UK's oldest hand-written document 'at Roman London dig'

Roman tablets discovered during an excavation in London include the oldest hand-written document ever found in Britain, archaeologists have revealed.

The Museum of London Archaeology (MOLA) said it had deciphered a document, from 8 January AD 57, found at the dig at Bloomberg’s new headquarters.

The first ever reference to London, financial documents and evidence of schooling have also been translated.

Over 700 artefacts from the dig will go on display when the building opens.

According to MOLA, the tablets reveal the first years of the capital “in the words of the people who lived, worked, traded with and administered the new city”. 

Director Sophie Jackson said the findings had “far exceeded all expectations” and would allow archaeologists “to get closer to the first Roman Britons”. Read more.

Trove of wood, bamboo slips unearthed

NANCHANG, Nov. 9 (Xinhua) – Nearly 3,000 wooden tablets and bamboo slips have been discovered in a tomb in Jiangxi Province as of Monday, revealing details of life of ancient people 2,000 years ago.

Lead archaeologist Yang Jun said, the written records unearthed in the main tomb of Haihunhou, or Marquis of Haihun, were copies of reports submitted to the emperor and the empress dowager, as well as medical and agricultural books dating back to the Western Han Dynasty (206 B.C.- 25 A.D.).

Two teams have been set up to preserve and decipher the precious documents, the provincial archaeology institute said.

Haihun was the ancient name of a tiny vassal in north Jiangxi. Read more.

Cuneiform tablet: account of expenditures, record of deliveries of animals for the festival of sowing seed

Period: Ur III

Date: ca. 2043 B.C.

Geography: Mesopotamia, Tell Drehem (ancient Puzrish-Dagan)

Culture: Neo-Sumerian

Medium: Clay

Dimensions: 11.6 x 6.9 x 2.7 cm (4 5/8 x 2 3/4 x 1 1/8 in.)

Classification: Clay

Provenance: Acquired by the Museum in 1911, through an exchange of objects with the Pierpont Morgan Library, New York.

Cuneiform tablet: balanced account of Shu-ili

Period: Ur III

Date: ca. 2040 B.C.

Geography: Mesopotamia, Tell Drehem (ancient Puzrish-Dagan)

Culture: Neo-Sumerian

Medium: Clay

Dimensions: 6.9 x 4.2 x 2 cm (2 3/4 x 1 5/8 x 3/4 in.)

Classification: Clay

Provenance: Acquired by the Museum in 1911, through an exchange of objects with the Pierpont Morgan Library, New York.

Cuneiform tablet: record of the account of Bamu

Period: Ur III

Date: ca. 2048 B.C.

Geography: Mesopotamia, Drehem (ancient Puzrish-Dagan)

Culture: Neo-Sumerian

Medium: Clay

Dimensions: 3.7 x 3.4 x 1.6 cm (1 1/2 x 1 3/8 x 5/8 in.)

Classification: Clay

Provenance: Acquired by the Museum in 1911, through an exchange of objects with the Pierpont Morgan Library, New York.

Cuneiform tablet: receipt of reeds

Period: Ur III

Date: ca. 2040 B.C.

Geography: Mesopotamia, probably from Tell Drehem (ancient Puzrish-Dagan)

Culture: Neo-Sumerian

Medium: Clay

Dimensions: 3.7 x 3.3 x 1.6 cm (1 1/2 x 1 1/4 x 5/8 in.)

Classification: Clay

Provenance: Acquired by the Museum in 1886, purchased from the Reverend William Hayes Ward.

Cuneiform tablet: receipt of straw

Period: Ur III

Date: ca. 2040 B.C.

Geography: Mesopotamia, probably from Tell Drehem (ancient Puzrish-Dagan)

Culture: Neo-Sumerian

Medium: Clay

Dimensions: 3.4 x 3.1 x 1.6 cm (1 3/8 x 1 1/4 x 5/8 in,)

Classification: Clay

Provenance: Acquired by the Museum in 1886, purchased from the Reverend William Hayes Ward.

Cuneiform tablet case impressed with cylinder seal

Period: Ur III

Date: ca. 2040 B.C.

Geography: Mesopotamia, probably from Drehem (ancient Puzrish-Dagan)

Culture: Neo-Sumerian

Medium: Clay

Dimensions: 5.1 x 4.5 x 3.4 cm (2 x 1 3/4 x 1 3/8 in.)

Classification: Clay

Provenance: Acquired by the Musuem in 1886, purchased from the Reverend William Hayes Ward.

Clay tablet archive from a temple, Content: administrative issues, 6th century BC © Vorderasiatisches Museum, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin, Photo: Olaf M. Teßmer.

Curse tablets were used by the ancient Greeks and Romans to inflict pain on thieves and rivals in politics, athletics, domestic disputes, and affairs of the heart. Wonder who incurred the wrath of this author? http://bit.ly/TWi10m

Curse Tablet, about 100 B.C., found in Morgantina, Sicily. Lead, 3 11/16 x 1 13/16 in. (9.4 x 4.6 cm). Museo Archeologico Regionale of Aidone

Archaeologists Find Japan's Oldest Census Registration Records

OSAKA, June 13 (Bernama) — Japanese archaeologists have found tablets containing census registration records dating back to the seventh century within remains located in Dazaifu city in Fukuoka Prefecture, southwestern Japan.

The tablets are believed to be the oldest census registration records in Japan’s history, Xinhua news agency reported.

The city’s Cultural Assets Section said the team, which examined the tablets with infrared rays, found at least 16 names of families along with their titles and relationships written on both sides of one of the tablets measuring 31 centimeters long and eight centimeters wide.

The description on the tablet also includes some words related to changes of address and historical names of places that were used between the year 685 and 701, leading archaeologists to believe that tablets were used as a form of census registration during that period. Read more.

Black Magic Revealed in Two Ancient Curses

At a time when black magic was relatively common, two curses involving snakes were cast, one targeting a senator and the other an animal doctor, says a Spanish researcher who has just deciphered the 1,600-year-old curses.

Both curses feature a depiction of a deity, possibly the Greek goddess Hekate, with serpents coming out of her hair, possibly meant to strike at the victims. Both curses contain Greek invocations similar to examples known to call upon Hekate.

The two curses, mainly written in Latin and inscribed on thin lead tablets, would have been created by two different people late in the life of the Roman Empire. Both tablets were rediscovered in 2009 at the  Museo Archeologico Civico di Bologna, in Italy, and were originally acquired by the museum during the late 19th century. Although scholars aren’t sure where the tablets originated, after examining and deciphering the curses, they know who victims of the curses were. Read more.