A massive Roman limestone sarcophagus found still sealed in Budapest has been opened revealing the skeletal remains of a woman and dozens of valuable grave goods, including intact glass vessels, an amber gemstone and 140 coins. It dates to the 4th century, a period when people often reused old sarcophagi, but this one was made specifically for the deceased. The sarcophagus was discovered in an excavation of the Óbuda district, the site of the ancient city of Aquincum. Founded by the Celtic Eravisci tribe in the 1st century B.C., the settlement was converted into a Roman military castrum and associated civilian city by Rome after its defeat of the Eravisci in 12 B.C. Its strategic location on the Danube limes made Aquincum a hive of military and commercial activity. It was made the capital of the imperial province of Pannonia Inferior in 103 A.D., and by the end of the 2nd century had grown to a city of 30,000 with public baths, an aqueduct, two amphitheaters, temples and sanctuaries, extensive industry (pottery making, metalwork, fabric dying, food production), the governor’s palace and other luxury domiciles for wealthy residents and city officials. The massive size and quality of the sarcophagus and the objects it contain mark the deceased as one of those wealthy residents. It was discovered among the remains of houses abandoned in the 3rd century that were later repurposed as a burial ground. Eight other graves were found in the area, but none of them were as elaborate, richly furnished or well-preserved as the sarcophagus. The lid was still fixed in place, clamped to the sarcophagus with iron brackets and molten lead. It must have been an intimidating prospect for looters, because the sarcophagus was never disturbed until the team of archaeologists from the Budapest History Museum and heavy machinery lifted the lid. An initial excavation inside the coffin at the site removed 1.5 inches of clay that had seeped through the seal. Archaeologists found a bone hairpin, bronze figurines, a piece of amber, 140 coins, a light green glass vase with a matching small bowl and traces of a textile with gold thread. The size of the bones and the nature of the artifacts indicate the deceased was a young woman. The skeletal remains and the artifacts will now be analyzed and conserved at the Budapest History Museum.

1862 - Opera "La Forza del Destino" by Giuseppe Verdi debuts at Bolshoi Theatre in St. Petersburg, Russia [Nov 10 O.S.] 1914 - Indian troops take Basra in Mesopotamia 1945 - Alan Jay Lerner and Frederick Loewe's musical "The Day Before Spring" opens at National Theater, NYC; runs for 167 performances 1956 - Boston shooting guard Bill Sharman hits 10 free throws in Celtics 101-78 over Philadelphia Warriors at Philadelphia Civic Center 1972 - US ends 22 year travel ban to China 2015 - 43rd American Music Awards: Ed Sheeran, Ariana Grande, One Direction and Luke Bryan win 2017 - Ratko Mladic the "Butcher of Bosnia" is convicted of genocide and other atrocities during the Bosnian war and jailed for life in The Hague 2018 - The Leaning Tower of Pisa's tilt is reduced by 4 cm in a 20 year project to stabilize it More Historical Events »

Wikimedia CommonsBamboo torture is a brutal form of torture in which bamboo grows through its victim. History is riddled with rumors of bloody and brutal torture methods. From the pear of anguish to drawing and quartering, these methods are stomach-turning indeed. But few are as grisly as bamboo torture. This torture method entailed tying a victim over a bamboo shoot, which would then grow through the victim, thus working as both a form of torment and execution. But while there are stories of this method being used throughout Asia, there are few tangible examples of its use. So, what do we know about bamboo torture? Stories Of Bamboo Torture Took Root In The 19th Century Wikimedia CommonsBamboo is the fastest growing plant on Earth. The earliest documented use of bamboo torture dates back to the early 19th century. In 1827, the published account of a traveler through India described bamboo torture as being used in Ceylon (modern-day Sri Lanka). Decades later, Sherard Osborn, an admiral in the British Royal Navy and an Arctic explorer, also described something like bamboo torture. In 1861, he published My Journal in Malayan Waters, in which he recounted his experiences in Malaysia. In the book, Osborn relayed stories that he and his crew heard from local people — including how they torture people to death. Osborn claimed that these accounts were supported by various members of his crew, including a man who happened to be Malaysian. He wrote that the local people tortured victims to death in various ways, including cooking someone alive, a process which involved placing a person in a hollowed-out tree, covering the tree in mud to prevent it catching on fire, and then lighting a fire around the tree. He also reported stories of