The land of gold, Halayeb and Shalateen

The area is inhabited by the Beja tribe, the largest in eastern Sudan.

Egypt announced the discovery of gold in the Eastern Desert, with reserves at more than 1m ounces. The Shalateen Triangle is rich in oil and other metals, most notably gold.

The conflict around the Shalateen Triangle began in the days of British colonialism which failed to identify who the inhabitants of the Triangle followed. It was annexed to Egypt, but was returned to Sudan in 1902 since it is closest to Sudanese land. The Queen of Sheba is a figure first mentioned in the Hebrew Bible. She brings a caravan of valuable gifts for the Israelite King Solomon ... "with a very great retinue, with camels bearing spices, and very much gold, and precious stones" The tale has undergone elaboration in many cultures. Historians identify Sheba with the South Arabian kingdom of Saba in present-day Yemen. Yemen was one of the colonies of ancient Ethiopia, before the fall of the Axum Empire. The queen's existence is not disputed and her 'lost mines' are legend.

See ----->Gold Mining in Sudan - terra incognita

Falerii Novi revealed through radar

Falerii Novi was a walled city spanning 30.5 hectares about 50km north of Rome. It was founded in 241 BC and was inhabited until around 700 AD. This is the first time a complete ancient city was mapped using ground-penetrating radar. With a population of 3000 people, it boasted an elaborate public bath complex and market building, and at least 60 large houses.

One notable discovery was the location of the city’s water system. GPR showed it was laid out underneath the buildings before they were built, suggesting the city's construction was highly planned.

Statue of Trajan unveiled

The statue of Roman Emperor Marcus Ulpius Nerva Traianus (Trajan) was found last year. The excavation work in ancient Laodicea, Turkey, found the statue, which dates to 113 A.D. It was in 356 pieces. Trajan is best known for his extensive public building program, which reshaped the city of Rome and left numerous landmarks such as Trajan’s Forum, Trajan’s Market and Trajan’s Column. His conquest of Dacia enriched the empire greatly. His campaigns expanded the Roman Empire to its greatest territorial extent. In late 117, while sailing back to Rome, Trajan fell ill and died of a stroke. He was deified by the Senate and his ashes were laid to rest under his column. He was succeeded by his cousin Hadrian.

Roman gold necklace found in Austria

The discovered necklace weighs 32 grams and has a pear-shaped fastener at one end and a button at the other. It was made of a thin flattened gold ribbon and decorated with an irregular stamped ornament. Purity is 90%, with a slight admixture of silver and copper. The discovery was highly unusual.

Archaeologists did not find any other archaeological evidence of Roman presence at the site to better explain the origin of the necklace or it's location. Such necklaces appear most often in richly-adorned tombs of the Late Roman period, but could also be from the latter end of the 3rd-4th centuries AD. This type of jewellery has never been found in Moravia before.