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Unearthed! Summer 2023, Part 1
Stuff You Missed in History Class
On Earth: Art Surprises
In 2017, a woman bought four ceramic plates at a Salvation Army for $8. It turns out those plates were made by Pablo Picasso and she sold three of them for more than $40,000. Last year, an antiquities collector heard that the former St. Paul's Presbyterian Church in Philadelphia was going through a conversion after being sold. The stained glass windows turned out to be worth as much as $100,000 each. An old metal cylinder sold at a flea market and heard for sure for 20 pounds, it's about $25, turned up to be a late medieval hand cannon made of bronze. And lastly, these are not things that people sold, but we
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Episode notes
This installation of literally and figuratively unearthed items includes updates to previous podcast topics, edibles and potables, shipwrecks, and some surprises -- including items that turned out to be surprisingly valuable.
Research:
- “Archaeologists unearth 4,000-year-old ‘Stonehenge of the Netherlands’.” The Guardian. 6/21/2023. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/jun/21/archaeologists-unearth-stonehenge-netherlands
- Alberge, Dalya. “’ Startling’ new evidence reveals gladiators fought in Roman Britain.” The Guardian. 3/4/2023. https://www.theguardian.com/science/2023/mar/04/evidence-reveals-gladiators-fought-in-roman-britain
- Anderson, Abigail et al. “The Myth of Man the Hunter: Women’s contribution to the hunt across ethnographic contexts.” PLOS One. 6/28/2023. https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0287101
- “Norse Greenlanders found to have imported timber from North America.” Phys.org. 4/18/2023. https://phys.org/news/2023-04-norse-greenlanders-imported-timber-north.html
- “Olmec Sculpture Will Return to Mexico.” 4/4/2023. https://www.archaeology.org/news/11325-230404-mexico-repatriation-olmec
- ArtNet News. “A Roman-Era Vase, Once Considered a Cremation Vessel, Turns Out to Be an Early Form of Sports Memorabilia for a Gladiator Fan.” 4/13/2023. https://news.artnet.com/art-world/colchester-vase-sports-memorabilia-2270088
- Artnet News. “A Woman Bought Four Ceramic Plates at a Salvation Army for $8. They Turned Out to Be Original Picassos and Worth Over $40,000.” 5/17/2023. https://news.artnet.com/market/salvation-army-picasso-plates-2303661
- Associated Press. “A Hebrew Bible that is 1,100 years old sells for $38 million at an auction.” 5/18/2023. https://www.npr.org/2023/05/18/1176805209/a-hebrew-bible-that-is-1-100-years-old-sells-for-38-million-at-an-auction
- Associated Press. “Italy returns ancient stele, illegally exported, to Turkey.” 4/28/2023. https://apnews.com/article/italy-turkey-archaeology-stele-ancient-greece-6fd526892963aa5b0e240289c4d222f7
- Benzine, Vittoria. “An 8-Year-Old Schoolgirl Found a Rare Stone-Age Dagger on a Playground in Norway.” Artnet. 5/17/2023. https://news.artnet.com/art-world/an-8-year-old-schoolgirl-found-a-rare-stone-age-dagger-on-a-playground-in-norway-2302958
- Blondel, Francois et al. “Mummy Labels: A Witness to the Use and Processing of Wood in Roman Egypt.” International Journal of Wood Culture. https://brill.com/view/journals/ijwc/3/1-3/article-p192_10.xml
- Borreggine, Marisa, Sea-level rise in Southwest Greenland as a contributor to Viking abandonment, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (2023). DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2209615120.
