In 1944, at the height of World War II, ditchdiggers working in a field known as <a href="https://www.museumskanderborg.dk/history-of-alken-enge">Alken Enge</a>, on the Jutland Peninsula in <a href="https://www.atlasobscura.com/things-to-do/denmark">Denmark</a>
It was quickly determined that the bones were not evidence of a recent murder&#8212;they were actually thousands of years old
Alken Enge itself has long been used as a &#8220;water-meadow,&#8221; an area that&#8217;s regularly flooded for controlled irrigation
another crew of ditchdiggers maintaining the field made another disturbing find: more human bones
This discovery finally prompted archaeological excavations of the roughly 100-acre (40-hectare) site
As the slow and methodical work of excavation progressed
it soon became clear that the entire wetlands area was littered with human bones
the Alken Enge water-meadow had been a lake
but the individuals whose remains were scattered around the site had not died from drowning
Their deaths had been more horrific&#8212;and what happened to their bodies after death even more macabre
Many of the bones displayed the marks of raw <a href="https://pure.au.dk/portal/en/publications/sacred-landscape-and-rituals-of-violence-in-early-iron-age-alken-">violence</a>: cuts from edged weapons
The archaeologists working in Alken Enge soon reached the conclusion that they were excavating not a series of individual graves
but rather the physical remains of a single catastrophic event: a massacre or a battle that had taken place during the early years of the first century
Some 2,000 years ago was a period of extreme violence and social unrest in Northern Europe. The Roman Empire&#8217;s push towards the Elbe River had brought the disciplined legions of Rome into conflict with Germanic tribes who occupied what&#8217;s now Germany and southern Scandinavia. The tribes put up a hard fight against their Roman foes, even wiping out three Roman legions during the infamous <a href="https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/hermannsdenkmal">Battle of Teutoburg Forest</a>
The Germanic warriors were described by Roman authors as being tall
they would howl and scream battle cries at the lines of Roman legionnaires
boosting the volume by using their shields like megaphones
It is easy to imagine the fear that such displays could rouse in the dreary gloom of an autumn day
on the edges of a dark forest as a fog descended
To the Roman author Tacitus, the only positive thing about the Germanic tribes was their tendency to fight amongst themselves, rather than unite to unleash their full strength against Rome: &#8220;<a href="https://www.humanitiesweb.org/spa/icq/ID/37">Long, I pray, may foreign nations persist, if not in loving us, at least in hating one another</a>,&#8221; he wrote
And such intertribal strife may have been behind the mass burial at Alken Enge
and other artifacts found with the human remains are of a local style
strongly suggesting the two sides of the conflict came from the Jutland Peninsula or nearby islands
There is no evidence of a Roman presence at the battle
According to a paper published in PNAS about 21st-century excavations at Alken Enge, which uncovered more human remains, <a href="https://www.pnas.org/doi/epdf/10.1073/pnas.1721372115">as many as 380 individuals were thrown into the Iron Age lake</a>
The actual battle appears to have taken place an unknown distance from Alken Enge, and the dead <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S2352409X16302723">were left on the battlefield there for as long as a year</a>
exposed to the air and scavenged by foxes and wolves
according to analysis published in 2016 in the Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports
someone&#8212;archaeologists don&#8217;t know who&#8212;collected what was left of the bodies
cutting away remaining ligaments and rotten flesh before depositing the bones in the lake
The reason for what must have been both a significant effort and a rather unpleasant task is not clear. The deposition of war booty and sacrifices&#8212;human, animal, and material&#8212;in sacred bogs and lakes was a common custom across Northern Europe during the <a href="https://library.oapen.org/handle/20.500.12657/46717">Iron Age</a>
The bogs may have represented portals or gateways through which the living could commune with the gods
but in the absence of clearer textual records describing the purposes of such depositions
what&#8217;s clear from the analysis of the bones found in Alken Enge was that most of the dead had little to no prior battlefield experience
The bones and craniums show no signs of healed cuts
or other injuries typically found on the skeletons of seasoned warriors
they fought for their tribe and their chief
their bodies may well have served as trophies and sacrifices to the gods of their enemies
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Germany-registered active funds are ignoring the boom experienced by the country&rsquo;s defence sector
Morningstar figures examined by Citywire Germany show
Just &euro;1.1bn is invested by actively managed funds into four key German defence companies
comprising a mere 0.04% of the total active mutual fund volume
which amounted to &euro;2.6tn as of the end of February.&nbsp;
whose subsidiary ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems &ndash; which builds submarines &ndash; is scheduled to go public soon
When the team of archaeologists from Aarhus University began finding human bones in Alken Enge bog in eastern Denmark three years ago
they weren’t sure what to think—but they knew they wanted to return
After more than two months in the field this past summer
they have now recorded the remains of nearly 250 individuals
all part of what project archaeologist Mads Holst believes is evidence for a catastrophic military event that occurred around A.D
At this time the Roman Empire had reached its northern boundary just 185 miles south of Alken
resulting in turmoil and increased militarization of the local tribes in response to the empire’s expansion
may have been killed in battle—their wounds are consistent with battle damage—and then buried in the bog in some sort of ritual.&nbsp;
Holst is certain there is a great deal more to uncover and to learn
“We have only excavated about 1,600 square feet so far
But we know from surveying and doing small test excavations that there are finds from an area that covers almost 100 acres,” says Holst
“The scale of the conflict is much larger than we expected and reveals a much higher level of organization than most ancient descriptions of these tribes would have you believe.”&nbsp;
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147.45.197.102 : 78ac1ee9-e526-44a3-89c7-a47839ff
Background: Optimal lesion formation during catheter-based radiofrequency current (RFC) ablation depends on electro-mechanical tip-tissue coupling measurable via contact force (CF) and local impedance (LI) monitoring. We aimed to investigate CF and LI dynamics in patients with previous atrial fibrillation (AF) ablation who frequently present with heterogenous arrhythmia substrate.
Methods: Data from consecutive patients presenting for repeat AF or atrial tachycardia ablation using a novel open-irrigated single-tip ablation catheter were studied. RFC applications were investigated regarding CF, LI and the maximum LI drop (∆LI) for evaluation of ablation efficacy. ∆LI &gt; 20 Ω was defined as a successful RFC application.
Conclusion: Combination of CF and LI may aid monitoring real-time catheter-tissue electro-mechanical coupling and lesion formation within heterogenous atrial arrhythmia substrate in patients with repeat AF or atrial tachycardia ablation.
