Ancient weapons dug up in India

Archaeologists in the eastern Indian state of West Bengal have discovered small weapons made of stone which are around 15,000-20,000 years old.
The artefacts - dating to the Stone Age - were found during excavations in Murshidabad district, near Bangladesh.
Archaeologists say the find is potentially significant as it suggests man's presence in the area dates back much earlier than previously believed.
Finds such as this on the floodplains of the River Ganges are very rare.
However, there is ample evidence of stone age activity in India's upland regions.
'Raw materials'

The weapons - which include small axes - were discovered at Ekani-Chandpara village near Sagardighi, which is an ancient site.

Archaeologists say the weapons were found from a soil layer belonging to the mid-Pleistocene period - much below the Holocene layer where present human habitation takes place.
"We have not only discovered the weapons at this site, but raw materials and the scraps were also found," Dr Gautam Sengupta, director of the State Archaeology Department, told the BBC.
"This proves that the weapons were made at this place itself."
Another reason why the find is so significant, archaeologists say, is because Stone Age weapons are not normally found at such an old soil layer in the Gangetic alluvial plains.
However it is well known that raw materials for making weapons are easily found in the plateau region and most Stone Age discoveries are from this area.
Chance
So far, no human fossils or remains other than some charcoal have been found at the site.
Scientists have yet to confirm how old the charcoal is.

"The history of civilisation in this region has suddenly gone back by around 20,000 years," one archaeologist said.
After the discovery, two eminent geo-archaeologists - Prof SN Rajguru and Dr Bhaskar Deotare - visited the excavation site and confirmed that the weapons date back to the smaller Stone Age.
The discovery was made by chance, Dr Sengupta said.
"We were digging the site for some archaeological evidence of the Sultanate period. We were expecting some ancient artefacts related to Sultan Hussein Shah," he said - referring to a former ruler from the area.
"We did find those, but our archaeologists kept on digging to unearth some more historical evidence of that period and now we have found these Stone Age weapons," Dr Sengupta said.
After winding up the excavation at Ekani Chandpara in a couple of weeks, archaeologists are planning to launch a search for ancient human habitation in a wider area.
BBC news

12th century emple on verge of ruination

The ancient Shiva Temple at Bholahat Upazila in Chapai-nawabganj stands on the verge of ruination after years and years of neglect. Locals allege that the temple, built during the Sen era of 1156-1206 AD, is gradually falling apart down due to sheer negligence by local authorities.The say authorities have never taken any steps to preserve this ancient structure that has huge archaeological and historical value.The Shiva temple is 19ft 10 inches in height, 19ft in length and has a width of 13ft. It has outer walls of brick structure covered with terracotta artworks depicting mythological tales and religious events.Today it almost resembles a thatch hut, with a tree growing through it. Part of its roof has collapsed.Cow dung cakes cover the lower half of the temple's walls on the outside.Deep cracks have developed on the walls of the 12th century structure while weeds have covered most of its body. Most of the terracotta tiles that once decorated the body of the temple have eroded. Others have been lost over the years. Thieves have stolen bricks, terracotta tiles and other valuable things from the temple situated only 200 yards away from Bholahat police station.Some locals blame the local authorities for never having taken any steps to preserve this ancient structure. Others make good use of the temple's abandoned stage.Local use the Shiva temples walls to dry these cakes for fuel. Some others have encroached the land on which the temple stands.They have built mud huts on the land of the archaeological site. One attaching house shares the temple wall, clearing putting pressure on the structure of the 12th century building.Dr. Majharul Islam Toru, a local historian and associate professor at the Chapainawabganj Govt. College, affirms that the temple was built during the Sen era of 1156-1206 AD. Devotees of Shiva built the temple to worship him.He claims that this Shiva Temple of Bholahat is one of the most beautiful Hindu temples in the northern part of the country. Local miscreants are taking advantage of the lack of vigilance by the local police or upazila administration over this archaeological site, he added. Some locals complain that the aesthetic value of the temple, not to mention its religious significance, has been seriously damaged by the use of its walls to dry cow dung cakes.They urge the government to take immediate steps for the preservation of the 12th century temple.Badrul Alam, field officer of the Archaeology Department of Rajshahi Division, has said that the preservation for the ancient Shiva Temple is not listed as a job for the department.However if the locals raise a strong demand for its preservation, the archaeology department may be able to take steps to consider their demand, he said

Thedailystar

¿Cómo es India?

