Moles Unearth Ancient Roman Artefacts

Archaeologists in England have discovered artefacts at an Ancient Roman fort – with the help of moles.

Volunteers from the Altogether Archaeology project have been developing a new archaeological survey technique at Epiacum (Whitley Castle) Roman fort near Alston in Cumbria: surveying molehills. The fort is a scheduled ancient monument, so it is illegal to disturb the ground within it without special consent. However, moles are not subject to scheduled monument legislation and they continue to dig around inside the fort. The moles’ digging disturbs archaeological deposits, thus bringing pieces of pottery and other finds to the surface where they can be gathered from molehills.

Altogether Archaeology volunteers worked with the moles to carry out an investigation of the fort. Using canes stuck in the ground, the fort was divided up into a grid of squares. The molehills in each square were sieved and any finds retained. The BBC reports that so far, the moles have unearthed both fragments of, and intact items made from, pottery and glass, as well as jet jewellery and even a decorative bronze dolphin.

Overlooking the South Tyne Valley, Epiacum is one of the least known, but best preserved, Roman forts in Britain. It was probably built in the early second century at about the same time as Hadrian’s Wall. The fort was garrisoned through until c. 400AD. It lies on the Maiden Way, the Roman road from Kirby Thore to Carvoran on Hadrian’s Wall, and experts think it was linked in some way to Roman lead and silver mining.

http://www.italymagazine.com/news/moles-unearth-ancient-roman-artefacts

Evidence Moles Can Smell in Stereo

Feb. 5, 2013 — Most mammals, including humans, see in stereo and hear in stereo. But whether they can also smell in stereo is the subject of a long-standing scientific controversy.

Now, a new study shows definitively that the common mole (Scalopus aquaticus) - the same critter that disrupts the lawns and gardens of homeowners throughout the eastern United States, Canada and Mexico -- relies on stereo sniffing to locate its prey. The paper that describes this research, "Stereo and Serial Sniffing Guide Navigation to an Odor Source in a Mammals," was published on Feb. 5 in the journal Nature Communications.

"I came at this as a skeptic. I thought the moles' nostrils were too close together to effectively detect odor gradients," said Kenneth Catania, the Stevenson Professor of Biological Sciences at Vanderbilt University, who conducted the research.

What he found turned his assumptions upside down and opened new areas for potential future research. "The fact that moles use stereo odor cues to locate food suggests other mammals that rely heavily on their sense of smell, like dogs and pigs might also have this ability,"Catania said.

Read on:  http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130205123011.htm

Roman artefacts churned up by moles

Earth burrowing moles are responsible for digging up some of Roman Britain’s deepest secrets in a remote corner of West Northumberland. 


They may be the bane of farmers across the land, but some moles are doing the human race a huge historical favour. 

Epiacum, an isolated Roman fort close to the Cumbrian border 12 miles south of Hadrian’s Wall, is a scheduled ancient monument and as such, any excavation is banned on site. 

But humans has never yet introduced any law understood by Mr Mole – and scores of them are churning up Roman artefacts at Epiacum – or Whitley Castle – as they push out their molehills. 

Whitley Castle stands on 1,000-acre Castle Nook Farm, and yesterday a team of 37 volunteers, under the watchful eye of English Heritage, sieved through those molehills to see what our subterranean allies had brought up. 

Among the finds were: 

A quarter-inch-long piece of rare Samian ware, tableware known as the classic Roman ceramic discovery; 

A number of pottery rim fragments from Roman serving bowls and earthenware pots; 

A jet bead from a Roman necklace or bracelet. 

“We’ve had a good day,” smiled farmer’s wife Elaine Edgar, who is heading plans to develop and promote the fort and this month landed a £49,200 Heritage Lottery grant to help her along. 

“The Samian ware is the sort of thing the Romans used to keep up with the Joneses and we found a quarter-inch flat, round piece of it. 

“Last year we found a small bronze dolphin-shaped piece which we believe to have been a tap-head from the wash-house. It was just lying there on the side of a molehill. 

“We also found a number of nails, which settled the argument of whether the Romans used wood or stone for their buildings. 

“And this year we have found some really nice pieces – even the weather was kind to us.” 

All the molehill sites at Epiacum, two miles south of Slaggyford and near the Cumbrian border, were ‘gridded out’ 48 hours earlier in 10-metre squares with rods and tape. 


Continued:  http://archaeologynewsnetwork.blogspot.co.uk/2012/04/roman-artefacts-churned-up-by-moles.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed:+TheArchaeologyNewsNetwork+%28The+Archaeology+News+Network