Volume 13 - 2022 | <a class="ArticleLayoutHeader__info__doi" href="https://doi.org/10.3389/fphys.2022.1001719">https://doi.org/10.3389/fphys.2022.1001719</a>
Background: Optimal lesion formation during catheter-based radiofrequency current (RFC) ablation depends on electro-mechanical tip-tissue coupling measurable via contact force (CF) and local impedance (LI) monitoring
We aimed to investigate CF and LI dynamics in patients with previous atrial fibrillation (AF) ablation who frequently present with heterogenous arrhythmia substrate
Methods: Data from consecutive patients presenting for repeat AF or atrial tachycardia ablation using a novel open-irrigated single-tip ablation catheter were studied
RFC applications were investigated regarding CF
LI and the maximum LI drop (&#x02206;LI) for evaluation of ablation efficacy
&#x02206;LI &#x0003e; 20&#x000a0;&#x003a9; was defined as a successful RFC application
Results: A total of 730 RFC applications in 20 patients were analyzed
Baseline CF was not associated with baseline LI (R &#x0003d; 0.06
A mean CF &#x0003c; 8&#x000a0;g during ablation resulted in lower &#x02206;LI (&#x0003c;8&#x000a0;g: 13&#x000a0;&#x003a9; vs
&#x02265; 8&#x000a0;g: 16&#x000a0;&#x003a9;
Baseline LI showed a better correlation with &#x02206;LI (R &#x0003d; 0.35
p &#x0003c; 0.001) compared to mean CF (R &#x0003d; 0.17
Mean CF correlated better with &#x02206;LI in regions of low (R &#x0003d; 0.31
p &#x0003c; 0.001) compared to high (R &#x0003d; 0.21
p &#x0003d; 0.02) and intermediate voltage (R &#x0003d; 0.17
Combined CF and baseline LI predicted &#x02206;LI &#x0003e; 20&#x000a0;&#x003a9; (area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) 0.75) better compared to baseline LI (AUC 0.72)
force-time integral (AUC 0.59) and local bipolar voltage (0.55)
Conclusion: Combination of CF and LI may aid monitoring real-time catheter-tissue electro-mechanical coupling and lesion formation within heterogenous atrial arrhythmia substrate in patients with repeat AF or atrial tachycardia ablation
Optimal lesion formation during catheter-based radiofrequency current (RFC) ablation has been known to depend on sufficient mechanical contact and electrical coupling for more than two decades (<a href="#B2">Ariyarathna et al., 2018</a>). Measurement of beat-to-beat tip-tissue contact force (CF) is widely implemented today as a surrogate parameter for catheter stability (<a href="#B6">Calkins et al., 2018</a>)
as a physical parameter CF does not give insights into tissue response during ablation
We therefore aimed to investigate how CF correlates with changes in LI during repeat AF or AT ablation within heterogenous arrhythmia substrate
consecutive patients presenting for catheter ablation due to continuous symptomatic atrial arrhythmia (AF or AT) after previous AF ablation were analyzed retrospectively
This analysis was approved by the local ethics committee (&#x000c4;rztekammer Nordrhein
201/2022) and written informed consent was obtained from all patients
Activated clotting time was monitored after first access of the left atrium
A blood pool reference value was established without tissue contact for both CF and LI before ablation onset
persistence of pulmonary vein isolation as well as previously set linear lesions was checked and discovered gaps were ablated
RFC applications were delivered with a standard power of 30&#x000a0;W
while adjusting power to 25&#x000a0;W at the posterior left atrial wall and 40&#x000a0;W at the cavotricuspid isthmus where applicable
The irrigation rate was maintained at 17&#x02013;30&#x000a0;ml/min for up to 120&#x000a0;s and the upper temperature limit was set at 48&#x000b0;C
Additional substrate modification via ablation of complex fractionated atrial electrograms was conducted at the operator&#x02019;s discretion
In macro-reentrant AT the critical isthmus was detected and ablated consecutively
the site of earliest activation was targeted
Pacing maneuvers and pharmacological provocation were performed repeatedly to test for arrhythmia non-inducibility
A bidirectional block was confirmed whenever linear lesions were generated
Acute ablation success was defined as non-inducibility of atrial arrhythmias at the end of the procedure
RFC applications with a duration &#x0003c;10&#x000a0;s
instable catheter contact or dragged ablation points were excluded from analysis for parameter standardization
Continuous variables are expressed as mean &#x000b1; standard deviation or absolute numbers and percentages
results are provided as medians with interquartile ranges
All analyses were performed using Graphpad Prism 9 (Graphpad Inc.
a paired t-test was conducted for normally distributed and a Wilcoxon signed-rank test for non-normally distributed datasets
an unpaired t-test was conducted in case of normal and the Mann-Whitney U test in case of non-normal distribution
A Kruskal&#x02013;Wallis test was applied for unpaired comparison of more than two groups in case of non-normal distribution and an one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) in case of normal distribution of datasets
A p-value &#x0003c;0.05 was considered statistically significant
Baseline patient as well as procedural characteristics are displayed in <a href="#T1">Table 1</a>, <a href="#T2">2</a>
Out of 1488 RFC applications in 20 consecutive patients
of which 93 % were located in the left atrium
Ablation was conducted at the pulmonary veins (54%)
coronary sinus and superior vena cava (1%)
Acute procedural success was achieved in all patients and no catheter-related periprocedural complications were observed
Baseline blood pool LI serving as a non-contact reference was similar compared to left and right atrial baseline LI (blood pool: median 146 (interquartile range 138-156) &#x003a9; vs left atrial: 147 (136-163) &#x003a9; and right atrial: 146 (132-165) &#x003a9;
Median baseline LI was 146 (132-165) &#x003a9; and applied baseline CF was 9 (5-15) &#x003a9;
Baseline CF and LI did not show a significant correlation in the overall cohort (Spearman correlation
p &#x0003d; 0.17) as well as when distinguishing between high (Spearman correlation
p &#x0003d; 0.054) and low voltage zones (Spearman correlation
&#x02206;Baseline LI was not associated with baseline CF (Spearman correlation
while 45% of analyzed RFC applications displayed lower baseline LI compared to blood pool LI
The median &#x02206;LI per RFC application displayed at 15 (interquartile range 11&#x02013;21) &#x003a9; and &#x02206;LI% at 11 (8&#x02013;14) %. High baseline LI predicted an increased &#x003b4;LI and correlated better with &#x02206;LI (Spearman correlation, R &#x0003d; 0.35, p &#x0003c; 0.001) compared to &#x02206;LI% (Spearman correlation, R &#x0003d; 0.12, p &#x0003d; 0.001, <a href="#F1">Figures 1A,B</a>)
&#x02206;LI increased by 1&#x000a0;&#x003a9; with every 6.5&#x000a0;&#x003a9; baseline LI gain
(A) Representative CF and LI raw as well as time-smoothed averaged recordings in a single patient during ablation are displayed
High baseline LI (dark blue) predicted increased &#x02206;LI
while lower baseline LI (light blue) resulted in low &#x003b4;LI despite similar energy output of 30&#x000a0;W and adequate CF levels &#x02265;8&#x000a0;g
(B) Baseline LI correlated better with &#x02206;LI (upper panel) compared to the &#x02206;LI% (lower panel)
absolute local impedance drop; &#x02206;LI%
A force-time integral &#x0003c;400 gs was also associated with lower &#x02206;LI (&#x0003c;400 gs: 14 (10-20) &#x003a9; vs
While mean CF was higher in the low compared to the intermediate and high baseline LI tercile (high: 10 (6-16) g vs
&#x02206;LI was elevated the most in the high baseline LI tercile (high: 18 (13-25) &#x003a9; vs
FIGURE 4. Predictors of a local impedance drop &#x0003e;20&#x000a0;&#x003a9; during ablation. During receiver operating characteristics analysis, combined mean CF and baseline LI showed the highest area under the receiver operating characteristics curve for predicting a &#x0003e;20&#x000a0;&#x003a9;. AUC, area under curve. For further abbreviations see <a href="#F1">Figure 1</a>
In this single-center retrospective explorative study
we present for the first time an initial experience of combined CF and LI dynamics in patients undergoing repeat AF or AT ablation
The major findings consist of the following: 1) Applied baseline CF is not significantly associated with baseline LI levels
2) A minimum mean CF level of 8&#x000a0;g increases &#x02206;LI resembling stable contact
while further CF increases beyond 8&#x000a0;g do not additionally affect &#x02206;LI
3) Combined mean CF during ablation and baseline LI predicts &#x02206;LI as a surrogate for lesion formation
with the highest &#x02206;LI being observed in regions of high voltage and high baseline LI
