Craig Barker
LightNews LightNews
banner
drcraigb.bsky.social
Craig Barker
@drcraigb.bsky.social
3.1K followers 1.1K following 540 posts
Mediterranean archaeologist & museum education professional. Director of the Paphos Theatre excavations, Paphos Cyprus & Head of Public Engagement at the Chau Chak Wing Museum at the University of Sydney.
Cypriot archaeologist on Gadigal land.
Posts Replies Media Videos
drcraigb.bsky.social
'This is how sailors found the port of Nea Paphos in Cyprus during the Roman era: there may have been two lighthouses'
#archaeologynews 🏺

www.labrujulaverde.com/en/2026/01/t...
This is how sailors found the port of Nea Paphos in Cyprus during the Roman era: there may have been two lighthouses
An international team of archaeologists has shed new light, quite literally, on one of the most important ports in the eastern Mediterranean during the Roman period: Nea Paphos, in Cyprus. Using geogr...
www.labrujulaverde.com
January 19, 2026 at 11:09 AM
drcraigb.bsky.social
Sydney has just opened our brand new fish market today so that seems a good enough reason for a fish mosaic from Kourion in Cyprus for #MosaicMonday today
Roman mosaic likely 3rd or 4th century from Kourion in Cyprus. Geometric designs around a rectangular panel with a single fish in the centre.
January 19, 2026 at 9:56 AM
Reposted by Craig Barker
archsengage.bsky.social
We're so proud to launch our new lecture series, with the inaugural lecture given by @annelisebaer.bsky.social! Come hear Annelise speak on utilising SoMe for public outreach on 17/3/26.

Sign up below. 👇🏾#pubarch
irishashyt.bsky.social Dr Aisling Tierney @irishashyt.bsky.social · 7d
👋 Archaeology community, we have some fun news!

Archaeologists Engage is pleased to welcome leading social media expert Annelise Baer for our inaugural public talk covering the benefits and pitfalls of public engagement on social media.

Free tickets: www.eventbrite.com/e/archaeolog...
#archaeology
text on left side says archaeologists engage in conversation with annelise baer and on right shows brown hair woman stood leaning against a wall
January 13, 2026 at 11:12 AM
drcraigb.bsky.social
It’s #appreciateadragonday

"Spanos and the Forty Dragons" is a Cypriot folk tale about a clever young man (Spanos) who used wit, not strength, to trick and defeat forty dragons blocking his village's water supply.

The story was retold in this amazing stamp series in 2013

#dragonappreciationday
January 17, 2026 at 12:43 PM
Reposted by Craig Barker
theclassicslibrary.bsky.social
News - Pompeii’s Water Quality Analyzed - Archaeology Magazine

archaeology.org/news/2026/01...
News - Pompeii’s Water Quality Analyzed - Archaeology Magazine
MAINZ, GERMANY—According to a statement released by Johannes Gutenberg University, a study of carbonate deposits […]
archaeology.org
January 16, 2026 at 7:12 AM
Reposted by Craig Barker
artinsociety.bsky.social
Metre-high marble head of Antinous, the teenage Greek male favourite of the Roman Emperor Hadrian. When the head was unpacked on its return from an exhibition tour, it was obvious that someone had given it a couple of kisses (Louvre, 2nd century)
January 16, 2026 at 6:57 AM
drcraigb.bsky.social
‘Massive 1,500-Pound Amphora Find Reveals Roman Trade in Cyprus’

#archaeology

greekreporter.com/2026/01/15/a...
Massive 1,500-Pound Amphora Find Reveals Roman Trade in Cyprus - GreekReporter.com
New excavations at Agios Georgios of Pegeia reveal how Roman trade, ritual, and harbor construction shaped life in Cyprus.
greekreporter.com
January 15, 2026 at 7:58 PM
Reposted by Craig Barker
alisonfisk.bsky.social
A small and exotic Buddha found far from home in #VikingAge buildings on the Swedish lake island of Helgö.

Probably made in the Swat Valley, the Buddha travelled some 5,000 km from its place of origin, encapsulating the idea of long-distance trade during the Viking Age.

