Imaging uncovers secrets of medicine's mysterious ivory manikins

By: Thomas Schmitt Attorney on November 27, 2019 / comment : 0 Archaeology, Europe, Germany, USA, Western Europe

Little is known about the origins of manikins--small anatomical sculptures thought to be used by doctors four centuries ago--but now advanced imaging techniques have offered a revealing glimpse inside these captivating ivory dolls. Researchers using micro-CT successfully identified the material composition and components of several ancient ivory manikins, according to a new study being presented next week at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA).

This is an ivory figurine reclining on its 'bed' with all organs placed inside [Credit: Fides R. Schwartz, RSNA]

Ivory manikins are typically thought to have been carved in Germany in the late 17th century. They are reclining human figurines, 4-8 inches long, generally female, which open to reveal removable organs and sometimes a fetus attached with a fabric "umbilical" cord. The manikins have intricately carved features, and some even have pillows beneath their heads. It is believed that they were used for the study of medical anatomy or perhaps as a teaching aid for pregnancy and childbirth. By the 18th century, they had been replaced by more realistic teaching tools, such as wax models and cadavers. The manikins then became objects of curiosity and luxury status symbols in private collections.

Duke University in Durham, N.C., holds the world's largest collection of manikins (22 out of 180 known manikins worldwide). Most of the manikins in the Duke collection were purchased in the 1930s and 1940s by Duke thoracic surgeon Josiah Trent, M.D., and his wife Mary Duke Biddle Trent, prior to the 1989 ivory trade ban. The researchers noted that after being donated to the university by Trent's granddaughters, the manikins have spent most of their time in archival storage boxes or behind display glass, as they are too fragile for regular handling.

"They are usually stored in a library vault and occasionally rotated into a special display unit in the Duke Medical Library for visitors to appreciate," said Fides R. Schwartz, M.D., research fellow in the Department of Radiology at Duke.

Non-destructive imaging with X-rays and CT has been used in the past to examine fragile artwork and ancient artifacts. Imaging of relics has been extremely beneficial to the fields of archaeology and paleopathology--the study of ancient diseases.

This is an Ivory manikin after removal of the abdominal and chest wall, ribs, and part of the uterus. Internal organs such as the lungs, intestines, as well as a fetus inside the uterus are visible [Credit: Fides R. Schwartz, RSNA]

Micro-CT is an imaging technique with greatly increased resolution, compared to standard CT. It not only allows visualization of internal features, it noninvasively provides volumetric information about an object's microstructure.

Dr. Schwartz and colleagues hoped that through micro-CT imaging they could determine the ivory type used in the Duke manikins, discover any repairs or alterations that were not visible to the naked eye, and allow a more precise estimation of their age.

"The advantage of micro-CT in the evaluation of these manikins enables us to analyze the microstructure of the material used," she said. "Specifically, it allows us to distinguish between 'true' ivory obtained from elephants or mammoths and 'imitation' ivory, such as deer antler or whale bone."

The research team scanned all 22 manikins with micro-CT and found that 20 out of the 22 manikins were composed of true ivory alone, though materials like antler might have been less expensive in that time. They discovered that one manikin was made entirely of antler bone, and one manikin contained both ivory and whale bone components.

Micro-CT initial scan data. The internal organs and fetus inside the uterus are visible, similar to a photograph [Credit: Fides R. Schwartz, RSNA]

Metallic components were found in four of the manikins, and fibers in two. Twelve manikins contained hinging mechanisms or internal repairs with ivory pins, and one manikin contained a long detachable pin disguised as a hairpiece.

The most established trade routes in the 17th and 18th centuries sourced ivory from Africa, leading the researchers to believe that since nearly all of the manikins were made from true ivory, it is likely that the ivory obtained to craft the manikins was acquired from the African region.

"This may assist in further narrowing down the most probable production period for the manikins," Dr. Schwartz said. "Once historical trade routes are more thoroughly understood, it might become clear that the German region of origin had access to elephant ivory only for a limited time during the 17th and 18th century, for example, from 1650 to 1700 A.D."