people being doused with honey and tossed towards venomous ant nests. But the most gruesome torture method that Osborn wrote about is very similar to what we know today as bamboo torture. Wikimedia CommonsOsborn describes a method of torture similar to bamboo torture that uses Nipa palm. In this torture method, an unfortunate victim is tied on the ground over the sprout of what Osborn described as a “young plant.” The plant has shoots can grow several inches in a single day, meaning the spear of the plant will ultimately puncture the victim’s body, grow through them, and kill them. “They would construct a platform around it, and lash their miserable victim in a sitting posture over the young tree, so that its lance-like point should enter his body, and bring on mortification and death by piercing the intestines — in short, a slow mode of impaling,” Osborn wrote. Osborn speculates the type of plant to be the Nipa palm, which grew all over the region. These are not bamboo trees. However, both Nipa palm and bamboo have shoots which grow very quickly. And the idea of tying someone over a fast-growing shoot is exactly the same as in bamboo torture. A century later, this torture method was allegedly used by the Japanese during World War II. But are those accounts true? Did Japanese Soldiers Really Use Bamboo Torture In World War II? Wikimedia CommonsIt is unknown whether bamboo torture has ever truly been used. The most recent stories of bamboo torture emerged after World War II. It’s no secret that the Japanese military could be brutal during in their treatment of enemy soldiers. The Japanese were known to employ multiple different torture methods, including forcing men to drink water and jumping on their stomachs. But did they use bamboo torture as well? Accounts of bamboo torture from World War II allege that Japanese soldiers used the torture method against Allied prisoners of war. Similar to the stories Osborn heard about the torture method using the Nipa palm plant, these prisoners were tied over young bamboo shoots so that as the bamboo plant grew, it would slowly and painfully impale the person. These claims are further corroborated by Chinese poet and author Woon-Ping Chin’s memoir Hakka Soul, which mentions how locals believed that the Japanese used bamboo torture on prisoners of war. However, many of these accounts seem to be simply that: stories. According to contributing article to the BBC in 2005, the various rumored torture methods of the Japanese army often came from what surviving soldiers could piece together from the remains they found of their fallen comrades. It’s possible these accounts circulated as an attempt to strike fear into Allied soldiers and civilians, but extreme torture methods weren’t unheard of during the Second World War. However, there is not much reliable historical evidence to confirm that bamboo torture was really used by the Japanese. That said, bamboo torture is possible — in theory. Can Bamboo Actually Pierce Human Skin? Wikimedia CommonsBamboo is a strong plant, and has been known to break through concrete. The most important question about bamboo torture is whether or not it’s actually possible to kill someone in that manner. Bamboo is an incredibly tough plant. It’s even been known to break through concrete. And it grows incredibly quickly. Depending on the exact species of bamboo and the conditions, it can grow tens of inches in just 24 hours. One plant once grew 47.6 inches in a single day. If any plant seems as though it’d be able to grow through a person, bamboo seems to be it. But luckily, this question has been tested – sort of. In 2008, the television show Mythbusters tested this very question. Though, of course, they didn’t use actual humans. Instead, the crew used ballistic gelatin, which has a similar consistency to human flesh. They placed the strong gelatin over a bamboo plant and found that after three days, the plant had pierced the material. They ran another experiment with a more sophisticated torso, using ballistic gel inside a mannequin shell. This way, the gelatin wouldn’t melt and poison the plant under the hot sun. The bamboo grew right through the torso, ending up about ten feet tall. Considering the plant had enough force to break through both fake torsos, the crew determined that the bamboo torture “myth” was indeed plausible. So while there are no confirmed historical cases of bamboo torture being used, it is technically possible for bamboo to puncture and grow through human skin. It would take days, and would be a very slow and painful death, but bamboo torture could theoretically happen. After reading about bamboo torture, discover the surprising story behind the iron maiden. Then, learn about these 11 medieval torture devices. The post The Grisly History Of Bamboo Torture, The Excruciating Method Of Tormenting Victims With Fast-Growing Bamboo Shoots appeared first on All That's Interesting.