- Brockell, Gillian. “MLK’s Famous Criticism of Malcolm X was a ‘Fraud’, Author Finds.” 5/10/2023. The Washington Post. https://www.washingtonpost.com/history/2023/05/10/mlk-malcolm-x-playboy-alex-haley/
- Chow, Vivienne. “Nigeria Has Transferred Ownership of the Benin Bronzes to Its Royal Leader, Creating a ‘Better Environment’ for Future Restitution.” Artnet. 4/27/2023. https://news.artnet.com/art-world/benin-bronze-oba-ownership-2291586
- Chun, Alex. “Bought for $6,000, Grime-Covered Windows Are Actually Tiffany—and Worth Up to $250,000 Each.” Smithsonian. 5/17/2023. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/tiffany-glass-windows-philadelphia-180982193/
- Dafoe, Taylor. “An Ancient Roman Bust Purchased for $35 at a Texas Thrift Store Is Now Being Repatriated to Germany.” Artnet. 4/18/2023. https://news.artnet.com/art-world/ancient-roman-bust-texas-goodwill-repatriation-germany-2287242
- Dafoe, Taylor. “Austria Will Return Two Small Parthenon Marbles to Greece. Officials Hope the Move Will Encourage Britain to Follow Suit.” Artnet. 5/3/2023. https://news.artnet.com/art-world/austria-reptriates-two-small-parthenon-marbles-to-greece-2294596
- Dafoe, Taylor. “Japan Has Repatriated a Nazi-Looted Baroque Painting to Poland After Authorities Yanked It From a Tokyo Auction Block.” 6/2/2023. https://news.artnet.com/art-world/japan-repatriated-looted-baroque-painting-poland-2313856
- Dafoe, Taylor. “Stolen Ancient Tomb Carvings Sat in Storage at the Met Museum for Decades. Now, They’ve Been Returned to China.” Artnet. https://news.artnet.com/art-world/stolen-ancient-tomb-carvings-storage-met-repatriated-2299182
- Dzirutwe, Macdonald. “Return of Benin Bronzes delayed after Nigerian president's decree.” Reuters. 5/10/2023. https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/return-benin-bronzes-delayed-after-nigerian-presidents-decree-2023-05-10/
- Fine Books & Collections. “Thomas Cromwell’s Holbein Portrait Book of Hours Discovered.” 6/8/2023. https://www.finebooksmagazine.com/fine-books-news/thomas-cromwells-holbein-portrait-book-hours-discovered
- Foody, Kathleen. “Michigan researchers find 1914 shipwrecks in Lake Superior.” Associated Press. 4/12/2023. https://apnews.com/article/lake-superior-shipwrecks-1914-2e0b4a2a8b5c2ebae589c964cadfe7c9
- Global Times. “2,000-year-old traditional rice dumpling Zongzi unearthed in C.China’s Henan, being oldest excavated.” 6/24/2023. https://www.globaltimes.cn/page/202306/1293063.shtml
- “Medieval cannon turns up in garden rockery – and it could blow up bidding at auction.” 6/13/2023. https://hansonsauctioneers.co.uk/medieval-cannon-turns-up-in-garden-rockery-and-it-could-blow-up-bidding-at-auction/
- Heritage Daily. “Etruscan Tomb Discovered in Ruins of Ancient Vulci.” https://www.heritagedaily.com/2023/04/etruscan-tomb-discovered-in-ruins-of-ancient-vulci/146815
- Higgins, Charlotte. “Lavish ancient Roman winery found at ruins of Villa of the Quintilii near Rome.” The Guardian. 4/17/2023. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/apr/17/ancient-roman-winery-found-ruins-villa-of-quintilii-rome
- Hokkaido University. “Chicken breeding in Japan dates back to fourth century BCE.” Phys.org. 4/20/2023. https://phys.org/news/2023-04-chicken-japan-dates-fourth-century.html
- Jarus, Owen. “1st-century Buddha statue from ancient Egypt indicates Buddhists lived there in Roman times.” Live Science. 5/2/2023. https://www.livescience.com/archaeology/ancient-egyptians/1st-century-buddha-statue-from-ancient-egypt-indicates-buddhists-lived-there-in-roman-times
- Kent State University. “Despite the dangers, early humans risked life-threatening flintknapping injuries.” Phys.org. 5/25/2023. https://phys.org/news/2023-05-dangers-early-humans-life-threatening-flintknapping.html
- Killgrove, Kristina. “Ancient 'urine flasks' for smelling (and tasting) pee uncovered in trash dump at Caesar's forum in Rome.” LiveScience. 5/1/2023. https://www.livescience.com/archaeology/romans/ancient-urine-flasks-for-smelling-and-tasting-pee-uncovered-in-trash-dump-at-caesars-forum-in-rome
- Kuta, Sarah. “Ancient DNA Reveals Who Wore This 20,000-Year-Old Pendant.” Smithsonian Magazine. 5/8/2023. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/ancient-dna-pendant-new-research-180982129/
- Kuta, Sarah. “Divers Are About to Pull a 3,000-Year-Old Shipwreck From the Depths.” 6/16/2013. Smithsonian. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/handsewn-shipwreck-recovered-180982389/
- Kuta, Sarah. “Lost for 50 Years, Mysterious Australian Shipwreck Has Finally Been Found.” Smithsonian. 5/31/2023. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/blythe-star-shipwreck-found-180982269/