Additionally, identifying non-ivory components in the manikins may provide more accessibility to carbon dating, allowing the researchers to more accurately estimate the age of some of the manikins without damage to the fragile pieces.

The researchers also hope to acquire 3D scans to create digital renderings and enable subsequent 3D printed models.

"This is potentially valuable to scientific, historic and artistic communities, as it would allow display and further study of these objects while protecting the fragile originals," Dr. Schwartz said. "Digitizing and 3D printing them will give visitors more access and opportunity to interact with the manikins and may also allow investigators to learn more about their history."

Source: Radiological Society of North America [November 27, 2019]

Remains of Anglo Saxon woman and jewels discovered at university campus in Canterbury

By: Thomas Schmitt Attorney on November 20, 2019 / comment : 0 Archaeology, Europe, UK, Western Europe

Archaeologists have discovered the remains of an Anglo-Saxon woman, buried with lavish jewels on the University’s Canterbury campus.

The skeleton of the Anglo Saxon woman [Credit: Canterbury Archaelogical Trust]

The Canterbury Archaeological Trust (CAT) has been working on site as the University gets ready to open its Science, Technology, Health, Engineering and Medicine facilities in 2020, with a £65m building on the North Holmes campus.

The woman, believed to have been in her twenties, was found buried with a silver, garnet-inlaid, Kentish disc brooch. Scientific testing on similar finds has shown the garnets are likely to have come from Sri Lanka rather than a nearer source. Such brooches, crafted in east Kent from exotic materials, were produced at the behest of the Kentish royal dynasty and distributed as gifts to those in their favour.

The broach found with the woman's remains [Credit: Canterbury Archaelogical Trust]

She was also wearing a necklace of amber and glass beads, a belt fastened with a copper alloy buckle, a copper alloy bracelet and was equipped with an iron knife. Together, the items found in the grave suggest that this young woman was buried between AD 580-600. She would have been a contemporary, and likely acquaintance, of the Kentish King Ethelbert and his Frankish Queen Bertha, whose modern statues can be seen nearby at Lady Wootton’s Green.

“The discovery of another ancient burial on our campus is extremely exciting,” she said. “It demonstrates the richness of the archaeology that surrounds us, and contributes important new evidence to our understanding of life and death in Canterbury around 1400 years ago.”

Cremation urns were also discovered [Credit: Canterbury Archaelogical Trust]

It is possible that the woman lived long enough to be an eyewitness to the arrival of St Augustine and his monks, who came to Canterbury in AD 597 on their mission to convert the English to Christianity. But her burial, found beside Old Sessions House, close to the present boundary with St Augustine’s Abbey, almost certainly took place before the construction of the first church at St Augustine’s in the early seventh century.

Dr Andrew Richardson, Outreach and Archives Manager at CAT, said: “This discovery is particularly significant, as it suggests that relatively high-status burial was taking place on the site in the years shortly before the establishment of the Abbey.


“One of the primary roles of the Abbey was as the burial place of Augustine and his companions, Archbishops and members of the Kentish royal dynasty. This find suggests that this may represent a continuance of existing practice at the site, rather than a completely new development and has implications for our interpretation of this World Heritage site.”

The woman’s bones will be retained for further scientific study, which it is hoped will provide further insights into her life, death and burial.

Source: Canterbury Christ Church University [November 20, 2019]

European police bust gang looting artifacts in Italy

By: Thomas Schmitt Attorney on November 19, 2019 / comment : 0 Archaeology, Europe, Germany, Heritage, Italy, Southern Europe, UK, Western Europe

European police have busted an international crime gang involved in trafficking tens of thousands of Greek archaeological artefacts looted from illegal excavations in Italy, law enforcement agencies said Monday.

Credit: Carabinieri TPC

Police from Italy, Britain, France, Germany and Serbia arrested 23 suspects and carried out 103 searches in the investigation that started in 2017, the EU police agency Europol and Eurojust said.

