Proterosuchid archosaur remains from the Early Triassic Bulgo Sandstone of Long Reef,New South Wales

Two associated anterior dorsal vertebrae of a primitive archosaur are described from the Early Triassic (Dienerian–Spathian) Bulgo Sandstone at Long Reef, New South Wales, Australia. Character states including anteroposteriorly elongate centra, dorsal neural spines with height greater than length, the possible presence of intercentra, double-headed rib articulations and well-developed apical tables on the neural spines suggest affinity with proterosuchid archosauriforms and permit some comparisons with previously described Australian taxa. The Bulgo Sandstone vertebrae represent the first record of archosaurian body fossils from the Sydney Basin and are one of only a handful of occurrences thus far documented from the Triassic of Australia.     

New Finds from the Cremains in Tomb II at Aegae Point to Philip II and a Scythian Princess

Earlier osteoarchaeological studies on cremains of the two individuals from Tomb II at Aegae led to endless debates on the identity of the dead. After re‐examining the bones with Computerized Tomography (or CAT scan) (CT) and X‐Ray Fluorescent scanning (XRF) support, our research team has found new evidence identifying the dead man in the main chamber as Philip II and the woman in the antechamber as the daughter of King Atheas killed in a battle against Philip II in 339BC. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

欧亚草原东部的考古发现与斯基泰的早期历史文化

新疆的考古材料对探讨斯基泰的来源和早期斯基泰文化同欧亚草原东部地区的关系等问题有重要意义。新疆及其周边地区在斯基泰西迁之前已经和丰提克地区有互动关系,三道海子文化在其中起了主要作用,其扩张也是斯基泰西迁的主要原因。斯基泰西迁后,欧亚草原进入以游牧为主要经济方式的时代。     

Life on horseback: palaeopathology of two Scythian skeletons from Alexandropol,Ukraine

In 2006, two skeletons were analysed that were previously excavated from the periphery of a Scythian burial mound, near the village of Alexandropol in southern Ukraine. Dated to ca. 325 BC, both remains are male. The first is that of a youth in his late teens who exhibits indications of biological stress and degenerative changes to the spine in the form of a Schmorl's node. The second is a middle‐aged individual with extensive healed lesions due to trauma to the right humerus and clavicle with associated bony changes of the elbow and spine. Stable isotope analyses indicate a diet based on C3 plants. Their skeletons suggest a rigorous life on horseback. Both may have served as sacrificial victims. Historical records document the strangulation of attendants and their placement around the periphery of royal burial mounds. Grave goods suggest that both were warriors, although the youth lacks the traumatic injuries exhibited by the older male. The individuals from Alexandropol may have served a Scythian king in life and in death. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Climate change and the expansion of the Scythian culture after 850 BC: a hypothesis

In south-central Siberia archaeological evidence suggests an acceleration of cultural development and an increase in the density of nomadic populations around 850 BC. We hypothesize a relationship with an abrupt climatic shift towards increased humidity caused by a decline of solar activity. Areas that initially may have been hostile semi-deserts changed into attractive steppe landscapes with a high biomass production and high carrying capacity. Newly available steppe areas could be invaded by herbivores, making them attractive for nomadic tribes. The central Asian horse-riding Scythian culture expanded, and an increased population density was a stimulus for westward migration towards southeastern Europe.     

Mobility and diet in the Iron Age Pontic forest‐steppe: A multi‐isotopic study of urban populations at Bel'sk

High mobility among Scythian populations is often cited as the driving force behind pan‐regional interactions and the spread of new material culture c.700–200 bce , when burgeoning socioeconomic interactions between the Greeks, Scythian steppe pastoralists and the agro‐pastoral tribes of the forest‐steppe played out across the region. While interregional mobility central to warrior lifestyles is assumed to have been a defining feature of Scythian populations, strikingly few studies have investigated human mobility among communities located along the steppe and forest‐steppe boundary zone. Here, we document movement and dietary intake of individuals interred at Bel'sk, a large urban settlement in Ukraine, through strontium, oxygen and carbon isotope analyses of human tooth enamel. The results provide direct evidence for limited mobility among populations from Bel'sk, demonstrating the movement into, and out of, urban complexes. Strontium and oxygen isotope analyses reveal that groups at Bel'sk remained local to the urban complex. Dietary intake, reflected in carbon isotopes, was based on domesticated crops and livestock herding. The combination of low mobility alongside dietary evidence suggests local groups engaged in sedentary agro‐pastoral subsistence strategies that contrast sharply with the picture of highly mobile Scythian herders dependent on livestock portrayed in historical sources.     

Possible neurofibromatosis in a Scythian period individual from the cemetery of Aymyrlyg,Tuva, South Siberia

The article presents evidence of possible neurofibromatosis in a female cranium discovered in a Scythian period (7th–2nd century BC ) context from the cemetery complex of Aymyrlyg, Tuva, south Siberia. The diagnosis of neurofibromatosis has been suggested on the basis of enlarged orbits, signs for the presence of a soft tissue tumour in the left orbit, facial abnormalities and the survival age of the individual. Neurofibromatosis is a congenital condition which, to the best of the authors' knowledge, has previously been described in only one other instance in the palaeopathological literature. Differential diagnoses includes angiomata, dermoid cysts and developmental glaucoma. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The use of stereoscopic images taken from a microdrone for the documentation of heritage – An example from the Tuekta burial mounds in the Russian Altay

To analyse, interpret and manage our cultural heritage it is important to have an accurate and realistic representation of it. Documenting this heritage involves geographic techniques such as photogrammetry, for which a lot of rather expensive and extensive platforms are already in use. However, a microdrone, a recently developed unmanned aerial vehicle platform is a cheaper and easy to handle tool. To test the very limits of the microdrone and its accompanying data-acquisition and data-processing software, we collected data from a remote area in Tuekta, in the Russian Altay Mountains. This paper presents the challenges faced during the whole photogrammetric procedure from planning the flights to producing the final deliverables.