The programme of radiocarbon dating undertaken at Stanwick, Northamptonshire, demonstrates the value of scientific dating of Romano-British sites, including those with good pottery sequences and large numbers of datable coins and other finds. It has refined and clarified the chronology and phasing of the site, particularly in its final phase of occupation. It confirmed some of our original dating of the human burials, and showed other dates were significantly wrong. It also addresses issues relating to the calibration of radiocarbon dates and dietary isotopes in the period. This has enabled us to identify activities, material culture and burial practices current at Stanwick and elsewhere in the immediate post-Roman period.

In recent years a redating of relief-patterned tiles has been proposed, which argues against an established Flavian to Antonine chronology in favour of an earlier and much shorter Claudio-Neronian chronology. This paper tests the chronological underpinning of this important hypothesis by revisiting the dating for relief-patterned tiles in Roman London, which has produced by far the largest corpus of these tiles from any settlement in Roman Britain. The results provide considerable support for the traditional chronology, but do not necessarily rule out an earlier start date for this keying technique or the continued use of these tiles beyond the second century. The technique may have initially been used by certain tile makers supplying building projects that were largely outside London.

Excavations at the Agora of Amathous, Cyprus, were carried out between 1977 and 2003, initially under the auspices of the Department of Antiquities and the direction of Michael Loulloupis, and subsequently by the French School at Athens, under the direction of Jean-Paul Prête. While the plans and chronological phases of the Agora’s buildings have been successfully reconstructed, the rich assemblage of architectural decorations – exceptionally well preserved – has yet to be thoroughly studied. The remarkable state of preservation and completeness was the primary motivation for undertaking the current research, which aims to identify the fragments of architectural decoration with their respective stoas. The reconstructed decorative program significantly enhances our understanding of historical Cypriot architecture, illuminating the influence of Alexandria and other Mediterranean centers on architectural trends. It highlights how agoras were framed with colonnaded stoas that combined traditional elements with innovative designs, revitalizing the architectural landscape of Cyprus in the Hellenistic and Roman periods.

Due to the extractive nature of quarrying activities, quarry workers are relatively invisible within the archaeological record. Through a focus on quarry implements, we argue that scholars can identify the individuals involved in the quarrying process as well as evaluate the economic and political networks tied to the extraction of limestone resources. In the Maya region, studies of quarrying tools are evaluated based on contextual and use-wear studies; however, quarrying tools are frequently recovered from mixed assemblages. To increase the identification of quarry workers within the archaeological record, we advance a limestone-quarrier tool kit, which emerges from previous archaeological, experimental, and ethnoarchaeological research. We evaluate this toolkit using a case study from Xultun, Guatemala to consider the multiple sociopolitical identities held by Classic period Maya quarry workers.

This paper seeks to summarise and critique aspects of our understanding of the famous monumental building inscriptions from the Antonine Wall, traditionally known as the distance slabs. It addresses the following themes: uniqueness; positioning; audience and message; disposal; units of measurement; records of distance; allocation of labour; order of construction; advance preparation; and location of the eastern terminus. It draws attention to some misconceptions and misinterpretations, and offers some new insights.

The Ketton Mosaic depicts the duel between Achilles and Hector, the dragging of Hector’s body and its ransom. Despite initial associations with the Iliad in the press, this article demonstrates that the Ketton mosaic does not illustrate scenes from Homer but an alternative variant of the narrative which originated with Aeschylus and remained popular in Late Antiquity. The composition also reveals its debt to a pattern repertoire shared by artists working in media such as painted pottery, coin dies and silverware, which had been circulating in the ancient Mediterranean for many centuries. Through its textual and visual allusions, the Ketton mosaic makes a strong case for the engagement of fourth-century Roman Britain with the cultural currency of the wider empire.

Analysis of the projectile points from the Arroyo Seco 2 site allows us to evaluate their design and use from the Early to the Late Holocene in the Pampas region. The Arroyo Seco 2 projectile points are associated with events of interpersonal violence as well as hunting. Based on the techno-morphological and typological analysis and the interpretation of weapon systems, it enables us to establish differences and similarities of several point designs. The results are integrated with projectile point information from other sites in the eastern Pampas to develop a chronological sequence from the Late Pleistocene through the Holocene of projectile designs that were used throughout the period.