Joshua Cotten/UnsplashRaccoons in cities now have snouts that are 3.5 percent shorter than their rural cousins, a sign of domestication. City folks across North America may have noticed that their resident raccoons are looking cuter than usual — and they wouldn’t be wrong. The same process that saw wolves evolve into domesticated dogs appears to be playing out with America’s favorite “trash pandas,” according to new research from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. One of the most noticeable signs of domestication is a shorter snout, a feature that was widely observed by researchers when they looked at nearly 20,000 images of raccoons from across the continental United States. The new study was published in the online journal Frontiers in Zoology. Human Trash Is A Key Factor In North American Raccoon Domestication Domestication is sometimes thought to be an “unnatural” process initiated by humans, but that’s not necessarily the case. As researchers outlined in the study, domestication actually begins when animals become adapted to a new “environmental niche in the human environment” — essentially, when they begin to comfortably live among humans. And one of the most impactful elements in that process is human trash. “Trash is really the kickstarter,” said the study’s co-author Raffaela Lesch, an assistant professor of biology at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. “Wherever humans go, there is trash. Animals love our trash. It’s an easy source of food. All they have to do is endure our presence, not be aggressive, and then they can feast on anything we throw away.” Rhododendrites/Wikimedia Commons“Trash pandas” are still wild animals for now, but they could potentially become pets someday. Animals who follow this behavior have been rewarded in the past. Recent research suggests that dogs may have self-domesticated in much the same way, recognizing the benefits of working alongside humans to hunt and scavenge for food. Then, over thousands of years, humans selectively bred dogs with certain traits, leading to modern breeds like French bulldogs — which famously (and controversially) have extremely short noses. Short snouts are not the only signs of what scientists have dubbed “domestication syndrome,” though. As Scientific American noted, smaller heads, floppier ears, softer features, and white patches on fur are also signs of domestication that city raccoons are showing. How This Study Relates To The Neural Crest Domestication Syndrome Hypothesis According to the Neural Crest Domestication Syndrome (NCDS) hypothesis, an animal’s adrenal glands, which are formed by neural crest cells, can help predict how tame (or not tame) the animal will be. Since neural crest cells also help form the structure of the animal’s face, they’d hypothetically lead to a calmer animal and a “cuter” face with floppier ears and a shorter snout. Though it’s a compelling theory, it’s still being actively researched. Part of that research includes the new study published by Lesch and her 16 student co-authors. By observing, in real-time, whether raccoons were exhibiting signs of domestication, they could actively put that theory to the test. And it started in their classroom at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. Lesch et al./Frontiers in ZoologyAn illustration showing the concept of comparing urban and rural raccoon populations. “The idea behind biometry, where students learn how to code and use statistics, is a class that is difficult to teach,” Lesch said. “I wanted to teach this class in a way that students would have their own data that they collect and analyze. The benefit is that I didn’t have to push students to complete the work. They were intrinsically motivated because they cared.” For the study, Lesch and her students analyzed nearly 20,000 photographs of raccoons from across the continental United States, thanks to the citizen science project iNaturalist.org. From their observations, they noticed that raccoons living in dense urban centers had snouts that were around 3.5 percent shorter than raccoons in more rural areas — similar to dogs. These findings support the Neural Crest Domestication Syndrome (NCDS) hypothesis, but they don’t prove the theory entirely. It’s just one step in the research process, but Lesch and her students want to take the work further. One student, Alanis Bradley, plans to base her Ph.D. research on validating the findings by 3D scanning various raccoon skulls, some dating as far back as the 1970s. Lesch and her colleagues also discussed expanding the research to other species like opossums. “I’d love to take those next steps and see if our trash pandas in our backyard are really friendlier than those out in the countryside,” she said. And who knows? If city raccoons domesticate themselves enough in the future, then perhaps one day having a pet raccoon could become a reality. “It would be fitting and funny if our next domesticated species was raccoons,” Lesch said. “I feel like it would be funny if we called the domesticated version of the raccoon the trash panda.” After reading about how raccoons are showing early signs of domestication, check out six odd animals that you actually can own as a pet. Or, read about the “plague” of beer-drinking raccoons that caused chaos across Germany. The post City Raccoons Are Domesticating Themselves — And Evolving To Be More Like Pets To Get Our Trash appeared first on All That's Interesting.