#Archaeology
My photo shows a bronze Buddha statuette sitting on a double lotus flower against a grey background in a glass display case. The bronze is now light green in colour, but would originally have appeared like burnished gold. The Buddha is sitting cross-legged with feet upturned. His right hand rests against his knee and his left arm is raised holding his monastic robe. A raised dot on the forehead represents Buddha’s third eye. His expression is serene, with smiling lips, and eyes gazing ahead. His facial features were highlighted with silver, tin, and black niello. There is glass residue in the eyes and the raised dot on the forehead was highlighted with a layer of gold. Height 8.4 cm, width 6.4 cm. It was probably made in the Swat Valley (present-day Pakistan) in the late 500s-mid 600s. It was excavated from Viking-age settlement buildings dated AD 800. It isn’t known how it arrived at its final destination but this exotic object travelled far, hinting at far-flung trade routes. I saw the Helgö Buddha on display at the British Museum’s ‘Silk Roads’ exhibition in October 2024, on loan from Historiska Museet, Stockholm.
January 14, 2026 at 6:27 PM
drcraigb.bsky.social
For anyone in Nicosia this looks a great event!
January 15, 2026 at 2:46 AM
Reposted by Craig Barker
squigglyrick.bsky.social
Some thoughts on Adelaide Writers' Week and the moment we find ourselves in. It's all just so grinding. rick-morton.ghost.io/the-great-si...
The Great Silencing
Last week it snowed heavily twice in Paris, turning the city into a frigid, monochrome fantasy land over three days, and at the weekend I popped into the Musée Marmottan Monet for a spot of impression...
rick-morton.ghost.io
January 14, 2026 at 9:25 PM
drcraigb.bsky.social
Classical reception street art in Newtown, Sydney.

Including Australia’s closest thing to an Olympian god - Nick Cave

#classicalreception
Street art with an emu in front of a pair of composite or psuedo-Ionic columns street art featuring a koala in front of a colonnade Street with Nick Cave as a god from Olympus in a chiton in front of of Uluṟu
January 14, 2026 at 3:11 AM
drcraigb.bsky.social
'Cyprus Rewrites Cat History: 9,500-Year-Old Burial Proves Human-Feline Bond Began with Love, Not Worship'

Not actually news; just a short report on the 2004 discovery of the cat in 9500-year-old Neolithic human burial Shillourokambos
#archaeology #cats

greekcitytimes.com/2026/01/09/c...
greekcitytimes.com
January 12, 2026 at 11:44 PM
Reposted by Craig Barker
sarahebond.bsky.social
Roman baby swaddle votive or exactly what I look like with my electric blanket on the couch during Iowa wintertime? Who can say. 🥶

(Votive of swaddled infant, Etruscan, 300-200 BCE, Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto, Canada)
Image: A mold-made earthenware votive effigy of a swaddled infant, Etruscan, 300-200 BCE, at the Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto
January 11, 2026 at 9:18 PM
drcraigb.bsky.social
Sydneysiders, join us next week at the Chau Chak Wing Museum for a hands‑on Shadow Puppet Workshop! We will be guiding kids through creating and performing with their own puppets, exploring light, shape, and storytelling as they bring their characters to life.
www.sydney.edu.au/museum/whats...
January 11, 2026 at 2:28 AM
Reposted by Craig Barker
neilmatheson66.bsky.social
Metropolis was released #OTD 1927. Director: Fritz Lang. #Filmsky
January 10, 2026 at 7:01 AM
drcraigb.bsky.social
Fastest 10 years ever
January 10, 2026 at 2:03 AM
drcraigb.bsky.social
‘Justinian-era harbour uncovered at ancient Peyia’ (Cyprus)