Baseline LI showed the highest correlation to &#x02206;LI which is in line with recently published experimental (<a href="#B11">Garrott et al., 2020</a>; <a href="#B13">Gutbrod et al., 2022</a>) and clinical studies (<a href="#B21">Martin et al., 2018</a>; <a href="#B12">Gunawardene et al., 2019</a>; <a href="#B33">Szegedi et al., 2021</a>; <a href="#B22">Matsuura et al., 2022</a>; <a href="#B30">Solimene et al., 2022</a>)
according to our results combined mean CF and baseline LI was the best predictor for a &#x02206;LI &#x0003e; 20&#x000a0;&#x003a9; in comparison to applied mean CF or baseline LI alone
maintaining a mean CF level &#x02265;8&#x000a0;g may be valuable in ensuring sufficient tip-tissue contact
while LI provides information on the degree of electrical coupling and real-time tissue response to RFC applications
currently proposed target &#x02206;LI levels using this catheter system may not be appropriate in repeat ablation cohorts but rather may be lower due to more extensive regions of low voltage and low baseline LI
while combining CF and baseline LI may improve prediction of a sufficient &#x02206;LI according to our analysis
Further studies are needed to investigate advanced ablation strategies incorporating individualized &#x02206;LI and CF targets depending on anatomical region
regional anatomical structures such as pouches and vessels as well as degree of fibrosis
the impact of combined CF and LI assessment on long-term arrhythmia outcomes during repeat AF/AT ablation needs to be determined in future studies
the present findings suggest that combining CF and LI may be useful to monitor real-time catheter-tissue electro-mechanical coupling and lesion formation within heterogenous atrial arrhythmia substrate in patients with repeat AF or AT ablation
Further studies are needed to assess the value for long-term outcome especially in challenging patient cohorts
The raw data supporting the conclusions of this article will be made available by the authors
The analysis involving human participants were reviewed and approved by &#x000c4;rztekammer Nordrhein
The patients provided their written informed consent to participate in this analysis
Collection and assembly of data: FA and CM
Data analysis and interpretation: All authors
We thank Lydia Merbold and Tobias Oesterlein for excellent postprocedural data processing
FAA: Invited fellow of the Boston Scientific Cardiac Electrophysiology training program
travel grants from Bayer Pharmaceuticals and Boston Scientific; CM: speaker and consulting: Abbott
Boston Scientific; speaker: Biosense Webster
The remaining authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest
All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations
Any product that may be evaluated in this article
or claim that may be made by its manufacturer
is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher
Area under the curve; &#x02206;Baseline LI
Difference of baseline and blood pool local impedance; CF
Maximum local impedance drop during ablation; &#x02206;LI%
Percentage of maximum local impedance drop compared to baseline local impedance
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Masjedi M and Meyer C (2022) Combined contact force and local impedance dynamics during repeat atrial fibrillation catheter ablation
Received: 23 July 2022; Accepted: 21 September 2022;Published: 13 October 2022
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Roman military accounts from the early centuries CE describe the tribes of north-central Europe as fierce fighters who took the field with large forces and treated vanquished foes with ritual brutality
there hasn’t been much archaeological evidence to back up the Roman accounts
two of those tribes clashed in what is now the Alken Enge wetlands in the Illerup River Valley in Denmark
Archaeologists excavated the aftermath from 2009 to 2014
finding broken weapons and shields along with the bones of at least 82 men
Many of the bones bore the marks of grievous wounds dealt just before death
But all of them were found in places that would have been under water 2,000 years ago—and they’d all been left exposed to weather and scavengers for six months to a year before they ended up in the water
Archaeologist Mads Kähler Holst of Aarhus University in Denmark and his colleagues say it’s the earliest example so far of a practice common in northern Europe in the first few centuries CE
In lakes and peat bogs all over northern Europe
archaeologists have found sites where people deposited the broken weapons and shields of their defeated enemies in the water
Most of those so-called “weapons graves” date to the second through fifth centuries CE
while the bones at Alken Enge radiocarbon dated to between 2 BCE and 54 CE
And Alken Enge stands out from later sites
which consisted mostly of broken weapons and shields tossed into lakes and peat bogs
That led some archaeologists to speculate that these Germanic tribal conflicts didn’t produce many casualties
perhaps because the battle focused on taking out tribal leaders or because the victors wanted to take their defeated enemies as slaves
But Alken Enge offers some of the first evidence that the brutal military conflicts the Romans wrote about really did happen
with large numbers of people involved and lots of casualties
Based on radiocarbon dating of the bones (mostly collagen from lower jaws)
the battle at Alken Enge happened at around the time the Roman Empire was expanding into what was then northern Germania
It’s possible that the pressure of Roman expansion sparked
But archaeologists aren’t sure exactly who fought here
There’s no indication of tribal affiliation on any of the weapon fragments found so far
and personal equipment like belt fittings and dress pins that might reveal more about the status and identity of the dead are conspicuously absent
But the broken weapons found in the wetland—spearheads
and some iron knives—are all clearly Germanic
The metal they were made of came from the local Jutland area
according to metallurgical analysis on some of the weapons
And the patterns of injury on the bones speak of lances
“High incidences of perimortem trauma show that the conflicts were extremely destructive in character
with consequently comprehensive slaughter,” wrote Holst and his colleagues
The nature and scale of the carnage recorded in the bones at Alken Enge lends concrete support to the Roman historians’ descriptions of their own troops’ violent encounters with the northern European tribes
The 2,095 human bones excavated at Alken Enge represented at least 82 people; left femurs were the most common single bone at the site
But there are probably at least 380 individuals’ remains somewhere beneath the 75 hectares of wetland at Alken Enge
mostly in areas that would have been underwater in the first century CE
But the battlefield—and the likely spread of human remains—stretches farther to the north and east than archaeologists were able to excavate
“Test pits and previous finds of human remains demonstrate that the find concentration extended further to the north on the eastern side of the sand spits but modern settlement complicates an investigation of this area,” the archaeologists wrote (a cheery thought for the area’s modern residents)
That many people probably didn’t come from a single village
because archaeologists have never excavated an Iron Age village in the region that could have supported anything close to that number of people
the force was probably recruited from a wider area
And those recruits were probably green troops; very few of the bones showed signs of old
healed injuries of the kinds that would indicate wounds from previous battles
“Alken Enge confirms the indications in the historical sources of early
large-scale military capabilities in Northern Germania,” wrote Holst and his colleagues
the defeated were left on the battlefield for six months to a year
Many of the bones show tooth marks and cracks
signs of being gnawed by smaller scavengers like foxes
and a few have spiral fractures from being cracked open by larger scavengers hoping to get at the marrow inside
to pick the bones up and put them in the lake
dotted with wooded groves surrounding the shores of a shallow lake
A pair of sand-spits extended out into the lake
and most of the human remains at the site were found in what was once the deepest part of the channel between them
as if people had stood on the sand-spits and thrown the remains into the sheltered waters
It seems to have been a ritual of some significance
Some of the bones showed the kinds of cut marks usually associated with butchering
which means someone went to the effort of separating the few bones that still had ligaments holding them together after several months of decay and scavengers
including the legs and some foot bones from one person
and a lower leg and some foot bones from another.)