The gang used bulldozers and metal detectors to loot objects as old as 400 BC from the Calabria region -- the "toe" of Italy -- before selling them across Europe.

"Illegal excavations were managed by a well-structured organised crime group... led by two Calabrians" living in the southern province of Crotone, the agencies said in a combined statement.

Credit: Europol

In Calabria "the cultural heritage includes important traces from the Greek and Roman period", Europol said.

Italian media said two Calabrian men aged 59 and 30 were arrested.

The gang also included "fences, intermediaries and mules operating out of different Italian regions" with the looted artefacts then going through contacts in Dijon, Munich, London and Vrsac in northeastern Serbia.

Credit: Carabinieri TPC

Some of the stolen objects is said to date as far back as the fourth and third centuries B.C. and include five terracotta vases and oil lamps, plates depicting animal scenes, brooches and various jewels, Italian media reports said.

The looters used bulldozers to dig craters, before sifting through the earth and passing it through metal detectors, the reports added, quoting police sources.

"The looting carried out over the course of several years caused considerable damage to Italian cultural heritage," Europol and Eurojust added.

Credit: Europol

Coordination between the two agencies enabled "arrests, searches and seizures immediately and simultaneously in the five countries," they added.

Italian and Swiss police in 2016 recovered a haul of archaeological artefacts stolen from Italy and stored by a notorious British antiquities dealer.

The haul, worth nine million euros ($10 million), was discovered in 2014 in a storage unit at the Geneva Freeport rented by Britain's disgraced Robin Symes, a giant in the illegal antiquities trade with ties to Italian tomb raiders.

At the time it was regarded as one of the most important recoveries of the last few decades.

Source: AFP [November 19, 2019]

Alpine rock axeheads became social and economic exchange fetishes in the Neolithic

By: Thomas Schmitt Attorney on November 14, 2019 / comment : 0 Archaeology, Europe, Southern Europe, Spain, Western Europe

Axeheads made out of Alpine rocks had strong social and economic symbolic meaning in the Neolithic, given their production and use value. Their resistance to friction and breakage, which permitted intense polishing and a re-elaboration of the rocks, gave these artefacts an elevated exchange value, key to the formation of long-distance exchange networks among communities of Western Europe. Communities who had already begun to set the value of exchange of a product according to the time and effort invested in producing them.

Alpine rock axehead found at Harras, Thuringia, from the Michelsberg Culture (c. 4300-2800 BCE) [Credit: Juraj Liptak, State Office for Heritage Management and Archaeology Saxony-Anhalt]

This is what a study led by a research group at the Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona (UAB) indicates in regards to the mechanical and physical parameters characterising the production, circulation and use of a series of rock types used in the manufacturing of sharp-edged polished artefacts in Europe during the Neolithic (5600-2200 BCE).

The objective of the study was to answer a long debated topic: the criteria by which Alpine rocks formed part of an unprecedented pan-European phenomenon made up of long-distance exchange networks, while others were only used locally. Was the choice based on economic, functional or perhaps subjective criteria? Stone axeheads were crucial to the survival and economic reproduction of societies in the Neolithic. Some of the rocks used travelled over 1000 kilometres from their Alpine regions to northern Europe, Andalusia in southern Spain and the Balkans.

This is the first time a study includes in the specialised bibliography comparative data obtained by testing the resistance to friction and breakage of the rocks. These mechanical parameters have led to the definition of production and use values, which were then correlated with the distances and volumes of the rocks exchanged in order to obtain their exchange value. The results help understand the basic principles underlying the supply and distribution system of stone materials during the Neolithic in Western Europe, as well as its related economic logic.

"The reasons favouring the integration of specific rock types into these long-distance networks depended on a complex pattern of technological and functional criteria. This pattern was not solely based on economic aspects, their use value, but rather on the mechanical capacity to resist successive transformation processes, i.e. their production value, and remain unaltered throughout time", explains Selina Delgado-Raack, researcher at the Department of Prehistory, UAB, and first author of the article.

