Welcome back, everybody!  I’m Rick Pettigrew, with a brand-new batch of four top news stories from this past week of Archaeologica.  Send us feedback on The Archaeology Channel Facebook page or post a message on our social networking site, ArchaeoSeek!

Archaeologists in South Korea uncovered the royal palace of one of Korea’s most ancient kingdoms.  Radiocarbon dating of many skeletons found in the Thames River of London surprisingly shows that most of them are from the Bronze and Iron ages.  DNA analysis of the pastoralist Fulani people across the Sahel region of Africa reveals a very ancient and extensive set of relationships.  And a chain of waffle houses in Colombia has discovered a cluster of ancient tombs while building a local school.

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And now, here’s Laura Kennedy with the Audio News from Archaeologica!  We hope you find this to be a valuable part of your day!

Welcome to the Audio News from Archaeologica!  I’m Laura Kennedy, and these are the headlines in archaeological and historical news for the week of February 9th through the 15th, 2025.

Our first story takes us to the city of Gyeongju [kyung-JOO] in South Korea, where archaeologists have uncovered a palace site of the Silla [SILL-ah] kingdom.  The discovery sheds light on some of the era’s rituals and advanced engineering. 

The Silla Kingdom is one of the oldest kingdoms in Korea.  It was established in 57 BC during the Three Kingdoms period and lasted until AD 935.  The kingdom played a significant role in unifying the Korean peninsula.  It is known for its metalworking, architecture and art. 

As reported by Arkeonews, the Korean Heritage Service has for a decade led the investigation of Gyeongju, the capital of Silla.  Their new findings concern the Donggung, the crown prince’s palace.  Previously, the palace was assumed to be located west of the artificial Wolji pond, but researchers discovered it was actually on the pond’s east side. 

According to Choi Eung-chon, head of the Korea Heritage Service, the remnants of structures on the west side are slightly taller than those on the east side.  This indicates that the king likely occupied the west area, while his son lived in the east area.

One of the most significant finds is a flush-style toilet system that dates to the Unified Silla period, from AD 668 to 935.  The drainage system reflects the Silla peoples’ lifestyle and advanced engineering techniques. 

According to Kim Gyeong-yeol, senior researcher at the Gyeongju National Research Institute of Cultural Heritage, this plumbing system supports the notion that the site was a royal facility because of its complex technology. 

Other notable findings include the remains of two dogs, a crystal necklace inside a lacquered wooden container, a sword, and shark teeth fossils.  The artifacts, which date to the third century, all appear burnt.  Researchers propose that the dog remains were part of a human sacrifice ritual meant to ensure stability of the construction.  This proposal is substantiated by the discovery of human remains on site. 

The exact location of Silla’s original royal palace, Wolseong, still remains unknown.  Archaeologists know that after unification, the kingdom expanded the pre-seventh-century royal residence.  

The Korea Heritage Service predicts that excavation of the UNESCO World Heritage site will continue for another 50 years. 

Our next story takes us to southern England, where a new study investigated the hundreds of human bones dredged from the bottom of the River Thames [temz] over the last two centuries.  The results suggest that most of the skeletons date back to the Bronze and Iron ages. 

As reported by Live Science, researchers from the Natural History Museum and Historic England radiocarbon-dated 30 skeletons found in the Thames.  The results were published in the journal Antiquity.

According to Nicola Arthur, lead author and curator at the Natural History Museum in London, many people are shocked to hear how many corpses reside in the Thames.  Although human skeletons have been encountered regularly in the waters of northwest Europe, the large collection of the Thames remains stands out.  

Scholars have studied the skeletons in the Thames since the nineteenth century.  One early proposal was that the corpses came from a battle between the Celts and Romans.  During the late twentieth century, experts argued that many of the bodies came from drowning victims and the erosion of riverbank burials. 

In the latest study, the team combined the 30 new dates with 31 previous dates.  They discovered that the bodies covered a span of nearly 6000 years, from 4000 BC to AD 1800.  Most remains date to the Bronze Age, from 2300 to 800 BC, or the Iron Age, from 800 BC to AD 43.  Researchers found many of the bodies in the upstream zones of the river. 

The exact reason for the bodies’ placement in the Thames is unclear.  Arthur suggests that it was part of a wider pattern in northwest Europe, where many prehistoric societies would deposit important remains in bodies of water. 

