A long-rumoured secret crypt of Italy's mighty Medici family was discovered by scientists yesterday after a hunt reminiscent of an Indiana Jones movie.
The vaulted chamber was found under a stone floor behind the main altar of the Medici chapels in the church of San Lorenzo in Florence. Under the gaze of sculptures by Michelangelo and his pupils, researchers lifted a stone slab to find seven steps leading down to the entrance. According to Italian media reports, the hidden crypt is between 2.1 metres (7ft) and 2.4 metres high and six metres by at least four metres wide.
Yesterday's discovery is the latest development in a remarkable project. Since last month, a team of paleopathologists from American and Italian universities have been digging up the bodies of 49 members of the Medici family buried in the church of San Lorenzo.
Rich kid Child skeleton found just in time by team
A TWO-thousand-year-old child's skeleton has been found in a 'time team' dig at Worksop - hailed as one of the most significant archaeological finds in the region for years.
The child was still adorned with bangles and bracelets, and is believed to be from a high-ranking Iron Age tribe which flourished during the Roman occupation.
The site on Raymoth Lane, Gateford, is being excavated by Polish expert Alex Cetera before more than 200 Barratt homes are built on top of it.
He has been joined by archaeologists from Britain and abroad to find more details of the occupants, who lived there in a lavish stronghold in the first or second century AD.
The skeleton of the child, who was aged around nine or ten, was found in a crouched position with bracelets looped over its tiny arm.
Pompeii stuff not related to the eruption Pompeii find shows secrets of the Samnites
The discovery in Pompeii of a pre-Roman temple is being hailed as evidence that the city was sophisticated and thriving 300 years before Vesuvius erupted.
The temple is said to be of Mephitis, a female deity worshipped by the Samnites, a mysterious ancient people who preceded the Romans in Pompeii.
Archaeoastronomy update Star chart in ancient Nara tomb to undergo restoration
Japan's Agency for Cultural Affairs released a photograph of an ancient astronomical chart discovered on the wall of the Kitora tomb in Asuka, Nara Prefecture, on Monday as agency researchers decided to remove the chart and restore it.
Since the chart is peeling from the roof of the tomb, researchers had been discussing how to restore it and other murals.
Some had expressed opposition to removing the murals because of failed attempts overseas, but they later decided there was no other way to preserve them.
Spray-painting vandals. . .Chinese soldiers sent to the Great Wall centuries ago did not just spend their time keeping alien invaders out -- they also decorated their watch towers with ancient graffiti, state media said.
Archeologists studying a section of the wall in northeastern Liaoning province were surprised to find carvings of symbols representing love and peace, the Xinhua news agency reported.
The historical record may offer an explanation, as it shows the general in charge of this part of the wall in the late 16th century allowed soldiers to bring their families along in order to boost morale.
Each household was put in charge of one watch tower, and the graffiti could reflect their endeavors to add a homey touch to the otherwise austere surroundings.
Note on graffiti: These sorts of scribblings are of enormous value to archaeology, largely because they record what everyday people were doing/thinking. In the present day we see graffiti as an act of vandalism, and it no doubt was in the past as well. But, you know, over time nearly everything becomes valuable. . . .
Um, this should not be seen as urging anyone out there to go scribbling their names on ancient monuments. That would be bad. Scribble stuff on your own house for posterity's sake.