And although most of the disarticulated bones were scattered seemingly at random in the water
Archaeologists found four hip bones stacked together with an alder branch running through the obdurator foramen (the large opening in the hip bone for blood vessels and nerves to pass through) of each bone
And on the slopes of one of the sand spits
and tibia (the bones of the leg) were found bundled together with two white stones
The bones came from at least two different individuals
and the white stones were of a type that doesn’t occur in the Illerup Valley
It’s not clear whether the battlefield was adjacent to the lake or whether the people who deposited the disarticulated remains of their enemies at Alken Enge carried them there from somewhere else
At another martial burial site in southern Denmark
materials were carried more than a mile from the coastal battlefield to an inland bog for ritual disposal
In the layers of sediment above and below the human remains
archaeologists found an assortment of animal bones
which indicates that people had used this landscape for centuries before the battle and continued to use it for centuries afterward
“There appears to have been periodic ritual activities at the location
not unlike other martial sites,” wrote Holst and his colleagues
There are several other ritual lake deposits of weapons from the 3rd to 5th centuries CE elsewhere in the Illerup Valley
PNAS, 2018. DOI: <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1721372115">10.1073/pnas.1721372115</a>  (<a href="http://arstechnica.com/science/news/2010/03/dois-and-their-discontents-1.ars">About DOIs</a>)
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147.45.197.102 : 06cf78f2-43ed-4422-b3c8-bba5053a
The boutique formed by a group of former Alken employees has closed its flagship fund after the European equity strategy was deemed no longer economically viable
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a ragtag troop of about 400 Germanic tribesmen marched into battle against a mysterious adversary in Denmark
a team of researchers from Aarhus University in Denmark dug into the bloody details
archaeologists unearthed 2,095 human bones and fragments from the peat and lake sediment across 185 acres of wetlands in East Jutland
These bones belonged to 82 distinct people &mdash; seemingly all men
most of them 20 to 40 years old &mdash; but likely account for just a fraction of the bones initially deposited in the area
After analyzing the geographic distribution of the bones
the team estimated a minimum of 380 skeletons were originally interred in the water
This population "significantly exceeds the scale of any known Iron Age village community," the researchers wrote
suggesting the men were recruited from a large area to participate in a common battle
Rome expanded its empire north into Europe but met fierce resistance from the scattered tribes who lived in modern-day Germany and Denmark
The bones of the men at Alken Enge are thought to be the casualties of one such tribal battle
clubs and swords were found scattered about the site
and it was clear to the researchers that many of the skeletons had sustained critical battle wounds before dying
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"The relative absence of healed sharp force trauma suggests that the deposited population did not have considerable previous battle experience," the researchers wrote
the scrappy group of soldiers met "comprehensive slaughter."
it appears that the skeletons were deposited in the lake after they had decomposed in the wild for anywhere between six months and a year
Nearly 400 of the bones were hatched with gnawing tooth marks probably left by scavenging animals such as foxes
the absence of bacterial decay on the bones suggests that the men's inner organs were removed
decomposed or eaten by scavengers before their ultimate burial
Whether it was a friend or foe who did the burying is still unclear
The men's arm and leg bones were severed from their torsos
but many cranial fragments appeared to have been smashed with a club or other bludgeoning tool
Four pelvic bones hung around a single tree branch with deliberate intent
"Alken Enge provides unequivocal evidence that the people in Northern Germania had systematic and deliberate ways of clearing battlefields," the researchers concluded
The find certainly "points to a new form of postbattle activities" in Germanic tribes at the dawn of the current era &mdash; but what it all means is still a mystery
Originally published on <a data-analytics-id="inline-link" href="" data-url="" data-hl-processed="none">Live Science</a>
<a href="https://www.livescience.com/author/brandon-specktor" target="_self" class="link author__name_link" data-before-rewrite-localise="https://www.livescience.com/author/brandon-specktor">Brandon Specktor</a>Social Links Navigation<a class="button-social   " href="https://www.twitter.com/@beardspeck" target="_self" aria-label="TWITTER"></a>EditorBrandon is the space/physics editor at Live Science
His writing has appeared in The Washington Post
the Richard Dawkins Foundation website and other outlets
He holds a bachelor's degree in creative writing from the University of Arizona
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as well as a physical engagement with the bones
as for instance seen in the four ossa coxae onto a stick (Mollerup et al.
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thereby corresponding to a high-arousal ritual
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canid modification can indicate the deposition of remains following a relatively brief period of exposure prior to deposition (Møllerup et al.
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Jess Alken-Theasby built a new family home on her granny's plot with a nod to both coastal and timeworn
An amazing opportunity allowed Jess Alken-Theasby and her husband Ash,&nbsp;who runs bespoke home construction company Alkenby
to move into their forever home by the sea
&lsquo;We were on the fence about buying an old property or creating something new,&rsquo; says Jess
&lsquo;Then the bungalow that had been my granny&rsquo;s came back on the market and it felt like it was meant to be.&rsquo;&nbsp;
With experience of building and renovating their own homes before they met &ndash; Ash had already built his dream property
while Jess&rsquo;s beautiful house was sold to boutique hotel group The Pig &ndash; the couple were at the right point to create a unique home.&nbsp;
&lsquo;Knowing the plot already really helped with the design process
On paper there was lots of potential but understanding the setting meant we could plan for everyday living and the local climate,&rsquo; explains Jess
traditional sash windows meant the views would take a back seat internally so that the house felt cosier
Then we could open onto the terrace and garden for the summer
We also have sheltered spaces outside to shield from the cool sea breeze.&rsquo;&nbsp;
The house, in Cornwall, south-west England, is an airy and breathtaking new build with a nod to <a data-analytics-id="inline-link" href="https://www.homesandgardens.com/ideas/cape-cod-house-style" data-before-rewrite-localise="https://www.homesandgardens.com/ideas/cape-cod-house-style">Cape Cod house style</a>
yet packed to the rafters with original details and reclaimed finds.&nbsp;
&lsquo;We worked with local architect Harrison Sutton who understood that we were building a family home
It was really important that the house had soul and a lived-in feel,&rsquo; says Jess
&lsquo;When I was on site and walking around the unfinished
I was worried it was going to look and feel like a village hall
so I had to remind myself that it&rsquo;s the finishing touches and details that make a house cohesive and considered.&rsquo;&nbsp;
The interior styling was very important to Jess
After meeting founder of The Pig and now friend Judy Hutson
&lsquo;How she mixes old and new and makes something feel lived-in yet sophisticated is incredible
That and my need to make things &ldquo;just so&rdquo; means my home is a balance of real-world living
authentically sourced materials and carefully considered design features.&rsquo;&nbsp;
And Jess has created a space packed with modern <a data-analytics-id="inline-link" href="https://www.homesandgardens.com/ideas/cape-cod-living-room-ideas" data-before-rewrite-localise="https://www.homesandgardens.com/ideas/cape-cod-living-room-ideas">Cape Cod living room ideas</a>
using some strong shades to bring a cozy feel
Color is brought to a neutral sofa in the living room with an array of cushions.&nbsp;
