EGYPTIAN MUMMIFICATION TECHNIQUE FOUND
This year, scientists have discovered how the ancient Egyptians mummified their dead and what materials they used. Scientists have long investigated how mummified corpses remain virtually unharmed.
Researchers examining the remains found in mummification workshops in Egypt's historic Saqqa region found that plant oils such as juniper, cypress and cedar, as well as resins from pistachio trees, animal fats and beeswax were used in the embalming process.
According to science, the mixtures of these ingredients helped to lubricate the corpses and reduce bad odors, while also preventing the risk of infection and decay.
THE MYSTERIOUS MYSTERY OF AN ANCIENT SCROLL SOLVED
When Mount Vesuvius erupted nearly 2,000 years ago, more than a thousand precious scrolls from the ancient Roman city of Herculaneum were reduced to ashes. But Luke Farritor, a computer science student from the University of Nebraska in the US, managed to read a word from the scrolls with the help of artificial intelligence.
Farritor, who participated in a competition launched by the University of Kentucky, won 40 thousand dollars by deciphering the Greek word "porphyras", which means "purple" in the scroll remains.
OWNER OF 20 THOUSAND YEAR OLD STONE AGE NECKLACE FOUND
Researchers have detected human DNA in a pendant from the Palaeolithic period in Siberia. This is the first time scientists have used a new method to extract DNA from a prehistoric object. The study, published in May, revealed that the pendant, found in the Denisova cave in the Altai Mountains, was a deer tooth about 2 centimeters long with a hole drilled in it for use as a necklace.
MATRIARCHAL SOCIETIES IN THE COPPER AGE
A study published by scientists in July found evidence of a possible matriarchal society in ancient Europe. A lavish Copper Age cemetery unearthed in southwestern Spain in 2008 was found to belong to a female ruler, not a young male ruler as previously assumed.
The study, conducted by researchers from the University of Seville and the University of Vienna, found that women held leadership positions in Copper Age society in Europe between 2900 and 2650 BC.
THE ORIGINAL APPEARANCE OF THE ICEMAN EUTHZI
The appearance of Ötzi the Iceman, discovered in 1991 in the glaciers of the Ötztal Alps on the Austrian-Italian border, has changed since a study published in August.
While scientists had depicted Ötzi as a pale-skinned man with hair and a beard, DNA analysis in the latest study showed that the iceman was actually dark-skinned and bald.
THE SECRET OF ANCIENT ROMAN MARBLE'S DURABILITY REVEALED
It has been found that the material that gives ancient Roman marble its durability is a white substance called "lime chips". In a study published in January, researchers examined 2,000-year-old marble remains from the Roman Empire in the commune of Privermo in Italy's Lazio region. They found that the fragments in question were able to close and repair cracks in the marbles over time. Thus, structures can maintain their durability by self-repairing and remaining undamaged.
