Archaeologists unearth 6th century Ikea-style temple

"Archaeologists in Italy have unearthed the remains of a 6th century BC temple-style building complete with detailed assembly instructions which they have likened to an Ikea do-it-yourself furniture pack.

Nearly every remaining part of the elaborate structure, excavated near the southern city of Potenza, is inscribed with detailed instructions on how it should be built..."

30 odd years of changes... or not as the case may be

Whilst looking through some old photographs i found one of the first house i ever lived in in the early 1970s (though i was too young at the time to remember anything about it!) Thanks to Google Street View i was able to have a look and see what the house looks like today and to be honest there have not been a great deal of changes over the last 35 or so years.

Apart from the doors, windows and maybe the odd bit of paint the house itself is not that different though the garden has changed dramatically.

Anglo Saxon Hoard saved

Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery and the Potteries Museum and Art Gallery, Stoke on Trent are celebrating today following the announcement that the £3.3 million to acquire the Staffordshire Hoard has been secured a month ahead of schedule – but the fundraising continues.

The announcement comes after news that the National Heritage Memorial Fund (NHMF) has approved a donation of £1.285 million that will meet the initial target of £3.3 million needed to acquire the joint ownership of the Hoard by Birmingham and Stoke museums...

Search engine collects historical resources

A search engine is being created to help historians find useful sources.

The Connected History project will link up currently separate databases of source materials...

The photograph that defined the class divide

In 1937, five boys were famously snapped standing outside Lord's. But who were they, what were they doing there – and what happened to them? The answer is surprising...

Carbon dating reveals vintage fraud in wines

"Up to 5% of fine wines are not from the year the label indicates, according to Australian researchers who have carbon dated some top dollar wines.

The team of researchers think "vintage fraud" is widespread, and have come up with a test that uses radioactive carbon isotopes left in the atmosphere by atomic bomb tests last century and a method used to date prehistoric objects to determine what year a wine comes from - its vintage.

The test works by comparing the amount of carbon-12 and carbon-14 in grapes..."

Flaming torches light up Britain's Hadrian's Wall

"Hadrian's Wall, a Roman-era fortification spanning the width of northern England, was lit up from end-to-end by volunteers carrying flaming torches Saturday.

As night fell, 500 gas flames were lit at 250-metre intervals for 84 miles (135 kilometres) from Wallsend in northeast England to Bowness-on-Solway in the northwest..."