Autumn

Archaeologist/retro gamer, lover of nature and the ancient world

[Autumn @Cercia_Panda]

I regularly check the garden recycle bin/waste & let the bugs out before it is emptied. The holes are not big enough for them to escape! Ecology begins at home. Please save the ecosystem.
https://t.co/vUiLCJ5hh2
#conservation

[Daily Mail @DailyMail]

'Throughout the seamount chain, the team also sampled basalts coated with ferromanganese (iron-manganese) crusts from across different depths and oxygen saturations as well as an interesting-looking pumice rock almost resembling a sponge'

FULL STORY 👇https://t.co/7mkCiRdJ8P

[The Rabbit Hole @TheRabbitHole]

Historical guilt is dumb

[Africa Facts Zone @AfricaFactsZone]

The Richat Structure is best known as the Eye of Africa or the Eye of the Sahara.

It is a circular feature in the midst of the Sahara Desert just outside of Ouadane, Mauritania.

[Tracy Borman OBE @TracyBorman]

This is a CAKE!!! It was created by the unbelievably talented @cake_emma I’m in complete AWE 🤩🤩🤩

[Archaeo - Histories @archeohistories]

Muckross Abbey (Mainistir Mhucrois) is one of the major ecclesiastical sites, found in the Killarney National Park, County Kerry, Ireland.

The original Muckross Abbey was founded by Cormac McCarthy Mor in around 1340 AD. In a vision, McCarthy Mor was told to found a monastery nowhere else but on the ‘Carraig na Chiuil’ or ‘Rock of Music’. Cormac sent men out across the local area to search for this stone. They were just about to give up and return home in failure when they stopped for a rest upon a stone. Upon this stone they are said to have heard beautiful music without any apparent source.

The Abbey was refounded for the Observatine order as a Franciscan Friary in 1448 by Donal McCarthy Mor (Cormac’s Great Grandson). Franciscan patronage was something that obviously ran in the family as Donal’s father was also the patron of a Franciscan community in Cork. The Abbey as we see it now took 20 years to build and Donal McCarthy Mor received a Papal Indulgence (reduction in punishment for sins committed) for the work.

There is a native Yew tree growing in the centre Cloister of the Abbey. This Yew tree is traditionally said to be as old as the Abbey itself. There is a story locally that the tree is haunted. It is said to bleed if one should be brave enough to nick the bark with a knife. What isn’t as well known is that the sap of the Yew tree is blood red for several hundred years of it’s life.

The Abbey was frequently raided, by local gangs and later the armies of Elizabeth the 1st and Cromwell, often being damaged and rebuilt. “Friars Glen” on Mangerton Mountain is said to have been one of the places the monks would flee to when the monastery was attacked. There were a series of small cottages there where the monks would shelter. This happened numerous times over the history of the Abbey. One of the darkest times in the Abbey’s history was in 1589. The Abbey was raided by the soldiers of Elizabeth the 1st. The monks fled the Abbey and took some of their more valuable items with them for hiding on one of the islands on Lough Leane.

Unfortunately, they were all captured and executed. At around this time, 2 innocent men, Fr. Donagh O’Murheely and his companion were captured, tortured and stoned to death in Muckross Abbey.

In 1652 AD, monastery was sacked by Cromwell’s forces under the command of Edmund Ludlow. After this though, friars slowly returned to the Abbey (in smaller numbers), the penal laws in 1698 meant that most of the order fled to France. During this time, the Friars that returned took refuge in the Friars Glen.

During Penal times, masses were held at the Abbey which was no longer occupied. In 1788, it’s said that there was a mass held on a temporary altar. The mass was attended by 4 or 5 Friars and drew a large crowd from the local area. In 1929 the first mass was said in the Abbey since penal times. The mass was attended by nearly 3000 from Cork, Tralee and Killarney. In 1940, the 600th anniversary of Muckross Abbey was celebrated. The mass is still celebrated each July to this day.

Over the years there have been numerous stories about hauntings in Muckross Abbey and it is often considered to be the most haunted place in Killarney. There are stories about “The Ghost of the Brown Man”, a man who, upon going missing one day, was found by his wife in the Abbey graveyard feasting the flesh of one of the corpses. Another is the story of John Drake; a recluse that chose to squat in the Abbey in 18th Century. Drake slept in one of the empty fireplaces in a box made of coffin planks. It’s said that terrible shouting and screaming could be heard at night from the Abbey but during the day it was deathly still. A young Irish Author named Bram Stoker often visited Killarney and was known to have spent time around Muckross Abbey at night. It is thought that he drew some inspiration for his most famous work; Dracula from his time in area.

📷 : A 400 years old yew tree in Muckross Abbey, Ireland

#archaeohistories

[Autumn @Cercia_Panda]

@Artemisapphire Well, somebody has to do it.

