Naked Archaeology, From The Naked Scientists

This month's edition of Naked Archaeology hails from Poseidon's Realm: we find out how synchrotrons can help in the preservation of the famous raised wreck, the Mary Rose and how diving diggers investigate entire ancient landscapes hidden beneath the seas. Plus, in Backyard Archaeology Tom Birch puts his mic to the anvil to find out about the deep dominion of archaeometallurgy. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

This month has seen an archaeological spoil heap the size of Nero's party leftovers. And it's been quite a month for Roman archaeologists who've just announced the positive identification of a very rare portrait of young Nero from the site of Fishbourne (the interview was recorded the day before 3D scans confirmed his identity). Also announced was the discovery of a very likely candidate for Nero's great banqueting hall. Our Anglo Saxon man, Tom Birch, discusses the incredible Staffordshire hoard and in Backyard Archaeology we find out about the Aberdeen database of ships with contributors... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

We find out how the Romans got to grips with building a 73.5 mile-long wall, why humans were bejewelled 82,000 years ago and how a disease called brucellosis indicates our ancestors were eating meat 2.6 million years ago. Plus, in Backyard Archaeology we find out how to spot an archaeological fake! Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Sometimes archaeologists know there's a site worth digging but don't quite know where to find it! We join the search for the original city of Venice, otherwise known as Altinum, the tomb of King Herod and the lost naval ship: HMS Diana. Plus, in Backyard Archaeology Duncan Howitt-Marshall discovers a hidden message on an Egyptian coffin. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

We dive into the underwater traps at Lake Huron, explore the origins of hunting and play a tune on the world's oldest flute. Plus, in Backyard Archaeology Tom explores the depths of UCL's museum. Flute music kindly provided by W. Hein, University of Tbingen. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

2009 is The University of Cambridge's 800th birthday and what better way to celebrate than by digging an archaeological trench? We take a trip to the local Cambridgeshire village of Cottenham where volunteers with the Fen Edge Archaeology Group and the Higher Education Field Academy (HEFA) are digging up their gardens. Will they turn up a pile of Victorian bone china or some Anglo-Saxon pottery? Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

We strip down the science of dating this month by taking a look at rehydroxylation. We unearth some of the oldest pottery in the world, find out why Minoan pottery was so fashion-conscious and discuss a very famous piece of fired clay: the Phaistos Disk. Plus, in Backyard Archaeology Tom takes a trip to Scandinavia to find out about modern-day Norwegians. Are they really all Vikings? Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Archaeology bared this month includes the 'long sleep' of human innovation, a technological accomplishment in the form of a 2000 year-old millefiori bowl and we explore the origins of iron metallurgy. Plus, ourBackyard Archaeologist finds out all about slag. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

This month we explore the mysterious anchors buried off the shores of Cyprus, the unusual burial practices in Malta and the highly decorative shipsheds of the Romans. Plus, in Backyard Archaeology Tom Birch explains the tell-tale signs of a Roman road, otherwise hidden in a field. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

This month we explore the archaeology of war. We explore the earliest-known domestication of horses, find out about an armed Elizabethan privateer ship and rediscover the egyptian tomb of Thutmoses III's seal-bearer, Amenhotep. Plus, in Backyard Archaeology we hear about the future of WWII pillboxes. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

The sins of the past are uncovered in this month's Naked Archaeology, including chemical warfare; consuming desires for chocolate and finding the hidden Greek brothels. We also explore how one of the early species of hominin, Australopithecus africanus, wasn't the greedy ape we once thought. Plus, in Backyard Archaeology we find out how the energy sources that power our homes and cars can affect maritime archaeology. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

The mitochondrial story of tzi, or the Tyrolean iceman, is unearthed in this month's Naked Archaeology. Also, how the Americas were populated and the study of zooarchaeology are under the trench-o-scope. Plus, Tom Birch takes us on a tour of the only hill in Cambridge in Backyard Archaeology. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

The tale of TB's earliest victims, the science of archaeology underwater and the first shamanic burial all go under the trowel in this month's Naked Archaeology. We also uncover where all the dirt comes from that buries the past, and in this month's Backyard Archaeology Irving Finkel takes us on a tour of the Babylon exhibition at the British Museum. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Mummified foetuses found in Tutankhamun's tomb go under the genetic spotlight to find out who they were and where they came from, we dig up the history of the domestication of the first crops, and have scientists discovered King Solomon's mines? Plus, in this month's Backyard Archaeology Tom Birch explores what a hole in the road can reveal... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Why cutting down a precious tree species brought the Nasca people to their knees, how Pompeii is receiving a makeover, a new source of Neanderthal flints unlocks the secrets of early inhabitants of Britain and a Peruvian irrigation system that can make your eyes water. Plus home-grown archaeology with the back-yard archaeologist Tom Birch who goes out on location with Time Team's Carenza Lewis. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists