Bizarre Archaeological Discoveries

Everyone has their own hobbies, some play soccer or do crossword puzzles, but treasure hunting is what really excites other people. Mike Smith is one of those guys, like most hobbyists, he had only found a few coins and other trinkets over the years and none. They were particularly valuable, but all that was about to change when he saw something that would lead to the discovery of his life. Mike Smith has been metal detecting since he was just 12 years old after receiving his first metal detector as a gift from his father. Christmas 1977. He grew up in south Pembrokeshire, Wales, and spent many days exploring the vast countryside in search of something truly special.

As he reached adulthood, he realized that he probably wouldn't be able to make a steady living from his hobby, but his enthusiasm and love for the outdoors continued to fuel his passion as he secretly held on to the hope of that one day I might still find something big after years of searching with small rewards. Now 45-year-old Mike wasn't expecting anything out of the ordinary when he decided to take his metal detector out for a spin on a rainy afternoon in February 2018. That day, bad weather forced him to deviate from his original course and enter in an area of ​​unexplored farmland while crossing the wet grass. familiar beeping noise from his metal detector and he knew he must be on to something, feeling the familiar feeling of excitement building up inside him he decided to make some wider circles around the area, as you probably know, metal detectors generally sound weaker the more they move away a possible find, but when Mike walked away from the place where he heard the initial beep, something strange happened, he heard it again, but this time even louder after verifying that his metal detector was definitely working.

Mike knew there was only one way to find out if he was really getting an accurate reading he had to investigate before we get our hands dirty as we delve deeper into this gripping story, why not put them to good use by smashing the like buttons and subscription? love bell icons too that way you'll be the first to know when I upload more amazing content now let's get back to the digging after choosing a spot where his metal detector was ringing the loudest the microphone grabbed his shovel and started digging in the moisture . In the ground, after a few minutes of digging, he had already created a hole about a foot wide by two feet deep when he began to feel something small and metallic inside, he carefully pulled it out of the hole and initially thought that It could be an old rusty coin or some kind of medieval brooch but after removing some dirt with his hands he noticed that the object had a greenish hue and was decorated with some delicate and intriguing red engravings as he reflected on the object while turning it. in his hands he noticed something Also, shining in the dirt, unlike the first piece of metal, this object seemed to be a little more stuck, being careful not to damage his new find.

Mike threw down the shovel, knelt down and began digging with his hands, finally realizing the object. It appeared to be a large metal link of some strange type, but it was connected to something else directly below another identical link. In fact, as he dug even deeper, he realized that this strange discovery appeared to be a large rusty chain, but what was it connected to? Mike cleared more of the surrounding dirt, but no amount of pushing or digging could dislodge the chain. Suddenly, he looked around and realized that the sun was already starting to set, so he packed up his tools and vowed to return first thing the next morning.

Night thoughts ran through his mind. He had read about the ancient burial chambers hidden beneath the soil of Pembrokeshire and couldn't help but wonder if he had stumbled upon something sinister at first light. Mike returned and found the place just as he had left it. Digging around the area where Jane had found the lynx and it wasn't long until she unearthed a few more unique pieces of metal, including something that looked like part of a large ring, perhaps once attached to the top of the chain after clean it. Dirt on the object Mike noticed that it had similar markings to the first object he had found.

As a history lover, he knew the artefacts must be important, so he decided it was time to tell someone about the discovery and contacted soon a portable antiquities scheme in Wales and the anonymous field was sealed for an excavation. testing with the help of appropriate tools and techniques. Trained archaeologists from the National Museum of Wales and the Dyfet Archaeological Trust were then recruited to assist Mike with a larger excavation that June 4th. Months after his initial discovery and with proceedings underway, it soon became clear that Mike had stumbled upon pieces of a much larger puzzle; In fact, the team was soon able to unearth a haul of at least nine artifact fragments during their exploration;

The pieces varied greatly in shape. and size, each with their own decorative markings and unique engravings. The rusty chain my children struggled to unearth was actually a portion of something much larger after it was successfully removed. It seemed like they had separated from something, but could that something still be in him? On the ground, archaeologists had recovered an exciting trove of artefacts, all they had to do now was figure out what it all meant by combining their expert knowledge while making comparisons with the shape and decoration of other artefacts across Britain, the archaeologists concluded. The objects probably made around 25 to 75 AD.