¿Cómo es India?

Ayer me preguntaste

Y yo, que aun llevo su povo en mis sandalias,

Y su luz, como un ascua, en la mirada,

Medité y no supe contestarte.

India es agua sucia y sol brillante,

Polvo grisáceo entre el oro y la plata,

Un viejo en cuclillas trenzando sin pausa

Y una niña de mirada penetrante.

Como una noria que gira incesante.

Un beso ardiente a la persona amada

Y un cuerpo que, en la tarde, se hace llama,

Poemas de amor y muerte en un instante.

Saris de colores deslumbrantes

Entre miseria de gente reposada.

Gente sencilla, religiosa y clara

Visitando monumentos de gigantes.

Impenetrable, de misterio llena,

No puedo definirla.

Se me escapa

Cual pájaro que eternamente vuela.

Un gran deseo se me ancló en el alma.

¡Volver! Volver de nuevo a aquella tierra

Antes de ser ceniza de la nada.

Sujan Sing Parnu

1,000-yr-old statue handed over to archaeology dept

Rab yesterday handed over a 1,000-year-old statue, depicting two Hindu goddesses, to the officials of the Department of Archaeology.The members of Rab-1 found the artefact abandoned on a pavement near a plot on Road-91 in the capital's Gulshan-2 on March 12. The 18-inch tall black statue weighs about 26 kilograms. “We sent the statue to the Department of Archaeology for conducting necessary tests a day after recovering it,” said Major Saiful of Rab-1. He said after examining the artefact, the Department of Archaeology said the statue is of either 10th or 11th century.Artefact smugglers might have abandoned the statue on the pavement fearing arrest, said the Rab official adding that an investigation is already underway.

(The Daily Star)

Ancient temple discovered by German archaeologists in Marib

MARIB, March 18 — A unique and well-preserved Sabaean temple was unearthed in a part of the ancient Sabaean town of Sirwah in the Marib province. The temple, whose existence was recently disclosed by the German Archaeological Institute (DAI), was discovered during a restoration program carried out in the autumn of 2007.A team of 25 German and 100 Yemeni archaeologists worked together to find the temple and date it back to approximately the first millennium, B.C.The new temple has a monumental entrance decorated with pillars and contains a variety of rooms. The ground plan and the construction features of the temple are singular in Yemen; tower-like projections divide the exterior facade of the sanctuary and the building was constructed of both wood and stone.According to Dr. Iris Gerlach, the DAI director in Sana’a, the temple is still under excavation. The archaeologists theorized that it was one of the only exclusively religious-use temples in the Sabaean period. Further studies are still being conducted by German and Yemeni archaeological teams. “The new discovery will be included in the restoration of the ancient town that will be parallel to the ongoing excavations until its completion in 2009,” said Gerlach. “As the discovery is quite recent, we do not have specific details [about the temple], but it was certainly used for religious ceremonies.” Gerlach added that the Yemeni Social Fund will cover 50 percent of the excavation and restoration expenses, while the DAI will fund the remaining 50 percent. She mentioned that another recent archaeological find, Al-Maqah temple, is located in the same region. “Monumental ancient pillars of the huge Al-Maqah temple in Marib were re-erected by crane last week in Sirwah,” said Gerlach. “The pillars, which weigh up to 6 tons, were first analyzed by ultrasonic measurements to check for possible internal cracks,” said Gerlach. “The cracks were then fixed with steel dowels invisible on the outside, glued together and filled up with mortar. Seven other pillars were laid down by the crane to be restored in October this year.” According to researchers, Al-Maqah temple was dedicated to the most important goddess in the Sabean period. Four temples dedicated to the same goddess have been found in Marib. According to Gerlach, what sets Al-Maqah temple apart from the others is the celebrations and ritual meals that used to be held there for animal sacrifices to thank their god and demonstrate their happiness. The stones which were used for sacrificing the animals are still visible. The inscriptions on the temple’s walls depict the life of the Sabaean kings.“We will continue the excavations in order to find othe
r ancient places, as it is believed that in Marib there are still many more ancient historical places to be discovered,“ said Gerlach.The ancient town of Sirwah was located on overland incense trade routes, but was also connected to trade routes to southern Arabia, from the Yemeni highlands down to the old caravan kingdoms on the edge of the Ramlat Al-Sabatayn. Numerous cult installations provide evidence of intensive ritual procedures at the town’s sanctuaries, including altars, banquet areas for ritual meals, bone deposits of sacrificed animals and a treasure chamber for storing hundreds of votives. The focal point of the Al-Maqah temple was formed by two monumental stones featuring inscriptions from the time of two Sabaean rulers, Yithar’amar Watar bin Yakrubmalik (715 B.C.) and Karib `il Watar (685 B.C.). The over seven meter-long monolithic inscription stones report on both the warlike and the civil activities of these rulers.During the 1st millennium B.C., the most important center of the Sabaean kingdom was next to the ancient metropolis of Marib. The large Sabaean town was surrounded by a fortified wall, and included many monumental buildings, the most prominent being Al-Maqah Temple, which dates back to the 7th century B.C. and is currently undergoing restoration. Since 2001, the DAI and the General Organization of Antiquities and Museums have carried out excavations and restoration measures in Sirwah. For 30 years, Germany and Yemen have jointly conducted archaeological and restoration projects which have helped to preserve some of Yemen’s most valuable ancient sites.