According to Chris Knüsel, a bioarchaeologist at the University of Bordeaux who has also studied the remains, the deaths could also come from conflict over the river, which is indicated by known patterns of skeletal trauma.  Watery graves in other prehistoric societies are also commonly associated with violent deaths, such as bog bodies. 

The archaeologists will continue their research to document and  interpret the injuries to the bones. 

We now head to western and central Africa, where researchers revealed the genetic origins and diversity of the pastoral Fulani.  The study indicates a complex ancestry from across the continent, demonstrating the importance of historical migrations and connections. 

As reported by Phys dot org, the majority of the Fulani population lives a nomadic lifestyle using temporary camps or mobile tents.  Due to the nature of this lifestyle, they do not leave abundant archaeological evidence.  The groups currently live in scattered locations across the savanna belt of the Sahel, but their ancestral origins remain unknown.  

According to Cesar Fortes-Lima, first author and population geneticist at Johns Hopkins University, the Fulani are genetically understudied despite having a population of over 40 million people.  The results of this research provide valuable insights not only for the Fulani, but for understanding all of Africa’s genetic diversity. 

Researchers included seven African countries of the Sahel belt in their analysis, partnering with Fulani communities and local researchers.  Over 460 Fulani from 18 locations contributed biological samples and anthropological information for this examination. 

The research approach used principal component analysis to look at genetic affinities among Fulani populations.  It then used uniform manifold approximation and projection to explore local genetic relationships.  The results showed relationships among culture, geography and genetics that matched the distribution of the Fulani.

According to Mame [Mah-may] Yoro Diallo, a PhD candidate at Charles University, the analysis showed an east-to-west continuum of genetic differences between local Fulani populations.  The Fulani’s nomadic pastoralist lifestyle influenced their genetic diversity, as their genetics were shaped by interactions with various local groups. 

The study also found a shared ancestral component across all Fulani populations that connects them to early African pastoralism during the Green Sahara period, around 12,000 to 5,000 years ago.  This component is genetically tied to North African groups such as the Berbers in Morocco, suggesting deep historical connections.  

Fulani populations also demonstrate genetic similarity to groups from across western, central and eastern sub-Saharan Africa.  Trans-Saharan trade over the last 500 years likely facilitated further genetic exchanges. 

The full study is published in the journal American Society of Human Genetics. 

Finally, we arrive in the municipality of Cajamarca [ka-ha-MAR-ka] in Tolima, Colombia, where the local restaurant chain Crepes & Waffles announced the discovery of 14 pre-Hispanic tombs over 2,000 years old during the construction of a school.

As reported by the Jerusalem Post, thirteen of the tombs were built using large slabs known as “de cancel,”[cahn-SELL] which formed coffin-like structures typical of pre-Hispanic cultures.  The last was a simple pit tomb.  Two tombs stood out due to their unique construction and complexity, which had never been documented before in Colombia.  Known as special cancel [cahn-SELL] tombs, the structures include a rectangular layout with a large central area.

According to Víctor González, an anthropologist at the Colombian Institute of Anthropology and History, these special tombs contained funerary arrangements with decorated ceramic vessels and bone remains.  They are possibly linked to the Pijao [pee-HAO], a local indigenous community.  The arrangement of slabs indicates that several families held a communal burial for an important regional leader. 

Some of the stone slabs date back over 2,000 years, highlighting the tomb’s ancient origins.  Inside, one tomb contained 1,800 snails buried alive as an offering, while other tombs had a palm textile mat beneath the deceased.  After the Colombian Institute of Anthropology and History assessed the artifacts with the company’s team, they reburied the tombs to preserve them for future research. 

Crepes & Waffles discovered the tombs during the construction of La Leona Educational Institution in 2023.  This is the first school built in Cajamarca in 50 years, benefitting over 400 students.  The company financed the project through Colombia’s work-for-taxes mechanism, which allows companies to divert income tax payments to local projects.  In this case, Crepes & Waffles invested 9 billion pesos to support education and honor the region’s ancestral history. 

This discovery gives valuable insights into central Colombia’s pre-Hispanic funerary practices and social organization.  It demonstrates the region’s unique history and promotes responsible tourism. 

To share the story of the discovery, Crepes & Waffles has created a documentary called “Ecos de la Tierra,” as well as a web platform. 

That wraps up the news for this week!

For more stories and daily news updates, visit Archaeologica on the World Wide Web at www.archaeologica.org where all the news is history! Also, be sure to check out our growing subscription platform, Heritage Broadcasting Service, at heritagetac.org!

I’m Laura Kennedy and I’ll see you next week!