| Archaeology in 1958 Archaeological expeditions in 1958 made
significant discoveries in Europe, the Middle East, and
the Far East. In North America many expeditions were
carried out at sites "in the way of" an
improvement project (dam, highway, etc.).
Europe
 A significant event was
the discovery of Pella, the birthplace of Alexander the
Great and capital of Macedonia from the late fifth
century B.C. until its capture by the Romans in 168 B.B.
A large house with courtyards surrounded by Ionic columns
was uncovered. The floors of certain rooms were decorated
with mosaics of natural pebbles and strips of metal.
left: columns and mosaic floor at
Pella
 Another notable event
was the clearing of 528 feet of the diolkos, the ancient
portage for ships across the Isthmus of Corinth. The
route was traced an additional 4,432 feet. The portage
consisted of a paved roadway with two deep grooves down
the center and which curved back and forth up the slope
from the sea. It was dated as having been built in the
Archaei Period.
right: westernmost end of the
diolkos
An expedition from the Peabody Museum
of Harvard University and the National Science Foundation
unearthed a 20,000-year-old "Venus" near
Périgeuex, France. The 3-inch figure was carved in high
relief on a 12-pound stone. Only four other such figures
are known (from Périgeuex and Czechoslovakia). The
expedition studied the stratigraphy of the Upper
Paleolithic in the area and hoped to relate the site to
the geology of the local river system.
A joint expedition from Harvard and
Cornell universities began new excavations at Sardis, the
ancient capital of Lydia, and located the main area of
the ancient town. [http://www.sardisexpedition.org/]
Middle East
 A
major contribution to the study of ancient civilizations
of the Middle East was made by a joint expedition from
the University of Philadelphia Museum and the
Archaeological Service of Iran. At a site known as Teppe
Hasanlu, the team found remains of the Mannaeans, a
people living south of Lake Urmia and previously known
only through inscriptions referring to them. Excavations
uncovered a powerful citadel wall with towers and
buttresses and a large building that likely served as a
royal residence. Among the many artifacts was a solid
gold bowl covered with figures showing mythologcal
scenes, including a triad of god riding in chariots. [http://www.hasanlu.org/]
left: gold bowl found at Hasanlu
 In Israel, a fourth century church was
excavated at Hazor, in western Galilee, by the Israeli
Department of Antiquities. Built during the reign of
Constantine the Great, the church was a two-story
structure supported by a colonnade in Roman style, but
with an interior of inlaid marble slabs in the Phoenician
tradition. [http://hazor.huji.ac.il/]
right: early Christian mosaic, part of a floor of
a 4th-century temple at Hazor
Far East
 Explorations in the Niah Caves of Borneo
by the Sarawak Museum revealed wall paintings of ships
manned by dead men wearing plumed headdresses. They also
found a fleet of thse ritual "death ships,"
each large enough to hold a body (7 to 9 feet long) and
lidded. Bones of the dead lay around them.
left: paintings and 'death ships' in Niah Caves
The Academy of Sciences of Peking was conducting
excavations near Siking in Shenai Ptovince when it found
four gates and a section of the massive city wall of
Changan, capital of the Han Dynastry from 208 B.C. to
A.D. 25. Swords and halberds were found in the guards'
rooms flanking the gates.
SEE ALSO
In
the Year 1958
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