Here is the first of my weekly blog posts on my newly redesigned website. I do apologize for the unintended update you received last week if you are subscribed to my posts. I inadvertently sent several old posts into the weekly gathering up when I repaired some formatting on them. It was a side effect of the shift to the new site, but that was about the extent of transition pains, so I’m delighted at how smoothly everything went. I hope you enjoy this new, clean, bright look. Here are the posts I enjoyed this week:
Dragons and the Hittites. Did you know that one of the origins of the ever-persistent dragon myth lies in the Hittites? The Stormgod Tarhunt fights the dragon of chaos to protect humankind. It’s a good story to get everyone behind worshiping the Stormgod, divine propaganda of sorts, but it’s also such a good story that we’re still telling variations of it today. Bring on Game of Thrones, as this (very academic) post says! In my upcoming historical fantasy, Priestess of Ishana, I introduce a mini-dragon (who’s also part cat, deer and eagle—a truly lovable mutt) so the big guys can enter stage left when the plot warrants down the road in this series. Also griffins—I love griffins even more than dragons. They are definitely in my plot plans for the series Click here for the ASOR blog “Dragons in the Bible”
New excavations at the Sanctuary of Great Gods on Greek island of Samothrace in the northern Aegean Sea. The famous statue of Victory of Samothrace now in the Louvre comes from this site. The first excavation on this site dates to 1873 and there’s been a 22 year hiatus. They are focusing on the stoa (portico) and courtyard where the famous statue was located. Click here for Archaeology News Network “Work resumes on Sanctuary of the Great Gods in Samothrace after 22-year hiatus”
Just outside the archaeological site of Troy, a new museum is about to open. It is a large red box by the look of the photos I’ve seen, apparently as tall as pre-excavated Troy. This article says the first floor brings together artefacts representing the surrounding countryside, known as the , and they span from Trojan to Persian to Roman. I can’t find what is featured in the rest of the seven sections that the museum is divided into. They have moved Troy treasures from four Turkish museums into this new one. That did not make the Istanbul Archaeological Museum happy. They fought the move but were overruled. Anybody know other details about this museum? A bunch of Schliemann’s stolen treasure remains in the Pushkin Museum in Russia. That’s sad. Click here for Hurriyet Daily News “Troy Museum Almost Ready for opening”
Tis the season of nutmeg and other spices, so the recent discovery of the earliest use of nutmeg for food is fun seasonal news. Found at an archaeological site on Pulau Ay, a small island in the Banda Islands, central Maluku, Indonesia, the nutmeg was found as residue on ceramic potsherds and is estimated to be 3,500 years old — about 2,000 years older than the previously known use of the spice. In the modern period (starting about the 14th century) the Banda Islands became renowned as the trading source of nutmeg, but the island was mysteriously abandoned about 2,300 years ago and not resettled for almost a millennium. So this early nutmeg use is disconnected to the later popularity. It doesn’t surprise me that someone so long ago on an island where nutmeg grows naturally decided to nibble on one of those hard nuts. They smell so good. I suppose they had to crush/grind them or they had a very early form of grater! Click here for Archaeology News Network “Archaeologists find the earliest use of nutmeg as a food”