During the Last Iron Age, over 2000 years ago, as the name suggests, this period was particularly significant due to the introduction of iron working technology which would have been used to create these intriguing artefacts. Historians were also able to determine that several of the pieces are also elaborately decorated with designs from late Celtic art, also known as late Latin art, to make these marks red glass was made and allowed to cool in shaped recesses in the bronze surfaces to create distinctive and vibrant fluid designs while making glaze. It used to give the pieces a greenish tone according to experts, this is the first time that a group of artifacts with Celtic art decorations has been discovered in Pembrokeshire, but what are they?

The collection is actually pieces from a Celtic chariot burial like Mike had done. The Celts were once suspected to be an early Indo-European people who spread across much of Europe from the 2nd millennium BC. C. until the 1st century BC. C. Celtic chariots that were used as war and ceremonial vehicles were used to show the power and identity of their owners and tribals. communities in Iron Age vehicles, the first object Mike unearthed is actually part of the bridal harness, while the ring-shaped object is a large turret ring or rain guide that would have been attached to the harness that guides the lines that pass through the driver's hands through the turrets and to the horse's brake to prevent it from deviating from the track.

Other

discoveries

also included parts of a large horse brooch, a harness and bridal bridle fragments that would have been connected to the chain links that would once hold these important pieces. There have been accessories for an entire cart and accompanying leather harness for your highly trained pony bear. These chariot pieces may even have witnessed some of the key historical events of the time when Iron Age people defended their ways of life from the expansion of the Romans. Empire that came to include England and Wales around 43 AD. Following the initial investigation in June 2018, a new excavation funded by the National Whale Museum was carried out in March and April 2019.

During these excavations, the archaeologists' theories were confirmed when the tips of a pair of chariot wheels were revealed, proving that Mike's discovery was just the beginning of a Celtic treasure. These two iron tires would have covered the wooden wheels of the chariot, representing the first evidence of the chariot itself. The cart artifacts probably belonged to a man or woman of some status. Within his tribe or community, this speculation was supported by the discovery of a nearby iron sword that may have been placed on or near the human burial that would have accompanied the chariot; In fact, it was customary for high-ranking chiefs in the Iron Age to be buried with their chariot horses, tack and weapons.

For their hard work and intuition, Mike Smith can now expect a large reward for what he claims is the largest metal detecting find ever made. Indeed, a Milford Haven hometown inquest heard in January 2019 that an amateur metal detectorist could pocket a whopping $1.3 million after the historic discovery was officially declared treasure under the law. . The payment must be shared 50-50 with the landowner, while Mike must also sell the total of 34 artifacts to a museum. Of course, the National Museum of Wales is first in line and hopes to purchase the fines so they can be properly preserved. For now, the exact location of the find is being kept secret for a major excavation in the future.

Ground-penetrating radar has already revealed a pattern. of ditches and walls buried in farmland, suggesting that Mike may have even stumbled upon an entire Celtic settlement that had not been discovered for thousands of years. Of course, Mike will still have some claim to any future finds at the site, and he can hardly believe the infancy of it. Dreams came true in the most unexpected way. That's what I call a lucky find. Mike Smith's Celtic treasure may be one of a kind, but

archaeological

discoveries

are made around the world every year and some are strange enough to blow your mind.

From the weird and wonderful to the downright terrifying, let's take a look at some of the strangest

archaeological

discoveries resting in trees In March 2017, a team of archaeologists in Switzerland made a heartbreaking discovery in the most unexpected place while renovating the school complex. from Kern in the Ulzers district. In Zurich, they inadvertently disturbed the final resting place of an ancient corpse hidden in plain sight inside a tree trunk. The strange coffin had been constructed from a hollowed out tree that still had bark on the outside. After the preserved remains were carefully removed from the site and sent for analysis, researchers concluded that it once belonged to a Celtic woman of the age of iron who lived about 2,200 years ago, although people often think that the Celts came from the United Kingdom, they actually lived in mainland Europe as far east as Turkey, but how did they do it?

