UPDATE! This post was originally published on March 14, 2013. One year later and ancient tattoos are back in the news due to a fascinating find and an exciting exhibit at the British Museum. Eight mummies from Egypt and Sudan have been subjected to CAT scanning, infra-red “reflectography” and carbon dating in an effort to develop a more complete picture of their ancient lives for the new exhibit called Ancient Lives: New Discoveries. The scanning has revealed previously unseen features from beneath their wrappings. One of the most interesting discoveries is a tattoo on the inner thigh of a 1,300 year old female mummy. The tattoo represents the symbol of the Archangel Michael and spells out in ancient Greek M-I-X-A-H-A (Michael). According to an article by Robert Mendick in The Telegraph, the woman was 20-35 years of age, died in about 700 CE and “lived in a Christian community on the banks of the Nile.”[1] Continue reading
Tag Archives: Roman
Tattoos and the Body as Canvas
Nanotechnology and the Ancient Romans: A Breakthrough 1,600 Years in the Making
The jade-green chalice with its delicately etched image of King Lycurgus entangled in grapevines is a stunning example of Roman glassmaking. But only upon closer examination can the observer appreciate the true innovation of these Roman artists—their use of nanotechnology. Continue reading
Posted in Art, Blog, Culture, Engineering, Science and Technology, Science Fiction
Tagged ancient history, AntiquityNOW, British Museum, dichroic glass, Dionysus, Lycurgus Cup, nanoparticles, nanotechnology, Roman
Guardians of the “Gate to Hell” Discovered Just in Time for Halloween
During the coming weeks, people around the world will celebrate the supernatural and pay respects to the spirit world on holidays such as Halloween, El Dia de los Muertos, the Obon Festival and the Teng Chieh festival. While holidays arose for different reasons, they each have a connection to the “other side” where the spirits of those who have gone before still dwell. And now, almost as if on cue, a group of Italian archaeologists has announced an exciting discovery at the ancient “Gate to Hell,” reminding us that our fascination with the afterlife is nothing new. Continue reading
Posted in Blog, Holidays, Public Life, Religion
Tagged ancient history, AntiquityNOW, Cerberus, Gate to Hell, Greek, Halloween, Hierapolis, Phrygia, Pluto's Gate, Roman, Turkey
It’s the Power of Love: St. Valentine and the Romantic Brain
It’s Valentine’s Day. Moonlight and roses, chocolate and Hallmark cards… ahhh, the power of love. But why do we love? What is that irresistible draw to the heart and soul of another human being?
For such a popular holiday, Valentine’s Day is marked by an interesting historical fact—we’re not really sure of its true origins. The actual St. Valentine is a martyred figure associated with three stories from the early Christian Church. In one, St. Valentine was a Christian priest thrown into a Roman prison for preaching his beliefs. On February 14, he was beheaded not only for disputing Roman deities but also for allegedly curing the jailer’s daughter of blindness—a miracle not looked kindly upon by the Romans trying to suppress the upstart religion. His farewell letter to the jailer’s daughter, signed “From your Valentine,” and the letters he received and sent from jail to the friends who cared for him supposedly began the exchange of notes of affection for this holiday. Continue reading
Posted in Biology, Blog, Holidays, Public Life, Science and Technology
Tagged ancient history, AntiquityNOW, brain, Claudius, history, Roman, St. Valentine, valentine's day