Amphorae unearthed during excavations at the Roman Baths and Olive Market sites in Tarsus provide significant insights into the city’s maritime trade with various regions. These amphorae, mostly dating to the Roman and Late Antique periods, shed light on the commercial connections the Cilician port city of Tarsus maintained with various centres across the Mediterranean, Aegean and Black Seas. Among the amphorae found at the Roman Baths and Olive Market are examples produced in Egypt and Palestine in the eastern Mediterranean region. The Egyptian amphorae are of types AE 5/6 and AE 7, represented by fragments of rim-neck, neck-shoulder-body, and body-base sections. Based on comparison, these are dated to the 6th and 7th centuries AD, with type AE 5/6 amphorae being more numerous. The other group consists of Late Roman 4 amphorae of Palestinian origin, identified as rim, handle and base fragments. Found at both sites, they belong to the A2 and B1 variants of the LR 4 amphorae. Amphorae of this group were dated between the second quarter and the end of the 5th century AD, as well as to the late 5th and first half of the 6th centuries AD. Wine was exported to Tarsus in these Egyptian and Palestinian amphorae. The latest examples are dated to the mid-7th century AD, around the time of the Arabian-Byzantine Wars, during which Tarsus was captured by the Arabians.

Trier is the oldest city in Germany with many relics of the Roman Empire. One of them is the burial chamber at Reichertsberg. Since its discovery in 1967 it has been excavated and secured with protecting outer walls. Located largely intact in a mountain slope at the back of a school yard it had been neglected until a detailed study 30 years later. In an effort to draw attention to its deteriorating state of preservation, the interior decorations were investigated in September 2025 along with NMR depth profiling of the plaster layers applied on three different occasions in the 3rd to 4th century AD. The NMR measurements are reported here along with an estimation of the moisture flux inside the plaster cover of a naturally wet inner wall.

This paper tracks long-distance migration on the Pacific coast that began no later than the thirteenth century AD. Genome-wide data for 21 sampled individuals from the lower and middle Chincha Valley of southern Peru show shared ancestry with groups 700 km to the north. A large-scale polity known as the Chincha Kingdom controlled the Chincha Valley from the thirteenth century until the fifteenth century, when it fell to the Inca Empire. The earliest migrants have unadmixed ancestry, whereas in subsequent generations, intermarriage resulted in admixtures from neighboring coastal areas. Relatives buried together in a family ossuary practiced consanguineous endogamy. We build a generation-scale Bayesian model informed by an aDNA-based family tree and individual calibration curves for estimated proportions of marine diet, addressing long-standing difficulties with temporal precision on the Pacific coast due to the marine reservoir effect and uncertainty inherent in estimating marine consumption based on δ15N. These data demonstrate population continuity from the thirteenth to fifteenth centuries, coinciding with persistent traditions of cranial modification and postmortem red pigment application. We reveal close-knit and far-reaching coastal interaction networks that shaped the sociopolitical landscape encountered by Inca emissaries before they integrated these communities into their empire.

ABSTRACT This study presents the results of archaeological excavations conducted in November/December 2024 at the post-Roman (late fourth to fifth centuries AD) Cemeteries N1–N2 at Berenike, a major port on Egypt’s Red Sea coast. Research there seeks to reconstruct the spatial organisation, chronology and historical significance of these burial grounds and to reassess the role of indigenous Eastern Desert communities in the site’s later historical trajectory following the decline of Roman control. A detailed analysis of spatial relationships between chamber tombs and surrounding shaft graves reveals a socially structured mortuary landscape. Simultaneously, the consistent eastward orientation of tomb entrances and the intentional placement of graves to preserve visual connections with the post-Roman settlement indicate shared cultural principles governing mortuary location and perceptions of the landscape. By situating Cemeteries N1–N2 within broader regional and Red Sea contexts, this study demonstrates that the proliferation of new burial forms at Berenike coincided with significant political, demographic and economic transformations in the Eastern Desert. The findings highlight the growing archaeological visibility of indigenous communities and underscore their agency in transforming Berenike from a Roman-controlled emporium into a locally governed port integrated within Red Sea networks.

This study investigates the mechanisms underlying phreatic explosions within the geothermal system of eastern Milos Island. Field, laboratory and historical data suggest that a long-standing hydrothermal system, characterized by silica-rich crusts over altered rhyolitic lava domes and volcaniclastics, experienced multiple explosive events leading to its eventual disruption. The explosions, occurring at depths of 3-20m, were likely triggered by rapid depressurization, possibly induced by seismic activity. Intermediate to large-magnitude local earthquakes or large-magnitude regional earthquakes, such as the AD 365 Crete event, could have generated dynamic stress sufficient to destabilize the system, leading to cavitation-driven explosions. Overlapping craters and deposits indicate repeated explosive activity over years, ultimately resulting in the exhaustion of the hydrothermal system. Archaeological evidence, including Roman-age pottery beneath phreatic deposits, suggests that the explosions were sudden and unanticipated. The concurrent decline in settlement activity on Milos during the fourth century AD may be linked to these disruptions, in combination with broader regional seismic and socio-economic factors. This study highlights the sensitivity of hydrothermal systems to external stressors and the potential role of seismic events in triggering phreatic explosions.

