Tag Archives: Archaeology

The Pseudoarchaeology of Saint John the Baptist

Image via Wikipedia Yet another example of religiously (and probably nationalistically) motivated pseudoarchaeology has emerged in the news. A Bulgarian archaeologist and at least one overly nationalistic politician with a bad mouth claim to have discovered the remains of Saint … Continue reading

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4,000 year-old brain surgery?

An archaeologist from from Ankara University, Fikri Kulakolu, reports the discovery of a 4,000 year old skeletonwhich has evidence of “a successful brain operation” in which the patient survived. This sort of trephination isn’t unheard of in the ancient world, … Continue reading

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Why “biblical archaeology” so very often equals “pseudo-archaeology”

Image via Wikipedia There are doubtless many who consider themselves “biblical archaeologists” who are a genuine passion for archaeology and science and approach their work scientifically, allowing the data to lead them to whatever conclusion it must. But it seems … Continue reading

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Anthropology Blog Carnival

The Four Stone Hearth is up at Prancing Papio! This is the 93rd edition and there are some good articles to peruse (your’s truly included). The next FSH will be hosted by Anthropology in Practice in just under a fortnight, … Continue reading

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Application of Cognitive Archaeology

Patterns of thought can be effectively inferred from the material remains of the past. Nicholas Toth[1]Â Â conducted experiments in flintknapping in which he discovered patterns he proposed as evidence of right-handedness in hominids reaching into the archaeological record as … Continue reading

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About Cognitive Archaeology

Image via Wikipedia The questions of what people of the past thought, how they arrived at these thoughts, and to what extent did the thoughts of people affect the world around them fall under the auspices of cognitive archaeology. In … Continue reading

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90th Edition of the Four Stone Hearth!

That means this biweekly tradition of gathering the best examples of anthropology blogging currently on the web has gone on for at least 180 weeks! Unfortunately, participation has waxed and waned a bit over these few years. I only received … Continue reading

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Four Stone Hearth #88 is up

At Ad Hominin. has a St. Patrick’s Day special edition of this blog carnival, which is dedicated to the four fields of anthropology. Topics covered span the four major fields of anthropology: archaeology, socio-cultural anthropology, bio-physical anthropology and linguistic anthropology. … Continue reading

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Vampire Forensics: A Book to Sink Your Teeth in

Vampire Forensics presents the lore and myth of vampires with an eye for science, particularly anthropology, psychology, physiology and, more to my liking, archaeology. I have always enjoyed stories and movies about vampires. At age four, I was hooked on … Continue reading

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Robert J. Braidwood: More Than Just One Man

One cannot study prehistoric archaeology without encountering the name Robert J. Braidwood. An innovator of archaeological method and inquiry, Braidwood pioneered new ways of investigating the prehistoric past. He found an interest in that unique period of human history that … Continue reading

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