#archaeologynews

cyprus-mail.com/2026/01/08/j...
Justinian-era harbour uncovered at ancient Peyia
Evidence of a vast harbour, alongside more than 700 kilograms of Late Roman amphora fragments, has been uncovered during excavations at the ancient port of Peyia, the antiquities department announced ...
cyprus-mail.com
January 8, 2026 at 4:24 AM
Reposted by Craig Barker
theduncanmackay.bsky.social
Well, you all know I love a carnyx…but an Iceni carnyx? Oh my giddy aunt…
www.theguardian.com/science/2026...
‘Extraordinary’ iron age war trumpet find in Britain may have Boudicca links
Bronze instrument or carnyx dug up in Norfolk in area inhabited by Celtic tribe led by warrior who fought Romans
www.theguardian.com
January 7, 2026 at 6:49 AM
drcraigb.bsky.social
“The party told you to reject the evidence of your eyes and ears. It was their final, most essential command.”
royalpratt.bsky.social Gregory Pratt @royalpratt.bsky.social · 12d
White House Posts False Jan. 6 Narrative on Riot’s Anniversary. A new web page on the White House site blames the Capitol Police and Democrats for the pro-Trump mob riot, absolving the president of responsibility and calling participants “innocent.” www.nytimes.com/2026/01/06/u...
January 6, 2026 at 11:07 PM
drcraigb.bsky.social
As the fifth Ashes test takes place a few kilometres from me; I cannot tell how much I love this recent acquisition by the National Gallery of Australia just I just became aware of.

'Cricket', c. 1929
Edith Lawrence (1890-1973)
Linocut print
NGA 2024.324
searchthecollection.nga.gov.au/object/371365
Print in four colours of a cricket match in play with both pitch and players (batters and fielders) in a typical 1920s angular Art Deco fashion.
January 6, 2026 at 5:30 AM
drcraigb.bsky.social
'Exhibition unveils the Myths of Cyprus'

cyprus-mail.com/2026/01/03/e...
Exhibition unveils the Myths of Cyprus
Mythical figures from Cypriot folk tradition, legends and more are the focus of an upcoming multi-thematic exhibition by the Press and Information Office (PIO), which will take place at the Medieval H...
cyprus-mail.com
January 4, 2026 at 12:00 AM
drcraigb.bsky.social
Feel somewhat humbled to have shared my name and my entire time on this fragile planet with such a majestic creature.
A reminder that we are all connected.

Rest in peace big fella
yasharali.bsky.social Yashar Ali 🐘 @yasharali.bsky.social · 16d
1. Heartbreaking news: the largest big tusker elephant in Kenya has died.

I feel so fortunate that I got to see Craig in the wild.

He was 54 years old and, thankfully, died of natural causes.

It’s safe to assume that Kenyan authorities have already removed his tusks to keep them from poachers.
Craig, one of Kenya’s last great “big tusker” elephants, stands facing the camera on a dry savanna landscape. His massive, curved ivory tusks sweep nearly to the ground as dust rises around his feet. The elderly bull’s weathered skin and calm posture emphasize his size, age, and rarity against the open plains and pale sky.
January 3, 2026 at 9:18 AM
drcraigb.bsky.social
Well it’s 2026 in Australia now.

Happy new year all and I hope for peace and prosperity in the new year.
Fireworks!
December 31, 2025 at 1:14 PM
drcraigb.bsky.social
'Paralimni-Deryneia unveils ancient treasures to boost cultural tourism' (Cyprus)

#archaeologynews 🏺

in-cyprus.philenews.com/local/parali...
Paralimni-Deryneia unveils ancient treasures to boost cultural tourism (photos)
Cyprus municipality opens Neolithic settlement, enhances Queen's Tomb and pursues repatriation of bust from Berlin as part of heritage strategy.
in-cyprus.philenews.com
December 30, 2025 at 12:39 PM
drcraigb.bsky.social
The 'Unearthed' exhibition at the Museum of Sydney is one of the best I have seen this year & one of the best about archaeology as process.

Archaeology in Australia has not been brilliant at capturing our own story but the accompanying excavation documentary is a great view
mhnsw.au/unearthed-ex...
Unearthed – Exhibition film
What was it like to work on the first Government House excavations? In this film, some of the archaeologists who worked on the site reflect on their experiences and the impact the work had on their li...
mhnsw.au
December 30, 2025 at 11:45 AM