Indian steel: a forgotten commodity of the great trade routes

2016 ◽  
Vol XXIV (1) ◽  
pp. 709-726
Author(s):  
Marek Woźniak

Among numerous exotic goods carried along ancient trade routes the so-called Seric iron is one of the most mysterious and least known. According to ancient sources, it was imported from a half-mythical land of Serica. New discoveries in southern India suggest it should be identified with the kingdom of Chera (in modern Tamilnadu) which existed between 300 BC and AD 300. This metal, one type of which was the patterned Damascene steel, was used mainly in the production of high-quality weapons. From about the 3rd century AD local production centers of crucible steel emerged also outside India.

2020 ◽  
pp. 135
Author(s):  
Vitor Manuel Fernandes Pereira ◽  
Tiago Pinheiro Ramos

<p>Accidentalmente descubierto en 1951, durante la construcción de la carretera de enlace entre la ciudad histórica y la estación de ferrocarril, el yacimiento arqueológico de Mileu se convirtió rápidamente en uno de los yacimientos arqueológicos más emblemáticos de la Beira Interior. En este artículo, tenemos la intención de presentar<br />los resultados de la investigación que hemos desarrollado en el sitio en los últimos 15 años, destacando el análisis del material cerámico como elemento de datación de las diferentes fases de ocupación de Mileu. Su análisis confirma una secuencia ocupacional desde la primera mitad del siglo I A.D hasta los siglos XII / XIII. Los materiales romanos analizados son principalmente de importación, permitiendo no solo una datación de contextos, sino también comprender su origen, el contexto de su uso o cuestiones relacionadas con las rutas comerciales dentro del Imperio Romano y el cruce del territorio de la Beira Interior. En cuanto a los materiales medievales, de producción local, muestran la continuación de la ocupación del yacimiento en épocas pos-romana</p><p>Accidentally discovered in 1951, during the construction of the link road between the historic city and the railroad station, the archaeological site of Mileu quickly became one of the most emblematic archaeological sites of Beira Interior. In this article we plan to present the results of research that we have developed on the site over the past<br />15 years, highlighting the analysis of the ceramic material while dating element of the different occupation phases of Mileu. Their analysis confirms an occupational sequence from the first half of the century A.D. to the XII / XIII centuries. The analyzed Roman materials are primarily imported, allowing not only a dating of contexts, but also how to understand their origin, the context of its use, or issues related to the trade routes within the Roman Empire and crossing the territory of Beira Interior. As for the medieval materials, local production, show the continuation of the occupation site in post-Roman times</p>


1912 ◽  
Vol 18 ◽  
pp. 301-313
Author(s):  
Walter Leaf

The text for this paper is taken from a review of my Troy in the Pall Mall Gazette for December 21, 1912. One does not usually take notice of anonymous reviews in the daily press, or answer them at large; but in this case the article is signed by the initials H. A. O., which are transparently those of a serious scholar, entitled to all respect even when he is wrong; and his views have further been adopted and enforced in another review of Troy published in the current number of the J.H.S. under the equally transparent initials of T. W. A. This raises the question above the level of ordinary journalism, and may, I hope, justify further discussion. For both articles involve problems which go to the very root of the whole question of ancient trade routes; and the views of both scholars seem to me so fundamentally erroneous and misleading that they should not pass without challenge. It is my intention to leave out of sight all mere matters of detail in both reviews, and to confine myself to what is really vital. It is, I presume, the wish of both gentlemen that I should retain the pretence of anonymity, so I shall refer to them under the initials which they have themselves preferred.


Author(s):  
Nayanjot Lahiri
Keyword(s):  

The historical features of Ajanta caves form the theme of this article. Its locational significance in relation to ancient trade routes and the allusions to descriptions of the place in epigraphs of Vakataka times, the habitation less than a kilometre from the caves and the circumstances which led to the development of this cave architecture as also the range of patrons who made donations, figure here.


2016 ◽  
Vol 27 (4) ◽  
pp. 549-560 ◽  
Author(s):  
Natalia Acevedo ◽  
Marion Weber ◽  
Antonio García-Casco ◽  
Joaquín Antonio Proenza ◽  
Juanita Sáenz ◽  
...  

AbstractArchaeometric analyses (Raman Spectroscopy Analysis, X-Ray Diffraction, and Electron Microprobe Analysis) of greenstone beads of the precolumbian Tairona culture (A.D. 1100–1600) of the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta, Colombia, have revealed that they are made of variscite-group minerals. These beads were curated at the Museo del Oro, Bogotá, and the Archaeology Laboratory of the Universidad del Norte, Barranquilla. Variscite minerals of the variscite-strengite series are rare in nature, and therefore provenance data of source material are useful for the development of intercultural influence models. The abundance of this rare material in prehistoric Colombian collections strongly indicates not only that this material had important symbolic and prestige value for ancient Tairona societies (Nahuange and Tairona periods) but also that these societies participated in ancient trade routes, including, at least, the Andes of present-day Colombia and Venezuela, and the southern Caribbean coast.


2016 ◽  
Vol 35 (10) ◽  
pp. 1783-1790 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hong-Gam Le ◽  
Joshua R. Ehrlich ◽  
Rengaraj Venkatesh ◽  
Aravind Srinivasan ◽  
Ajay Kolli ◽  
...  

Cells ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 8 (5) ◽  
pp. 433 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maxime Merheb ◽  
Rachel Matar ◽  
Rawad Hodeify ◽  
Shoib Sarwar Siddiqui ◽  
Cijo George Vazhappilly ◽  
...  

Mitochondria are unique organelles carrying their own genetic material, independent from that in the nucleus. This review will discuss the nature of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) and its levels in the cell, which are the key elements to consider when trying to achieve molecular identification in ancient and degraded samples. mtDNA sequence analysis has been appropriately validated and is a consistent molecular target for the examination of biological evidence encountered in forensic cases—and profiling, in certain conditions—especially for burnt bodies and degraded samples of all types. Exceptional cases and samples will be discussed in this review, such as mtDNA from leather in Beethoven’s grand piano, mtDNA in mummies, and solving famous historical criminal cases. In addition, this review will be discussing the use of ancient mtDNA to understand past human diet, to trace historical civilizations and ancient trade routes, and to uncover geographical domestication origins and lineage relationships. In each topic, we will present the power of mtDNA and how, in many cases, no nuclear DNA was left, leaving mitochondrial DNA analysis as a powerful alternative. Exploring this powerful tool further will be extremely useful to modern science and researchers, due to its capabilities in providing us with previously unattainable knowledge.


2013 ◽  
Vol 22 (21) ◽  
pp. 5340-5351 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vera M. Warmuth ◽  
Michael G. Campana ◽  
Anders Eriksson ◽  
Mim Bower ◽  
Graeme Barker ◽  
...  

Author(s):  
Zbigniew T. Fiema

The al-ʿUlā – al-Wajh Survey Project deals with ancient trade routes between al-ʿUlā and Madāʿin ʿāliʿ (ancient Hegra) and the Red Sea in the area of al-Wajh in NW Saudi Arabia. This investigation is related to economics of long-distance maritime and caravan trade and the utilization of the "Incense Route" which served to convey frankincense and other commodities from South Arabia to the Mediterranean during the Hellenistic and Roman periods. The Project is also concerned with the localization of Nabataean seaports on the Red Sea coast, such as Leuke Kome and Egra Kome. The results of two fieldwork seasons are presented including a potential caravan route to Hegra along the Wādī al-ʿamʿ. The site of Nabataean al-Qusayr is highlighted here as the finds from there indicate a participation in the long-distance trade between the Mediterranean, Egypt and the Red Sea region.


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