A fragment of a large stele of the Assyrian king Ashurbanipal (669-631 BC) was discovered at Nineveh. The front side features a high-relief sculpture of the king, and the back apparently documents the king’s architectural works and achievements.

Analysis of a Byzantine-era shipwreck off the coast of Croatia has been announced, including the largest amount of gold ever found on a shipwreck in the Mediterranean Sea.

“A 6,000-year-old infant buried in ancient Syria has given researchers what looks like the oldest known case of child abuse in the Middle East.”

A Roman road in southern Turkey has been fully documented and now will be restored to become part of a cultural tourism route.

New release: Ancient Tyre between Myth and History, by Hélène Sader (SBL Press, $50; Amazon)

New release: Music in the Ancient Near East: Archaeological, Historical, and Societal Considerations, edited by Heidi Köpp-Junk and Shane M. Thompson (Archaeopress, £16-35)

Two US tourists were stabbed near the entrance to the Acropolis Museum in Athens.

James Hoffmeier is on the Biblical World podcast to discuss his new book, Israel In and Out of Egypt.

Bryan Windle has written an archaeological biography of Tiberius Caesar.

HT: Agade, Ted Weis, Arne Halbakken

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“Egyptian archaeologists have uncovered 18 ancient tombs, a granite sarcophagus and dozens of rare burial objects at Marina El Alamein, offering new insight into the city’s role as a cultural crossroads between ancient Egypt and the Mediterranean world.”

“Egypt has uncovered only about 30% of its archaeological heritage, with vast historic treasures from successive civilizations still buried beneath its soil, Secretary-General of the Supreme Council of Antiquities Hisham El-Leithy said.”

Yale News reports on Eckart Frahm’s discovery of three previously unknown Assyrian kings.

“Bronze Age rulers in Greece prized rings made from meteorite iron, wearing them as symbols of power, according to new research.”

The House of Charred Furniture at Herculaneum is open to visitors after thirty years of closure.

Lauren McCormick provides an intro to a new article in BAR that observes that “the homes in which Paul and other early Christians worshiped were already shaped by generations of religious practice.”

New release: Assyria’s Plunder: From Ancient Empire to Modern Loot, by Jessie DeGrado (University Press of Colorado, $105, open-access)

The latest issue of The Journal of the Ancient Near East Society is available online.

The Institute of Biblical Culture has announced the final three of six installments of the Dr. David Marcus Book Giveaway. The books are being given away free of charge, plus shipping and handling.

Leon Maudlin posts a photo of the temple to Emperor Augustus at Ankara (ancient Ancyra).

Aren Maeir gives his quick reaction to the archaeological reliability of the movie “The Odyssey.”

HT: Agade, Explorator

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Researchers have recovered 20 columns of previously hidden text on one of the oldest Herculaneum scrolls.

“A report of illegal digging on the rural edge of Rome has led archaeologists to one of the most striking recent discoveries in the city’s western countryside: a Roman imperial-period villa with mosaic floors, painted walls and a white marble statue that may represent Silvanus, the rustic god of fields, woods and agricultural life.”

After restorers added two marble blocks into empty gaps, the Parthenon’s western side looks whole for the first time in more than 200 years.

An Ugaritic treatment for a hangover involved the application of dog hair.

Writing for the BAR Test Kitchen, Jennifer Drummond provides a recipe for Roman dill sauce that comes from Apicius, a first-century Roman gourmand.

“A team of historians, scientists and engineers has developed a portable X-ray scanner to study 4,000-year-old [cuneiform] letters encased in clay envelopes.”

A European project has used AI and robotics to reconstruct and restore damaged frescoes at Pompeii.

The Archive of Mesopotamian Archaeological Reports “aims to digitize 500 archaeological site reports describing archaeological excavations in Iraq and the immediately surrounding areas (Turkey, Syria, Iran, and the Gulf). This will include both out-of-copyright as well as in-copyright and in-print materials.”

Henry Colburn explores the meaning of Achaemenid silver. “Achaemenid silver was fungible in meaning as well as substance. Gifts of silver from the king, such coins and drinking vessels, were simultaneously monetary objects and tokens of prestige, and their precise meaning could shift according to their context.”

A local newspaper runs a story about the Biblical History Center in LaGrange, Georgia.

Lisa Lock and Andrew Zinin write about the history of glassblowing and its effect on the Roman world.

A team has used 3D printing to revive an ancient Roman board game.

There will be no roundup next weekend.

HT: Agade, Explorator

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Archaeologists have made some discoveries at Heracleopolis, the ancient capital of Upper Egypt’s 20th nome.

Hanan Charaf and Martine Francis-Allouche write about the history of Byblos for The Ancient Near East Today. The article includes recent research from maritime Byblos as well as many photos.

Zoom lecture on June 13: “Individuals, Households, Families, and the Law in Ancient Egypt,” by Brian Muhs

New release: Urban Life and Form in Ancient Egypt, by Nadine Moeller (Elements in Ancient Egypt in Context; Cambridge University Press; open-access until June 24).

New episode on This Week in the Ancient Near East: “Sennacherib’s Throne Room of Doom, or Hezekiah Can See His House from Here”

“The new official guide to the Archaeological Park of Pompeii accompanies the reader on a discovery of one of the most extraordinary archaeological sites in the world.”

HT: Agade, Explorator

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“Egyptian authorities have unveiled a plaster blocking wall from King Tutankhamun’s tomb in Luxor, an artefact described as unparalleled due to its survival from ancient looters.”

Tombs belonging to Amenhotep and his son Samut have been opened following extensive restoration.

Gary Urie explains the significance of Egyptian scarabs on Digging for Truth.

“Iraq is restoring the Ziggurat of Ur, one of the world’s oldest surviving temple structures, using locally made bricks and traditional building methods.”

Pigeons have been domesticated since at least 1400 BC, according to a new study (gift link).

“The new AI tool ‘Palaeographicum’ is revolutionizing research into the cultures of the Ancient Near East: It identifies individual variations of cuneiform signs—a huge step forward for academia.”

The Epigraphic Institute is offering online courses in Safaitic and Ancient South Arabian next month.

New release: The 2008 Season at Tall al-’Umayri and Subsequent Studies, edited by Larry G. Herr, Douglas R. Clark, Lawrence T. Geraty, and Monique Roddy (Eisenbrauns, $140; save 30% with code NR26; Amazon)

HT: Agade, Explorator

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Excavations of the Shamash Gate at Nineveh shows evidence of the city’s fall in 612 BC. The work being done is part of a project to conserve and restore the gate.

Turkish Archaeological News rounds up the top stories for the month of April, including:

Recent claims of the discovery of Noah’s Ark are refuted in this 1992 article by Andrew Snelling.

Archaeologists have used AI to reconstruct the face of one of the victims of Pompeii.

Fifty US students will be volunteering in the first year of the Kenchreai Coastal and Marine Survey, studying the area of New Testament Cenchreae.

New release: On the Face of the Deep: The Sea in Scripture, by Linford Stutzman (Baker Academic)

The Classical Association of Scotland is offering online classes in the month of June in Hebrew, Aramaic, Greek, Egyptian, Hurrian, Sumerian, Ugaritic, and Latin.

HT: Agade, Arne Halbakken, Explorator

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