Supply System and Economic Logic

The study points to the diverging economic conception between the manufacturing of tools using other rocks and Alpine rock axeheads. Neolithic communities selected the most suitable raw materials available from all the resources in their region and knew each of their mechanical and physical characteristics. These tools normally travelled in a radius of 200 kilometres from where they originated and rarely went farther than 400-500 kilometres. Only Alpine rocks travelled further than those regional and economic limits.

Microscopic view of a thin section of an omphacitite, one of the Alpine rock types used for axeheads  in the Neolithic analysed in this study [Credit: UAB]

"The circulation of these rocks at larger distances did not respond to a functional and cost-efficient logic, in which each agent takes into account the costs of manufacturing and transport when selecting the different rock types, all of them viable in being converted into fully functioning tools", indicates Roberto Risch, also researcher at the Department of Prehistory, UAB, and coordinator of the research.

"It rather obeys the emergence of a very different economic reasoning, based on the ability to transform one material through ever greater amounts of work, something which many centuries later Adam Smith used to define the British economy of the 18th century. In the case of Alpine axeheads, their exceptional exchange value was due to the increase in manufacturing costs, a result of the intense polishing of these stones as they passed from one community to another".

A Primitive Form of Currency?

For the research team, the fact that the Alpine axeheads are categorised as the most commonly crafted and modified artefact in different periods and regions during the Neolithic rules out their role as symbols of power or ceremonial elements. "The economic pattern points towards more of a fetish object used in social and economic interactions among European communities of highly different socio-political productions and orientations", Selina Delgado-Raack states.

The exceptional exchange value reached by some rock types, such as the omphacitites and jadeitites, leads the team to think that they may have been used as a primitive form of currency, although they admit that there is a need for more studies before this topic can be clarified.

The study is published in the Journal of Archaeological Method and Theory.

Source: Autonomous University of Barcelona [November 14, 2019]

DNA data offers scientific look at 500 years of extramarital sex in Western Europe

By: Thomas Schmitt Attorney on November 14, 2019 / comment : 0 Anthropology, Genetics, Society, Western Europe

These days it's easy to resolve questions about paternity with over-the-counter test kits. Now, researchers have put DNA evidence together with long-term genealogical data to explore similar questions of biological fatherhood on a broad scale among people living in parts of Western Europe over the last 500 years.

Credit: Getty Images

The findings reported in Current Biology yielded some surprises. While the number of so-called extra-pair paternity (EPP) events overall was (not surprisingly) fairly low, their frequency varied considerably among people depending on their circumstances. Specifically, evidence of EPP events turned up much more often in people of lower socioeconomic status who lived in densely populated cities in the 19th century.

"Of course, extra-pair paternity, especially due to adultery, is a popular topic in gossip, jokes, TV series, and literature," said Maarten Larmuseau of KU Leuven and Histories, Belgium. "But scientific knowledge on this phenomenon is still highly limited, especially regarding the past.

"Our research shows that the chance of having extra-pair paternity events in your family history really depends on the social circumstances of your ancestors. If they lived in cities and were of the lower socioeconomic classes, the chances that there were EPP events in your family history are much higher than if they were farmers."

Evolutionarily speaking, it's clear that remaining faithful to one's partner isn't always the most advantageous strategy. Males may benefit from straying by siring extra offspring; females may benefit by mating with superior males. But in human societies over time, how often has EPP really happened?

In the new study, Larmuseau's team took the first broad look at this question to find that social context really matters. Their study covered a time period of several centuries during which there were dramatic changes in the human social environment, including the rapid urbanization that accompanied the Industrial Revolution in 19th century Western Europe. To estimate historical EPP rates among married couples, they identified 513 pairs of contemporary adult males living in Belgium and the Netherlands who, based on genealogical evidence, shared a common paternal ancestor and therefore--barring an EPP event--should have carried the same Y chromosome.

