700 B.C.

Archaeologists hope the citadel and surrounding area yield many more surprises.

In Wari and the nearby Batteswar village there are 47 raised areas and archaeologists are planning to excavate all of these as well.

Bangladesh discovers ancient fort city

[Soldier4Christ]

Rare Crusader Coin

A treasure trove of archaeological relics, the ancient city of Jaffa has yielded another rare find. An archaeological team from the Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA), headed up by Martin Peilstöcker and Amit Re’em, unearthed an extremely rare coin in Jaffa’s flea market. It dates to the Latin Kingdom of Jerusalem (1099-1291), the feudal state created by the first Crusaders.

Staff from the IAA Coin Department identified the artifact as a Frankish silver half drachma, minted during a brief six-year period between 1251 and 1257. It was found in the remains of a 13th century house, along with ceramics from the same period.

Etched on the coin are a cross and various other symbols, including a half-moon and a bird. An Arabic inscription describes the Trinity: al Ab (the Father), al Bin (the Son) we-al Rukh al Kuds (and the Holy Spirit). Barely discernible on the perimeter of the coin are the words, “Thine is the glory forever and ever.”

During the 12th and 13th centuries, coins copied from the gold dinars and silver dirhems of the Islamic Fatimid and Ayyubid rulers were minted in Antioch and Tripoli. On a visit to the area in 1250, the official emissary from Rome, Bishop Eudes de Chateauroux, ordered an end to coins inscribed with the name of Mohammed, the Moslem prophet, reporting the practice to Pope Innocentius IV. The Pope responded with threats to excommunicate anyone minting coins with the name of the Moslem prophet on them. Historians believe that the Christian inscriptions and symbols were added to allow minters to continue producing the coins, but now with a Christian message.

[Soldier4Christ]

New Dead Sea Scroll Fragments
There is only one place on earth where an unending stream of evidence substantiating the Bible is discovered year after year. Granted, it’s been 40 years since the major discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls thrilled biblical archaeologists and others who love the Word of God.

The latest discovery—two small fragments of animal skin, brown with age, with Leviticus 23:38-39 and 43-44 inscribed in ancient Hebrew—are now in the hands of the Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA). How they got there is an intriguing story in itself. About a year ago, Professor Chanan Eshel, an archaeologist at Bar Ilan University in Tel Aviv, was summoned to an abandoned police station near the Dead Sea for a clandestine meeting with a Bedouin Arab. After explaining that he’d been offered $20,000 on the black market, the man asked Eshel to evaluate the fragments. It would be hard to describe the emotions that surged through the professor’s heart as he examined the skins. “I was jealous that he had found them instead of me,” said Eshel, who has worked in the Judean Desert for nearly 20 years. “I was also very excited, though I didn’t believe I would ever see them again.” Months later, after learning that the fragments had not left the country, Eshel bought them with $3,000 provided by Bar Ilan. The skins were turned over to the IAA, which is now testing them for authenticity. They are the 15th find in this area and date to the Second Revolt against the Romans under Bar-Kochba.

The discovery sparked renewed hope among biblical archaeologists that the Judean Desert has much yet to yield. “No scrolls have been found in the Judean Desert since 1965,” said Eshel. “This [find] encourages scholars to believe that if they bother to excavate, survey and climb, they will still find things in the Judean Desert. The common perception has been that there is nothing left to find there, but that is clearly wrong.”

[Soldier4Christ]

Down under the city of Jerusalem
In honor of Jerusalem Day, which celebrates the reunification of Jerusalem under Jewish sovereignty, new excavations began on the western edge of the Tyropean Valley, just opposite the Shiloah pool (Pool of Siloam where Jesus healed the blind man).

Architectural structures sculpted into the rock were found in several rooms on different floors, as well as on the walls of the mikveh (ritual immersion bath). The excavations dated to Second Temple times. Archaeologists also found a silver coin from the Second Jewish Revolt, led by Simon Bar-Kochba, as well as clay vessels from both the First and Second Temple periods.

Excavation director Tsvika Greenhut, of the Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA), said that in spite of the less-than-ideal preservation of the structures uncovered at this site, it was obvious that the people who lived here were well off—members of the local population’s upper echelon. Researchers were able to glean more insight into what life may have been like in such a neighborhood in the lower areas of Jerusalem.

[Soldier4Christ]

A Just Weight
The IAA, the Customs Authority and the Postal Authority worked together to prevent a precious artifact, a lead weight, from being smuggled out of the country. The weight dates back to the time of Bar Kochba (the second century AD) and is decorated with traditional Jewish symbols, including a palm tree and menorah.

Ancient Hebrew letters are engraved on the weight, which was a common practice during the first and second Jewish revolts against the Romans. The IAA believes that Palestinian  antiquities thieves found this weight in Judea. It is one of only four known weights that use the maneh, the measure for weighing gold and silver in Second Temple times. All of them have the following Hebrew inscription: “Shimon Bar Kochba – Ruler of Israel – Freedom.”

Smugglers wanted to ship the weight in a hollowed-out book to the US. It’s the first time that this method of smuggling was uncovered. The IAA was able to locate the sender, a former antiquities salesman, who wanted to send the valuable artifact to his colleagues in America. More antiquities were revealed in his apartment. Police say there have been other smuggling attempts, and the investigation has expanded to the US.

Hidden Treasure: Smugglers tried to hide the ancient weight in a book There are only four such weights from Second Temple times

[Shammu]

Navy Uncovers Centuries-Old Spanish Ship

By MELISSA NELSON, Associated Press Writer 1 hour, 18 minutes ago

PENSACOLA, Fla. - Navy construction crews have unearthed a rare Spanish ship that was buried for centuries under sand on Pensacola's Naval Air Station, archaeologist confirmed Thursday.
ADVERTISEMENT

The vessel could date to the mid-1500s, when the first Spanish settlement in what is now the United States was founded here, the archaeologists said.

But the exposed portion looks more like ships from a later period because of its iron bolts, said Elizabeth Benchley, director of the Archaeology Institute at the University of West Florida.

"There are Spanish shipwrecks in Pensacola Bay," Benchley said. "We have worked on two — one from 1559 and another from 1705. But no one has found one buried on land. This was quite a surprise to everybody."

Construction crews came upon the ship this month while rebuilding the base's swim rescue school, destroyed during Hurricane Ivan in 2004.

The exposed keel of the ship juts upward from the sandy bottom of the pit and gives some guess of the vessel's form. Archaeologists estimated the rest of the ship is buried by about 75 feet of sand.

During initial work to determine the ship's origin, archaeologists found ceramic tiles, ropes and pieces of olive jars. The settlement was founded in 1559; its exact location is a mystery. The Spanish did not return until more than a century later in 1698 at Presidio Santa Maria de Galve, now the naval station.

The French captured and burned the settlement in 1719 but handed Pensacola back to Spain three years later. Hurricanes forced the Spanish to repeatedly rebuild.

The Navy plans to enclose the uncovered portion of the ship, mark the site and move construction over to accommodate archaeological work, officials said.

"We don't have plans to excavate the entire ship," Benchley said. "It's going to be very expensive because it's so deeply buried and we would have to have grant money," she said.

Navy Uncovers Centuries-Old Spanish Ship