(H. Thabed-yementimes)

THE TOMB OF QUEEN HETEP-HERES

. time in the history of Egyptian excavations an
opportunity of studying the burial of a great
N March 9, 1925, the Egyptian Government personage of this significant period, about fifteen
announced the discovery of a large intact hundred years older than the royal tombs of the
tomb of the time of Sneferuw, by the Harvard- New Kingdom, and the discovery aroused im-
Boston Expedition in its excavations at the Giza mediate interest in the historical material which
pyramids. Sneferuw was the first king of Dynasty the tomb might contain.
IV, about 3000 B.C., and was supposed to be the At the time of the discovery I was in America,
father of Cheops. He himself built the first true where I had gone at the end of January to resume
pyramid, the northern stone pyramid at Dahshur, my periodical duties at Harvard University and
while his immediate descendants constructed the the Museum of Fine Arts. I had left Mr. Alan
great pyramids at Giza and that at Abu Roash. Rowe, assisted by Mr. T. D. R. Greenlees, the
In Dynasty III the great architect Imhotep had head-reis Said Ahmed Said, and the rest of the
constructed the Step Pyramid at Saqqarah with regular organization, to finish the work planned
its wonderful temple for King Zoser, and had ap- for the season. Thus it was my assistants who had
parently translated for the first time the highly the pleasure of the first view of the tomb. Lookdeveloped
crude-brick architecture of that period ing into the burial chamber from a small opening
into finely dressed small blocks of limestone. In at the top of the doorway, the excavators had
Dynasty IV, a few generations later, the unknown seen a beautiful alabaster sarcophagus with its
architects of Sneferuw and Cheops had substi- lid in place. Partly on the sarcophagus and partly
tuted massive blocks of limestone for the small fallen behind it lay about twenty gold poles and
blocks of Imhotep and had also begun the trans- beams of a large canopy; on the western edge of
lation of the limestone architecture into granite. the lid were spread several sheets of gold inlaid
It was the architectural use of this obdurate with faience; on the floor, a confused mass was
material which gave so archaic an appearance to visible of parts of gold-cased chairs and other
the temples of the Giza pyramids, in particular objects, - lion -legs, palm -capitals, decorated
to the valley temple of Chephren beside the Great arms, bars and beams, all showing the yellow
Sphinx, and limited the use of inscriptions and glitter of gold; and amongst these lay copper and
reliefs in those temples. Dynasty IV was, how- alabaster vessels, while further back a mound of
ever, not the beginning but rather the culmina- pottery hid the southern part of the deposit.
tion of the great creative period of Egyptian arts The sheets of inlaid gold seized on the attention;
and crafts, and the great pyramids of three of its for, in a moment, the inlays were observed to
kings at Giza mark the place of the activities of form an inscription with the royal cartouche of
the foremost architects and sculptors of the age. King Sneferuw, and the excavators realized that
Thus the intact Giza tomb presented for the first they had an intact tomb of a royal personage of
The Discovery of the Tomb.

