THE 2,100-YEAR-OLD IPHONE
Archaeologists shocked to unearth sleek black device in grave of ancient nomad
THEIR popularity is such it can sometimes seem like every one of us has one.
But archaeologists were still shocked to find what looked like an iPhone in the grave of a woman who died more than 2,100 years ago.
Researchers uncovered the slimline black rectangular object in an area of Siberia known as Russia’s ‘Atlantis’, as it is under water for most of the year.
Closer inspection revealed it to be a lavish 7in by 3in belt buckle made around 2,135 years ago of black gemstone jet rock and inlaid with coins and stones of turquoise, carnelian and mother of pearl.
Researchers have nicknamed the buckle’s owner as Natasha, and believe she was part of the Xiongnu empire, a nation of rich nomads who ruled a huge area across modernday Siberia and northern China from the third century BC to the late first century AD.
Dr Marina Kilunovskaya, of the St Petersburg Institute of Material History Culture, described the find as a ‘scientific sensation’.
She said the expedition team was ‘incredibly lucky’ to have found the burial site, which has evaded the attentions of grave robbers for two millennia. She added: ‘We discovered 110 burials at the Ala-Tey burial site, which is usually 15 metres underwater.’ Ala-Tey lies in a man-made lake in the Tuva republic and is under water for much of the year. Other finds there date back to the Bronze Age and the era of Genghis Khan.
Another of the expedition team, Dr Pavel Leus, said: ‘Natasha’s’ burial with a Hunnu-era (Xiongnu) ‘iPhone’ remains one of the most interesting at this site.
‘Hers was the only belt decorated with Chinese wuzhu coins which helped us to date it.’