This article examines “Taʼlim al-mutaʼallim,” the celebrated work by the Islamic scholar Burkhaniddin al-Zarnuji (12th–13th centuries AD), focusing on the essential manners, advices, and instructions for acquiring knowledge presented therein. The study analyzes how al-Zarnuji substantiates his pedagogical recommendations through reliable primary sources – including Quranic verses, prophetic hadiths, and the counsel of eminent scholars such as Imam Aʼzam Abu Hanifa. The article demonstrates that this foundational text on the path to knowledge remains highly relevant to contemporary educational discourse, addressing issues such as the education of women, financial support for students, the importance of consultation, and the ethics of intellectual perseverance.

Abstract Systematic surface surveys conducted since 2023 in the Borecka Forest, located in northeastern Masuria, have resulted in the discovery of an imported provincial Roman brooch decorated with enamel sockets. The artifact was found at one of the newly identified sites (Szwałk, site 18), likely associated with a settlement from the Roman and Migration periods, and was retrieved from the site’s surface using a metal detector. The brooch can be classified as type Exner I.32. The authors of the study published in 2009 (by J. Andrzejowski, A. Mistewicz, and R. Prochowicz) collected 41 such fibulae , primarily from Western, Central, and Southern Europe. The authors concluded that these brooches were likely produced in the 2 nd century AD (phases B2–B2/C1) initially primarily in the Rhine provinces. More recent discoveries of similar brooches (21 specimens) discussed in this article do not alter their proposed chronology. However, the context of a find from the sanctuary at Martberg suggests the possibility that production may have continued until the mid-3 rd century AD. The distribution pattern, particularly the significant number of new finds from Central and Southeastern Europe (Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Ukraine), indicates that the brooch from Szwałk may have reached the Masurian region via the Amber Road from the Middle Danube. The brooch from Szwałk can be linked to the settlement of the Bogaczewo culture, which flourished in eastern Masuria during the Early Roman Period.

When luxury comes to an end: Animal production and consumption in the late Roman occupation of the aristocratic residence of Els Munts (Tarragona, Catalonia)

XRF analyses on Greek and Roman copper-based coins from Istros (Romania)

The article analyses the development of Italian and Spanish Renaissance theatre, as well as their common features and differences. It also highlights how the two theatrical schools made a significant contribution to the history of European theatre by artistically expressing Renaissance ideas, humanism, and popular themes. After the fall of the Roman Empire in the 5th century AD, under the influence of Christian ideology, classical art experienced a decline; however, by the 14th–16th centuries, the emergence of new social relations led to the revival of theatre. At the same time, the article scientifically examines the process by which Italian and Spanish theatre emerged from medieval conservatism to reach a stage of popular, humanistic, and artistically mature development.

This article reconsiders “conversion” or “Islamization” as the embodied and affective grasping and embrace of din, foregrounding the docility, disciplines, and dependence upon others crucial to converts’ quests of learning their new faith. Where textual accounts of converts are few and adversarial, this article turns to the recently documented archaeological assemblages of a qasba, Indor, built by the newly faithful and inhabited from the fourteenth century AD onward in Mewat, India. It follows the provocations of ordinary artifacts that emerge as conspicuously related to women's pursuit of iman at Indor: glass bangles. Revisiting akhlaqi languages of the ornamented self, this article performs an archaeology of ethical life to provide an exegesis of how these bangles effect reeducations of the gaze central to converts’ avoidance of hasad (envy), a precondition for their striving for virtue. The bangles raise questions of text and artifact, discourse and embodiment, gender and ensoulment, the enigmatic and the normative. Learning from the bangle, this article argues that our accounts of (especially premodern) Muslim life can be transformed if we attend to distinct genealogies of din, to the formations of iman that join bangle maker and patron, and to the bangle as a collective act of material tafsir.