[Sister Walburga @SisterWalburga]

We too will have a Holy Hour
13th November 5.30-6.30pm
to join the Bishops of England and Wales in prayer

[Autumn @Cercia_Panda]

@MillennialMimi Pre-Historic Gamer here. LOZ on nes is still one of my absolute fave games ever ❤️

[ArchaeoHistories @histories_arch]

Stone cylinder seals were small, carved cylindrical objects developed in ancient Mesopotamia around 3500 BC during the Uruk period. These seals, typically about 2-3cm in length, were made from various stones, including steatite, marble, and lapis lazuli.

They featured detailed engravings and were often used by Sumerians, Akkadians, and later Mesopotamian civilizations, including the Babylonians and Assyrians, for administrative and decorative purposes. The seals were typically rolled over wet clay to create a continuous impression, serving as signatures for documents, marks of ownership, and symbols of status and identity.

The seals were found primarily in locations associated with ancient Mesopotamian cities, such as Ur, Nineveh, and Babylon. They often depicted scenes of deities, animals, mythological figures, and everyday life. The images were etched in reverse so that when rolled, the designs would appear correctly oriented on clay.

#archaeohistories

[Dr Peter Caddick-Adams #StandwithUkraine @militaryhistori]

The ruins of Whitby Abbey in North Yorkshire, England, completed by drone lighting.

[Pope Francis – ARCHIVE @Pontifex266Arch]

In the #GospelOfTheDay (Mk 12:28-34), the Lord says to the disciple of every age that what counts on our journey is not external practices, such as burnt offerings and sacrifices, but the readiness of heart with which we open ourselves to God and other people in love.

[Dr Peter Caddick-Adams #StandwithUkraine @militaryhistori]

Post-Roman Britain in about AD 600.

[Autumn @Cercia_Panda]

@16bitnostalgia Castlevania on GB still gives me nightmares.

[Autumn @Cercia_Panda]

@JohnJCrace This is only the beginning 🦖

[Autumn @Cercia_Panda]

@NoContextBrits The UK has great comedy.

[Massimo @Rainmaker1973]

The illuminations at the Nabana No Sato flower village in Kuwana, Japan.

[Autumn @Cercia_Panda]

@creation247 We have many things to be thankful for e.g. modern heating, insulation, electricity, which future generations might take for granted.

[Autumn @Cercia_Panda]

@16bitnostalgia Have at you!

[Autumn @Cercia_Panda]

I've just signed this petition. Will you add your name and share too?
https://t.co/TWqrQ4mmIn via @38degrees

[Zartonk Media @ZartonkMedia]

BREAKING: Archaeologists Discover Oldest Known Christian Church In Armenia
➖➖➖
Archaeologists from the National Academy of Sciences of Armenia and the University of Münster have discovered the remains of a previously unknown early Christian church in the ancient city of Artaxata, near the modern city of Artashat, reports My Science.

The discovery consists of an octagonal structure with cruciform extensions. The team excavated parts of the church and conducted geophysical studies to analyze its features.

“The 4th-century building is the oldest archaeologically documented church in the country—sensational evidence for early Christianity in Armenia,” said Professor Achim Lichtenberger of the University of Münster.

“Octagonal churches were unknown here until now, but we are very familiar with them from the Eastern Mediterranean region, where they first appeared in the 4th century AD,” added Dr. Mkrtich H. Zardaryan of the National Academy of Sciences of Armenia.

The structure typologically resembles early Christian memorial buildings. In the cross-shaped extensions, the researchers discovered wooden platform remains, which were radiocarbon dated to the mid-4th century AD. The octagonal building, approximately 30 meters in diameter, features a simple mortar floor and terracotta tiles. Marble fragments suggest the church was lavishly decorated, with the material imported from the Mediterranean.

The German-Armenian team has been working in Armenia since September. They plan to continue their excavations, aiming to uncover more details, including the identity of the church’s dedication.

Background:
According to tradition, Gregory the Illuminator converted the Armenian King Tiridates III to Christianity in Artaxata in 301 AD, making Armenia the first Christian state in the world. The medieval monastery of Khor Virap, located near the newly discovered church, stands as a reminder of this heritage. Artaxata, which is located near the modern city of Artashat in Armenia’s Ararat Province, served as the capital of the Kingdom of Armenia under the Artaxiad and Arsacid dynasties. It developed into a major metropolis during the Hellenistic period, remaining the capital for nearly six centuries.

The Armenian-German research team has been exploring the Hellenistic metropolis of Artaxata in the Ararat Plain since 2018. The excavation project on the ancient city’s settlement archaeology is funded by the German Research Foundation (DFG) and the National Academy of Sciences of Armenia.