Articles by Sandee Oster
Phys.org / South African San rock art reveals trance dances and initiation ceremonies
In a study published in Telestes, Dr. Joshua Kumbani and Dr. Margarita Díaz-Andreu categorized the various dance scenes depicted in South African rock art, drawing on ethnographic sources, published studies, and the comprehensive ...
Phys.org / Ancient Mesopotamian medical texts reveal the role of divine sanctuaries in treating ear and spleen ailments
In a study published in the journal Iraq, Dr. Troels Arbøll analyzed medical prescriptions from ancient Mesopotamia to understand and re-evaluate the role sanctuaries played in the healing process. The study found that specific ...
Phys.org / Glazed sherds in remote Gobi Desert reveal ancient Persian trade connections
In a study published in the Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports, Dr. Ellery Frahm and his colleagues analyzed two unusual blue-green glazed ceramic sherds discovered in the Gobi Desert in 2016.
Phys.org / Ancient clay cylinders provide first foundation text documenting Nebuchadnezzar II's restoration of the ziggurat of Kish
In 2013, two local Iraqis handed over two inscribed clay cylinders to the State Board of Antiquities and Heritage. Subsequent analysis and translation of the inscriptions published in Iraq revealed them to belong to King ...
Phys.org / Scientists have uncovered evidence of Ireland's largest prehistoric hillfort settlement
In a recent study published in Antiquity, Dr. Dirk Brandherm and his colleagues identified more than 600 suspected house platforms in the Brusselstown Ring hillfort, making it the largest nucleated settlement ever discovered ...
Phys.org / Ancient Puebloans kept macaws and parrots in great houses for ceremonial use
In a recent study, Dr. Katelyn Bishop conducted a zooarchaeological and archival data reanalysis of macaws and parrots recovered from Chaco Canyon to better understand their depositional contexts, material associations, and ...
Phys.org / Ancient bone arrow points reveal organized craft production in prehistoric Argentina
For decades, research and understanding of the diverse bone raw material used by the Late Prehispanic Period (~1220 to 330 cal BP) people of the Sierras de Córdoba were scarce. However, Dr. Matías Medina and his colleagues, ...
Phys.org / Chinchorro mummification may have originated as a form of art therapy, study suggests
In a recent study published in the Cambridge Archaeological Journal, Dr. Bernardo Arriaza argues that the practice of artificial mummification among the Chinchorro people may have evolved as a response to high infant mortality ...
Phys.org / Archaeologists discover unique mosaic patolli board at Guatemalan Maya city
In a study published in Latin American Antiquity, Dr. Julien Hiquet and Dr. Rémi Méreuze analyzed the remains of a unique mosaic-style patolli game board discovered in the Classic Period city of Naachtun, Guatemala.
Phys.org / 8.2 ka event triggered social transformation, not destruction, at China's Jiahu site
In a recent study, Dr. Yunchen Tan and colleagues examined the response of the North China Plain settlement of Jiahu to the abrupt climatic 8.2 ka event. They found that Jiahu not only survived but also demonstrated remarkable ...
Phys.org / Ear piercings marked one of the earliest Maya rites of passage, research shows
In a recent study, Ph.D. candidate Yasmine Flynn-Arajdal studied iconographic representations of children in the Classic (ca. 250–950 AD) and Post-classic (ca. 950–1539 AD) imagery, as well as in ethnohistoric and ethnographic ...
Phys.org / First Andean trophy head with cleft lip/palate identified from southern Peru
In a recent study, Dr. Beth Scaffidi analyzed the images of a unique trophy head from southern Peru. The study diagnosed the individual as having had a cleft lip/palate (CLP), making him the first case of an Andean trophy ...
Phys.org / DNA confirms modern Bo people are descendants of ancient Hanging Coffin culture
In a recent study, researcher Dr. Hui Zhou and his colleagues conducted a genetic analysis of the genomes of individuals associated with the ancient Hanging Coffin tradition in Southeast and Southern Asia. In addition, they ...
Phys.org / First evidence of lost-wax casting for silver in Bronze Age Western Europe uncovered
In a recent study, Dr. Linda Boutoille uncovered the first evidence of lost-wax casting of silver objects in Bronze Age Iberia and, to date, Western Europe. Published in the Oxford Journal of Archaeology, the study examines ...
Phys.org / Archaeologists discover solitary grave from ancient Kingdom of Kerma in remote Bayuda Desert
Dr. Monika Badura and her colleagues have published a study analyzing an isolated burial found in the Bayuda Desert in the journal Azania: Archaeological Research in Africa. The discovery, made at site BP937 in Sudan, has ...
