13 MARS 2018: Los Morteros - Toshodaiji - Dungrapali - Zhang - Cuevas de Anzota -

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USA5aa553183840c image Los Morteros - About a thousand years ago, people carved dozens of shallow holes into slabs of bedrock in a lonesome patch of desert northwest of modern-day Tucson. These mortars, also known as morteros, were grinding stones used by ancient Indian peoples to process plant foods. They are preserved today at a site known as Los Morteros Conservation area."Los Morteros is a significant cultural and historic site representing the major prehistoric and historic cultural traditions that shaped Southern Arizona and Pima County," says an information sign at the entrance to the site. "From about A.D. 850-1300, Los Morteros was one of the largest Hohokam settlements along the Santa Cruz River." Hohokam is a name commonly used today for ancient peoples living in Southeastern Arizona. "The mortars tend to be in areas where there are trees with beans" such as mesquite and palo verde beans, he said. "The belief is that the Hohokam used them for pulverizing mesquite beans" and perhaps other beans as well. Other depressions in the bedrock might have been used for corn grinding or sharpening tools, Dart said, noting that the bedrock is a type of volcanic rock called Tucson mountain andesite.

https://www.bloomeradvance.com/article_77c253cc-98a3-525b-a088-3d3557631b6f.html

JAPONTelechargement 21 Toshodaiji  - A kiln apparently used to bake tiles for the roof of Toshodaiji temple, a UNESCO World Heritage Site here, offers new hints into the craftsmanship that went into creating the magnificent structures more than 1,000 years ago.The Archaeological Institute of Kashihara, Nara Prefecture, said the kiln was likely used for the roof tiles of the “kondo” main hall and other structures in the temple complex between the late Nara Period (710-784) and early Heian Period (794-1185).Remains of the kiln, measuring 4.2 meters by up to 2.2 meters, were excavated from under the “mieido” building north of the center of the temple.“The tile kiln was likely set up on the temple grounds during the final stage of construction of the kondo, east pagoda and other buildings,” said Michio Maezono, an archaeology professor at Nara College of Arts.“Toshodaiji is not a large publicly commissioned temple, so those facilities could have been erected gradually over dozens of years.” Toshodaiji was founded in 759 by Ganjin (688-763), a high-ranking monk from China's Tang Dynasty, as a place to impart Buddhist disciplines and teachings. Building work at the temple site apparently continued after Ganjin died. While the record remains murky, it is said that the east pagoda built in 810 is the most recent addition to Toshodaiji.

http://www.asahi.com/ajw/articles/AJ201803120001.html

INDEAncient stone sculpture Dungrapali - The recovery of an ancient stone sculpture of Nataraja at Dungrapali, located on downstream of Hirakud Dam, by teams of Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH) is believed to throw more light on the flourishing Shaivism  in the region.INTACH teams, who are documenting both tangible and intangible heritage along both sides of the Mahanadi river in the State, stumbled upon the ancient sculpture on the embankment of the Devi water body. Lord Shiva is also known as Nataraja - the Cosmic Dancer. It is believed that the idol dates back to 7th or 8th century. Similarly, the top portion of old Gudeswar temple was also recovered. Historian and culture enthusiast Deepak Panda, who is leading the teams in Sambalpur, said it seems to be the ‘Chuda’ or ‘Amalaka’ of an ancient temple. It is four feet high, three feet wide and weighs around 200 kgs.  Panda further informed that the idol reflects Lord Shiva in Tandava form and since it was protruding from earth, it is believed that there could be a temple beneath. A clear picture will emerge after excavation, he said.

http://www.newindianexpress.com/states/odisha/2018/mar/09/ancient-stone-sculpture-of-dancing-shiva-unearthed-at-sambalpur-1784265.html

CHINE - Zhang - Un crâne humain vieux d'environ 16.000 ans a été découvert dans une tombe de la région autonome Zhuang du Guangxi (sud de la Chine). Il s'agit du seul crâne complet datant de cette période découvert dans le sud de la Chine, selon le chercheur Yu Minghui. Sur une montagne à quelque treize kilomètres du siège du district de Long'an, un réseau de grottes couvrant plus de 100 m2 a été découvert en 2014. Des fouilles ont débuté en juin 2015. Outre ce crâne, plus de 10.000 outils en pierre ont été découverts sur le site.

http://french.china.org.cn/china/txt/2018-03/11/content_50697455.htm

CHILITumblr inline p5h67rb4py1qgjbhq 1280 Cuevas de Anzota - The Cuevas de Anzota, south of the city of Arica, is a series of caves inhabited by indigenous people in the pre-Columbian times. Now the graffiti has covered the ancient drawings of animals and vessels typical of the region.

https://www.sciencealert.com/ancient-cave-paintings-have-been-irreversibly-damaged-graffiti-vandals-cuevas-de-anzota-chile-tiwanaku

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