1998 in archaeology explained

The year 1998 in archaeology involved some significant events.

Explorations

• Location of site of Portuguese carrack Esmeralda wrecked off the coast of Oman in 1503.^[1]

Excavations

• August - Excavation begins at the Belitung shipwreck, an Arab dhow wrecked off Belitung island in Indonesia about 830 AD discovered earlier in the year; it will yield the biggest single collection of Tang dynasty treasures found in one location.^[2]
• October - Excavation begins at "Seahenge" ('Holme I'), a prehistoric timber circle off Holme-next-the-Sea in England discovered earlier in the year.
• November 5 - 20 - British female Mark IV tank D51 Deborah, knocked out at the Battle of Cambrai (1917), at Flesquières in the north of France.^{[3] [4]}
• Igeum-dong, a settlement-burial-ceremonial site of the Mumun Pottery Period in Sacheon, Korea (excavations finish in 1999).
• Excavations at Urkesh by the Deutsche Orient-Gesellschaft.
• Excavations begin at Pichvnari in Georgia by an Anglo-Georgian joint team.^[5]
• Excavations begin at Taposiris Magna in Egypt.

Finds

• Bronze Age Tell es-Sakan in the State of Palestine was discovered during construction of a residential building complex.^[6]
• September - The largest Shapwick Hoard of Roman coins, including the largest number of silver denarii ever found in Britain.^{[7] [8]}
• Whydah Gally, wrecked off Cape Cod, Massachusetts, in 1717, the first authenticated pirate shipwreck ever discovered.^[9]
• Artognou stone found at Tintagel Castle, Cornwall.^[10]
• World's oldest wet-rice (rice paddy) agricultural feature, c. 800 BC, at Okhyeon site, Ulsan, Korea.
• Human remains at 36 Craven Street, London, former home of Benjamin Franklin, probably dissected in the anatomy school run here by his friend, surgeon William Hewson, 1772 - 74.^[11]
• A floor mosaic depicting Orpheus is found at Prusias ad Hypium in Turkey.^{[12] [13]}

Publications

• Flemming Kaul - Ships on Bronzes: a study in Bronze Age religion and iconography.
• Ian M. Stead - The Salisbury Hoard.
• Patricia Wattenmaker - Household and State in Upper Mesopotamia: specialized economy and the social uses of goods in an early complex society.

Other events

• Exhibition is held at the Harvard University Semitic Museum, Cambridge, Massachusetts: "The Sphinx and the Pyramids: One Hundred Years of American Archaeology at Giza". A model of the Giza plateau is prepared for it.

Deaths

• April 18 - Linda Schele, American Mayanist (b. 1942)^[14]
• May 11 - Vronwy Hankey, British Near Eastern archaeologist (b. 1916)^[15]
• November 24 - John Chadwick, English co-decipherer of Linear B (b. 1920)^[16]

Notes and References

1. David Mearns. Mearns. David L.. David. Parham. Bruno. Frohlich. A Portuguese East Indiaman from the 1502–1503 Fleet of Vasco da Gama off Al Hallaniyah Island, Oman: an interim report. International Journal of Nautical Archaeology. 2016-03-14. 46. 2. 331–350. 10.1111/1095-9270.12175. free. 2016IJNAr..45..331M .
2. Web site: Belitung Wreck Details & Photos. Marine Exploration. 2011-02-15. https://web.archive.org/web/20081001090716/http://maritime-explorations.com/belitung%20artefacts.htm. 2008-10-01.
3. Web site: Discovery. The Tank of Flesquières. Association du tank de Flesquières. 2019-01-17.
4. Book: Taylor, John A.. Deborah and the War of the Tanks 1917. Barnsley. Pend & Sword. 2016. 9781473848344.
5. Web site: Vickers. Michael. Welcome to the Pichvnari website. 2009. 2022-11-20.
6. Miroschedji . Pierre de . Sadek . Moain . 2000 . Tell es-Sakan, un site du Bronze ancien découvert dans la région de Gaza (information) . Comptes rendus des séances de l'Académie des Inscriptions et Belles-Lettres . fr . 144 . 1 . 126 . 10.3406/crai.2000.16103 . 0065-0536 . free.
7. News: Gold coin hoard unveiled. BBC News. 10 January 2001 . UK. 2019-05-28. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20090212225545/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/1109308.stm. 2009-02-12.
8. Web site: Treasure Annual Report 1998–1999. Department for Culture, Media and Sport. UK. 2000. 2010-07-12. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20120301112519/http://www.ncmd.co.uk/docs/treasurereport199899.pdf. 2012-03-01.
9. Commonwealth of Massachusetts v. Maritime Underwater Surveys, Inc.. 403. Mass.. 501. Mass. Supreme Court. 1988. https://scholar.google.com/scholar_case?case=2602674804977561500&hl=en. 2012-10-15.
10. Web site: BBC News. UK. Clue to King Arthur discovered. 2017-04-17.
11. Hillson, Simon. Waldron, Tony. Owen-Smith, Brian. Martin, Louise. Benjamin Franklin, William Hewson and the Craven Street bones. Archaeology International. 2. February 2006. 14–16. 10.5334/ai.0206. free.
12. Encyclopedia: Prusias ad Hypium (Konuralp or Üskübü) Turkey. The Princeton Encyclopedia of Classical Sites. 2020-11-10.
13. Web site: Tarih Turizmi – Konuralp'ın Mihenk Taşlatından ... Prusias Antik Kentinin Dokusu. Konuralp. tr. 2020-11-07.
14. News: Obituary: Linda Schele. https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220501/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/obituaries/obituary-linda-schele-1158003.html . 2022-05-01 . subscription . live. The Independent. London. 2017-03-21. 1998-05-22.
15. News: Obituary: Vronwy Hankey. https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220501/https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/obituary-vronwy-hankey-1166868.html . 2022-05-01 . subscription. The Independent. 2017-05-30. 1998-06-22.
16. News: Obituary: John Chadwick. https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220501/https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/obituary-john-chadwick-1189033.html . 2022-05-01 . subscription. The Independent. 2017-05-30. 1998-12-04.