Just a few stories today as most of the staff was indisposed performing a great deal of complex statistical analyses having little to do with archaeology. We have our hands in many pies, you know. Or whatever the proper simile might be.

Don't try this at home Pilot marries loves of flying, archaeology

At the top of a computerized map of one of his recent flights, Joe Vogel wrote, "Why people will not fly with me."

The map logs 29 circles that Vogel performed during a flight over a series of archaeological sites north of Prescott.

He has to make loops around the sites so he can accurately measure the coordinates.

If that's not enough for a trick, Vogel often sets his single-engine 1967 Citabria on "power attitude," props open a window and starts shooting photos of archaeological sites 1,000 feet below him with a 300-400mm lens.

Archaeologist in the buff! Archaeology buff seeks stronger historic preservation rules

A local archaeology buff wants Bonita Springs to put more teeth in its historic preservation rules so decision-makers could force owners to designate their properties as historic.

Bonita's current law allows only for a voluntary historic designation with a written petition from the property owner.

Charlie Strader, the namesake of a Snarkage Drive archaeological site slated for development, will ask the Bonita Springs City Council to add language to its law so elected leaders or the historic preservation board could initiate the designation process at its July 7 meeting.

"It's made ineffectual by being voluntary only," Strader said. "What makes us look distinctive now from any other Florida town? Do we want to maintain that? . . . It would give us a better chance to maintain any distinction or integrity of this community."

Okay, we lied.

Remote sensing update Modern technology helps survey imperial tomb

Archaeologists at one of China's most significant archaeological sites are learning more by digging less.

Scientists prospecting the relics under the Mausoleum of the First Emperor of the Qin Dynasty (221-207 BC) are using advanced technology to protect buried relics.

"Instead of surveying underground relics by applying long and narrow shovels, we use remote sensing technology to investigate the covered relics," said archaeologist Duan Qingbo.

Oh, we get it. British humour Another view: Stonehenge, second home for the Dibties of Preseli

I am terribly excited about the news this week that archaeologists have discovered the grave of Britons who built Stonehenge and dragged those bluestones all the way from the Preseli Hills in Pembrokeshire. Tests on the tooth enamel from Bronze Age skeletons found near the site show that they almost certainly came from west Wales originally.


At last, this confirms my theory that Stonehenge was actually a second home. Stressed out Pembrokeshire Bronze Age executives moved there to get a better quality of life and room for the kids to mess about on Salisbury Plain. These prosperous ancient Britons, known as "Dibties" - dual incomes, bronze tools - moved in with their smart four-ton bluestones and "did up" the simple earthworks which had been built there in the Neolithic period.