A novel dataset of North-Eastern Indian coins for machine learning-based classification

Aims. For a study on the timeline of gout from the Corpus Hippocraticum to the Renaissance, encompassing some 26 authors, we have focussed on a Latin manuscript - "De podagra" - of the Middle Ages (posthumous edition dated to the 7th-8th century AD) of Rufus of Ephesus (98-117 AD), during the reign of Trajan. A multipurpose study has been devised to 1) translate into English and Italian the Medieval Latin treatise of the 7th-8th century AD of Rufus of Ephesus on "De podagra"; 2) define the role of Rufus in the historical timeline of gout from the Corpus Hippocraticum to the Renaissance ; 3) analyze causes, clinical presentations and therapy of acute attacks and chronic gout; and 4) identify the plant-based remedies described therein. Neither an English nor an Italian translation of "De podagra", nor the identification of the plants described therein, has been attempted before. Methods. Plants were identified taking into account methods used for studies on Dioscorides and Galen. Results. The findings highlight the originality of Rufus of Ephesus's clinical approach to therapy and the vast knowledge of diseases treated by plants. Conclusion. Rufus of Ephesus, the third most famous figure in medicine after Hippocrates and Galen, celebrated for his studies in obstetrics, gynecology, pediatrics, and neurology, a gouty physician, left a personal mark in the history of gout by making full use of his clinical skills that had been maximized by the severe apprenticeship in anatomy and in the Corpus Hippocraticum.

In 2023, the exploration of the necropolis on the premises of the Southern Suburb of Tauric Chersonesos revealed a monumental construction of an exedra combining memorial building and family tomb functions. Finds from the two slabbed graves and two stone sarcophagi at the base of the exedra confirm that, in Chersonesos, burials carried out in the first to the second centuries AD in accordance with the rites of both inhumation and cremation could coexist within a single burial complex. In one of the sarcophagi, four lead urns with graffiti [Ἀν]τισθένου, Διοσκουρίδου, Νάνωνος Ἀντισθένου и [Ν]εικ(- -) were found. It was the first time that several “signed” lead urns were discovered in situ in the same family tomb. In Chersonesos, such finds are rare. Up to now, only six such urns are known (excavations of K. K. Kostsyushko-Valyuzhinich and R. G. Loeper). One of the names – Ἀντισθένης – has not hitherto been attested in Chersonesos. In contrast, the names Διοσκουρίδης and Νάνων are well known from the Chersonese decrees dated to the first half of the second century AD. They belonged to the representatives of noble Chersonesos families ruling the city. Generally, the analysis of palaeography, onomastics, and accompanying inventory allows us to date the urns with the graffiti from burial 4 to between the end of the first century and the middle of the second centuries AD. The article provides a catalogue of all ten currently known lead urns with inscriptions from the Chersonesos necropolis.

Abstract In this study, we analyzed a set of translucent green stones found at the Panamanian archaeological sites of El Caño and Sitio Conte. To characterize the samples, we used optical microscopy, portable X-ray fluorescence, UV-Vis-NIR spectroscopy, FTIR, and photoluminescence. These analyses identify the stones as emeralds and reveal geochemical signatures consistent with a Colombian origin. We then conducted a comparative stylistic technological assessment using cluster analysis, which included samples from Panama and other regions of the Isthmo-Colombian Area, as well as Ecuador. This analysis indicates that artisans modified some emeralds locally, while others may have arrived as finished or partially worked objects. Our findings validate the existence of complex interregional exchange networks in the Isthmo-Colombian Area between the eighth and tenth centuries AD. Within this context, the chiefdoms associated with the archaeological sites of El Caño and Sitio Conte (ca. AD 800–1000) played a significant role in stimulating regional trade relationships.

The article presents the results of a comprehensive study of dental and maxillofacial pathologies in the population of the North Caucasus who lived from the Early Iron Age to the Early Middle Ages (10th century BC to 9th century AD). The research material was derived from paleoanthropological collections of the Zayukovo-3 burial site (Kabardino-Balkaria Republic). The burials of the studied individuals belong to the Western Koban culture (7th – 5th centuries BC), the Sarmatian period (Podkumok-Khumara cultural group, 1st – 3rd centuries AD), and the Alanian era (5th – 7th centuries AD). In this study, an adapted version of M. Schultz’s methodology was used to analyze the frequencies of caries, apical periodontitis, enamel hypoplasia, dental calculus, antemortem enamel chipping, and the degree of dental wear. Significant differences were found in the dental and maxillofacial conditions among representatives of different archaeological cultures. Individuals associated with the Koban culture exhibited pronounced dental wear and a low prevalence of caries, suggesting a balanced diet dominated by meat and dairy products. During the Sarmatian period, an increase in caries and dental calculus was observed, which may be linked to dietary changes, possibly involving greater consumption of high-carbohydrate foods. The Alanic period was characterized by severe dental wear, an increased frequency of enamel hypoplasia, and traumatic dental injuries, indicating a decline in living conditions and overall population health.