<a data-analytics-id="inline-link" href="https://www.homesandgardens.com/spaces/decorating/white-kitchen-ideas-223729" data-before-rewrite-localise="https://www.homesandgardens.com/spaces/decorating/white-kitchen-ideas-223729">White kitchen ideas</a> abound &ndash; creating a wonderful contrast with the moodier shades used in the living room
The bespoke space features an impressive vaulted ceiling
The white palette and cladding is a nod to coastal style
while the brick backsplash and wooden floor and bar stools add a cozy feel.&nbsp;
Jess reused the old red bricks from her granny&rsquo;s original bungalow
A classic butler sink and multiple drawers and cupboards are practical and stylish.&nbsp;
&nbsp;A super snuggly sofa is positioned in a corner of the kitchen
Colorful cushions make it comfortable and cozy and pick up on shades used in one of Jess&rsquo;s favorite paintings.&nbsp;
Jess has made the open-plan house feel cozy and inviting
she and Ash have created a very hospitable and easily adaptable scheme.&nbsp;
The house also works extremely well in accommodating all the family
with different spaces that can open out to one another
A room now used as a play area can be screened off or opened out onto a lookout living area
while the dining table placement acts as a bridge between kitchen and living settings.&nbsp;
The enviable lookout offers enticing sea views all day.&nbsp;
The space features a bold dark shade that injects dramatic impact while basket shelving provides plenty of storage
For anyone looking for <a data-analytics-id="inline-link" href="https://www.homesandgardens.com/spaces/decorating/white-bedroom-ideas-217546" data-before-rewrite-localise="https://www.homesandgardens.com/spaces/decorating/white-bedroom-ideas-217546">white bedroom ideas</a> with a ton of character
Jess' bring plenty of inspiration to the table
large windows make the most of the majestic views across the bay.&nbsp;
The cladding is a humble backdrop for Jess&rsquo;s father&rsquo;s vintage Tigger Newling surfboard
The little lights in the loft bed are perfect for young children
A teepee makes an excellent indoor den for the boys to play in
The cladding gives the loft bathroom an intimate feel while a solid piece of marble adds a touch of luxury
This is one of the lovelier <a data-analytics-id="inline-link" href="https://www.homesandgardens.com/ideas/outdoor-living-room-ideas" data-before-rewrite-localise="https://www.homesandgardens.com/ideas/outdoor-living-room-ideas">outdoor living room ideas</a> we've seen in the UK
Purpose-built seating offers a sheltered sun spot
while the rug creates comfort and adds color
&lsquo;The house is designed to grow with us,&rsquo; says Jess
&lsquo;We&rsquo;ve filled the rooms with new and old family treasures
and we&rsquo;ve sourced and installed timeworn materials
It already feels our own story is beginning to evolve here.&nbsp;
Design: <a data-analytics-id="inline-link" href="https://www.alkenby.com/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow" data-url="https://www.alkenby.com/" referrerpolicy="no-referrer-when-downgrade" data-hl-processed="none">Alkenby</a>
Design expertise in your inbox &ndash; from inspiring decorating ideas and beautiful celebrity homes to practical gardening advice and shopping round-ups
She did an interior design course and then worked for Homes &amp; Gardens
Vivienne&rsquo;s always enjoyed reader homes and loves to spot a house she knows is perfect for a magazine (she has even knocked on the doors of houses with curb appeal!)
writing features and styling and art directing photo shoots
She worked on Country Homes &amp; Interiors for 15 years
before returning to Homes &amp; Gardens as houses editor four years ago.&nbsp;
When it comes to advertising during Ramadan
also known as the Middle East’s Super Bowl
what’s not to like about delicious cheese sambousas en masse
Singing children as far as the ear can hear
makes you feel good and makes you feel safe
It’s also the culprit behind those dreaded jingle earworms
But as any experienced creative with bags under their eyes and awards under their belt will assure you
safe – in the context of advertising – is the antithesis of good
The nemesis of anything you’d like your name attached to
safe will be forgotten before the next commercial break
Drowned out by all the other ‘safes’ competing for your divided attention
staying on the surface of Ramadan makes us miss out on the infinite beauty of the immense world that lies beneath it
Similar to the mesmerising allure of marine life
the undercurrent of Ramadan is a striking place that doesn’t get visited often
but that has the power to leave a mark on anyone who has dared to jump into it
This is why it’s disheartening to watch Ramadan sometimes being reduced to nothing more than pomp and circumstance around the Iftar table
One that shines a light on the genuine intentions of a month that is not only holy but transformative
Ramadan is so much more than the eye can see and the finger can scroll through
Its purpose and role transcend those of a yearly cultural occasion or a season
It goes way beyond not being allowed to eat for a certain number of hours
it even goes beyond not drinking water in severe heat
Its ambition eclipses the beloved crescents we see on YouTube pre-rolls
Insta Stories and TVs across the screen landscape
a vehicle that takes us to our best selves
and a time machine that teleports us to the world the way it should be – where people are always understanding and empathetic
where neighbours volunteer to help each other out
where co-workers are considerate of each other’s circumstances
where forgiveness is practised every minute of the day
compassion and gratitude turn from momentary feelings to a nationwide language
Its purpose is to remind us of the true values of Islam – and humanity for that matter
A New Year’s resolution of sorts that invites practising and non-practising people alike to pledge a return to the truest form of humanity
But besides being a catalyst for good and rallying the best within us
the month also serves as a chance for brands to address the proverbial elephant in the room: the misconstrued picture of Ramadan in the West
While the mandated abstinence from food and drink can sometimes be misunderstood as an unjust – even reprehensible – nuisance
the objective of fasting is often questioned and portrayed as nothing more than the mere semblance of piety
that’s all the non-fasting community can see
The reason is the scarcity of a better message
This is our chance to put the metamorphic power of Ramadan on display
So here’s an appeal to all the brands out there: You’ve already dipped your toes into the vast ocean of beauty that is Ramadan
diving suits and whatever you fancy and dive deep into the pure essence of the Holy Month
Citywire Eurostars A-rated <a href = http://www.citywire.co.uk/manager/nicolas-walewski/d2524 " target="_blank">Nicolas Walewski</a> is well known to Global readers and a firm favourite among international fund pickers
Like many financial professionals to study engineering at one of France’s Grandes Ecoles
Walewski spent his early career working as a currency options trader
Iin 1998 he joined Banque Syz and started managing the <a href = http://citywire.co.uk/fund/oyster-european-opportunities/c16070 " target="_blank">Oyster European Opportunities</a> fund
which he oversaw until  2006 when he left to found his own firm
<a href= http://citywire.co.uk/fund/oyster-european-opportunities/c16070 " target="_blank">Oyster European Opportunities</a>  did well during the bull market of 2003 and Walewski’s stock picking skills were proven with shrewd buys in the telecom and banking sectors
From June 1999 to December 2005 the fund returned an impressive 76.36%
while the FTSE Europe TR EUR rose by 17.54% over the same period
As industry admiration grew, in 2006 Walewski launched his own firm and a new fund called <a href = http://www.citywire.co.uk/fund/alken-fund-european-opportunities-r/c107519 " target"_blank">Alken European Opportunities</a> which attracted interest from the start. In just over a year it was nearing maximum capacity with <a href="http://www.citywire.co.uk/global/alken-shuts-walewskis-fund-but-new-launch-may-be-on-the-way/a284318url">assets in excess of €2.5 billion</a>
Those investors who joined Walewski at Alken were rewarded as his new fund rapidly began outperforming Oyster European Opportunities
From January 2006 to May 2012, <a href = http://www.citywire.co.uk/fund/alken-fund-european-opportunities-r/c107519 " target="_blank">Alken European Opportunities</a> has returned 9.52% compared to the FTSE Europe TR which has shrunk by 6.48% and Oyster European Opportunities’ decline of 3.94%
