PAVAN MICKEY: Archaeology

Friday, June 21, 2013

Famous Castle of Krak des Chevaliers in Syria

Krak des Chevaliers, also Crac des Chevaliers, is a Crusader castle in Syria and one of the most important preserved medieval castles in the world. The site was first inhabited in the 11th century by a settlement of Kurds; as a result it was known as Hisn al Akrad, meaning the "Castle of the Kurds". In 1142 it was given by Raymond II, Count of Tripoli, to the Knights Hospitaller. It remained in their possession until it fell in 1271. It became known as Crac de l'Ospital; the name Krak des Chevaliers was coined in the 19th century.

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The Hospitallers began rebuilding the castle in the 1140s and were finished by 1170 when an earthquake damaged the castle. The order controlled a number of castles along the border of the County of Tripoli, a state founded after the First Crusade. Krak des Chevaliers was amongst the most important and acted as a centre of administration as well as a military base. After a second phase of building was undertaken in the 13th century, Krak des Chevaliers became a concentric castle. This phase created the outer wall and gave the castle its current appearance. The first half of the century has been described as Krak des Chevaliers' "golden age". At its peak, Krak des Chevaliers housed a garrison of around 2,000. Such a large garrison allowed the Hospitallers to extract tribute from a wide area. From the 1250s the fortunes of the Knights Hospitaller took a turn for the worse and in 1271 Krak des Chevaliers was captured by the Mamluk Sultan Baibars after a siege lasting 36 days, and then purportedly only by way of a forged letter purportedly from the Hospitallers' Grand Master that caused the Knights to surrender.

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Sunday, February 17, 2013

The Mystery of 2000 Year Old Egyptian Cat

Mummified remains of 2000-year-old Egyptian cat from Portscatho puzzled Robert Gray

The Mystery of a mummified Egyptian cat left languishing in a Roseland attic has been partly solved.

Robert Gray, from Portscatho, inherited the remarkable object from his father, renowned Egyptologist Peter Gray, who died in 1984. Mr Gray never knew what the arcane package might contain, as many mummified cats were sold by disreputable traders in the ancient world with nothing but rags inside. However, X-rays carried out at a Truro veterinary surgery have clearly shown the figure of a cat that has been preserved for more than 2,000 years.

Mr Gray said: "My father acquired the cat in the 1970s as a token of thanks from a museum.

"It's been in the loft in Portscatho, where my father had a house; it's been languishing there for 50 years."

Mr Gray said he had always been unsure whether the mummy bundle actually contained a cat: "You went to the mummifiers and said you wanted to send goodwill to the afterlife and some naughty mummifiers would take your money and stuff a bunch of rags inside."

Mr Gray met Jane Marley, from the Royal Cornwall Museum, to open the X-rays, taken at Clifton Villa Vets.

Mr Gray said: "History was made today. I felt quite emotional when I opened it up. It's something that has lived with me for most of my life and it's revealed itself today."

The X-ray showed the cat's neck was intact, he said, which suggested the cat was a prized pet rather than deliberately killed as a sacrifice to the gods.

Mrs Marley, curator of archaeology and world culture at the museum, said: "It was very exciting to see the X-ray. It's a lovely face and the wrapping is very good – it's been very well kept."

Mr Gray's father also played a part in the story of the 2,500-year-old mummy of Iset Tayef Nakht, kept out of sight in storage at the Royal Cornwall Museum until Dr Gray inquired about it in the 1960s.

It is now the River Street museum's most popular exhibit.

The moment of revelation was filmed by the Cornwall Channel. The programmes are broadcast on Monday at 9pm on Sky channel 212 or Freesat 401.