Astonishing Find: Archaeologists Unearth Exceptionally Preserved 2,000-Year-Old Child's Shoe with Perfectly Intact Laces!
A remarkable archaeological find in Austria reveals an ancient shoe, over 2,000 years old, belonging to a child, astonishingly preserved with its original laces still intact
A well-preserved shoe, estimated to be over 2,000 years old, has recently been discovered in Austria. Remarkably, the laces of this ancient leather footwear remain intact, offering a glimpse into the past. Based on its design and size, approximately equivalent to EU 30 (US 12), experts at the German Mining Museum Bochum-Leibniz Research Museum for Geo-resources believe that it was likely crafted during the 2nd century BC.
Archaeologists recently unearthed the shoe in the western village of Dürrnberg, where rock salt mining has been carried out since the Iron Age, according to a recent press release. The exceptional preservative properties of the salt are believed to have maintained the shoe in an exceptional state of preservation.
"Our ongoing research endeavors at Dürrnberg have continually yielded significant discoveries, allowing us to conduct scientific investigations into the earliest mining practices. The remarkable state of the recently unearthed shoe has been hailed by Professor Thomas Stoellner, the head of the Research Department at the German Mining Museum, as he expressed in the official press release."
has discovered the ancient pearling town, believed to be the oldest in the Persian Gulf, on Sinniyah Island in the emirate of Umm al-Quwain, United Arab Emirates.
Archeologists have unearthed what is believed to be the "oldest town associated with pearling" in the Persian Gulf. The excavation work at Dürrnberg aims to gather insights into the lives and work of Iron Age miners, as stated by the museum.
The shoe was unearthed along with other organic artifacts, such as a fragment of a wooden shovel blade and fur remnants that may have belonged to a hood. The laces found on the shoe were possibly crafted from flax or linen, as stated in the announcement.
Discovering a child's shoe underground holds great significance as it signifies the presence of children. The museum emphasized this, stating that it is "always something special". Stoellner further expounded on this, explaining that organic materials typically deteriorate over time. Therefore, the discovery of items such as a child's shoe, as well as textiles and excrement like those found on Dürrnberg, provides an exceptionally rare glimpse into the daily lives of Iron Age miners.
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