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probably to the age of the wood, but fortunately, pieces of material have been taken, and that exposes the actual wood, so that's a good place for us to take the sample from. >> the procedure should leave little perceptible trace of damage in theory, but it's a nerve-racking business. >> i'm just gonna take a small bit from here. >> yes, tom, as small as possible, a very, very small piece. >> we only need about 10 milligrams. >> that's equivalent to a few grains of salt, but this relic has been venerated here for almost 1,000 years. every speck counts. >> it's very, very hard, this wood. >> could that mean anything to
do with its age? >> possibly. i mean, it looks -- it actually looks old, this wood. but it's just, you know, it looks aged. so far, so good. >> tom is satisfied with his sample. now they can head back to the lab to test for the first time this piece of the true cross. eight centuries before the waterford cross arrived in ireland, helena will continue her tour of the holy land, and with the backing of her son, the emperor constantine, she will transform the landscape. she builds churches on the site of christ's birth in bethlehem and one to commemorate his last moment on earth. >> constantine made it legal to practice christianity. helena gave christians places to practice christianity. before her arrival, there were no christian buildings in this land. christians met here on the mount of olives to commemorate jesus'
power with them because the true cross is a source of religious power. people are going to respect you for having a piece of this. >> the legend of helena's discovery would change the course of christian history, but could what she found have been the actual cross jesus died on? now the modern-day investigation into the true cross is gathering pace. the city of waterford is the oldest city in ireland. it boasts a long history of christianity and a museum that holds an important relic of the true cross. >> what's fascinating is that it is said to have been given directly by the pope to the king of ireland, and rome, as we know, had access to relics from jerusalem. >> archaeologist georges kazan is joined by scientist tom higham. he is also from oxford university in england, and he will put the relic to the test.
a relic said to have been discovered by the empress helena 300 years after christ's death. eight hundred years after that, the pope would give this piece of it to the king of ireland. when the pope gives you a relic of the true cross, he's almost saying, you know, "you're a real king. you've got that legitimacy. you've got that power." >> for the first time in history, a prized relic of the true cross will be carbon-dated. professor tom higham has over 20 years experience. >> there's quite a lot of what looks like lacquer that's across the top of the wood, and lacquer will have a different radiocarbon concentration,
An international team, led by researchers from the Universities of Vienna and Tübingen, and the Max Planck Society, has identified five new human fossils from the key site of Denisova Cave in southern Siberia. The remains, which include three...
E-Mail IMAGE: A closeup from a section of the main pit. The joining, closed pipi shells in the centre (right of the 550mm tape increment) were radiocarbon dated to the period 1430-1460... view more Credit: University of Otago The discovery of ancient kumara pits just north of Dunedin dating back to the 15th century have shone a light on how scientific evidence can complement mātauranga Maori around how and where the taonga were stored hundreds of years ago. A new study published in the science journal PLOS ONE reports that early Polynesians once stored kumara - American sweet potato - in pits dug into sand dunes at Purākaunui, eastern Otago, less than 30km north of Dunedin. The pits were first discovered in 2001 and are found over 200km south of the currently accepted South Island limit of cooler-climate Māori kumara storage.
Waikato Uni science cuts will have 'profound' impacts, renowned alumnus says 1 Apr, 2021 02:41 AM 8 minutes to read Oxford University archaeological scientist Professor Tom Higham - pictured in this file photo in his old lab in Hamilton - has hit out at cuts just confirmed by Waikato University. Photo / Derek Flynn Oxford University archaeological scientist Professor Tom Higham - pictured in this file photo in his old lab in Hamilton - has hit out at cuts just confirmed by Waikato University. Photo / Derek Flynn A world-renowned Kiwi archaeological scientist has hit out at his old university over job cuts he says will have a "profound" impact on research around the globe.