Reisner -Metropolitan M

Heródoto

Hasta el reinado de Rampsinito, según los sacerdotes, vióse florecer en Egipto la justicia, permaneciendo las leyes en su vigor y viviendo la nación en el seno de la abundancia y prosperidad; pero Quéope, que le sucedió en el trono, echó a perder un estado tan floreciente. Primeramente, cerrando los templos, prohibió a los egipcios sus acostumbrados sacrificios; ordenó después que todos trabajasen por cuenta del público, llevando unos hasta el Nilo la piedra cortada en el monte de Arabia, y encargándose otros de pasarla en sus barcas por el río y de traspasarla al otro monte que llaman de Libia. En esta fatiga ocupaba de continuo hasta 3.000 hombres, a los cuales de tres en tres meses iba relevando, y solo en construir el camino para conducir dicha piedra de sillería, hizo penar y afanar a su pueblo durante diez años enteros; lo que no debe extrañarse, pues este camino, si no me engaño, es obra poco o nada inferior a la pirámide misma que preparaba de cinco estadios de largo, diez orgias de ancho y ocho de alto en su mayor elevación, y construido de piedra, no sólo labrada, sino esculpida además con figuras de varios animales. Y en los diez años de fatiga empleados en la construcción del camino, no se incluye el tiempo invertido en preparar el terreno del collado donde las pirámides debían levantarse, y en fabricar un edificio subterráneo que sirviese para sepulcro real, situado en una isla formada por una acequia que del Nilo se deriva. En cuanto a la pirámide, se gastaron en su construcción 20 años: es una fábrica cuadrada de ocho pletros de largo en cada uno de sus lados, y otros tantos de altura, de piedra labrada y ajustada perfectamente, y construida de piezas tan grandes, qLa pirámide fue edificándose de modo que en ella quedasen unas gradas o poyos que algunos llaman escalas y otros altares. Hecha así desde el principio la parte inferior, iban levantándose y subiendo las piedras, ya labradas, con cierta máquina formada de maderos cortos que, alzándolas desde el suelo, las ponía en el primer orden de gradas, desde el cual con otra máquina que en él tenían prevenida las subían al segundo orden, donde las cargaban sobre otra máquina semejante, prosiguiendo así en subirlas, pues parece que cuantos eran los órdenes de gradas, tantas eran en número las máquinas, o quizá no siendo más que una fácilmente transportable, la irían mudando de grada en grada, cada vez que la descargasen de la piedra; que bueno es dar de todo diversas explicaciones. Así es que la fachada empezó a pulirse por arriba, bajando después consecutivamente, de modo que la parte inferior, que estribaba en el mismo suelo, fue la postrera en recibir la última mano. En la pirámide está notado con letras egipcias cuánto se gastó en rábanos, en cebollas y en ajos para el consumo de peones y oficiales; y me acuerdo muy bien que al leérmelo el intérprete me dijo que la cuenta ascendía a 4.600 talentos de plata. Y si esto es así, ¿a cuánto diremos que subiría el gasto de herramientas para trabajar, y de víveres y vestidos para los obreros, y más teniendo en cuenta, no sólo el tiempo mencionado que gastaron en la fábrica de tales obras, sino también aquel, y a mi entender debió ser muy largo, que emplearían así en cortar la piedra como en abrir la excavación subterránea?
