Until June 2013, that is. Then, new excavations started under the leadership of Dr Chirikure from the University of Cape Town. Chirikure and his team discovered a large area with massive stone walls, huge piles of fossilised animal excrement, pottery, spinning wheels and thousands of glass beads that testify to thriving trade with other countries, probably India and China. Carbon dating indicates that Mapela was as a flourishing community that existed continuously from the early 8th century until well into the 18th.

'Mapela lies virtually untouched in a rather inaccessible area, and is unique in several respects,' says Per Ditlef Fredriksen, associate professor of archaeology at the University of Oslo. Since June 2014 he has been Dr Chirikure's collaboration partner and head of the research project that will dig deeper into the ecological history of Mapela to find out more about how people and the environment mutually affected each other in the Shashi-Limpopo region.

Mapela is unique, but also one of many

Ecological history studies the complex interplay between people and the environment through the centuries.

'In other words, the question is not only how people have adapted to climate change; it's also a fact that urban societies generate climate change,' Fredriksen points out.

The forgotten stonewalled site at Mapela Hill will be used as a case study in the project, but this is only one of a number of urban, historical communities that have been discovered in the Shashi-Limpopo region. The more famous ruined cities of Khami and Great Zimbabwe, both on UNESCO's World Heritage List, are also located in this part of Southern Africa.

'We are undertaking excavations in several locations in the area to obtain a better understanding of the development of all these world heritage sites, since the relationship between them remains unclarified.'

More concerned with the common folk

Until now, researchers have been mostly concerned with the elite and the elite culture that has been uncovered in places such as Great Zimbabwe and other well-known historical sites in the region. The common folk, on the other hand, were not deemed to be of equal interest ‒ until now.

'We wish to learn more about the relationship between the common population and the elite. Part of Mapela's uniqueness is that this site shows traces of all the three elite cultures in the area. The material culture testifies to this fact,' Fredriksen explains.

'Especially the jewellery, but even the fantastically constructed stone walls are extremely rich in symbols. Our findings in Mapela include traces of the stone walls of Khami.'

Using climate data from the start

'Climate and the environment have previously been topics raised in the debate over the urbanisation of Southern Africa. However, this new interdisciplinary project proceeds several steps further in the direction of natural science,' Fredriksen says.

'We include climate data at an early stage when establishing research questions. Our objective is to obtain a deeper insight into the associations between climate, environment and socioeconomic and political strategies.'

Today, Mapela is located in an underdeveloped and marginal agricultural area, and researchers have assumed that this was an arid region earlier as well, and that Mapela was a regional centre of little importance. New findings, however, indicate the opposite.

A society against all odds

Mapela must have been larger than the known locality of Mapungubwe, where the elite is thought to have lived. Perhaps even the climate was quite different in earlier times.

'Was Mapela a community that existed against all odds?'

'That is an extremely interesting question. After all, Mapela continued to exist for centuries, while other communities, such as Mapungubwe, perished. Why? This is one of the questions we will attempt to answer.'

'Could this project provide new knowledge about the ways in which societies have adapted to climate change?'

'It's very complex, but hopefully we will be able to contribute to this,' says Fredriksen. He refers to the achievements of the University of Cape Town in the field of climate research.

'We are in this project to learn from the South Africans, and we have a lot to learn from them,' he concludes.

For more information see: Zimbabwe Culture before Mapungubwe: New Evidence from Mapela Hill, South-Western Zimbabwe. PLoS ONE (2014)

Author: Mari Kildahl | Source: University of Oslo [May 30, 2015]

Elite a citadel of gentlemen

VIA «Winter garden in the Northern club»

Art handbags from Louis Vuitton

VIA «The French house of fashion Louis Vuitton»