- Kuta, Sarah. “Searchers Find WWII Ship That Sank With More Than 1,000 Allied POWs Aboard.” Smithsonian. 4/26/2023. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/searchers-find-ss-montevideo-maru-180982053/
- Langley, Michelle. “Who owned this Stone Age jewellery? New forensic tools offer an unprecedented answer.” Phys.org. 5/6/2023. https://phys.org/news/2023-05-stone-age-jewellery-forensic-tools.html
- Lawson-Tancred, Jo. “A BBC True Crime Podcast Is Asking Museums for Help Locating a Murder Victim’s Remains to Solve a Cold Case.” Artnet. 5/4/2023. https://news.artnet.com/art-world/true-crime-podcasters-invite-museums-solve-cold-case-2295029
- Luzer, Daniel. “German researchers figure out how lager first developed in Bavaria.” EurekAlert. 4/27/2023. https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/987496
- Manhattan District Attorney. “D.A. Bragg Announces Three Antiquities Repatriated to Yemen.” 4/28/2023. https://manhattanda.org/d-a-bragg-announces-three-antiquities-repatriated-to-yemen/
- Martin, Samantha. “New insight into the mystery of ancient Gaza wine.”EurekAlert. 4/26/2023. https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/987388
- McCaffrey, Kate. “A Book Fit for Two Queens.” The Morgan Library & Musuem. 5/28/2021. https://www.themorgan.org/blog/book-fit-two-queens
- Metcalfe, Tom. “1,000-year-old wall in Peru was built to protect against El Niño floods, research suggests.” LiveScience. 6/26/2023. https://www.livescience.com/archaeology/1000-year-old-wall-in-peru-was-built-to-protect-against-el-nino-floods-research-suggests
- Metcalfe, Tom. “2,300-year-old Buddhist elephant statue from India is one of the oldest known.” LiveScience. 6/6/2023. https://www.livescience.com/archaeology/2300-year-old-buddhist-elephant-statue-from-india-is-one-of-the-oldest-known
- Metcalfe, Tom. “Ancient Romans sacrificed birds to the goddess Isis, burnt bones in Pompeii reveal.” LiveScience. 5/16/2023. https://www.livescience.com/archaeology/romans/ancient-romans-sacrificed-birds-to-the-goddess-isis-burnt-bones-in-pompeii-reveal
- Metcalfe, Tom. “Top-secret special-ops submarine from World War II discovered after 20-year search.” LiveScience. 6/13/2023. https://www.livescience.com/archaeology/top-secret-special-ops-submarine-from-world-war-ii-discovered-after-20-year-search
- Mexico News Daily. “Rare statue of Mayan god K’awiil discovered on Maya Train route.” 4/28/2023. https://mexiconewsdaily.com/news/rare-statue-mayan-god-kawiil-found-maya-train/
- Moon, Katherine L. et al. “Comparative genomics of Balto, a famous historic dog, captures lost diversity of 1920s sled dogs.” Science. 4/28/2023. https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.abn5887?adobe_mc=MCORGID%3D242B6472541199F70A4C98A6%2540AdobeOrg%7CTS%3D1682688995
- Nalewicki, Jennifer. “12,000-year-old flutes carved of bone are some of the oldest in the world and sound like birds of prey.” Live Science. June 9, 2023. https://www.livescience.com/archaeology/12000-year-old-flutes-carved-of-bone-are-some-of-the-oldest-in-the-world-and-sound-like-birds-of-prey
- National Park Service. “National Park archeologists find remains of an underwater hospital and cemetery at Dry Tortugas.” 5/1/2023. https://www.nps.gov/drto/learn/news/underwater-hospital-and-cemetery.htm
- Niazi, Asaad and Guillaume Decamme. “Iraq's ancient treasures sand-blasted by climate change.” 4/16/2023. https://phys.org/news/2023-04-iraq-ancient-treasures-sand-blasted-climate.html
- Niccum, Jon. “Puzzling rings may be finger loops from prehistoric weapon systems, research finds.” Phys.org. 5/24/2023. https://phys.org/news/2023-05-puzzling-finger-loops-prehistoric-weapon.html
- Nowakowski, Teresa. “Archaeologists Find 3,000-Year-Old Sword So Well Preserved It ‘Almost Still Shines’.” Smithsonian. 6/21/2023. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/bronze-age-sword-germany-180982399/
- Nowakowski, Teresa. “Germany Returns Sacred Wooden Masks to Colombia.” 6/23/2023. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/germany-sacred-masks-colombia-180982419/
- Nowakowski, Teresa. “Small Dog Wearing Red Bow Found Hidden in Picasso Painting.” Smithsonian. 5/18/2023. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/picasso-small-dog-discovered-180982198/
- Nowakowski, Teresa. “Van Gogh Painting Gets a New Name Thanks to an Eagle-Eyed Chef.” Smithsonian. 5/11/2023. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/van-gogh-red-cabbages-onions-garlic-180982155/
