In Photos: Ancient 'Noah' Skeleton Discovered in Iraq

When you purchase through link on our site , we may earn an affiliate commission . Here ’s how it works .

Ancient Skeleton

A 6,500 - twelvemonth - old skeleton rediscovered in the basement of the Penn Museum in Philadelphia was originally unearth in 1929 - 1930 by a squad of scientists led by Sir Leonard Woolley at the site of Ur in what is now southern Iraq . Here , the skeleton in the cupboard , which was coated in wax in the field and lift whole along with surrounding dirt .

Studying a skeleton

The skeleton was tucked away in a wooden box in a storeroom at the Penn Museum . It had no identifying numbers or catalog card . After the human stiff were rediscover , Janet Monge , curator - in - bang , physical anthropology segment of the Penn Museum , and William Hafford , Ur Digitization Project Manager at Penn Museum , inquire the 6,500 - twelvemonth - old skeleton .

What Good Teeth …

Here , a stopping point - up of the upper body and skull of the 6,500 - year - erstwhile skeleton discovered at the site of Ur . The teeth are well preserved .

Original Crate

Composite prototype showing an overhead survey of the 6,500 - year - old skeleton in its original crate .

Ur Pottery

clayware find at the foot of the skeleton during the excavation at the site of Ur in Iraq , now put up in the Penn Museum ’s Near East Section storage .

Ur Burial

The burial with the 6,500 - year - old skeleton ( along with the semi - crushed skull and pottery at the understructure ) in the silt sedimentation , as excavated at Ur during the 1929 to 1930 field time of year .

Plaster Protectoin

A lightweight plaster mixture is placed over the covered underframe to protect it during transportation . The silt is already being slew away under the skeleton to make room for the carrying instrument panel .

Carrying a Skeleton

Workers persuade the complete Ur skeletal frame on its board up 50 feet ( 15 meters ) of cut up stairs and out of Pit F.

Field Map

Pit F and the burial that held the 6,500 - year - old skeleton shown here in a field of force map of the Ur site in Iraq . The buildings occur some 2,000 to 2,500 old age later than the interment , but they reveal the stone pit in relation to the famed Ziggurat and Royal Cemetery .

Field Drawing

The skeleton was discovered beneath the Ur site , about 10 feet ( 3 meters ) above ocean level within a silt layer . The top of the pit was at 56 feet ( 17 m ) , but the ground for most of the site was another 3 feet ( 1 m ) high still .

Field Lists

Father Legrain ’s division of discovery list from the 1929/30 season , with notations place by Dr. Hafford .

A 6,500-year-old skeleton unearthed at the Ur site in Iraq. Here, the skeleton, which was coated in wax in the field and lifted whole along with surrounding dirt.

Janet Monge, curator-in-charge, physical anthropology section of the Penn Museum, and William Hafford, Ur Digitization Project Manager at Penn Museum, investigate the 6,500-year-old skeleton.

Here, a close-up of the upper body and skull of the 6,500-year-old skeleton discovered at the site of Ur. The teeth are well preserved.

Composite image showing an overhead view of the 6,500-year-old skeleton in its original crate.

Pottery found at the foot of the skeleton during the excavation at the site of Ur in Iraq, now housed in the Penn Museum’s Near East Section storage.

The burial of the 6,500-year-old skeleton discovered at the Ur site in Iraq.

$\A lightweight plaster mixture is placed over the covered skeleton, the 6,500-year-old human remains discovered at the Ur site in Iraq, in order to protect it during shipping.$

Workers carry the complete Ur skeleton on its board up 50 feet (15 meters) of carved stairs and out of Pit F.

Pit F and the burial that held the 6,500-year-old skeleton shown here in a field map of the Ur site in Iraq.

Field drawing showing depth of the burial at the Ur site, where the skeleton was located, within Pit F.

Father Legrain’s division of finds list from the 1929/30 season, with notations placed by Dr. Hafford.

Against the background of a greenish and red rock are two images: one of a human skeleton emerging from the dirt and one of archaeologists in hard hats excavating it

A copper-alloy bucket that has turned brown and green shows incised designs of a person and wild animals

A human skull stares at the viewer. It is wrapped in thick cords and covered in an ancient textile. Its jaws hang open.

Skeleton of a Neanderthal-human hybrid emerging from the ground of a rock shelter

Eight human sacrifices were found at the entrance to this tomb, which held the remains of two 12-year-olds from ancient Mesopotamia.

a reconstruction of a Russian warrior in battle gear with a bow and arrow

All About History 119 – Secrets of Stonehenge art

This squat lobster seems to be the star of the Endurance shipwreck.

The taffrail and ship’s wheel.

This skull from Peru has a metal implant. If it is authentic then it would be a potentially unique find from the ancient Andes.

Weapons found in two castles in Japan could be ninja weapons, with some of the weapons possibly being the forerunners to the throwing star. Here, a hand-colored illustration of mid-18th century Japan and two ninjas.

Archaeologists found more than 20 Terracotta Warriors in one of the pits around the tomb of the 1st emperor of China. One of those pits is shown here.