Notices by Nina Willburger (ninawillburger@social.anoxinon.de)

Timeline cleanse! 🐕✨

A charming Egyptian dog figurine made of faience, dating 2120–1795 BC.

An adorable glimpse into the past 😊

On display at Neues Museum Berlin.

#archaeology #egyptology

A figure merging human and fish-like features: scales, wide-open eyes, downturned corners of the mouth.
Discovered at the Mesolithic settlement of Lepenski Vir, dating 6200–5950 BC.
It belongs to a group of ca 100 figures. They emerged, when early farming communities migrating from Anatolia encountered a long-established Mesolithic population deeply rooted in the traditions of the Danube region.

On display at the "The Shaman from Bad Dürrenberg" @MuseumHalle, a loan from National Museum Serbia

The Venus of Willendorf: A 29,500‑Year‑Old Masterpiece and one of the most iconic works of Paleolithic art. Standing just 11.1 cm tall, the figurine was carved from oolitic limestone and originally coated with red ochre, a pigment that still leaves faint traces today. Over the decades, scholars have proposed many interpretations: A fertility figure, amother goddess, a good‑luck totem, an aphrodisiac, a self‑portrait, made by a woman looking down at her own body.

📷 me

#archaeology

Simply beautiful: clasped hands from group statue of Akhenaton and Nefertiti.

Made of quartzite, 18th dynasty, ca. 1350 BC, from Amarna, #Egypt

On display at Neues Museum, Berlin

📸 me

#archaeology #egyptology

For #RomanSiteSaturday let's go to Leptis Magna on the coast of #Libya. It's one of the best preserved #Roman cities.
The city was founded in the 7th century BC by the Phoenicians. In Roman times it became one of the most important cities of North Africa and a major trading post. Leptis Magna was the birthplace of the emperor Septimius Severus.

📷 Georg Steinmetz

#archaeology #RomanArchaeology

A rare finde: A Roman brush!

Roman brush fragments are sometimes difficult to interpret; in this case, the function may relate to textile production. However, it may also have been used as a tool for cleaning tasks. Found in Bregenz.

On display at Vorarlberg Museum

Strikingly impressive, yet profoundly unsettling: Exceptionally low water levels on the Danube have exposed parts of the foundations of the ancient Constantine Bridge, giving archaeologists a rare opportunity to document what they describe as one of the Roman Empire's most impressive engineering achievements.

👉 https://www.reuters.com/business/environment/low-danube-water-levels-bulgaria-expose-roman-era-bridge-2026-08-06/

A bronze helmet of Corinthian type. Herodotus references this helmet as an element of the Greek hoplites' gear. Numerous Corinthian helmets were discovered within the sanctuary at Olympia, offered as dedications to Zeus. The perforations along the rim served as attachment points for a interior lining.

Dating 6th century BC. On display at Kunsthistorisches Museum Vienna.

📷️ me

#archaeology

For this week's #MosaicMonday, here is a mosaic from Trier depicting the philosopher Anaximander of Miletus (c. 610–c. 546 BC), who is credited with inventing the sundial. The mosaic dates to the 3rd century AD.

#archaeology #romanarchaeology

I rarely have the opportunity to check out finds in our storage facilities. However, today I was able to do so, and I came across this rather grumpy #dolphin with a Cupid. 🐬

Cupid riding a dolphin was a popular motif in Roman decorative art.

📷me

The so-called Venus of Hohle Fels (a cave on the Swabian Jura) was carved in mammoth ivory some 40,000 years ago. The 6cm figurine is the world’s oldest known representation of a human. It lacks a head. Instead, a carved ring is placed above the shoulders. The ring preserves polish, suggesting that the figurine was worn as a pendant.

On display at our branch museum Urmu Blaubeuren.

📷 me

@Infoseepage Yrs, these vessels are so cool!

One of my favorite glass vessels: A marvellous Roman vessel in the form of a pig, made of blue glass. It was used to hold ointment or perfume.
Found in a burial in Cologne. Dating late 2nd/early 3rd century AD.

📷️ Römisch-Germanisches Museum Köln

For #MosaicMonday this fantastic photo of a mosaic (and a lovely fish 🐟) that was discovered in the submerged ruins of #Roman Baiae.

📷 Parco Archeologico Campi Flegrei

Fascinating world of ancient #glass: This magnificent #Roman #fish-shaped flask was found during the excavation of a storeroom in the ancient city of Begram/Afghanistan.
It was probably made in a workshop at Alexandria/Egypt, dating 1st/2nd century AD. Begram was a major trading city at the Silk Road, the flask was found in one of two storerooms of a merchant, filled with luxury good.
National Museum of Afghanistan

#archaeology

For #MosaicMonday the mosaic in the so-called winter triclinium of the #Roman villa at Antandros. A kantharos and birds are depicted in the centre of the mosaic.

The villa dates back to the 4th c. AD. Antandros is located in the ancient Troas region, 2 km east of the town of Altınoluk, Turkiye.

#RomanArchaeology #archaeology

One of the oldest known musical instruments!

A Paleolithic #flute made from a #swan's wing bone some 40,000 years ago! The preserved length is about 12.6 cm with three finger holes. The original length of the flute is unknown.

Found in the Geißenklästerle Cave near Blaubeuren. This is one of eight known flutes found on the Swabian Jura. The finds suggest that music played an important role in this region.

📷 me

#archaeology

Apparently it's #WorldTurtleDay! A #Roman enamelled copper alloy fibula (a decorative pin for fastening garments) in the shape of a #turtle. 🐢

Dating 2nd century AD.

On display at Kunsthistorisches Museum Wien

📷 me

#RomanArchaeology #archaeology

A very stylish #Roman enclosed boot with a highly decorative and intricate cut-out design that would have shown off the wearer’s socks.
Found in London, dating c. 75-125 AD.

📷 me, taken in 2021 at the Museum of London

#archaeology #RomanArchaeology

For #AncientSiteSaturday the aqueduct of Segovia/Spain. It was built in the late 1st/early 2nd c. AD and supplied water to the city until the 20th century. It's one of the best-preserved #Roman aqueducts and an impressive work of engineering.

📷 #archaeology #RomanArchaeology