The evidence showed no significant difference in EPP rates between countries despite key religious differences, they report. But they varied widely with socioeconomic status and population density. The EPP rate was much lower among farmers and more well-to-do craftsmen and merchants (about 1%) than among lower class laborers and weavers (about 4%).

EPP rates also rose with population density. Putting the two together, the researchers report that the estimated EPP rates for the families varied by more than one order of magnitude, from about 0.5% among the middle to high classes and farmers living in the most sparsely populated towns to almost 6% for the low socioeconomic classes living in the most densely populated cities.

The researchers say the findings support evolutionary theories suggesting that individual incentives and opportunities for seeking or preventing extra-pair mating should depend on the social context. They also debunk the notion that EPP rates in Western society are generally high, they say, noting that the evidence puts average rates at around 1%.

Larmuseau says an interdisciplinary perspective will be important to understanding why certain factors like population density and socio-economic status have had such a strong influence on the EPP rate. "This is highly relevant because the causes of historical EPP events are hidden and diverse," he said.

Source: Cell Press [November 14, 2019]

World's oldest glue used from prehistoric times till the days of the Gauls

By: Thomas Schmitt Attorney on November 13, 2019 / comment : 0 Archaeology, Europe, France, Western Europe

Birch bark tar, the oldest glue in the world, was in use for at least 50,000 years, from the Palaeolithic Period up until the time of the Gauls. Made by heating birch bark, it served as an adhesive for hafting tools and decorating objects.

(A) Illustration of hinge (© S. Sorin, CNRS, CEPAM), based on Deschler-Erb 1998; (B) Hinge from Nice (Transfert Massena; Alpes-Maritimes, sample MR6258); (C) Decorative plaque from Narbonne  (sample MR6253) [Credit: J.-D. Strich, CNRS, CEPAM, & I. Rodet-Belarbi, INRAP, CEPAM]

Scientists mistakenly thought it had been abandoned in western Europe at the end of the Iron Age (800-25 BC) and replaced by conifer resins, around which a full-fledged industry developed during the Roman period.

But by studying artefacts that date back to the first six centuries AD through the lens of chemistry, archaeology, and textual analysis, researchers from the CNRS, Universite Nice Sophia Antipolis / Universite Cote d'Azur, and Inrap have discovered birch tar was being used right up to late antiquity, if not longer.

The artefacts in question -- found in a region where birch is scarce, thus raising the question of how it was procured -- are testimony to the strength of tradition among the Gauls.

The scientists' findings are published in Antiquity.

Source: CNRS [November 13, 2019]

Researchers explore the tomb of Germany's Holy Roman Emperor Friedrich III

By: Thomas Schmitt Attorney on November 12, 2019 / comment : 0 Archaeology, Europe, Germany, Western Europe

The tomb of Emperor Frederick III (1415-1493) in St. Stephen's Cathedral in Vienna has been found to contain, among other things, a crown, a sceptre and an imperial orb.

The tomb of Emperor Frederick III (1415-1493) in St. Stephen's Cathedral in Vienna [Credit: KHM-MUSEUMSVERBAND/APA/dpa]

Scientists explored the interior of the last untouched imperial grave in Europe with small cameras. The experts involved described the discovery as a "sensation" at the presentation of the results in Vienna this week.

In 2013, the scientists decided to risk a glimpse into the magnificent tomb, but the images and samples had to be analysed with great effort. To this end, the researchers used a small hole drilled into the tomb in 1969. At that time, the rumours that the grave was empty were refuted.

The tomb of Emperor Frederick III (1415-1493) in St. Stephen's Cathedral in Vienna  [Credit: APA/DOMBAUHUTTE TO ST. STEPHAN]

500 years after the emperor's final burial (1513), the scientists used this hole as an entrance for lighting and tiny cameras.

In addition to the insignia, the researchers found custom minted coins, a large crucifix with a statuette of Jesus and various textiles in the tomb.