The article provides a detailed analysis of the issue of ecclesiastical authority and power in the period from the first to third centuries AD. Three main groups of Christian heroes of the epoch are distinguished: bishops, charismatic leaders, and martyrs. These categories of believers were not isolated; sometimes peculiar representatives embodied all three roles. However, since the structure of the Church wasn’t determined and religious traditions was emerging, various representatives of ecclesial community could act as spiritual leaders and heroes. Situations when different groups challenged each other's authority also happened. The nature of early Christian heroism is accurately explored in the article, with the special focus to study of special personal qualities and style of behavior that made some representatives of the early Church communities seen as heroes of faith. Collision between different representatives of spiritual authority – legitimate and charismatic – was quite common. Bishops, as successors of the apostles, had to prove their right to lead local communities and to defend themselves against attacks by zealous defenders of Christian piety. It is shown that different types of religious authorities and heroes of faith emerged frequently came into conflict with one another. It is also noted that all the processes, started at the end of the Apostolic era, ran differently in various regions of the ancient Mediterranean world. As Christianity was spreading beyond the relatively homogeneous cultural environment of Hellenistic Judaism, its ideas about heroism were becoming more and more influenced by diverse local cultural traditions.

This report investigates a probable aortic aneurysm in a skeleton from Kedainiai, Lithuania, assessing cardiovascular signs within a sample of 22 adults. Notably, sternal bone changes indicative of chronic aneurysmal pressure were observed. The remains, identified as those of a middle-aged adult male (ca. 50 years old), exhibited an oval-shaped perforation and surrounding erosion and remodeling on the sternal body, consistent with chronic pressure exerted by a dilated ascending aorta. These findings were systematically compared with documented cases of aortic aneurysms from osteological specimens. The observed pathology aligns with thoracic aortic aneurysms, often associated with aging, hypertension, and connective tissue weakening. Based on osteological evidence alone, malignancies, genetic syndromes such as Marfan and Ehlers-Danlos, and infectious diseases like syphilis were ruled out as primary causes; however, syphilis cannot be entirely excluded. This case underscores the intersection of genetic predisposition, lifestyle, and diet in ancient societies and highlights the value of bioarchaeology in tracing the evolution of cardiovascular diseases. By focusing on skeletal markers, this research provides critical insights into the prevalence and impact of aortic aneurysms in historical populations, offering a framework for understanding their implications in modern medicine. The case also emphasizes bioarchaeological investigations relevance in tracing disease evolution and informing contemporary medical approaches.

Recent environmental crises underscore the critical importance of understanding the historical dynamics of the interrelationship between humans and nature. In this context, the approach of Environmental History has placed the interactions between human societies and nature at the core of its inquiry. Socio-Ecological Modeling, encompassing Environmental History within an interdisciplinary framework, aims to analyze the long-term historical dimensions of these interactions. Ancient Greco-Roman authors, although not always intending to do so, provide valuable information about the physical setting and environmental conditions of the Mediterranean world. The writings of the renowned orator Aelius Aristides on Smyrna contain the most comprehensive data regarding the city’s environmental characteristics in the 2nd century AD; through aspects such as topography, water sources, winds, earthquakes, and epidemics, they offer insights into the interactions between nature and humans. This study aims to explore how various environmental features and phenomena influenced the spatial organization, collective memory, and urban life of ancient Mediterranean cities over the long term, with a particular focus on Aelius Aristides’ accounts of ancient Smyrna.

During excavation works for high-speed railway infrastructure in central Italy, at a depth of 430 cm in clayey-gravelly soil, a mandibular bone fragment was discovered together with metal artefacts. The find emerged in the context of geotechnical stabilization works aimed at ensuring ground support for the railway line. The mandibular fragment, preserved with erupted teeth, was cleaned and analyzed by radiological tomography using software for morphometric and densitometric evaluation. A subsample was examined at a Nuclear Physics Centre for radioisotopic dating and to assess the individual's physical and nutritional status at the time of death. Comparative archaeological analyses were performed to identify the nature and chronology of the associated metal artefacts. Morphometric assessment confirmed the remains belonged to an adult primate of the Order Eutheria, with traits consistent with a human specimen. Radiological and isotopic studies yielded data on bone density, preservation, and temporal context. The artefacts displayed distinct morphological features attributable to manufactured tools. Archaeological comparison indicated they were most likely the tips of surgical instruments, dating to the Roman period (first century AD). This multidisciplinary investigation demonstrates the value of combining morphometric, radiological, radioisotopic, and archaeological analyses in reconstructing the biological and cultural significance of osteological finds. The evidence suggests the mandibular fragment belonged to an adult individual, and the associated artefacts can be interpreted as surgical instruments from the Roman era, providing rare insights into ancient medical practices.