This woman ended her days in seemingly unfortunate circumstances. Surprisingly, it was actually a common practice among the Iron Age Celts throughout central and northern Europe to bury their tribesmen in tree coffins, the deceased would be decorated with jewels and gifts and then buried underground in the hollowed out tree not unlike a modern coffin. Isotope analysis of the woman's bones revealed that she was a local woman who was around 40 years old when she died and probably grew up in the Limat Valley. She rarely performed physical labor and instead spent her time indulging herself. On a diet of starchy and sweetened foods seems like a luxury to me, she had been richly attired in sheep's wool, a sheepskin coat and a shawl, and was buried with accessories that included an amber and glass necklace, bracelets of bronze and a delicate bronze belt chain decorated with pendants, this suggests he probably commanded great respect in his tribe.

The remains were also found about 260 feet from the grave of another Celtic man discovered in 1903 when the school gymnasium was being built. He had been similarly adorned and buried with a sword shield and a spear because the two individuals. They were buried in the same decade around 200 BC. It is even possible that they knew each other. Does anyone else suddenly have an irrational fear of being buried inside a tree? The copper light of Lloyd's bank. Let me start by saying that this rare object is so well preserved that it was once said to be as precious as the crown jewels.

Any guess is that it's actually exactly what a giant fossilized poop looks like, but not just any fossilized poop dating back to the 9th century, when what is now York in England was ruled by the Norse. Viking Warriors This coprolite, which is the official name for the fossilized feces, was discovered in 1972 in New York under what would become a local bench, hence the name Lloyd's Panca Coprolite. The paleoscatologists,which is the name of archaeologists who specialize in droppings, determined that the proud, long-dead owner of this seven-inch dropping had a plentiful diet of meat and bread, unfortunately, although he also had some nasty intestinal problems.

Upon closer examination, experts discovered that the droppings contained whipworm eggs and maw worms, which would have caused stomach pains and other gastrointestinal symptoms. Oh wow, today you can find the copper light on display inside a glass case in the museum section of York's Jorvik Viking Center In 2003, a group of visitors found themselves in a poop-filled place when someone dropped the specimen and broke it into three pieces, fortunately that was the case. It has since been repaired, but I have to ask who would want to collect Viking poop in the first place. An exceptional find during an excavation that took place in the town of Aylesbury in Buckinghamshire, England, between 2007 and 2016.

Archaeologists made an interesting discovery in a flooded pit. a basket with four chicken eggs, but these were not the kind of eggs you could buy at the local supermarket. We're talking about 1,700-year-old Roman eggs as the team tried to recover the eggs from the well, but something tragic happened. four eggs were accidentally broken releasing what was described as a powerful and overwhelming stench. I shudder to think what an egg that old must smell like. Fortunately, the team managed to preserve the fourth fragile egg, making it the only complete Roman chicken egg found in Britain. Chicken bones and broken.

Eggshells had been found in Roman tombs in Britain before, but never a complete egg. The lucky find was only possible thanks to the environment in which it was found. You see, in a well that has been flooded for thousands of years. There are things that can survive that would never have survived in a dry environment. Oxford archeology experts believe the well was used for brewing beer during the 2nd and 3rd centuries AD. Before becoming a type of Roman wishing well towards the end of the 3rd century the eggs found alongside a basket of bread, leather shoes and a variety of wooden vessels and tools may have been a food offering thrown into the well in hopes of gaining the favor of the gods, someone else wants to know if the ancient egg tastes as bad as the heart of a saint smells.

This next story is about to give a whole new meaning to the phrase stealing hearts. In 2012, an enterprising thief made off with a rather strange reward from Dublin's Christ Church Cathedral. The preserved heart of a 12th-century patron saint. The heart of Saint Lawrence O'Toole had been sealed inside a wooden box in heart shape surrounded by an iron cage and had been displayed on the wall of the cathedral since the medieval period. This might seem like a rather gruesome form of interior decoration, but holy remains are actually a common feature of many Irish churches. Saint Lawrence O'Toole died in Normandy, France in 1180 and was canonized in 1225 because of his miracles, said to have occurred at his tomb, but sometime between the night of the second Friday and the morning of Saturday the third of January 2012 , someone broke into the cathedral and stole the precious relic.