Emotional: Both the boys, Jamie (left) and George were left in tears after their rap
And explaining their act to the judges, George said: 'We don't rap about how hard we are, we rap about making a change. But today we are going to rap about our grandads.'
Afterwards, judge Amanda Holden told them: 'Boys, I thought it was an excellent tribute to both your granddads who obviously had a massive influence in your lives.
'I think you both did your granddads proud.'
Proud: The duo's mothers were waiting in the wings, and seemed equally emotional about the performance
Michael McIntyre added: 'It was good lyrically and it was very heartfelt. It was very impressive.'
And Louis Walsh, who was standing in for David Hasselhoff, concluded: 'You're two great role models for young kids. i liked all the positivity of it. i think your grandads are going to be very proud.'
The Right Path unsurprisingly then received three yeses from the judges and are now through to the next round.
Another young act to impress the judges was seven-year-old Robbie Firmin, performing Frank Sinatra.
Dressed in a pinstripe suit and matching hat, the pint-sized boy belted out a rendition of the Sinatra classic My Way.
Mini Blue Eyes: Kent schoolboy Robbie Firmin, seven, sing Frank Sinatra's My Way on tonight's episode of Britain's Got Talent
Music mogul Louis told him: 'Robbie, that was fantastic. I’ve never heard anybody so young sing that song.'
Despite his tender age, Robbie even showed his cheeky personality by telling Louis his auntie - who was waiting in the wings - was looking for a boyfriend, saying: 'And I think she would want you to be it.'
Michael was equally enthused: 'Robbie I thought that was just brilliant, it had everything, you toyed with the audience, they were up, they were down, they were swaying. Robbie you’re a star.'
And, with three yeses, little Robbie was through to the next round.
Opening the show this evening were illusionist duo David, 39, and Karen, 27, who performed a modernised version of a Houdini trick.
Amazing: Judge Michael praised Robbie's professionalism on the stage
Proud: Robbie's family backstage, as well as presenters Ant and Dec, were thoroughly entertained by his act
Before their audition, Karen said: 'We are going to perform an illusion that was originally performed by Houdini but we have modernised it.'
And David added: 'Magic has struggled in the past on Britain's Got Talent but they haven't seen anything like our act yet.'
Karen and David then took to the stage and performed their act which saw David climb into a Perspex box on stilts which is then covered with a cloth.
Karen then waves a large sheet in front of the box and when it drops, David was holding the sheet and Karen is in the box.
Afterwards, Michael said: 'It was brilliant - it wasn't overly cheesy. I never have any idea how anyone does the trick - I'm a complete sucker for it and it was amazing.'
That's magic! Illusionists David and Karen perform tricks for the audience
Amanda added: 'That was annoyingly good. I am never keen on magic because it’s always so small time, people come on with cards and bits of cotton and no one can see anything.
'This is a massive show and if it goes onto the Royal Variety then that is a huge show to perform on, and there was no orange make-up, there was no Lycra, I hate to say it, but it was really good.'
And David concluded: 'You took to the stage and wowed us. You are what this show is about. Congratulations - it was great.'
Needless to say, the duo made it through.
How did they do that? David and Karen finished to rapturous applause from the audience
Delighted: David said performing in front of the judges and a live audience was 'the best moment of my life'
Next up was dog act Mexican Mayhem, led by 59-year-old Melanie, whose dogs Twizzle and Tucker performed a dancing act for the judges.
But altough Tucker did what he was supposed to during the dog agility course, Twizzle was 'a bit tired' and wasn't so up to par.
However, Melanie didn't let the judges and audience's laughter put her off, attempting to coax Twizzle through props including a windy tube.
Michael said: 'If both the dogs did what they were supposed to do, it wouldn’t have been nearly as entertaining as the fact that right off the bat one dog decided, "I’m not going to do this."
That really was mayhem: Melanie and her dogs Twizzle and Tucker's performance didn't quite go to plan
Difficult: Melanie struggled with one of the dogs, who she said was feeling a 'bit tired'
'It was almost like they were a comedy double act and I found it hilarious.'
And Amanda said: 'That doggy debut was hilarious for all the wrong reasons, but I really enjoyed it.'
While David said no tot he act, Amanda and Michael said yes - meaning Mexican Mayhem are through to the next round.
But Mexican Mayhem had some competition from some other dog acts, including Hoover and Jane, who didn't do too well with their tambourine playing act, and Jonathan and Bodhi, whose doggy skateboarding skills were less than impressive.
Up next were 'very good friends' Jon and Jenny, whose act was slightly ruined when Bodhi managed to run back onto the stage, much to the amusement of the audience.
Pianist Paul Gbegaje, 19, was next to take to the stage as the auditions moved up to Manchester.
Before making his way on for his audition, Paul said: 'I wasn't good at football or sports so every lunchtime I was in the music room playing music and composing. What I like about playing the piano is the feeling you get from it, it's a huge high.'
Impressive: Dance Angels Elite impressed the judges with their colourful outfits and enthusiastic performance
And, asked by Amanda if playing the piano was what he wanted to do full time, John replied: 'Definitely. This is how I express myself. I'm not a good talker but I communicate through music.'
While Michael called him sensational and Amanda said he was amazing, David caused drama with the audience when he said the audition was 'really nice'.
He added: 'I'm not sure it was great. But I love your spirit and your tenacity, so come back and show me up.'
Inspired: The Celtic Colleens were praised for their originality thanks to their illuminated Irish dancing routine
Mixed response: Pianist Paul wowed Amanda and Louis, but David wasn't convinced
Lightning fingers: Paul wowed the audience with his super-speedy piano playing
Better than Diversity? Amanda Holden told dance troupe Abyss they weren't as good as their predecessors
2011 Britans Got Talent amazing 7 year old louie kid 21/5/11 2011

Follow The Right Path Britains Got Talent 2011

2011 Britans Got Talent amazing dance group 21/5/11 2011

2011 Britans Got Talent amazing piano boy 21/5/11 2011

David and Karen - Britain's Got Talent 2011 audition.