- Parker, Christopher. “Buckingham Palace Refuses to Repatriate Remains of Ethiopian Prince.” Smithsonian. 5/25/2023. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/prince-dejatch-alemayehu-ethiopia-england-repatriation-180982239/
- Parker, Christopher. “Eight-Year-Old Norwegian Girl Discovers Neolithic Dagger at School Playground.” Smithsonian. 5/11/2023. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/a-schoolgirl-in-norway-found-a-3700-year-old-dagger-buried-at-her-schoo-180982163/
- Paterson, Alistair et al. “The Unlucky Voyage: Batavia’s (1629) Landscape of Survival on the Houtman Abrolhos Islands in Western Australia.” Historical Archaeology. 5/4/2023. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s41636-023-00396-1
- Platt, Tevah. “Digesta: An overlooked source of Ice Age carbs.” University of Michigan. 4/24/2023. https://news.umich.edu/digesta-an-overlooked-source-of-ice-age-carbs/
- Py-Lieberman, Beth. “The Smithsonian’s Historic Carousel Undergoes Restoration.” Smithsonian. 5/5/2023. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smithsonian-institution/smithsonian-historic-carousel-undergoes-restoration-14274606/
- “Spain to begin exhumation of 128 Civil War victims from burial complex, el Pais reports.” 6/11/2023. https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/spain-begin-exhumation-128-civil-war-victims-burial-complex-media-2023-06-11/
- Shahar, Noga. “Genetic link between two modern varieties of red and white grapes and grape varieties cultivated over 1100 years ago.” EurekAlert. 5/3/2023. https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/988090
- Skowronek, Tobias B. et al. “German brass for Benin Bronzes: Geochemical analysis insights into the early Atlantic trade.” PLOS One. 4/5/2013. https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0283415
- Solon, Zach. “Ancient Native American canoe brought to surface from beneath Lake Waccamaw.” WECT. 4/12/2023. https://www.wect.com/2023/04/12/ancient-native-american-canoe-brought-surface-beneath-lake-waccamaw/?fbclid=IwAR0dMNcSQQPDCdKMbM-VHU6HIxEraYZLX0yqGkWHeOlEhvtz0Bpq4DwYnl0
- Sullivan, Will. “Humans May Have Eaten Giant Snails 170,000 Years Ago.” Smithsonian. 4/5/2023. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/humans-may-have-eaten-giant-snails-170000-years-ago-180981929/
- Swiss National Science Foundation. “Mummies provide the key to reconstruct the climate of the ancient Mediterranean.” Phys.org. 4/4/2023. https://phys.org/news/2023-04-mummies-key-reconstruct-climate-ancient.html
- Szotek, Andrzej. “New discoveries in Old Dongola. Protection for Tungul: new, unique wall paintings discovered in Old Dongola, Sudan.” University of Warsaw. 4/5/2023. https://pcma.uw.edu.pl/en/2023/04/05/new-discoveries-in-old-dongola-protection-for-tungul-new-unique-wall-paintings-discovered-in-old-dongola-sudan/
- The History Blog. “1,000-year-old Native American canoe raised.” 4/19/2023. http://www.thehistoryblog.com/archives/67045
- The History Blog. “1st c. surgeon buried with his tools found in Hungary.” 4/27/2023. http://www.thehistoryblog.com/archives/67108
- The History Blog. “Intact Etruscan tomb with last meal found in Vulci.” 4/8/2023. http://www.thehistoryblog.com/archives/66946
- The History Blog. “Ming Dynasty shipwrecks laden with porcelain, wood found in South China Sea.” 5/24/2023. http://www.thehistoryblog.com/archives/67334
- The History Blog. “Neolithic ritual axe with tiger engraving found in China.” Via JSTOR. 4/5/2023. http://www.thehistoryblog.com/archives/66918
- “The National Museum of Denmark to Donate Rare Feather Cape to Brazil.” 6/27/2023. https://via.ritzau.dk/pressemeddelelse/the-national-museum-of-denmark-to-donate-rare-feather-cape-to-brazil?publisherId=13560791&releaseId=13700505&lang=en
- University of Cambridge. “Unique 'bawdy bard' act discovered, revealing 15th-century roots of British comedy.” Phys.org. 5/30/2023. https://phys.org/news/2023-05-unique-bawdy-bard-revealing-15th-century.html
- Whiddington, Richard. “Archaeologists Digging in the Deserts of Oman Have Discovered a Mysterious Monument They’re Calling ‘Arabian Stonehenge’.” Artnet. 5/5/2023. https://news.artnet.com/art-world/archaeologists-digging-in-the-deserts-of-oman-have-discovered-a-mysterious-monument-theyre-calling-arabian-stonehenge-2291997
- Zdziebłowski, Szymon. “Armenia/ Large amounts of flour residue discovered in 3,000 years old building.” Science in Poland. 5/21/2023. https://scienceinpoland.pl/en/news/news%2C96541%2Carmenia-large-amounts-flour-residue-discovered-3000-years-old-building.html
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