To anticipate relationships between future climate change and societal violence, we need theory to establish causal links and case studies to estimate interactions between driving forces. Here, we couple evolutionary ecology with a machine-learning statistical approach to investigate the long-term effects of climate change, population growth, and inequality on intergroup conflict among farmers in the North American Southwest. Through field investigations, we generate a new archaeological dataset of farming settlements in the Bears Ears National Monument spanning 1,300 years (0 to AD 1300) to evaluate the direct and interactive effects of precipitation, temperature, climate shocks, demography, and wealth inequality on habitation site defensibility—our proxy for intergroup conflict. We find that conflict peaked during dry, warm intervals when population density and inequality were highest. Results support our theoretical predictions and suggest cascading effects, whereby xeric conditions favored population aggregation into an increasingly small, heterogenous area, which increased resource stress and inequality and promoted intergroup conflict over limited productive patches. This dynamic likely initiated feedback loops, whereby conflict exacerbated shortfalls and fostered mistrust, which drove further aggregation and competition. Results reveal complex interactions among socioclimatological conditions, all of which may have contributed to regional depopulation during the thirteenth century AD.

Two barrel cylinders bearing a royal inscription belonging to King Nebuchadnezzar II (604-562 BC) were found by chance on the surface of Tell Al-Uhaimir, which includes the remains of the ziggurat of the ancient city of Kish. Both cylinders bear the same text, which relates to the restoration work of the ziggurat é.u6.nir.ki.tuš.maḫ, whose name means “House, temple-tower, exalted abode” and is dedicated to the god Zababa and the goddess Ishtar. This is the first foundation text documenting the construction works of King Nebuchadnezzar II to restore the ziggurat of the god Zababa in Kish.

Archaeoastronomical studies accomplished in recent decades have revealed that the important civic and ceremonial buildings in the Maya area and elsewhere in Mesoamerica were oriented on astronomical grounds. The dates recorded by solar orientations, which prevail, and the intervening intervals composed easily manageable observational calendars that facilitated the planning of agricultural and related ceremonial activities in the yearly cycle. Here we argue that the orientations of several major buildings we measured at the archaeological site of El Palmar, Campeche, Mexico, either in the field or on visualizations of the lidar-derived relief model, reflect the same principles because they belong to widespread solar alignment groups previously identified in the Maya Lowlands. We also present ethnographic and ethnohistorical evidence that supports our interpretations. In addition, our results show that the orientations of more than a hundred minor structures in a broader area of El Palmar conform to those of major buildings, indicating that even less important structures reproduced, although approximately, the astronomically functional alignments. Along with several other Mesoamerican sites and areas where such emulations have been observed, the case of El Palmar demonstrates that the astronomically and cosmologically significant directions materialized in the built environment allow us to understand some prominent aspects of pre-Hispanic cultural landscapes.

The excavation of the site of Gatwa-sûr in the Zagros region of the Kurdistan region of Iraq has provided valuable insights into Early Christian burial practices in Northern Iraq during the Sasanian period. The discovery of an earthenware coffin adorned with symbols that highlight the presence of Christian oriented groups in the region provides new data on burial customs under Sasanian rule. This archaeological evidence strengthens our knowledge of the coexistence of different religious faiths within the Sasanian Empire. Despite the challenges posed by repeated disturbances to the burial site over ancient and modern times, the recovered skeletal remains offer crucial evidence for understanding the health, lifestyle, and demographic profile of individuals during this era. Anthropological analysis revealed common ailments such as tooth loss, degenerative osteoarthritis, osteoporosis, and infectious periostitis. Additionally, the presence of enthesopathies suggests engagement in strenuous physical activities, likely related to agricultural or manual labor. The interdisciplinary approach, involving archaeologists, residents, and media, has raised awareness about the importance of protecting archaeological sites and fostering community engagement in research endeavors. Overall, the Gatwa-sûr excavation contributes significantly to our understanding of religious, cultural, and social dynamics in the Kurdistan region of Iraq in Late Antiquity, emphasizing the need for further exploration and preservation efforts in the region.

Archaeologists in North America often think of the bow and arrow as appearing more or less instantaneously, a conception baked into many culture-historical schemes. However, this specialized technology likely has a more complex history. From a single Old World origin, it is thought to have spread throughout North America from the Arctic after about 5000 cal BP. From there, it seems to have moved from north to south, but the specific timing of the arrival of this important technology is not known in great detail throughout most of California. Rather than using typological or culture-historical categories to discern this technological replacement, this study plots salient artifact attributes from a large sample of projectile points from central and northern California through continuous time to provide more detail on the timing of the spread of this important prehistoric technology. Results suggest the bow and arrow entered northeastern California before 2000 cal BP and moved southward, arriving at the Sacramento–San Joaquin Delta as much as 1,000 years later. The changepoint analysis method introduced here should be broadly applicable to a wide variety of similar archaeological patterns.

