Four Stone Hearth #19

The Four Stone Hearth is posted at Sherd Nerd! This is the 19th edition of the anthropology blog carnival and click the link to Sherd Nerd find a host of links to anthropology bloggers doing their thing in archaeology, cultural anthropology and physical anthropology. Bloggers this month include John Hawks, afarensis, Aardvarchaeology, Testimony of the [...]

Blogging for Anthropology and Archaeology

If asked, I would probably respond that blogging is something I do, first and foremost, for the sheer fun of it. My secondary motivations include gaining writing experience and notoriety however small they may be. I’m no PZ Myers or J-Walk, but he little feedback I get is meaningful and it motivates me when I [...]

Sorry for the Technical Difficulties

And for the decrease in posts. Between general summer busy-stuff and some minor technical difficulties, I’ve not been able to keep up. I recently had some issues with a couple of .css files that are key to the displaying of 3-columns on my blog, as some of you may have noticed. If you saw a [...]

Video: Dawkins vs. McGrath

I reviewed Alister McGrath’s book, Dawkins’ God: Genes, Memes, and the Meaning of Life over a year ago and have been waiting ever since for Dawkins and McGrath to square of and hash out their disagreements. John Loftus at, Debunking Christianity, has posted a link to the Google Video of their recent debate. I’m in [...]

The Four Stone Hearth #18 is up at Clioaudio!

And Alun Salt has done a fantastic job! This looks like the biggest turnout yet. So what are waiting for… click it. Read it.

Ancient Chinese Tombs Destroyed for Modern Consumerism

That’s right: IKEA is branching out to south China and ancient tombs that date as far back as 1800 years are bulldozed for modern home furnishings -Swedish style. “The tops of some of the tombs were chopped off by bulldozers, disclosing some green bricks,” it said, citing a witness. “The situation of another tomb was [...]

Dilmun and Punt: Part III

This is the third in a three part series on the subject of Dilmun and Punt: Two Mythical Origins for Two Early Civilizations. In this final segment, I wrap up with discussion of Dilmun and Punt as places of origin for their respective civilizations and offer a bibliography for students or those interested in researching [...]

Hatshepsut’s Mummy Identified

Several other bloggers and news outlets have already written on this, but in case you haven’t seen the news, Hatsheptsut, the 5th pharaoh of Egypt’s 18th Dynasty, has been identified. I first blogged about Hatshepsut here after visiting the Kimbell Museum of Art’s exhibition. Her reign as pharaoh (ca. 1473 – 1458 BCE) began after [...]

Dilmun and Punt – Part II

In my last part, I discussed the mentions of Dilmun and Punt in Mesopotamian and Egyptian texts and examined their mythical contexts. In this part, I’ll discuss the physical considerations of the two mythical places in archaeological and geologic contexts. Part I: Mythical References Part II: Archaeological and Geological Considerations Part III: Discussion and Bibliography [...]