Santiago D. Domínguez-SoleraThe skull of the decapitated Celtic warrior that was found among the rubble of a Roman-era fort in Spain. Beneath the rubble of an ancient wall in Spain, archaeologists unearthed the skull of a Celtic warrior who fought against invading Roman forces 2,000 years ago. After he was killed, he was decapitated, and had his head placed upon the fort’s walls as a warning. The skull dates back to 25 B.C.E., during a series of wars between the Romans and the Cantabri, Celtic warriors who lived in northern Spain. It was found during excavations at La Loma (“The Hill”), where signs of a great battle were also found, including hundreds of projectiles, armor fragments, and pieces of weaponry. The Roman Siege Of La Loma That Ended With The Celtic Warrior’s Decapitation Once a fortified Celtic town, La Loma was besieged by the Romans during the Cantabrian Wars (29 to 16 B.C.E.) as the forces of the first Roman emperor Augustus fought for control of the Iberian Peninsula. Since then, it has largely remained untouched, the aftermath of the battle still painting a picture of the fort’s destruction 2,000 years ago. The Romans had engaged in brutal hand-to-hand combat with the Cantabri, and in the final hours of the conflict, unleashed a volley of arrows upon the fort that decimated the Celtic fighters. In celebration of their victory, the Romans then tore down the walls of the fort, leaving it in ruins. Luckily for modern archaeologists, this provided an excellent opportunity for study. Santiago D. Domínguez-SoleraThe skull was displayed by the Romans for months after the warrior was killed. La Loma was the focus of some archaeological excavations in the early 2000s, during which time researchers documented part of the defensive structures of the fort, in addition to the main Roman camp and two known secondary camps. Then, in 2017, a new phase of research at the site began. It was during this stage, in 2020, when archaeologists came across the lone skull in the collapsed rubble of a stone wall, according to a recent study published in the Journal of Roman Archaeology. Although it was fractured and scattered about the corner of the fort, researchers noted that it clearly belonged with the layer of debris associated with the collapse of the defensive walls, given the lack of any grave or other remains nearby. To recover the skull, archaeologists excavated the rubble, then sifted through it until they had gathered every fragment of skull they could find. Subsequent fieldwork confirmed that no other fragments remained at the site, though some pieces were still missing from the skull. Researchers say these missing pieces could likely be explained by erosion. With what they could gather of the skull now in their possession, researchers carried out a DNA analysis of the remains to determine who, exactly, they belonged to. The Roman Display Of Enemies’ Heads As An Intimidation Tactic The results of this analysis showed that the skull likely belonged to a local man around the age of 45 years old. Other details of the skull bones — notably their light color and the fact that they were fragmented — suggested that it had been left out in the open and exposed to the elements, not buried, supporting the idea that the Romans had placed it on display as a show of intimidation to their enemies. Santiago D. Domínguez-SoleraA posterior view of the decapitated Celtic warrior’s skull. Study lead author, and director of Heroica Archaeology and Cultural Heritage, Santiago Domínguez-Solera told Live Science that the skull probably fragmented “during the demolition of the walls,” noting that it had been “exposed for a few months” prior to that point. Researchers also pointed out that the head was still “partially fresh” when the walls were torn down, further suggesting a fairly short Roman occupation of the fort after the battle ended. It was rather common for Roman legions to display the bodies of their enemies in various ways, which researchers describe as “strategies of intimidation.” This enemy soldier’s head was likely a similar sort of “war trophy,” though the exact details of how it was displayed are unclear. There is no evidence on the skull, for instance, to suggest that the head had been impaled on a spike. For now, at least, the precise details of this macabre display remain partly shrouded in mystery. After reading about this ancient skull of a decapitated warrior, learn about the Roman Empire’s Pax Romana period, the time of relative peace that lasted nearly two centuries. Then, learn about the history of when Rome actually fell. The post Archaeologists In Spain Unearthed The Remains Of A Celtic Warrior Whose Head Was Cut Off And Put On Display By The Romans appeared first on All That's Interesting.