In search of the wild fava bean

Like all food crops, the faba, or fava, bean -- a nutritious part of many the diet of many cultures diets -- had a wild ancestor. Wild faba is presumed to be extinct, but Weizmann Institute of Science researchers have now identified 14,000-year-old remains of seeds that offer important clues as to the time and place that this plant grew naturally. Understanding the ecology of the wild plants' environment and the evolution they underwent in the course of domestication is crucial to improving the biodiversity of the modern crop. The findings were reported in Scientific Reports.

14,000-year-old faba seeds contain clues to the timing of the plants' domestication 
[Credit: Weizmann Institute of Science]

Dr. Elisabetta Boaretto, head of the "Timing of Cultural Changes" track of the Max Planck-Weizmann Center for Integrative Archaeology and Anthropology, and Dr. Valentina Caracuta, a former postdoctoral fellow in Boaretto's group who is currently a researcher at the University of Salento-Italy, had previously shown that the 10,200-year-old faba beans discovered in three archaeological sites in Lower Galilee were the earliest faba bean ever domesticated.

The new finding -- faba seeds from an archaeological site, el-Wad, on Mount Carmel in Northern Israel -- came from the earliest levels of an excavation that had been carried out by Profs. Mina Evron and Daniel Kaufman, and Dr. Reuven Yeshurun, all of Haifa University. The people living at that time, the Natufians, were hunter-gathers, and thus the plants there were growing wild. Boaretto and Caracuta performed radiocarbon dating and micro X-ray CT analysis on the preserved pieces of bean to pinpoint their age and identify them as the ancestors of the modern fava bean.

"Sometime between 11,000 and 14,000 years ago, people in this region domesticated faba -- around the same time that others farther north were domesticating wheat and barley," says Boaretto. Faba, a nutritious legume, is eaten around the world; in some places it is used for animal feed; and it fixes nitrogen in the soil. "Understanding how this plant was adapted to the habitat of the Carmel 14,000 years ago can help us understand how to create new modern varieties that will better be able to withstand pests and tolerate environmental stress," she says.

This research is supported by by the Max Planck-Weizmann Center for Integrative Archaeology and Anthropology "Timing of Cultural Changes"; and the Exilarch Foundation for the Dangoor Research Accelerator Mass Spectrometer. The faba bean sample was dated at the Dangoor Research Accelerator Mass Spectrometer D-REAMS, Weizmann Institute of Science.

The Weizmann Institute of Science in Rehovot, Israel, is one of the world's top-ranking multidisciplinary research institutions. Noted for its wide-ranging exploration of the natural and exact sciences, the Institute is home to scientists, students, technicians and supporting staff. Institute research efforts include the search for new ways of fighting disease and hunger, examining leading questions in mathematics and computer science, probing the physics of matter and the universe, creating novel materials and developing new strategies for protecting the environment.

Source: Weizmann Institute of Science [April 07, 2017]

byUnknown

in Archaeology, Israel, Near East

April 07, 2017

In search of the wild fava bean

Like all food crops, the faba, or fava, bean -- a nutritious part of many the diet of many cultures diets -- had a wild ancestor. Wild faba ...

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Newly renovated Tomb of Christ at risk of ‘catastrophic’ collapse

The restoration project of the Edicule in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem has recently been completed, but scientists warn that the church may still suffer ‘catastrophic’ collapse.

The ornate shrine known as the Edicule encloses what is believed to be the tomb of Jesus Christ inside the 
Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem. The shrine has just undergone a year-long restoration 
[Credit: Oded Balilty, AP for National Geographic]

According to National Geographic, scientists at the National Technical University of Athens said some portions of the shrine’s foundation actually sit on rubble of earlier buildings, and unexplained tunnels and voids. The foundation mortar of the structure has also crumbled due to long term exposure to moisture. The discovery was made with ground-penetrating radar and robotic cameras.

The 19th-century Edicule after restoration [Credit: Oded Balilty, AP for National Geographic]

“When it fails, the failure will not be a slow process, but catastrophic,” Antonia Moropoulou, NTUA’s chief scientific supervisor told the National Geographic.

To address this risk, scientists at the National Technical University of Athens are proposing a 10-month project that would cost $6 million euros which would involve removing the fractured foundation and installing drainage system around the perimeter of the rotunda.

Source: Protothema [April 02, 2017]

byUnknown

in Archaeology, Heritage, Israel, Near East

April 02, 2017

Newly renovated Tomb of Christ at risk of ‘catastrophic’ collapse

The restoration project of the Edicule in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem has recently been completed, but scientists warn tha...