Church officials speculated that the thief may have hidden in the building. During the night and probably using metal cutters to open the bars protecting the heart, the theft was particularly strange because the heart itself has no economic value, while the cathedral's valuable gold chalices and candelabras were ignored. Even stranger, the perpetrator lit two peace candles at the trinity altar before leaving the building just as church officials had gotten over the initial anguish. Another shocking discovery was made in April 2018, after In an intelligence-led investigation, Irish police found the holy heart in Dublin's Phoenix Park six years after it was stolen from the cathedral.

Unfortunately, no arrests were made after fingerprints were taken and forensic tests were performed on the artifact, but the heart was returned to its rightful owner in Ireland once again. I guess we'll never know what this 800-year-old heart did during those six years, but I'd like to imagine it going on a magical sightseeing tour which, please, it's not unusual for discoveries to be made during the renovation of buildings dating back centuries, but The owner of a Northamptonshire pub in England got the surprise of his life in October 2019 in the form of a rather spooky discovery: Contractors were in the process of demolishing the chimney of the pub formerly known as the Star and Garter Inn when they found something strange lodged inside: a small torpedo-shaped glass bottle that probably looked like this, but contained a strange room of smaller items, including fish hooks, human teeth, glass, and an unidentified liquid that may or may not Having been urine, it seems like some kind of black magic, in fact, this creepy trinket bottle is actually an anti-witchcraft potion from the 19th century.

Glass torpedo bottles. They began to be manufactured around 1830 and generally contained carbonated drinks, but occasionally had a very different use according to witch bottle researchers at the Museum of London Archaeology. These glass or stone vessels were believed to be used as protective objects or as containers. For a cure against witchcraft, more than 100 specimens have already been unearthed under the floors of historic buildings in archaeological sites in cemeteries or river banks, but what was one doing in the fireplace of a small English pub? It turns out that a famous witch named Angeline Tubbs also known as the Saratoga Witch was born at the inn around 1761.

To this day, Tubbs is still the subject of ghost tours in Saratoga Springs in New York, where she moved to Los Angeles. 15 years to tell the future, considering that the pub is so clearly steeped in a rich history of witches it is not surprising that a token used to ward off evil was found there. At least the witches of England now know that they are not going to be served in this pub the vampire son of lugnano these days it is a widely accepted fact that vampires are They are the stuff of nightmares and teenage romance novels, but throughout history the belief in these fanged demons was very real and nothing proves better that a strange discovery made in 2018 by a team made up of archaeologists from the University of Arizona and Stanford University who were conducting an excavation at an ancient Roman burial site in Italy when they came across some particularly strange-looking remains at first glance , probably looks like any ancient skeleton, but if you look a little closer, there appears to be a large stone wedged inside the jaw.

The discovery was unearthed in lunyanyo. Tevarina at the Benbini Necropolis, a burial site dating back to the malaria outbreak in 400 AD. and which contains many young remains. By examining tooth development, anthropologists were able to determine that the specimen likely belonged to a 10-year-old boy. The discovery left the team scratching. their heads because the remains belonged to someone much older than more than 50 other burials found at the site and of course because of the intentional nature of all the stone in the mouth, but what does it mean that previous excavations have also revealed objects associated with witchcraft and magic, including raven claws, toad bones, bronze cauldrons filled with ash, and remains of animal sacrifices, according to historians, the Romans were very concerned with supernatural paranoia and even went so far as to employ witchcraft to prevent the evil that contaminated the body from coming out. so the stone is most likely part of a ritual vampire burial used to protect the child who may have been considered evil from leaving the grave.

The discovery, now referred to locally as the lugnano vampire child, was described by archaeologist and professor david. Soren, who has been excavating the site since 1987, is extremely creepy and strange. I'm with you David, which of these strange archaeological discoveries intrigued you the most. Let me know in the comments below and, as always, thanks for watching.