Climate Change and The Black Death (Update as of March, 2014)

Albeit a substantial killer by way of approximate body count, the plague was not the most destabilizing event of the Fourteenth Century. It may not have had a direct death toll, but climate change (different from the highly politicized ‘global warming’) could be considered as the first domino to fall in a series of traumatic and destabilizing events leading to what would be known as The Black Death.

During the fourteenth century, the Medieval Warm Period was transitioning into what would later be the Little Ice Age. During this period, Europe’s climate underwent substantial and sudden changes. The weather became wetter and cooler. Artist's renderings of the time have often depicted people wearing heavier clothing, as well as gray skies, and snow cover, providing clues as to the weather of the time.. With this climate change, came subsequent crop failures since the crops either froze or were drowned with the increase in precipitation. These crop failures led to the Great Famine, which persisted until the early 1320.  Grain stores were soaked and would rot, leaving less grain for the rodents to scavenge. This encouraged the rodents to move in to more densely populated areas looking for food while carrying their plague infested fleas with them to spread among the population. It would appear logical that in this sequence of events, that climate change was technically the most destabilizing event of the Fourteenth Century.

Further research into the physical evidence of such a connection came by way of a news item from the BBC. It cited recent research into the connection between climate change and the plague. The results put an interesting element of hard science to the argument, making a case that this sequence of events leading to the Black Death warranted more study.

In the article, a Dr. Thomas van Hoof and a team from Utrecht University, Netherlands, studied pollen grains and leaf remains collected from lake-bed sediments in the southeast Netherlands. They recorded the fluctuations in the abundance of cereal and tree pollen such as buckwheat and pollen from birch and oak trees. In doing so, the researchers were able to estimate changes in land-use between 1000C.E. and 1500C.E. Counting the stomata, or pores on ancient oak leaves provided the researchers a baseline with which to measure chances in the amount of atmospheric carbon dioxide during the Fourteenth Century. This is possible since leaves absorb carbon dioxide through their stomata, and their density varies as carbon dioxide goes up and down.

The researchers found an expected increase in cereal pollen from 1200 which reflected the agricultural expansion. However, this was followed by a sudden dive around 1347.  According to Dr. van Hoof, there is a noticeable decrease in stomata and a sharp rise in atmospheric carbon dioxide between 1200C.E. and 1300C.E. This is believed to be due to deforestation. This pattern appeared to reverse after 1350, suggesting that atmospheric carbon dioxide fell, perhaps due to reforestation following the plague.

The researchers theorize that the drop in carbon dioxide levels could help to explain why the climate started to cool so suddenly. This new data has given scholars a quantitative data point with which to base further study.  The new data adds weight to the theory that the Black Death could have played an important part in the changing of the climate, as opposed to the climate leading to the Black Death. Dr. Tim Lenton, an environmental scientist from the University of East Anglia, UK, said: "It is a nice study and the carbon dioxide changes could certainly be a contributory factor, but I think they are too modest to explain all the climate change seen."^1. By contrast, Professor Richard Houghton, a climate expert from Woods Hole Research Center in Massachusetts, thinks that it may have been oceanic changes which led to climate change.

While there is no consensus, new scientific studies are being conducted to help better understand the causes behind both climate change and the Black Death so that we can avoid such future calamity. As it stands from my perspective, the Fourteenth Century was marked by a procession of traumatic events. However, I believe that it was climate change that set the procession into motion, thereby making it most deserving of the title; most destabilizing.

________________________
^1. Ravilious, Kate. "BBC NEWS | Science/Nature | Europe's chill linked to disease." BBC News. 


****UPDATE****

Post by Heather Lynn.

Bulgarian Archaeologists Uncover Unusually Large Relief of Zeus

Bulgarian archaeologists have discovered an unusually large votive relief of the Greek god Zeus near the Bulgarian village of Starosel, indicating that it was once the center part of an ancient temple. 

The temple is believed to have been built in the 6th or 5th century BCE, and could have very well been the power center of Ancient Thrace in the 4th century BCE. It was subsequently destroyed during the rise of the Macedonian state of Philip II in 342-341 BCE.

In antiquity, Zeus was commonly featured as, or with, an eagle. Strangely, the archaeologists reported that a large eagle appeared in the sky as they were about to uncover the artifact. 

Perhaps it was Zeus watching over them?

A Concrete Example of the Modern Benefits of Ancient Technology

I will never forget the disbelief I felt when my undergraduate art history professor mentioned that civilization had lost the recipe for concrete. This seemed preposterous. I've walked on a sidewalk before, skipped down the paved path as a child, watching diligently to not step on cracks for fear of “breaking my mother’s back”, as the old saying warned. We have concrete!

