Weekly Roundup of History, Archaeology and Writing Wisdom Sept 19-25

Here are some posts I enjoyed from around the web this week.

This past season’s dig at Alacahöyük, one of the largest and most thoroughly excavated digs in Turkey, has turned up four hair ties from the early Bronze Age. I’m accustomed to the butterfly clips, but the form of these is new to me. I’m not quite sure how they decided they are hair ties, but then, I’ve never been able to do hair of any sort competently. These were found in the metalworking workshop area where they were produced (the Turkish translation as “factory” is perhaps misleading as to scale of manufacturing…) Click here for “Hittite Women’s Hair Tie Discovered” in the Hurriyet Daily News.

The BBC is making a series, Troy: Fall of a City. This is the BBC’s response to Game of Thrones. They are focusing on a Trojan family and apparently keeping a mythological bent (I’m all for that) since it is starting with the judgment of Paris and the ill-starred prophecies surrounding his birth. One hopes someone is paying attention to all the extraordinary leaps in knowledge about who the Trojans were and the details of life of Troy and the other Anatolian cities that have been painstakingly recovered and analyzed by archaeologists and philologists. Can we have a movie with some attempt at historical accuracy, even with this delightfully legendary stuff? Whatever they do, it’s likely to be a great boost for those of us writing fiction set in the world of Troy, so I’m happy and look forward to watching. Click here for “BBC Announces ‘Visceral’ Troy Drama as Part of a new Season of Programs” in The Guardian

Egypt has approved the use of non-invasive radar to investigate whether Nefertiti’s tomb is hiding behind King Tut’s. There is a theory that Tutankhamun’s tomb was hastily built into Nefertiti’s (who may be his mom, but maybe not, so many “close” marriages over generations apparently muddle what DNA can tell us). This will be very fun to follow. Click here “Egypt Approves Search for Nefertiti Tomb” on Archaeology News Network

The Trojan War as musical comedy set on Mt. Olympus in Washington state? Enjoy this critique on Terry Gross’s Fresh Air of this semi-forgotten 1954 musical, The Golden Apple. Helen escapes with her Paris in a hot air balloon! Click here for stream of Fresh Air on NPR “New Recording Provides Soundtrack of Forgotten Trojan War Musical”