A 6,000-year-old engraved megalith uncovered at Lismullin, in Ireland’s County Meath, was moved from the path of the M3 highway. The stone had been reused as building material during the medieval period in an underground, defensive structure. Lismullin was listed as one of ARCHAEOLOGY’s top ten discoveries of 2007, as noted at the end of the article.

The debate over the origin of syphilis has been revived by a genetic study of Treponema pallidum bacteria from around the world. Evolutionary biologist Kristin Harper of Emory University thinks a subspecies of the disease traveled to the Old World with Christopher Columbus and his men, and then quickly evolved into a venereal disease in the cooler climate. “All we can say is the ancestor of syphilis came from the New World, but what exactly it was like, we don’t know,” she said.

The government of Guatemala will open the Maya city of Mirador to tourists. The site is currently only accessible by helicopter or a two-day hike through the Peten jungle.

Laborers digging a hole for a construction project in Orissa, India, uncovered a headless statue of Ganesha, a statue of Buddha, a brick wall, inscribed stones, and plenty of pots. The workers kept digging until nearby villagers heard about the discovery and stepped in.

Here’s a little more information on the brick tombs discovered in southwest China. The elite tombs date from the Eastern Han Dynasty (25 A.D. to 220 A.D.) through the Western Jin Dynasty (265 to 316 A.D.), and contain pottery, jade, and “metal receptacles.”

This entry was posted by Jessica E. Saraceni on Tuesday, January 15, 2008. Discussion of this blog entry is now closed.

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