What she went on to explain was that the original recipe for the highly durable Roman concrete had been lost to history. For thousands of years, people have tried to reverse engineer this seemingly simple technology. It has been quite a challenge. Though we have concrete now, it is not the same as the concrete used by the Romans. The concrete we use in modernity is actually pretty poor in comparison to the Roman concrete of the past. Think about it for a moment. Roman concrete roads, aqueducts, and structure are still doing well considering there antiquity. Consider all the times you've driven down a road of potholes or walked down a sidewalk with pits and cracks and questioned, “Didn't they just pave this a few years ago?” 

While some of this may be seen as planned obsolesce, it is still testament to the relative inefficiency of modern concrete, most of which lasts only decades. Commonly, what is used is Portland cement. We have been using this recipe for over 200 years, not a bad recipe, but compared with the durability of Roman concrete, it falls flat, especially when exposed to salt water. 

After years of research, scientists in the US and Europe have finally figured out the recipe to Roman concrete. The findings are published in this month's issues of the Journal of the American Ceramic Society and American Mineralogist, a publication to which I’m sure you all subscribe. ;)

According to the scientists, "The Romans made concrete by mixing lime and volcanic rock. For underwater structures, lime and volcanic ash were mixed to form mortar, and this mortar and volcanic tuff were packed into wooden forms. The seawater instantly triggered a hot chemical reaction. The lime was hydrated – incorporating water molecules into its structure – and reacted with the ash to cement the whole mixture together." It is because of this lime and volcanic ash mixture that Roman concrete has such tremendous binding ability. 

It gets better, though. Not only is this concrete far superior in durability, but unlike modern concrete, it is more environmentally sustainable. The manufacturing of most modern concrete accounts for 7% of greenhouse gas emissions. With these new, ancient methods, we have the potential to make amazingly durable structures and live in harmony with the environment. 

I wonder what other lost technology we may find and for use in modernity? It is my belief that ancient civilizations possessed a number of technologies that we may never fully understand. Since they used the natural resources around them, a lot of evidence of such “green” technologies may have simply decayed or been lost to history, though some have not. 

Between the pyramids, Baghdad Battery, and the Antikythera mechanism, just to name a few, there is little doubt that the ancients were far more advanced than they are commonly depicted. 

It’s May Day!

May 1, or "May Day", has been celebrated around the world for a very long time. Early observances were likely derived from the spring festivals of ancient Babylon, Egypt and India, which is often the case. However, today its celebrations more closely resemble those of its pagan European origins.

The month of May is named after the Greek fertility goddess Maia, considered the most beautiful of the Seven Sisters, the Pleiades. She was the mother of Hermes, god of magic. Like many old world festivals, it celebrated fertility and developed into a type of “agrarian magic” to bless the first spring planting. The ancient Celts and Saxons celebrated May 1st as Beltane, a fire festival. The word 'Beltane' originates from the Celtic God 'Bel', meaning 'the bright one' and the Gaelic word 'teine' meaning fire.

During a time where societies were hunter-gatherer, evening celebrations on the night before May Day included people chanting and singing, blowing hunting horns, and lighting bonfires. This was sometimes led by a person dressed as Diana, Goddess of the Hunt, with someone else dressed as the horned god, Herne.

As time passed and society turned more agrarian, Diana and Herne came to be seen as fertility deities of the crops and fields. Diana became the Queen of the May, believed to be the origin of the modern tradition of pageant and festival queens. Herne became Robin Goodfellow, seen as a predecessor of Robin Hood, also known as the Green Man. The Green Man was a protective woodland spirit. He can be seen on many pieces of folk art as well as church decoration, even today.

An iconic symbol of May Day has been the Maypole, an important part of the festivities, though scholars debate about its origin and meaning. Some say it represents an Axis Mundi, the world's center or a connection between Heaven and Earth. Others say its roots are in traditional Germanic reverence of sacred trees. Some believe it could have originated from the Roman’s worship of the god Priapu and is a phallic symbol. According to some anthropologists, the explanation for the Maypole is that of simply symbolizing the growth of new vegetation.

Regardless of its origin, the Maypole tradition still takes place in many areas around the world, as do a number of diverse celebrations to usher in springtime.

Best wishes to all on this first day of May!

The New Proposed Age for Stonehenge

New research into the age of Stonehenge suggests that the structure may have been occupied at least five thousand years earlier than previously thought. 

Past analysis of the carbon-14 radioisotope from a piece of charred oak found in an excavated pit at Stonehenge estimated the site to be 3,800 years old. 