In recent interviews Walewski had shown his contrarian approach by backing the economies of <a href = http://citywire.co.uk/global/walewski-im-backing-ireland-and-portugal/a597356 " target="_blank">Ireland and Portugal</a>, while also warning investors of a <a href = http://citywire.co.uk/global/walewski-us-will-soon-disappoint/a605212 " target="_blank">US slowdown</a>
Femur bones being excavated at Alken Enge. Most of the bones are found disarticulated, and many have been sorted by type, perhaps as some sort of post-war ritual. [<a data-analytics-id="inline-link" href="https://www.livescience.com/47124-warrior-bones-in-danish-bog-mutilated.html" data-url="https://www.livescience.com/47124-warrior-bones-in-danish-bog-mutilated.html" data-hl-processed="none" data-before-rewrite-localise="/47124-warrior-bones-in-danish-bog-mutilated.html">Read full story</a>]
A view of the Alken Enge excavations in 2012. Among the bizarre finds here were four pelvises strung on a stick. [<a data-analytics-id="inline-link" href="https://www.livescience.com/47124-warrior-bones-in-danish-bog-mutilated.html" data-url="https://www.livescience.com/47124-warrior-bones-in-danish-bog-mutilated.html" data-hl-processed="none" data-before-rewrite-localise="/47124-warrior-bones-in-danish-bog-mutilated.html">Read full story</a>]
Lene Mollerup talks to visitors at Alken Enge about the bone remains found at the site
The excavations are open for guided tours to the general public
Peter Kensen and Pernille Thulstrup work at the Alken Enge excavation site
construction projects and peat-digging turned up bones in this bog
archaeologist Harald Andersen did some exploratory digging at the site
Skanderborg Museum and the University of Aarhus won a grant from the Carlsberg Foundation to formally excavate the site
Scattered bones in the mass grave at Alken Enge in East Jutland
Few bones are found as articulated skeletons
The victors in the battle appear to have gathered
separated and sorted the bones by type before dumping them in the lake
<a href="https://www.livescience.com/author/stephanie-pappas" target="_self" class="link author__name_link" data-before-rewrite-localise="https://www.livescience.com/author/stephanie-pappas">Stephanie Pappas</a>Social Links Navigation<a class="button-social   " href="https://www.twitter.com/@sipappas" target="_self" aria-label="TWITTER"></a>Live Science ContributorStephanie Pappas is a contributing writer for Live Science
covering topics ranging from geoscience to archaeology to the human brain and behavior
She was previously a senior writer for Live Science but is now a freelancer based in Denver
and regularly contributes to Scientific American and The Monitor
the monthly&nbsp;magazine of the American Psychological Association
Stephanie received a bachelor's degree in psychology from the University of South Carolina and a graduate certificate in science communication from the University of California
Scientific consensus shows race is a human invention
'Dramatic revision of a basic chapter in algebra': Mathematicians devise new way to solve devilishly difficult equations
Four former analysts and portfolio managers from&nbsp;Alken Asset Management&nbsp;have joined forces to launch their own firm under leadership of Antoine Badel
Wealth Manager sister title&nbsp;Citywire Selector has revealed.&nbsp;
The new London-based boutique is called&nbsp;Adelio Partners Limited.&nbsp;It will be run by its founder and chief investment officer Badel
who served a partner and as head of equity research at Alken&nbsp;for the past decade.&nbsp;
Badel told Citywire Selector&nbsp;that the firm will aim to emulate what Alken achieved as a European equity specialist
while also improving other aspects of investments which were perceived to be lacking at the firm and in wider asset management
Alken founder <a href="https://citywire.com/selector/manager/nicolas-walewski/d2524?utm_medium=website&utm_source=citywire_global&utm_campaign=article-in-body" data-link-type="manager" data-manager-id="2524">Nicolas Walewski</a>&nbsp;(pictured) is among the 1,000 richest people currently residing in the UK
according to The Sunday Times&rsquo; annual Rich List
which charts the risers and fallers among the UK&rsquo;s richest residents
the London-based equity investor was placed 556th overall
with an estimated personal wealth of &pound;215 million (&euro;247 million)
Despite his high status, Walewski is not the richest Citywire-tracked manager to make this year&rsquo;s round-up. That honour goes to <a href="https://citywire.com/selector/manager/terry-smith/d19780?utm_medium=website&utm_source=citywire_global&utm_campaign=article-in-body" data-link-type="manager" data-manager-id="19780">Terry Smith</a>
as the Citywire AAA-rated manager sits 431st with an estimated wealth of &pound;300 million (&euro;345 million)
Other notable entrants included <a href="https://citywire.com/selector/manager/crispin-odey/d491?utm_medium=website&utm_source=citywire_global&utm_campaign=article-in-body" data-link-type="manager" data-manager-id="491">Crispin Odey</a>
who was recognised for his combined wealth with his wife and former fund manager Nichola Pease
as their combined worth was estimated at &pound;775 million (&euro;892 million)
Among the other notable changes in the list was the drop in assets experienced by the Schroder family
with family assets declining by &pound;1.2 billion (&euro;1.3 billion) year-on-year to &pound;4 billion (&euro;4.6 billion)
dropped from 24th to 35th in the overall rankings
Everyone is aware that last year was a complicated one for the funds of Alken
Nicolas Walewski’s fund management company
His compliance and convictions for the cyclical sectors took their toll due to events such as Brexit
But the market has been turning around for months
and in 2017 things have begun to unfold differently: &#8220;Taking panic and redemptions in European equities into account
2016 was a year for buying,&#8221; Walewski said recently during a presentation with clients in Madrid
after three years of &#8220;destocking&#8221; in companies
this year begins a new &#8220;restocking&#8221; cycle
in which firms begin to invest again&#8230; and Walewski points to these new investments
and to the fact that many industries are boosting their pricing power -in addition to the fact that American and Asian investors have returned to the European market only very marginally- as positive indicators for European Equities
so there is no reason to be pessimistic,&#8221; he says
there are numerous indicators giving him the go ahead for buying equity and selling fixed income and shares with a behavior similar to bonds
&#8220;We&#8217;ve seen years of better behavior in bond-like securities while cyclicals lagged behind,&#8221; he recalls
this rotation from the defensive to the cyclicals is already occurring in the markets and he advises: those investors who are underweight or negative in sectors such as banking will be motivated to rotate their portfolios
&#8220;Value will offer better returns as rates rise,&#8221; he says
so that the growth style will offer lower returns&#8221; and lose its appeal
this story is now rewarding the fund manager&#8217;s loyalty to the cyclical sectors
Walewski is still strongly committed to them this year
and although Alken European Opportunities is still underweight in the financial sector (it underweighs the insurance sector)
the fund manager points out the opportunity in banks
in the face of recent negative factors such as regulation
higher capital requirements and QE policies (&#8220;good for the cycle but terrible for banks&#8221;)
the fund manager now sees positive factors
such as Real Estate price recovery (the main liability of banks)
the deleveraging of individuals and companies (which allows capital reinforcement)
or greater clarity in the Italian banking system
&#8220;We see conditions for higher growth and higher margins of banks in Europe
which is positive for shareholders,&#8221; says the fund manager
Although there are still many entities that are not to his liking (which is why they have not yet overweighed the sector)
Walewski considers that it is &#8220;dangerous to be negative in banks&#8221;
One of the sectors to which he continues to be strongly committed is discretionary consumption (with an overweight of more than 22% in Alken European Opportunities)
especially because of his conviction in the automotive sector
where he is beginning to see greater investments and anticipates a strong rally
He likes names such as Peugeot or Renault: the fund manager considers the latter as &#8220;the Ryanair of the automotive market&#8221;
due to its attractive low cost offer to which investors have not put a price and taking into account the great business opportunity currently opening in this business segment
Ryanair is another one of his big commitments
