European Mythology

Scanners will be used to probe the mysteries of the King"s Knot near Stirling Castle.In a continuing effort to investigate ancient sites without disturbing or potentially destroying what is hidden, technology is once again being brought in to assist archaeologists and learn exactly what isbeneath the surface of the place known as King"s Knot in Stirling, Scotland.

Some believe that the site is connected to the enduring legend of King Arthur and his Round Table. IT is a mystery that has baffled generations of historians, but the secrets of King Arthur’s round table could finally be laid bare thanks to modern technology. A circular earthen mound near Stirling Castle has been linked variously to the legendary king, to British aristocrats and to Romaninvaders, but its origins remain shrouded in history.  

View: Full article |  Source: Herald Scotland  

Historians believe that King Arthur"s legendary Round Table was actually the space inside a Roman amphitheatre. Now historians believe they have uncovered the precise location of Arthur’s stronghold, finally solving the riddle of whether the Round Table really existed. And far from pinpointing a piece offurniture, they claim the ‘table’ was in fact the circular space inside a former Roman amphitheatre.

Arthur has been the subject of much historical debate, but many scholars believe him to have been a 5th or 6th Century leader.

View: Full article | Source: Daily Mail

The discovery of a remarkably well-preserved monumental temple in Turkey — thought to be constructed during the time of King Solomon in the 10th/9th-centuries BCE — sheds light on the so-called Dark Age.Uncovered by the University of Toronto's Tayinat Archaeological Project (TAP) in the summer of 2008, the discovery casts doubt upon the traditional view that the transition from the Late Bronze Age to the Early Iron Age was violent, sudden and culturally disruptive.Ancient sources — such as the Homeric epics and the Hebrew Bible — depict an era of widespread famine, ethnic conflict and population movement, most famously including the migrations of the Sea Peoples (or biblical Philistines) and the Israelites. This is thought to have precipitated a prolonged Dark Age marked by cultural decline and ethnic strife during the early centuries of the Iron Age. But recent discoveries — including the Tayinat excavations — have revealed that some ruling dynasties survived the collapse of the great Bronze Age powers."Our ongoing excavations have not only begun to uncover extensive remains from this Dark Age, but the emerging archaeological picture suggests that during this period Tayinat was the capital of a powerful kingdom, the ‘Land of Palastin’," says Timothy Harrison, professor of Near Eastern Archaeology at the University of Toronto and the director of the project. "Intriguingly, the early Iron Age settlement at Tayinat shows evidence of strong cultural connections, if not the direct presence of foreign settlers, from the Aegean world, the traditional homeland of the Sea Peoples."Excavations uncovered the temple's southern approach, which once faced a broad stone-paved courtyard, and consisted of a monumental staircase and porticoed-entrance, supported by a large, ornately carved basalt column base.In addition, fragments of monumental stelae — stone slabs created for religious or other commemorative purposes — carved in Luwian (an extinct language once spoken in what is now Turkey) hieroglyphic script, were found. They are thought to have once stood on stone platforms in the courtyard."The building’s central room was burned in an intense fire. It was filled with heavily.

Scientists have identified some of the oldest words in the English language, with some such as "I" and "we" dating back tens of thousands of years."Some of the oldest words in English have been identified,scientists say.

Reading University researchers claim "I", "we", "two" and "three" are among the most ancient, dating back tens of thousands of years. Their computer model analyses the rate of change of words in English and the languages that share a common heritage. The team says it can predict which words are likely to become extinct - citing "squeeze", "guts", "stick"and "bad" as probable first casualties. "

View: Full Article | Source: BBC News