Now, a new excavation of a site about a mile from Stonehenge revealed a semi-permanent settlement that, according to carbon-dated materials, was occupied from 7,500 to 4,700 BCE. This evidence also shows that there were repeated visits to this area from the 9th to the 5th millennia BCE. 

Clearly, this location has been an important site to humans for a very long time. How amazing it is that still, pilgrimages are made to marvel at Stonehenge’s enigmatic grandeur!

The Real-Life Archaeology of Tolkien’s Ring

A cursed Roman ring believed to have been the inspiration for Tolkien’s hobbit ring is now on exhibition at The Vyne, a sixteenth-century home built for King Henry VIII’s Lord Chamerlain. 

The inscription on the ring speaks of a curse tablet that was actually discovered about 100 miles away at an iron-age site with ancient mine workings known as "The Dwarf's Hill".

The tablet reads a warning to potential thieves:

“Among those who bear the name of Senicianus to none grant health until he bring back the ring to the temple of Nodens.” 

But how are we to believe that this ring was the inspiration for Tolkien’s story?

Eight years before The Hobbit was published, archaeologist Sir Mortimer Wheeler had contacted Tolkien about the ring and the curse. Wheeler sought Tolkien’s help in understanding the name of the god mentioned in the inscription.

It had been originally assumed that Tolkien's sources were mostly literary, but a closer look into his life and research is yielding newer information.

Quite a "Precious" find! ;)

Happy Birthday to 17th century English metaphysical poet, George Herbert (1593-1633)!

"Do not wait! The time will never be just right. Start where you stand, and work with whatever tools you may have at your command, and better tools will be found as you go along."-George Herbert 

Read his works online.

What's in a Basket?

So I wanted to share a little Easter history with everyone but I wanted to do something a little different than just focus on the pagan origins of the holiday itself. Often people focus on the origin of the name of the holiday, etc. I thought instead, it would be interesting to take a look at the common tradition of the Easter Basket. There have been many cultural adaptations and interpretations of this custom, but all somewhat related.

What are the origins of giving baskets of fake grass, eggs and candy? Why a basket? 

It was an ancient pagan custom that in the spring, people would offer baskets of seedlings to the fertility goddess Eostre (or Oestre) hoping to increase the chances of a good harvest. Also the goddess Eostre was often depicted carrying eggs in a basket, signifying fertility and new life. 

The basket was used to symbolize a bird’s nest so people would decorate it to resemble one even more by adding a bed of grass to the bottom. Then, eggs would be added to the nested basket to look more realistic. 

These ideas, among others, were adopted by the early Catholic Church. For instance, it was also traditional for people to fast before the Spring Equinox. By doing this, they hoped to redirect their energy into the seedlings so that the harvest would be more successful. This was an idea that inspired Lent. After a long fast during Lent, Easter offered a welcome feast to celebrate its passing. This desire to celebrate by feasting on previously abstained goodies led to the basket tradition. 

The Christian adaptation of the Easter Basket revolved around the custom of Blessing the Family Baskets. This is when every family would bring a basket of food that they had commonly abstained from during Lent, to Mass on Easter Sunday. It would then be blessed for an Easter feast. In the basket would be items such as red wine, salted meats like ham, dairy, eggs, and eventually candy. This tradition is still observed in more Orthodox households. It is sometimes called the Pascha or Paschal Basket. 

The more commercialized Easter baskets of today have ditched the religiously symbolic foods in favor of just eggs and/or candy, as the world has become more secularized (and sugar loving!). Still, many families will spend today feasting and observing the joy and new life of the spring season, provided to the world by the glory and miracle of the risen son/sun. 

Happy Easter!!!!!

Magnificent Lost Egyptian City Found Underwater

We really do live in a time of great discovery!

What has been called “The Gateway to Egypt”, the lost city of Thonis-Heracleion was an extravagant, pre-Alexandrian international trade hub in the first millennium BCE. The city had huge religious significance, as it housed the grand Temple of Amun. Hints of its location could only be found in ancient texts and rare inscriptions. Thonis-Heracleion had been considered a mere legend until only recently.

The city was called Thonis by the Egyptians and Heracleion by the Greeks, hence its current name. Anyone coming into the port had to stop and unloaded their cargo so it could be inspected and taxed by temple officials. Those who refused would have their ships deliberately sunk. To win favor, some would bring votives of Egyptian deities.

Similar to Pompeii, this is a civilization frozen in time. Evidence shows that this was a majestic and wealthy place of grandeur. The city’s population seemed to have peaked from the 6th to the 4th century BCE.

Amidst over 700 anchor points and over 60 beautifully preserved shipwrecks, they have recovered a trove of artifacts said to be in excellent condition. Retrieved material includes everything from colossal statues, inscripted tablets, architectural elements, jewelry, coins, bronze statuettes, pottery, and strange ritual objects. Most of the material depicts Egyptian deities Osiris, Isis, and Horus.