View of the imperial orb with cross and inscription as well as detail of the sceptre to the right of the corpse [Credit: APAweb/DOMBAUHUTTE ZU ST. STEPHAN]

The crown, probably mostly made of gold-plated silver, turned out to be the earliest surviving specimen of the type "Mitrenkrone", which was to become characteristic of the House of Habsburg in the following centuries.

With a reign of 53 years, Frederick III was the longest ruling head of the Holy Roman Empire. He was also the only Habsburg to be crowned Emperor in 1452 by the Pope in Rome in medieval tradition.

General view of the Mitren crown on the skull of the dead emperor covered with a cloth web [Credit: APA/DOMBAUHUTTE TO ST. STEPHAN]

The tomb of the emperor in St Stephen's Cathedral in Vienna is considered a major work of late Gothic architecture. According to the researchers, a complete opening of the tomb was not possible without some degree of damage.

Source: Zeit [trsl. TANN, November 12, 2019]

New study suggests the original location of the Bayeux Tapestry is finally solved

By: Thomas Schmitt Attorney on October 23, 2019 / comment : 0 Archaeology, Europe, France, UK, Western Europe

New evidence, published in the Journal of the British Archaeological Association, has confirmed that the Bayeux Tapestry was designed specifically to fit a specific area of Bayeux's cathedral.

Part of the junction of Pieces III and IV of the Bayeux Tapestry [Credit: Detail of the Bayeux Tapestry, 11th century, with special permission from the City of Bayeux]

New research suggests the Tapestry was designed to be hung along the north, south and west sides of the nave of Bayeux Cathedral, between the west wall and choir screen. It has long been known that the Tapestry was hung in the cathedral in the fifteenth century, but new analysis of the linen strips on which it is embroidered suggests that it was intended to hang there from the moment it was made in the eleventh century.

This discovery proves that the designer must have visited Bayeux and known the nave's exact dimensions, adjusting the design accordingly.

The findings shed light on how the artwork, depicting one of British history's most famous stories, should be displayed ahead of its loan to the UK.

Diagram of the layout of the Bayeux Tapestry as originally displayed in the nave of the cathedral [Credit: Journal of the British Archaeological Association]

For centuries, there has been debate around where the Bayeux Tapestry was manufactured, who commissioned the embroidery and whether it was originally displayed in England or France. Questions have also persisted over its exact dimensions, and the specific venue it was made for.

"It has always been the case that the simplest explanation is that it was designed for Bayeux Cathedral," says author Christopher Norton from the University of York. "This general proposition can now be corroborated by the specific evidence that the physical and narrative structure of the tapestry are perfectly adapted to fit the (liturgical) nave of the 11th-century cathedral."

Professor Norton's research is based on mathematical calculations, analysis of documentary evidence including of the Tapestry's linen fabric, and of surviving architectural details. Published data on the Tapestry's measurements was assessed and compared along with information on medieval cloth sizes, allowing for factors such as shrinkage and missing sections.

The position of the tapestry as shown on a reconstructed plan of Bayeux Cathedral  in the late eleventh century based on Vallery-Radot 1923 and 1958 [Credit: Stuart Harrison]

By studying the cathedral's surviving architectural features, Professor Norton also established how the nave would have looked in the 11th century. This enabled him to establish the nave's original proportions by pinpointing the choir screen's location - the Tapestry would have fitted five bays of the nave, with the artwork's 'narrative' deliberately structured in relation to doorways and architectural supports.

He recommends that the Tapestry, currently kept in a long U-shaped tunnel, should be displayed along three sides of a rectangular space (31.15 m long x 9.25 m wide). This would evoke the original architectural setting, he adds, and enable viewers to appreciate the artwork as intended.

The findings arrive with the news that the embroidery is set to be lent to Britain (possibly in 2022) for the first time in recorded history, following a promise made by President Macron last year. The upcoming exhibition of the Tapestry, documenting the 1066 Norman conquest of England, has huge significance in UK-European relations - especially as it will go on public exhibition post-Brexit.

Source: Taylor & Francis Group [October 23, 2019]