to its strong growth in Germany and to the improvement of its cost structure
which has been recovering in recent months (fuelled by demand stabilization in China) and whose rally will continue
which he considers to be one of the best operators in the British retail market and which has been severely damaged by Brexit
the fund manager also overweighs the industrial sector
where he sees greater business volumes and increasing power to establish prices
an Italian defense company -and a case of restructuring- as a good investment in an environment of strong demand for the sector
Healso overweighs Information Technology and the materials sector
and points out the opportunity at Glencore
&#8220;There is great skepticism about this sector
but it was the best last year and it will benefit from a more positive framework in the relationship between supply and demand.&#8221; He is cautious in energy but has increased the weight somewhat
although he admits that it is a sector that requires being very selective
a structural tendency &#8220;in spite of Trump&#8221;
Among his main underweights are telecommunications
Due in part to the fact that many bond-like securities are in the large-cap segment
this year the fund manager glimpses opportunities in small caps
the management company opened its fund that invests in small capitalization firms
which had been closed to new subscriptions since 2013
which admits to two management mistakes in recent times: the investment in Monte dei Paschi (&#8220;with the added lesson of not trusting an Italian banker&#8221;)
and the fact of not seeing the &#8220;destocking&#8221; in 2015
currently has 4.5 billion Euros in assets under management
he sees evidence that much of the risk has already been accounted for with the strong capital outflows last year
&#8220;It takes a lot for this risk to prevail over fundamentals: banks are improving
industrial firms are improving their pricing power&#8230; it takes a lot,&#8221; he says
he believes that the truly important elections will be the French ones
because the risk is the lack of integration in the Union: &#8220;The risk is the lack of solidarity in Europe
there is not much integration,&#8221; he says
and he believes the French stance toward more federalism
which last year provided a buying opportunity for British domestic companies
he believes that &#8220;everything is negotiable&#8221; –you only need to see the Swiss case
in which some sectors enjoy more protectionism
while others enjoy greater openness– and that it will take years
&#8220;The deadline for triggering Article 50 is artificial,&#8221; he adds
he believes that some of the impact is already accounted for
He is also cautious about Trump and explains that the reaction of the markets will depend on their measures
he believes that over time it could lead to some disappointments
but he does not see it as an immediate threat to the markets
while recognizing that China will limit its growth
he points out that the debt is in public hands
so he does not consider that to be an immediate threat
Walewski knows&nbsp;a thing or two about reinvention himself
Having&nbsp;moved&nbsp;on from his time at Syz Group to launch Alken in 2005
Walewski carved out a niche as a consistent outperformer in the European equities sector
Cementing himself as a favourite among fund buyers in the process
The creation of the fixed income unit took place in April 2018, but few knew of a more secretive development at Alken which occurred one year earlier. If you search Walewski on Companies House, he is listed as founder of Cabestan Quant Research Limited from the start of 2017.
Walewski had established the group with a majority controlling right in 2017, with Francois Boudoux D&rsquo;Hautefeuille having a minority position before ceasing to be involved in the running of the company in August 2017, according to Companies House.
So, with no public mention of Cabestan by Walewski over the past three years, what is the function of this quant research arm? One source familiar with the subject said they weren&rsquo;t sure anyone within Alken was fully aware of what the group actually does due to the geographic distance &ndash; separate offices in central London &ndash; and lack of crossover.
Another source said it sat under the Alken umbrella but had only reached the testing and modelling phase with plans to come to market in 2021. So, Citywire Selector tracked down the chief executive officer for Cabestan, Christophe Chrun, to find out how it all fits together.
Speaking via video call, Chrun said he was brought on board right at the start by Walewski to help spearhead the operation. Chrun, who leads at five-strong team, cut his teeth in financial analysis and derivatives before spending almost 17 years as a fund of hedge funds manager at Candriam.
&lsquo;I speak with Nicolas regularly,&rsquo; Chrun said. &lsquo;But he isn&rsquo;t involved in the design or development of what we are doing and we work out of separate offices. Where we benefit is from the infrastructure that Alken has, the size, scale and reputation.
&lsquo;However, the way that companies operate now means we can remain fairly autonomous in that we don&rsquo;t need a network administrator and we don&rsquo;t need 10 to 20 people to make an operation like this work. If we had set up 10 to 20 years ago, I can imagine we would be calling on a lot more resources.&rsquo;
The first fund, Aqua is an FCP strategy registered in Luxembourg with an emphasis on long-term opportunities, it is due to receive approval from regulators CSSF towards the end of March or in early April.
&lsquo;I don&rsquo;t want the fund to be a cash machine,&rsquo; Chrun said. &lsquo;We want &ndash; and need &ndash; people to invest with us because they think the strategy is sound not because the market is going to dive and they want an intelligent hedge.&rsquo;
A paper portfolio was started in October 2019, which Chrun said had a one-year return of 18% and achieved 11%&nbsp;in the year to the end&nbsp;of October 2020. It invests in a basket of futures with a target of avoiding and exploiting crowded strategies.
The main baskets of investments are S&amp;P futures, commodities futures, currency futures and government bond futures, which are largely focused on the 10- and 30-year maturities. &lsquo;There are common drivers,&rsquo; said Churn.
&lsquo;For example, if you have US growth then the S&amp;P and the 10-year Treasury are expected to be affected in different ways. So, we would adjust the fund to be long the S&amp;P and short the 10-year. We are looking for those changes in drivers.&rsquo;
To highlight how Cabestan has developed&nbsp;its product, Chrun said they have used data from key events such as the 1987 crash and the inflationary pressures of the 1970s to the early 1980s to understand how market drivers change in extreme circumstances.
Other senior staff members at Cabestan include Eugene Rafikov, a quantitative analyst who began his career at UBS, as well as Richard Rose, another former UBS alum.
Rose, who spent five years at the Swiss bank on the technology side, serves as chief technology officer at Cabestan. Shuohao Liao also serves as a quant analyst, having previously been at Credit Suisse.
The company is looking to expand further and has two job roles advertised on its website at present &ndash; an IT developer and a quant researcher.
This expansion comes at a time of asset raising for the group, with Chrun targeting around &euro;10m as an initial base for the first fund, drawn from Alken and family money, which would then grow into a larger sum of around &euro;200m as a track record is obtained.
Speaking at the end of 2020, Chrun said: &lsquo;It perhaps couldn&rsquo;t be a worse time to be doing asset raising. But, we are long-term thinkers and we have tested and checked our systems and models for a long time now. If anything, this year has shown how we can perform better than any other.&rsquo;
One question remains, why did Walewski decide to go&nbsp;in this direction? A spokesperson for Alken said Walewski has sought to diversify the business since 2016 into a multi-asset class investment management boutique.
&lsquo;Nicolas gives full independence to each team leader. The&nbsp;company&rsquo;s objective is to provide a broad portfolio of investment alternatives to investors,&rsquo; the spokesperson added.
 How, through banks, borrowing and legal disputes, the Alken family lost Febvre, one of the country&#039;s best-known wine and spirit importers 
</a>Two brothers have brought a legal action to stop a company that acquired their multi-million euro property investment loans from Ulster Bank from enforcing repayment by selling off their secured assets.