The city was discovered about 4 miles off the present coast, extending into the western side of Aboukir Bay. Excavations will continue in a joint effort between The Oxford Centre for Maritime Archaeology at the University of Oxford, the European Institute for Underwater Archaeology and Egypt’s Ministry of State for Antiquities. The results of this in-depth (no pun intended) research was recently presented at an international conference at the University of Oxford.

So what happened to this once glorious city? Evidence suggests that it sunk into the Mediterranean in the 8th century CE after multiple natural disasters, perhaps a deluge. There is no conclusive evidence yet, so for now, it remains a mystery.

Mystery Surrounding 1700 Year Old Tunic

About 2,000 meters (6,560 ft) above sea level on what was likely a Roman-era trade route in southern Norway, a thawing glacier revealed a rare find: a pre-Viking tunic, carbon dated at around 300 CE. It was made to be used as loose fitting outer garment for a man about 176 cms (5 ft 9 inches) tall.

The tunic is made of lamb's wool that has turned greenish-brown with age. There is evidence of a diamond pattern and several patches and repairs indicating it got a lot of use. Only a handful of similar tunics have been found in Europe to date.

Interestingly, there were many other artifacts found nearby including a wooden tent peg, various textiles with decorative shells, spear tips and arrows with ingenious design and even a horse shoe!

The researchers in Oslo are baffled by the tunic. Why would anyone take off a warm tunic by a glacier 6,560 feet above sea level?

So far, the only hypothesis offered is that the owner of the tunic was suffering hypothermia, causing him to feel deceptively warm and confused, leading him to take off his tunic and toss it into the glacier.

A good start, but it is still conjecture. What other reasons could there have been?

Happy Birthday Ovid!

Happy Birthday Ovid! 

Often described as one of the most important figures to know of ancient history, Ovid’s prolific writing influenced Chaucer, Shakespeare, Dante, and Milton. 

Publius Ovidius Naso, or Ovid, was born on March 20, 43 BCE in Sulmona, Italy to a wealthy family. He studied in Rome to become a public speaker and politician but to the dismay of his father, he used what he had learned to write poetry. 

Though critics in antiquity were not always kind, considering his work to be frivolous, his writings remain some of the most important work of the ancient world. 

Read and/or download Ovid’s epic meter of dactylic hexameters, “Metamorphoses."

Valentine's Day Origin and Lupercalia

♥ Happy Lupercalia! ♥

As with many modern holidays, it is widely theorized by scholars that the true origins of Valentine’s Day is actually steeped in a very ancient Roman pastoral fertility festival, observed on February 13 through 15. The festival was called Lupercalia.

The belief was that the goddess Juno Februata (where the name February comes from) inflicted her "love fever" on the youth. Lupercalia “festivities” involved an orgy and sexual excesses, the sacrifice of goats and dogs, and the burning of salt meal-cakes prepared by the Vestal Virgins. Young men would randomly pick love notes of eligible young women from a container, after which they would try to guess who wrote the notes. Another practice was to smear the foreheads of youths with the blood of a sacrificed dog and goat and send them off with a priest around the perimeter of the city, whipping women along the way with strips of the goat’s skin. This act was to protect the women from infertility.

For years the Christian church tried to suppress the festival of Lupercalia. Pope Gelasius changed Lupercalia from the 15th to the 14th and renamed it after the legendary St. Valentine in an attempt to redefine the pagan celebration. Even after the church replaced Lupercus with St. Valentine, the Lupercalia festival continued relatively unchanged except for the sexual excesses.

Though much has changed since the days of Lupercalia, in elementary schools across the country, children still put concealed notes in a box much as the ancient Romans did. Some traditions are well worth keeping!

Chess or Toilet Paper?

A recent study published in the British Medical Journal has confirmed that pessoi, ceramic discs thought to be game pieces in ancient chess-like strategy games, were put to a more utilitarian use: "toilet paper". 

Researchers examined two terracotta pessoi, probably fragments from broken amphorae, found in the filling underneath Roman latrines close to excrement deposits. The fragments were recut to have smoother edges. Examination under a microscope found solidified and partially mineralized feces.

There is also artistic evidence of the use of pottery fragments for wiping. The Museum of Fine Arts in Boston has a kylix (a wine cup) that has a rather cut and dry depiction on the tondo, the flat round inside the cup.

Until now, the pessoi had been cataloged as pieces in an intellectual game. I guess they'll have to "wipe" the slate clean and start reclassifying these artifacts as a being used for a less cerebral purpose.