2011 Britans Got Talent dog tryes to disracted the crowed 21/5/11 2011

source:dailymail

VIA Britain's Got Talent 2011: Teenage rappers The Right Path left in tears after heartfelt tribute to their grandfathers

VIA MISS NORWAY 2011 CONTESTANT - Ellen Svendsen

But four years after the uprising that toppled President Hosni Mubarak and nearly ended his own career, Zahi Hawass can be found in a cramped Cairo office, lamenting the state of the antiquities bureaucracy he once ruled like a pharaoh and dreaming of a new museum whose fate lies in limbo.

His trademark wide-brimmed hat and safari vest may be hung up for now, but he is brimming with ideas on how to revive Egypt's antiquities and bring back tourists after years of unrest.

A long-planned new facility out by the pyramids, called the Grand Egyptian Museum, was intended to open this year, but the government says it is short the one billion dollars needed to complete the project.

"Government routine cannot work for museums," Hawass said in an interview in his office, asserting that state bureaucracy is one of the main reasons the current Egyptian Museum has fallen into disrepair. For the new museum, "the directorship, the curatorship, it can be from America, from Germany, from England, from any place in the world. You need this museum to be international."

He also says private, international sponsorship is needed.

"If you pay $10,000, I put your name, written on the wall of the museum. If you pay $100,000, I put your name on the facade of the museum. If you build a whole gallery, I will name (the gallery after you)," he said, adding that the government should announce that Egyptian monuments belong to the entire world, not just Egyptians.

As to the challenge of moving artifacts from the current museum in downtown Cairo over bumpy roads to the site of the new facility on the city's outskirts, Hawass says "any TV channel" would pick up the tab in return for exclusive rights to document the artifacts' restoration and transport. "They will run in competition to do this," he said.

Hawass knows TV. He was once a staple on the Discovery Channel and had his own reality show on the History Channel called "Chasing Mummies," the promo for which introduced him by saying "100,000 years of history belong to one man... Only he holds the key to the world's greatest ruins."

The productions earned him droves of fans abroad but led to accusations of grandstanding in Egypt, where he was seen by many as a self-promoter who mistreated subordinates and abused his position for personal gain. He lost his job as head of antiquities after the 2011 uprising and faced corruption charges, of which he was later cleared.

But his swashbuckling antics gave a boost to Egyptian archaeology, with fundraising efforts and international tours of King Tut artifacts generating tens of millions of dollars.

His name is still associated with many of Egypt's most famous digs, including grand discoveries such as the Valley of the Golden Mummies in Bahariya Oasis in 1999 and the mummy of Queen Hatshepsut almost a decade later. He has long campaigned to bring home ancient artifacts spirited out of Egypt during colonial times, and once said he had managed to recover 5,000 pieces.

Zahi was an outspoken supporter of his longtime patron Mubarak, and has praised President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi, who led the military overthrow of an Islamist president in 2013 and was elected last year. But that support has not translated into an official role other than promotional work for tourism in Egypt.

When asked about the state of antiquities today, Hawass says things have improved over the last year, carefully avoiding direct criticism of anyone in particular. But he points out that there is still theft, mismanagement and corruption - noting two incidents in recent months in which artifacts were found to have been replaced with replicas.

"This did not happen before," he said, adding that in order to prevent such abuses, "we need to restore the people before we restore antiquities," by boosting employees' salaries and providing them with health insurance.

Hawass insisted during the interview that he is focused on writing and has no desire to return to his previous position as head of the country's antiquities. "People come here every day and ask me to come back... I think I did my duty, and it's time for me now to publish all that I discovered."

But at the glitzy launch of his latest book earlier this month at a ceremony at a five-star hotel attended by hundreds of Cairo's elite, he was less guarded about possible ambitions to return.

"Maybe," he said, as a torrent of fans pressed to take photos next to him.

Author: Brian Rohan | Source: The Associated Press [June 30, 2015]

Club Life of Madrid

The extravagant Night Club «MUSEE» located in Madrid (Spain), is creative symbiosis of gallery of the modern art and the fashionable center of night life of a megacity.

The visual concept of club is concentrated round black color, glasses and mirrors which are a fine collective background for expressive design furniture, the three-meter light-emitting diode screen, pictures of known modern artists, and also various products of video arts and other objects which are of interest, from the point of view of art and creative style of club atmosphere.

