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 Descobertas arqueológicas de 2023 infographic
A infografia refere algumas das melhores descobertas arqueológicas de 2023.
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FIM DE ANO

As principais descobertas arqueológicas feitas em 2023

By Jordi Bou

December 31, 2023 - As mais notáveis descobertas arqueológicas no mundo incluem a maior coleção de estátuas de bronze antigas alguma vez encontrada em Itália, o primeiro livro do mundo, o mais antigo exemplo de arquitetura em madeira, o primeiro esqueleto completo de um panda gigante encontrada num túmulo real e o Teatro de Nero.

Archaeological highlights of the year feature the following finds:

1. PERU: New DNA analysis reveals that one-third of Machu Picchu’s caretakers – skilled workers including craftspeople and priests – came from faraway Amazonia. This suggests that part of the Amazon was more fully integrated into the Inca Empire than previously thought.

2. ITALY: The largest collection of ancient bronze statues ever found in Italy, among them the “scrawny boy” – a Roman youth with apparent bone disease – is unearthed below the San Casciano dei Bagni bathhouse ruins in Tuscany – shedding light on how Romans and Estruscans viewed the connection between health, religion and spirituality.

3. ISRAEL: Four extremely well-preserved swords – three still in their wooden scabbards – are discovered in a cave overlooking the Dead Sea. The weapons may have been hidden by Judean rebels after they were seized from the Roman army as booty.

4. MEXICO: A stone chest containing 15 figurines made by the Mezcala people between 500 BC and 600 AD is found in a layer of Mexico City’s Templo Mayor dating to the reign of Moctezuma I (1440-69) – indicating that the Aztecs excavated the objects from Mezcala sites in the southwest of the country and placed them in the temple as ritual offerings.

5. CHINA: The first complete skeleton of a giant panda to be found in a royal tomb is discovered among the remains of 400 sacrificial animals near the mausoleum of the Han dynasty emperor, Wen (180-157 BC). The find gives insights into royal burial rites going back more than 2,000 years.

6. ZAMBIA: A pair of interlocking logs dating back nearly half a million years are believed to be the earliest known example of wooden architecture. The structure predates the appearance of the first modern humans by around 150,000 years.

7. EGYPT: A fragment of what researchers believe to be the world’s first book, bound
in Egypt almost 2,300 years ago, is uncovered on a piece of papyrus, recycled as wrapping for a mummy. It records, in Greek letters, tax details on beer and oil – and pushes back the origins of bookbinding by centuries.

8. ITALY: The ruins of Nero’s Theatre are discovered during renovation works at the Palazzo della Rovere in Rome. Emperor Nero (54-68 AD) is known for his love of drama and the performing arts, but the exact location of his theatre has been a mystery until now.

Sources
PUBLISHED: 06/12/2023; STORY: Graphic News; PICTURES: Getty Images; Emanuele Antonio Minerva, Agnese Sbaffi © Ministero della Cultura; Shaanxi TV; Mirsa Islas – INAH;
Larry Barham – University of Liverpool; University of Graz; Soprintendenza Speciale Roma
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