A 2,300-year-old grave was unearthed during construction work in Thessaloniki, Greece. The woman had been buried in a wooden coffin with four gold wreaths, gold earrings set with semiprecious stones, a bronze mirror and vase, and six pots.   This photograph shows the entire grave.

Amphorae once filled with the coveted red wine of Chios have been retrieved from the 2,350-year-old shipwreck off the coast of Cyprus. “Apart from the Chian amphorae, which form the overwhelming majority, there are also other types from the islands of the north Aegean,” according to a report issued by the Cyprus Antiquities Department.  

Field-school students are mapping prehistoric tepee rings in Bighorn Canyon National Recreation Area. “The nice thing about tepee rings is that most people don’t pick up the rocks and take them away,” said Laura Scheiber of Indiana University.  

On the Philippine island of Cebu, archaeologists are investigating the 600-year-old town of Boljoon.   

Here’s another article on a bronze statue said to have been smuggled out of Yemen.  

A catacomb has been discovered beneath Saint Georgeous Church in northern Jordan, which was built in 230 A.D. The catacombs show evidence of early Christian rituals.   In a second article on the discovery, Abdul Qader Hassan, head of the Rihab Centre for Archaeological Studies, calls the cave “the first church in the world.”  

Lawyers for Spain and Odyssey Marine Exploration are due in U.S. federal court in Tampa, Florida, today. Spain accuses the deep-sea salvage company of taking an estimated $500 million treasure from one of its ships.  

An Australian Rising Sun collar badge has been found in the mass grave being excavated in Fromelles, France. Two thousand Australian soldiers died in the 1916 battle during World War I.  

“The Hopewell Ceremonial Earthworks and Serpent Mound are unique in the world. They’re representative of the rich cultural heritage of Ohio’s early Native Americans,” said Dean Alexander, superintendent of the Hopewell Culture National Historical Park in Chillicothe, Ohio. They’ve also made the U.S. short list of monuments to be considered for World Heritage status.  

Representatives from New Zealand will travel to Canada to retrieve Maori skeletal remains held in museums across the country. “I think it is very indicative of the overall relationship between Canada and New Zealand – our similar values and respect for our First Peoples,” New Zealand High Commissioner Kate Lackey told reporters.

Humans may have started wearing shoes 10,000 years earlier than previously thought, according to a new study of foot bones by Erik Trinkaus of Washington University in St. Louis. He noticed that skeletons from 40,000 years ago had strong, thick leg bones, but their toes had gotten smaller. “They had wimpy toes. I tried to figure out what would take away stresses on the toes, but not the legs, and the answer was shoes,” he said. Others think the change in bone reflects a change in human culture. “If the foot bones are smaller, this probably reflects less walking and physical activity, rather than the invention of supportive footwear,” said Susan Cachel of Rutgers University.

In Washington, a former Yakama Indian museum curator and her daughter were given prison sentences for stealing beaded bags and other artifacts from the museum.  

The site of Kincaid Mounds was looted recently. “The criminal disturbance of these human burials in Kincaid Mounds is unconscionable,” said Jan Grimes, director of the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency.   A local television story on the looting of Kincaid Mounds is also available. Click on the link above the photograph at News Channel 6 WPSD.   

Gravedigger Malcolm Smith uncovered a Pictish stone dating to 700 A.D. in Shetland. “We are extremely grateful to Mr. Smith for having such an eagle eye and for not just putting the soil back over it. He took it to us in his Land Rover instead,” said Ian Tait, curator at the Shetland Museum and Archives.  

Marine archaeologists will soon map the sunken medieval city of Dunwich, off the coast of Suffolk, England, with acoustic imaging technology.    

Menkauhor’s “Headless Pyramid” is in the news again today. This article from National Geographic News has some more photographs of the tomb in Saqqara.   

The tale of German businessman Augusto Berns has also reappeared. New research suggests that Berns reached Machu Picchu 44 years before Hiram Bingham, and that he looted gold objects from the citadel to sell to European museums and universities.   

Here’s one more repeated news story-this one on the new guidelines from the Association of Art Museum Directors.