2024 in archaeology

January

• 4 – A rock-cut tomb dating back to the Second Dynasty was uncovered in Saqqara by a team of Japanese and Egyptian archaeologists. The tomb contained artifacts from various periods, spanning over the Late Period, the Ptolemaic period, and the 18th Dynasty. Among the findings were remains of an adult with a colored mask and a small child, in addition to two terracotta statues depicting Isis and Harpocrates.^[1]
• 11 – The Upano Valley sites are discovered as the oldest known complex Amazonian society, predating other such societies by over a millennium. They are located in the Upano River valley in eastern Ecuador, and are a cluster of archaeological sites in the Amazon rainforest, The sites comprise several cities; they are believed to have been inhabited as early as 500 BC.^[2]
  • Discovered a 1st century A.D. Roman villa in Bacoli during the works for the new public park, likely belonged to Pliny the Elder.^[3]
• 13 – Two Doric greek temples discovered in Paestum^[4]

February

• 20 – Discovered a medieval church and tombs under Piazza San Marco in Venice during the stone flooring restoration works.^[5]

March

• 4 – A 1,200-year-old tomb of the Gran Coclé culture containing the remains of an elite lord, as many as 31 sacrificial victims, and gold artifacts has been discovered in Panama’s El Caño Archaeological Park.^[6]
• 8 – A piece of bread dating back to 6,800 BC was found in Konya, Turkey, at the site of the Neolithic site of Çatalhöyük. This is believed to be the world's oldest known bread. It was found in a destroyed oven structure in the "Mekan 66" area. Archaeologists also found wheat, barley, pea seeds, and a round "spongy" residue.^[7][8]
• 20 – A piece of a medieval leaden papal bull was discovered by members of the Saint Cordula Exploration Association near Wysoka Kamieńska, Poland.^[9][10]
• 25 – A 12th-century grave containing 170 silver bracteates are found at the site of the Christian church of Brahekyrkan on Visingsö, Sweden. The excavation also uncovered 24 graves and 20 hearths, dating back to at least the Roman Iron Age.^[11]
• 29 – A partially complete set of 17th century Hussar armor is discovered in the village of Mikułowice, Poland. The set will go on display at the Castle Museum in Sandomierz after inspection and conservation.^[12][13]
• 30 – A mediaeval settlement and Roman furnaces with more than 150 objects were discovered in Rimavská Sobota, Slovakia.^[14]

April

• 1 – A submerged late Bronze Age fort was uncovered on an island in Clew Bay, located off the north Mayo coast of Ireland.^[15][16]
• 2 – An 8,200-year-old campsite known as Gomolak Overlook was discovered on Holloman Air Force Base in southern New Mexico.^[17]
• 3 – 640-year-old castle Château de l’Hermine, built by John IV the Conqueror in the 1380s, is discovered under the courtyard of Hotel Lagorce in Vannes, Brittany, France.^[18][19]
• 5 – A 4.5 m (15 ft) by 3 m (9.8 ft) Mycenaean building along with over 30 ceramic vessels were uncovered on the summit of Mount Ellanio on the Greek island of Aegina. The ceramic vessels were dated back to the Mycenaean palatial period, between 1200–1050 BC.^[20]
• 7 – 30 unmarked graves were found outside the William P. Johnston Memorial Cemetery, a previously colored cemetery, in Graham, Texas.^[21]
• 8 – Archaeologists found a 7th century hermitage of Guthlac and his sister Pega, which stands on the site of a much older henge dating back to between 1502 and 1323 BCE. ^[22]
• 11 – Roman frescos depicting mythical Greek figures such as Helen of Troy and Apollo and Cassandra are found in a new excavation in Pompeii, Italy.^[23][24]
  • A bronze fitting belonging to a shield, depicting Alexander the Great, was found on Zealand island in Denmark. It is being examined and analyzed at the Museum Vestsjælland [da] on the island.^[25][26]
  • A collection of glassware dating back to the Roman period was uncovered in Nîmes, France. Nîmes was known as Nemausus in antiquity and emerged as a Roman colony during the 1st century BC. The collection includes strigils, ornate glass vases, ceramics, a glass paste cup, lamps, and fragments of funerary monuments and amphorae. ^[27]
• 12 – A shoe buckle, musket balls, and grapeshot were uncovered in Scotland at the site of the 1746 Battle of Culloden. The buckle is thought to have belonged to Donald Cameron of Lochiel, the hereditary chief of Clan Cameron and a Jacobite.^[28]
• 16 – Three ancient Roman graves dating to the 5th or 6th century AD were found in the ancient Roman city of Ossónoba, in what is now Faro, Portugal. The graves were sealed with limestone labs, believed to be reused parts from older buildings in the area. The graves are of a man between the ages of 39 and 45 years old, a woman under the age of 25, and a baby under six months old. Archaeologists also recovered other Roman artifacts near the graves: ceramics, bone dice, nails, pins, a spoon, evidence of a dye factory, and coins minted between A.D. 306–307.^[29][30][31]
• 18 – Archaeologists discover a horseshoe-shaped monument and a collection of weapons and ornaments dating back to the Neolithic at a site in Marliens, France.^[32]
• 19 – A 2,500-year-old Greek-Illyrian helmet was discovered at the "Gomila" site in Zakotorac, Pelješac Peninsula, Croatia.^[33][34]
• 25 – A papyrologist at the University of Pisa finds information about Plato’s burial place in the Herculaneum papyri.^[35][36]
• 28 – Two glass bottles containing a mysterious liquid are found at George Washington's Mount Vernon estate in Virginia, United States. Experts believe the bottles were originally filled with cherries and were placed in the ground to refrigerate between 1758 and 1776.^[37]

April

• 3 – A Māori cloak made from the feathers of critically endangered kākāpō goes on display at the British Museum.^[38]
• 17–21 – The 5th Annual World Cultural Heritage Youth Symposium takes place in Athens, Greece, with the theme "This is my living Heritage!". The symposium brings together students and teachers to engage with the Intangible World Cultural Heritage. ^[39]
• 21 – The United Kingdom returns 32 gold and silver treasures stolen from the Asante Kingdom in what is Ghana today, on a six-year loan. The treasures were stolen in the 19th century. 17 items were held at the British Museum and 17 at the Victoria and Albert Museum. The relics will be showcased at the Manhyia Palace Museum in Kumasi, the capital of the Ashanti region.^[40]
• 26 – An exhibition honoring the 200-year anniversary of Lord Byron's death opens at at the Acropolis Museum in Athens. The exhibition highlights Lord Byron's authentic Sultanic passport and firman, annotated traveler images from the Acropolis and the Parthenon, and excerpts from Byron's poems "The Curse of Minerva" and "Childe Harold's Pilgrimage."^[41]

November

• 4–8 – The 2024 World Neolithic Congress is set to take place in Şanlıurfa, Türkiye. The conference brings together discussion of diverse Neolithic formations and provides a platform for comparing increasing Neolithic social complexity in different parts of the world. ^[42]

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