The apartments interior of the night club does not carry constant character. Now institution walls decorate works of German photographer Robert Bartholot, the Madrid pictorialist Paco Peregrin and the illustrator from New York Glenn Hilario.

Modern Art Club

The visual holiday is accompanied by musical mixes from hot Madrid DJs, and the unique conceptual status gives to an institution the exclusively elite status.

VIA «Night Club MUSEE [Madrid]»

VIA MISS NORWAY 2011 CONTESTANT - Ellen Svendsen's Photos & Profile

Bright: The teen, who is an aspiring singer, pictured here in a shocking pink bikini
In one she is pictured on a beach with just an American flag wrapped around her while in another she poses in a shocking pink bikini.
Courtney married 51-year-old Hutchison last month in a Las Vegas ceremony.
And while many parents may be horrified at the dramatic age gap, Courtney's mother and father have actually given it all their backing.
RadarOnline today posted a copy of the marriage certificate, which details how the nuptials took place on May 19.
The service was held at the Chapel Of The Flowers and was officiated by Reverend Douglas Gilbert, with Courtney's mother Krista acting as a witness.
With Courtney looking older than her 16 years, many have questioned her age, although the webside claims the documents prove she will be turning 17 on August 29.
Extreme age gap: Hutchison, 51, and Courtney were married in Las Vegas last month
Courtney's father, Alex Stodden, who at 47 is four years younger that his son-in-law, and her mother Krista even gushed about the new addition to the family.
'Every father can only pray to have such a man behind their daughter,' he told Radaronline. 'Doug is the nicest man I’ve ever met in my life.'
He says that Courtney is an intelligent girl and he has no concerns about her decision.
'Courtney is one of the most level headed girls out there and I’m not just saying that because she’s my daughter,' he said.
Yesterday Courtney's mother Krista also told RadarOnline.com: 'We are totally supportive of this marriage. Doug is a wonderful man and we love him.'
She defended her daughter's decision, insisting that she is a 'good Christian girl'.
Mrs Stodden said: 'They are very much in love and we are so supportive of this.
Preening: Courtney's mother insists her daughter is a 'good Christian girl' and has not had plastic surgery
'Courtney was a virgin when she married Doug. She is a good Christian girl.'
Looking well beyond 16, it appears that Courtney has possibly gone under the knife to obtain her more 'mature' looks, but her mother denies this.
She said: 'She is a beautiful girl. She has real breasts, real lips, she's not plastic.'
Controversial: Since the nuptials, the TV star and his teenage bride have been forced to defend their decision
Mr and Mrs. Stodden are also about to pay the newlyweds a visit, by travelling to to Los Angeles, this week.
Courtney and Doug, who have a whopping 35 year age gap, married in Las Vegas last month and Doug proudly posted a picture of himself and the former beauty queen on his website this week.
He wrote: 'Doug Anthony Hutchison and Courtney Alexis Stodden became husband and wife on Friday May 20th, 2011, at 12 pm in The Little Chapel of Flowers in Las Vegas, Nevada.
It's all good: Her father Alex Stodden, who at 47 is four years younger that his son-in-law, has gushed about the new addition to the family
'Mr and Mrs Hutchison live together happily ensconced in their Hollywood Hills home with their lil' pups, Everette and Tuna.'
Since the wedding, the TV star and his teenage bride have been forced to defend their decision.
'We're aware that our vast age difference is extremely controversial,' the couple told E! Online.
'But we're very much in love and want to get the message out there that true love can be ageless.'
The legal age for marriage in Las Vegas is 18, however with parental consent it drops to 16.
Wannabe: Courtney Stodden in a music video posted on YouTube called Don't Put It On Me
Hutchison is best know for his role as prison guard Percy Wetmore in the film adaptation of Stephen King's The Green Mile, for which he received critical acclaim.
He later went on to play supporting roles in films such as Shaft and Bait, I Am Sam, and The Salton Sea.
Currently, he is producing Vampire Killers, described as 'a show around the hunt for a queen vampire and her 13 coven members by an elite group of vampire hunters'.
Courtney is an aspiring country music singer, who, judging by her website, appears to be managed by her new husband, who is listed as the primary contact person for all her business affairs
Hutchison is best know for his role as prison guard Percy Wetmore in the film The Green Mile
On her site she describes herself as a 'recording artist, singer/songwriter, actress and model who currently resides in Ocean Shores, Washington, as well as Hollywood, California'.
The teenager started her career early, signing with a modelling agency at the age of 12.
She was 15 when she entered Donald Trump's Miss Universe Organisation, becoming Miss Ocean Shores, Washington, and going on to represent her city in the Miss Washington USA Pageant.

source: dailymail

VIA God Bless America! Green Mile actor Doug Hutchison's 16-year-old bride is 'a good Christian girl,' insist her parents as new saucy photos emerge