Anthony and Gregory Alken, who owned and operated the Febvre wine importing business until they lost control in 2014, got loans from Ulster Bank totalling around €21 million.
They have asked the Commercial Court for various injunctions and declarations, including orders restraining Seaconview Ltd, which acquired their loans, acting as assignee of the Ulster Bank facilities in a manner inconsistent with an agreement providing, it is alleged, for no recourse to their secured assets.
Seaconview cannot demand or require payment of any amount under the original loan agreement and cannot demand an amount in excess of what Ulster Bank was entitled to, they claim.
Any enforcement action by Seaconview, including appointment of receivers over their assets, whigh is based on any demand in excess of what the bank had been entitled to is unlawful and invalid, it is alleged.
Receivers Declan McDonald and Ken Tyrell are also defendants to the proceedings.
In their action, the brothers claim they were required by Ulster Bank in 2014 to address their indebtedness and they had offered to repay in full by 2019-20.
They claim the bank instead asked them to refinance the loans themselves or sell certain assets, including Arena House in Sandyford, leased by Emile Investments Holding Ltd, owned by the brothers.
In an affidavit on behalf of both, Anthony Alken, with an address at Arena House, said it was agreed after negotiations that Arena House and other property would be sold or security released under a settlement arrangement which would repay the loans. Further funding would be provided by way of a debt purchase order, he said.
However, after Ulster Bank agreed last July to sell the loans, Seaconview demanded repayment and appointed receivers over the secured assets.
Seaconview denies it is bound by any settlement agreement the brothers had with Ulster Bank, he said.
Mr Alken said the brothers had fully co-operated with Ulster Bank on the understanding they were “not treated as people who do not wish to repay”. They wanted to “prudently wait until the value of assets had recovered somewhat”, he said.
The professed intention of Seaconview, in continuing to act in violation of a non-recourse agreement, will irreversibly harm them, he said.
Mr Justice John Hedigan admitted the case to the Commercial Court list on consent between the parties.
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News category: <a id="MainContent_LinkCategoryMore" title="View other news articles in this category" href="/archive.aspx?t=category&amp;c=11&amp;n=Subcontract+and+investment">Subcontract and investment</a>
How do you make a newly built space look like an old one
The transformation of a house on the Cornish coast
Set in one of north Cornwall&rsquo;s most desirable locations &mdash; between the restaurants of Padstow and the watersports of Harlyn &mdash; Atlanta in Trevone has been in Jess Alken-Theasby&rsquo;s family for generations
Mrs Alken-Theasby&rsquo;s great-grandfather was the artist J
who painted the views that can be enjoyed from almost all aspects of the Victorian main house and a further four apartments
&lsquo;The exception is this building,&rsquo; explains Mrs Alken-Theasby
so we knew we had to do something different with the interiors.&rsquo;
When her great-uncle bought the guest house in the 1950s
the building was used as a shelter for boats and for mending crabbing nets
thanks to the work of brother-and-sister interior designers Kate and Tom Cox
of H&Aacute;M Interiors in Henley-on-Thames
it has been has been bought back to life as the Net Loft
The family now regard it as Atlanta&rsquo;s &lsquo;eccentric relative&rsquo;
an outdoor dining terrace and cinema room (ideal for those all-too predictable wet Cornish days)
the revamped former outbuilding sleeps four
H&Aacute;M Interiors was known to the couple long before the project to overhaul all the guest rooms at Atlanta began
&lsquo;We&rsquo;d followed other projects and been a regular customer at Studio H&Aacute;M
its retail offshoot,&rsquo; says Mrs Alken-Theasby
&lsquo;Then we decided to see what the company could do when given what was
&lsquo;The first thing to do when approaching a new building that has little or no existing architectural details or character is to imagine a narrative,&rsquo; says Mr Cox
&lsquo;We came up with this idea of it being home to an eccentric sea captain.&rsquo; The floorplans had been designed by architects Harrison Sutton and construction undertaken by the couple&rsquo;s own company
but the success of this project lies in the level of detail introduced by H&Aacute;M
they make the Net Loft seem as if it has been around forever
&lsquo;You don&rsquo;t have to stop and stare for long in any of the rooms before noticing something new,&rsquo; says Mrs Alken-Theasby
&lsquo;Neither Kate nor I wanted to overemphasise the seaside location
which is so easily overdone,&rsquo; explains Mr Cox
The walls of one room are decorated with wooden ducks and geese
we&rsquo;ve steered away from a strict nautical theme by hanging a painting of a cowgirl on horseback
Jess gave us complete creative freedom.&rsquo;
An example of how determination in getting the details right can transform an interior lies in the flooring
The timber boards in the main living room were originally cheeseboards from a maker in Somerset and were used to carry the wheels of cheese around the factory
Each one was restored and oiled before it was laid to Mr Cox&rsquo;s exacting expectations
&lsquo;I&rsquo;m a bit of an obsessive when it comes to this sort of thing
I like to use reclaimed flooring in projects; it immediately removes the new from a newly built space.&rsquo;
The next tip is to consider the interior architecture
The walls of the Net Loft are almost entirely clad in shiplap boarding and particular focus was invested in the junctions where walls and sloping ceilings join
&lsquo;Others might not consider these elements as important and they are really challenging to get right
but when you&rsquo;re trying to design a space that has that feeling of having always been there
&lsquo;It&rsquo;s what gives a feeling of quality to the overall space
As the boards are all painted in one colour
the kitchen has that lived-in and eclectic feel
When it wasn&rsquo;t possible to use reclaimed furniture
a paint effect was used on the cabinetry that nods to antique mahogany and a wave detail along the bottom of the cupboard doors points to the sea
Even the extractor fan is a considered piece: instead of a hood
it&rsquo;s set behind an aged-brass grille
a positioning that required quite a technical operation
but the result means it blends pleasingly into the brass splashback
which is why I like it,&rsquo; says Mr Cox
It is used prolifically throughout the property
&lsquo;The whole point of this design is that it will age gracefully
Brass dulls down attractively over time and so will all the fittings.&rsquo;
Almost all the furniture was sourced by the H&Aacute;M team
which specialises in tracking down and reconditioning antiques and salvaged materials
with a leaning away from perfection and formality towards whimsical
na&iuml;ve and eclectic one-offs that happily show their age
The main double bedroom in the Net Loft has a folksy painted cabin bed
&lsquo;We wanted to invoke a feeling of excitement about coming on holiday and there&rsquo;s something about a cabin bed that takes people back to their childhood.&rsquo;
Amid all this creativity lies a level of comfort that guests expect when renting at this end of the market
there is a William Holland outdoor bath and superfast Wi-Fi
&lsquo;When it comes to designing this space &mdash; or any space you might be creating for guests &mdash; ultimately
you want them to be comfortable,&rsquo; adds Mr Alken-Theasby
&lsquo;And the best way to do that is to treat it like your own house and decide what you&rsquo;d like to have if you were going to spend most of your time there
Start from that premise and you can&rsquo;t really go wrong.&rsquo;
The Net Loft at Atlanta Trevone (<a data-analytics-id="inline-link" href="http://www.atlantatrevonebay.com" data-no-affiliate-tracking="true">www.atlantatrevonebay.com</a>); H&Aacute;M Interiors (01491 579371; <a data-analytics-id="inline-link" href="http://www.haminteriors.com" data-no-affiliate-tracking="true">www.haminteriors.com</a>)
Pictures: Oliver Grahame Photography; Alexander James