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A farmer in Crete showed me a Roman olive press in his shed
Last summer I was hiking near Rethymno and got lost, so I asked this old guy for directions. He just waved me into his yard and pointed at this giant round stone propped against his goat pen. Turned out it was a Roman olive press weight, probably 2,000 years old, and he used it to hold the gate shut! He said archaeologists came by once in the 80s, took photos, and never came back. It made me wonder how many real artifacts are just sitting in people's barns doing chores. Has anyone else stumbled on something ancient being used for everyday stuff?
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carter.laura21d ago
Is there any way to check if that stone is actually recorded somewhere, because the archaeologists might have logged it and just never followed up? Half the battle with old artifacts is proving they exist on paper, not just sitting in a shed.
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joseph_ellis8520d ago
Yeah, check the county recorder's office first. If the original dig was on private land or public land with a permit, there should be a file somewhere, even just a field notebook scan. Also try the state historic preservation office, they keep databases for exactly this kind of thing. Took me two years to find a survey marker that was logged under a misspelled name, so don't assume it's not there just because the first search came up empty.
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