Archaeologists were hoping to find the first hermitage built in Cacela Velha, in Algarve, after the Christian conquest, but the remains that were unearthed in the area belonged instead to a medieval Christian necropolis and to an earlier Islamic settlement.

Cristina Garcia, from the Regional Direction of Culture (DRC) of Algarve, explains that the work is a continuation of the excavations undertaken in 1998 and 2001, in which the remains of what was thought to be the hermitage were detected, but it soon became apparent that the existing walls were, in fact, part of an Islamic bath abandoned by the Arabs before the Christian conquest and that they were later covered by a medieval Christian necropolis.

"Because the walls appeared to lie above the Christian necropolis, it was thought that they belonged to the hermitage, but only more burials of the medieval Christian cemetery were found, which had been used until the 15th or 16th century, and now we need to determine what the precise boundaries of this cemetery are", says Cristina Garcia.

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Old Theban port of Chalcis: A medieval maritime crossroads in Greece

Medieval ceramic article from Chalcis typical of main Middle Byzantine Production (MBP), 

in the collection of the Musée National de Céramique and the Manufacture de Sèvres 

(Cité de la Céramique) [Credit: S. Y. Waksman]

Showcased in museums the world over, Byzantine ceramics are the vestiges of an ancient empire that dominated the Mediterranean region for nearly ten centuries. One CNRS researcher, in cooperation with Greek colleagues, has focused her attention on a widely disseminated style of ceramics called the “main Middle Byzantine Production,” found in all four corners of the Mediterranean. Its origins had remained a mystery until these scientists traced it back to Chalcis (Khalkís), the former port of Thebes. They determined that the town had been a maritime hub from which goods were shipped to Marseille, Acre (in modern-day Israel), and beyond—as far as Chersonesus in Crimea. The team's findings have just been published online by the Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports.

In the 12th century, the Byzantine Empire was flourishing and the city of Thebes--between Corinth and Athens--was a bustling center of commercial and cultural exchange. Its outlet to the sea was the port of Chalcis, part of a vast maritime trade network. In addition to agricultural products and silk, ceramic tableware was shipped from Chalcis throughout the Mediterranean. Most of this tableware has been assigned to the main Middle Byzantine Production (MBP) ceramic type.

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New DNA sample could prove whether Richard III was guilty of murdering the 'Princes in the Tower'

New scientific research could finally solve one of Britain’s most controversial historical mysteries.

Geneticists have succeeded in obtaining a sample of DNA that could ultimately prove whether the medieval English King Richard III was guilty or innocent of murdering the two children of his predecessor, Edward IV – the so-called Princes in the Tower.

The discovery of the crucial modern DNA is revealed in a new book, The Mythology of the ‘Princes in the Tower’, published this week.

Richard III – whose skeleton was discovered in Leicester just six years ago and whose identity was confirmed through DNA testing, was portrayed as a villain by Shakespeare and the Tudors.

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Polish archaeologists discover medieval graves in Sicily

Polish archaeologists discovered over 800 years old burials during excavations near the medieval church of San Michele del Golfo near Palermo in Sicily. According to the scientists, the graves could belong to the Normans, descendants of the Vikings.

"Some of the dead buried in the cemetery were undoubtedly members of the elites or the clergy, as the form of some of the graves indicates" - says head of excavations Prof. Sławomir Moździoch from the Institute of Archaeology and Ethnology of the Polish Academy of Sciences in Wroclaw.

This year, archaeologists found a total of 10 burials, including three graves of women and two graves of children. The remaining skeletons were difficult to identify. According to the discoverers, the cemetery was associated with the church hospital mentioned in a document from the 12th century. Unfortunately, no equipment was found in any of the graves.

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Archäologen entdecken mittelalterliche Steinarchitektur im Zentrum von Minden

Bei aktuellen Ausgrabungen im Zentrum von Minden haben Archäologen unter Leitung des Landschaftsverbandes Westfalen-Lippe (LWL) die Mauern nobler Bürgerhäuser aus dem Mittelalter entdeckt. Wo ein Fundamentgraben für den Neubau entstehen sollte, stieß der Bagger unerwartet auf mittelalterliche Häuser. Dank der Umsicht der Mindener Denkmalbehörde untersuchen nun Wissenschaftler diese Gebäudereste.

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