This paper presents excavation results from Nyabusora, northern Tanzania, conducted by M. Posnansky and W.W. Bishop (1959) and M. Posnansky (1961). Only preliminary reports have previously been published. It synthesises the site’s history, incorporating previously unpublished analyses and information from Posnansky’s original field notes, and presents new 2014 field survey results and new archival research. Nyabusora holds particular significance as the only Early to Middle Stone Age (ESA/MSA) site in the region to have yielded both lithic and faunal remains, which gain new relevance in light of recent developments in ESA/MSA archaeology in eastern Africa. Nyabusora’s ‘Sangoan’ lithic assemblage is now largely decontextualised and associated finds have been lost, so this study presents the only available lithic and faunal analyses, alongside interpretations of the stratigraphic sequence and site. Such stratified assemblages are exceptionally rare and are generally attributed to the Middle Pleistocene. This research enhances understanding of Plio-Pleistocene landscape evolution in the Kagera River and western Lake Victoria-Nyanza Basin. It contributes important new data on ESA/MSA lithic variability and, via ongoing investigations by Basell within the Kagera catchment, offers huge potential for clarifying Middle Pleistocene palaeoenvironments.

McEuen Cave (AZ W:13:6 (ASM)) is a large bedrock rockshelter located within an andesitic rocky ash flow tuff/ignimbrite within the Bureau of Land Management’s Fishhooks Wilderness Area near Fort Thomas, Arizona. Exceptional preservation at the site has produced an extensive assemblage of perishable artifacts, including a tremendous quantity of cultigen remains radiocarbon dated between 3600 BP and 1250 BP. In this paper, we provide the results of a new radiocarbon dating effort aimed at identifying additional early Silverbell Interval cultigens and clarifying the intensity and persistence of Early Agricultural Period occupation. Our goal is to better understand the age and extent of early cultivation activities within this high-elevation wilderness and contextualize the remains from this site with the more thoroughly understood co-eval Early Agricultural Period villages evidenced along major riverways such as the San Pedro and Santa Cruz in southern Arizona. [Spanish language abstract: La cueva McEuen (AZ W:13:6 (ASM)) es un gran refugio rocoso de lecho rocoso ubicado dentro de una toba/ignimbrita de flujo de cenizas rocosas andesíticas dentro del área silvestre Fishhooks de la Oficina de Administración de Tierras cerca de Fort Thomas, Arizona. La preservación excepcional en el sitio ha producido un extenso conjunto de artefactos perecederos, incluyendo una tremenda cantidad de restos de cultígenos fechados por radiocarbono entre 3600 BP y 1250 BP. En este documento, proporcionamos los resultados de un nuevo esfuerzo de datación por radiocarbono destinado a identificar cultígenos adicionales del Arcaico tardío-medio y aclarar la intensidad y persistencia de la ocupación del Período Agrícola Temprano. Nuestro objetivo es comprender mejor la edad y el alcance de las actividades de cultivo tempranas dentro de este desierto de gran altitud y contextualizar los restos de este sitio con las aldeas coeval del Período Agrícola Temprano mejor entendidas evidenciadas a lo largo de las principales vías fluviales como el San Pedro y el Santa Cruz en el sur de Arizona.]

This paper considers the complex entanglements from which stones and stone craftspeople emerged in the precolonial Maya world. Drawing from recent scholarship that emphasizes the relational and processual nature of making and knowing, it adopts a multi-practice perspective to explore how humans transformed limestone into knowable and workable materials and how, in turn, limestone transformed humans into knowledgeable and skilled individuals. Geoarchaeological, archaeometric, and experimental data from the central and northern Maya lowlands are combined to identify choices and preferences in selecting, extracting, and processing calcareous materials, and to examine what these reveal about past knowledge and skills. We then turn our attention to the ways in which quarry workers, lime producers, and toolmakers learned to work with stone. We argue that becoming attuned to limestone was a sociomaterial process that involved repeated interactions with both material elements and social actors. Our discussion highlights the active role of limestone not only in shaping learning experiences but also in facilitating connections between diverse practices, and thus contributing to a dynamic, interconnected landscape of knowledge.