case of danger
10 copper artifacts that scientists discovered the secrets of the ancients
Copper is one of the first metals with which people began to work around 5000 BC, during the so-called copper era (the chalcolithic period), when there was a radical transition from primitive Neolithic to Bronze stone technology. For millennia, copper has been the main engine of the global economy. The most common prehistoric metal artifacts from copper alloys still surprise archaeologists.
1. The Lost Treasure of the Copper Scroll
On March 14, 1952, an archaeologist discovered a mysterious copper scroll that contrasted sharply with all the other Dead Sea scrolls found earlier in the Qumran caves. The material of the scroll, its author, script, language and style indicate that he ended up in cave number 3 at a different time than 14 other scrolls made of parchment and papyrus. According to Professor Richard Freund, “the copper scroll is probably the most unique, the most important and least understood among the Dead Sea scrolls.” Continue reading
Archaeologists have discovered the skeleton of a man who used a knife instead of a prosthetic arm
Who among us does not remember the formidable captain Hook, the inveterate enemy of Peter Pan? Literature and cinema is replete with characters whose distinctive detail was the presence of such an unusual prosthesis. But more recently, Italian archaeologists discovered an amazing find. They found the skeleton of a man who, apparently, used a knife to replace an amputated hand.
It is difficult to believe in the authenticity of such a find: an analysis of the bones of the skeleton suggested that this person lived in the 6th – 8th centuries. There is no need to speak about any professional medicine or even about the observance of basic sanitary standards during this period. Continue reading
The most amazing finds, which turned out to be dinosaurs: From the “little sparrows” to the ancient giants
The theme of dinosaurs is popular at all times. Amazing prehistoric inhabitants of our planet are shrouded in a halo of mystery, because we are separated by tens of millions of years. And how great it is that paleontologists from time to time manage to find the remains of these mysterious creatures, recreate their appearance and show the world the diversity of their types! In our collection – some of the most interesting finds, allowing to stretch an invisible thread into the world of dinosaurs.
A lump of mud was a dinosaur
One of the most informative fossils found on Earth is the nodosaurus skeleton, with well-preserved skin and lamellar shell, found in Canada by excavator operator Shaun Funk. While working in one of the mines, the man saw in the ground a huge frozen clod of dirt, which weighed about one and a half kilograms and had an interesting patterned texture. Continue reading