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Crusader wreck tells tale of Crusader Holy Land conquest

Christian knights and Mameluke warriors were fighting on the walls. Now the wreck of a 13th century ship reveals the desperate bid to save the Holy Land.

A Crusader-era book illumination showing a Christian ship at sea. A wreck near the port of Acre dates from
 the fall of that city — and the last hours of the Crusader state [Credit: WikiCommons]

The port of the city of Acre was a vital lifeline for Crusader knights and settlers alike. Through it streamed European pilgrims, horses, fighting men and manufacturing goods, all vital to sustain Christianity’s tenuous hold in what would later become Palestine, Lebanon, Syria and Israel.

In return, ships carried precious cargoes of sugar, spice and exotic textiles. But, in 1291, it all came crashing down.

The Egyptian Mameluke Sultan Al-Ashraf Khalil — leading an army of 100,000 men and horses — rolled back the Christian defences, weakened by almost two centuries of fighting to maintain control over the Holy Land.

European interest was failing — despite efforts by Pope Gregory X to summon reinforcements. And the militant orders — international organisations of warrior-monks — established to defend the Holy Land had become engrossed by their own wealth and the games of thrones back home.

Gold Crusader florins found in Acre harbour by diving archaeologists 
[Credit: IAA]

What support did arrive for those few on the front line was invariably too little, too late.Eventually, the European knights fell back to their final fortress — the city of Acre. Here, besieged, they were totally reliant on support from the sea.

According to the news service Haaretz, a Crusader-era shipwreck recently found in the bay of Acre has been dated to the time of the desperate last stand by a handful of knights and mercenaries on the walls of the city.

Acre is now part of northern Israel.

The wreck had been severely damaged by dredging. But parts of the timber hull, including its keel, survived. Excavation work began last year. The wood has been carbon-dated between 1062-1250, which neatly brackets the Crusader era.

Glazed crusader bowl with the mark of St.Peter's key, found in crusader Acre 
[Credit: Michal Artzy]

But archaeologists led by Doctor Ehud Galili and Professor Michal Artzy of Haifa University have uncovered traces of its cargo — and a stash of 30 gold florins. These narrow its date down to that of the final siege of the nearby city.

Fragments of ceramics, including jugs and bowls, reveal the ship was carrying imports from Cyprus and Italy. There are also rusted remains of a few metallic objects, including anchors.

It is possible the wreck may have belonged to King Henry II of Cyprus who had reportedly sent a force of 40 ships filled with reinforcements. Just one month later, King Henry’s forces would retreat by sea as the city fell.

Historic records of the disaster tell the tale of fleeing nobles attempting to bribe boat and ship owners for safe passage out of the Middle East. But few managed to make their way on-board.

A glazed crusader bowl with bird decoration, found in the marine excavation at Acre. Imported from Paphos, Cyprus 
[Credit: Michal Artzy]

A handful of Templar, Teutonic and Hospitaller warrior-monks fought stoically to buy time for the civilian population, but were eventually forced back to their strongholds after the city’s walls collapsed.

But, by May 18, the Grand Masters of the Hospitallers and Teutonic Knights had fled. The Grand Master of the Templars had been killed. Only a few equipped and trained knights remained alive.

Defeat, they knew, was inevitable. The last stand was fought in a Templar tower at the very edge of the sea. Accounts tell of the city’s inhabitants throwing themselves into the harbour in a desperate bid to reach the departing ships.

The Templar knights were only overcome when Mameluke engineers undermined their fortress’ walls. Among the rubble were 100 of the Sultan’s best men who had been inside, fighting the Crusaders hand-to-hand.

A painting showing the desperate stand by The Hospitalier Maréchal Matthieu de 
Clermont while defending the walls at the Siege of Acre, 1291. Painting by 
Dominique Papety (1815–49) [Credit: WikiCommons]

Western Christianity would never again establish a firm foothold in the Middle East. After repeated attempts to mobilise yet another crusade, the Templars were accused of witchcraft and homosexuality in an effort by French King Philip IV to seize their wealth. The order was eventually disbanded, and its key officers burnt at the stake.

The Hospitallers retreated to Rhodes, where they established a navy in anticipation of a fresh crusade. The Teutonic Knights shifted the focus of their holy war to the Baltics.

The entire city of Acre was levelled, and left abandoned until rebuilt nearly three hundred years later.

Author: Jamie Seidel | Source: News Corp Australia Network [April 02, 2017]

byUnknown

in Archaeology, Israel, Near East, Underwater Archaeology

April 02, 2017

Crusader wreck tells tale of Crusader Holy Land conquest

Christian knights and Mameluke warriors were fighting on the walls. Now the wreck of a 13th century ship reveals the desperate bid to save t...

Read More