Viéndose ya falto de dinero, llegó Quéope a tal extremo de avaricia y bajeza, que en público lupanar prostituyó a una hija, con orden de exigir en recompensa de su torpe y vil entrega cierta suma que no me expresaron fijamente los sacerdotes. Aun más; cumplió la hija tan bien con lo que su padre tan mal le mandó, que a costa de su honor quiso dejar un monumento de su propia infamia, pidiendo a cada uno de sus amantes que le costeara una piedra para su edificio; y en efecto, decían que con las piedras regaladas se había construido una de las tres pirámides, la que está en el centro delante de la pirámide mayor, y que tiene pletro y medio en cada uno de sus lados.
Muerto Quéope después de un reinado de cincuenta años, según referían, dejó por sucesor de la corona a su hermano Quefren, semejante a él en su conducta y gobierno. Una de las cosas en que pretendió imitar al difunto, fue en querer levantar una pirámide, como en efecto la levantó, pero no tal que llegase en su magnitud a la de su hermano, de lo que yo mismo me cercioré habiéndolas medido entrambas. Carece aquella de edificios subterráneos, ni llega a ella el canal derivado del Nilo que alcanza a la de Quéope, y corriendo por un acueducto allí construido, forma y baña una isla, dentro de la cual dicen que yace este rey. Quefren fabricó la parte inferior de su columna de mármol etiópico vareteado, si bien la dejó cuarenta pies más baja que la pirámide mayor de su hermano, vecina a la cual quiso que la suya se erigiera, hallándose ambas en un mismo cerro, que tendrá unos cien pies de elevación. Quefren reinó cincuenta y seis años.
CXXVIII. Estos dos reinados completan los 106 años en que dicen los egipcios haber vivido en total miseria y opresión, sin que los templos por tanto tiempo cerrados se les abrieran una sola vez. Tanto es el odio que conservan todavía contra los dos reyes, que ni acordarse quieren de su nombre por lo genera; de suerte que llaman a estas fábricas las pirámides del pastor Filitis, quien por aquellos tiempos apacentaba sus rebaños por los campos en que después se edificaron.
A Quefren refieren que sucedió en el trono un hijo de Quéope, por nombre Micerino, quien, desaprobando la conducta de su padre, mandó abrir los templos, y que el pueblo, en extremo trabajado, dejadas las obras públicas, se retirara a cuidar de las de su casa, y tomara descanso y refección en las fiestas y sacrificios. Entre todos los reyes, dicen que Micerino fue el que con mayor equidad sentenció las causas de sus vasallos, elogio por el cual es el monarca más celebrado de cuantos vio el Egipto. Llevó a tal punto la justicia, que no solo juzgaba los pleitos todos con entereza, sino que era tan cumplido, que a la parte que no se diera por satisfecha de su sentencia, solía contentarla con algo de su propia casa y hacienda; mas a pesar de su clemencia y bondad para con sus vasallos, y del estudio tan escrupuloso en cumplir con sus deberes, empezó a sentir los reveses de la fortuna en la temprana muerte de su hija, única prole que tenía. La pena y luto del padre en su doméstica desventura fue sin límites, y queriendo hacer a la princesa difunta honores extraordinarios, hizo fabricar en vez de urna sepulcral, una vaca de madera hueca y muy bien dorada en la cual dio sepultura a su querida hija.
Está vaca, que no fue sepultada en la tierra, se dejaba ver aun en mis días patente en la ciudad de Sais, colocada en el palacio en un aposento muy adornado. Ante ella se quema todos los días y se ofrece todo género de perfumes, y todas las noches se le enciende su lámpara perenne. En otro aposento vecino están unas figuras que representan a las concubinas de Micerino, según decían los sacerdotes de la ciudad de Sais; no cabe duda que se ven en él ciertas estatuas colosales de madera, de cuerpo desnudo, que serán veinte a lo más; no diré quiénes sean, sino la tradición que corre acerca de ellas.ue ninguna baja de 30 pies.

Heródoto ( en Euterpe)