Category: Archaeology

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Possible Alexander the Great Tunic Found in Vergina Royal Tomb

Figurine (H20257) from Thonis-Heracleion with close-up of the fingerprints. Credit: Franck Goddio/Hilti Foundation in Hoff 2024

Ancient Fingerprints Reveal Gender and Age of Egyptian Figurine Makers

Drawing showing location of in situ bones of Individual 14 (in blue), Barbary sheep horn core (in gray), stone with ochre (in dark gray and red), animal bones (in yellow), Ephedra cone bracts (as red spots), shell (as large green spot), limits of the burial pit (dotted line). Photo on the right side shows an archaeological Ephedra pair of cone bracts (author A. Freyne and J. Morales). Credit: Scientific Reports (2024). DOI: 10.1038/s41598-024-77785-w

Earliest Evidence of Ephedra Use Found in 15,000-Year-Old Moroccan Burial

An ancient schist plaquettes from the ice-age camp site of Gönnersdorf depicts a fish trap. The fish was first engraved and then overlaid with a net of lines. Credit: Robitaille et al., 2024, PLOS ONE, CC-BY 4.0

Gönnersdorf Discovery: Earliest Evidence of Ice Age Fishing Techniques

Pompeii body casts. Credit: Archeological Park of Pompeii

Pompeii’s Body Casts Reveal Surprising Truths Through Genetic Analysis

(a) Drinking vessel in shape of Bes head; El-Fayūm Oasis, Egypt; Ptolemaic-Roman period (4th century BCE—3rd century CE), (courtesy of the Tampa Museum of Art, Florida). (b) Bes mug from the Ghalioungui collection, 10.7 × 7.9 cm (Ghalioungui, G. Wagner 1974, Kaiser 2003, cat. no. 342). (c) Bes mug inv. no. 14.415 from the Allard Pierson Museum, 11.5 × 9.3 cm (courtesy of the Allard Pierson Museum, Amsterdam; photo by Stephan van der Linden). (d) Bes mug from El-Fayum, dimensions unknown (Kaufmann 1913; Kaiser 2003, cat. no. 343). Credit: Scientific Reports (2024). DOI: 10.1038/s41598-024-78721-8

Hallucinogens Discovered in Ancient Egyptian Ritual Mug

Marine fossils from Level 4. (A) Pholadomya gigantea (Sowerby, 1836) (PV18 H29 159); (B) Granocardium productum (Sowerby, 1832) (PV22 9047); (C) Pleurotomaria sp. (PV20 F27); (D) Tetragramma variolare (Brongniart, 1822) (PV19 G27). Credit: Quaternary (2024). DOI: 10.3390/quat7040049

New Evidence Suggests Neanderthals Collected for Aesthetic Reasons

Clay objects roughly the size of fingers were discovered during a dig at the ancient city of Umm el-Marra. The engraved symbols may be part of the earliest known alphabet. Credit: Glenn Schwartz, Johns Hopkins University

Earliest Alphabet Found in Syria

Plan view map of Vanguard Cave site and pictures showing the section profiles excavated and the section of the pit. Credit: Quaternary Science Reviews (2024). DOI: 10.1016/j.quascirev.2024.109025

Neanderthals’ 65,000-Year-Old Tar Oven Discovered in Gibraltar

"Focaccia" with animal fat experimentally baked in a replica husking tray inside a domed oven. Credit: Sergio Taranto

7000-Year-Old Bread: New Study Uncovers Late Neolithic Culinary Practices

(a) A bronze medieval-style wall or rampart gun was found at this Coronado expedition site in southern Arizona. It is 42 in (106.7 cm) long and weighs about 40 lb. The diameter of the bore is .95 in (24.7 mm) or 5 gauge. It could be fired with a solid round projectile or with buckshot. (b) The wall gun was resting on the floor of a Spanish structure. This figure shows it while under excavation, held firmly in place by roots. Credit: International Journal of Historical Archaeology (2024). DOI: 10.1007/s10761-024-00761-7

Coronado Era Cannon Found in Arizona

An eyed needle made from the bone of a red fox found at the LaPrele archaeological site in Wyoming's Converse County. Credit: Todd Surovell

Wyoming Site Reveals Ancient Bone Needles, Oldest Bead in Americas

(a) Location of the Château des Milandes in Castelnaud-la-Chapelle, Dordogne, France. Map: https://www.openstreetmap.org/relation/2377311#map=5/45.416/3.691; (b) Aerial view of the Château des Milandes (left) and the chapel (right), © D. Castex; (c) Map of the chapel, modified after the map of F. Mandon (Atemporelle Archaeological service). In gray: elevations dating from the second half of the 15th century; in yellow: elevations dating from the beginning of the 16th century; in blue: crypt dating from the 2nd half of the 16th century; in purple: individual burial ML2021; (d) Entrance to the crypt in the chapel, © F. Mandon; (e) interior of the crypt, details © F. Mandon. Credit: Scientific Reports (2024). DOI: 10.1038/s41598-024-78258-w

The Caumont Family’s Secret: 200 Years of Embalming in Château des Milandes

Reconstruction drawing of a meeting scene in a Cucuteni-Trypillia settlement. In their heyday, these settlements were characterised by great social equality. Credit: Susanne Beyer, Uni Kiel

Exploring the Success of Europe’s First Mega Settlements

Illustration in a 12th century homiliary, showing a self-portrait of the female scribe and illuminator Guda. Credit: Humanities and Social Sciences Communications (2025). DOI: 10.1057/s41599-025-04666-6

New Study Reveals Significant Role of Women in Medieval Manuscript Production

Credit: University of Exeter

Medieval Warhorses: Smaller Than Myth, Mightier Than Expected

From cuneiform to code: section of a Hittite cuneiform text found in Boğazköy-Hattuša in 2024 (photo and XML text). Credit: Daniel Schwemer, University of Wuerzburg

Boğazköy-Hattuša: The Digital Revolution of Hittite Studies

Depas goblet, excavated by Heinrich Schliemann, 15 cm high, collection of classical archaeology, University of Tübingen. Credit: Valentin Marquardt, University of Tübingen

Chemical Evidence Proves Wine Was Common in Bronze Age Troy

Units 6 and 7 in the Northern Cemetery, with detail of burials in the Unit 7 tomb. Photos of pottery from the tomb, including a Nubian style blacktopped redware bowl and the Ushabti of Tahut in situ (prepared by Smith). Credit: Journal of Anthropological Archaeology (2025). DOI: 10.1016/j.jaa.2025.101668

Skeletal Analysis at Tombos Unveils a More Complex Social Hierarchy in Ancient Egyptian Colonial Settlements

Image of a dog skull found at Nescot. Credit: Ellen Green

Unraveling the Mystery of the Nescot Ritual Shaft: Dogs, Sacrifice, and Roman Britain

The portrait shows the ‘Schinderhannes’. Genetic analyses have now also made it possible to determine the actual colour of his eyes, hair and skin - as well as to clearly identify his skeleton. Credit: left: Mainz City Archives BPSP/3894 C; right: MFHD

The Skeleton Swap: Unmasking Germany’s Infamous Outlaw, Schinderhannes

Utilized volcanic spheres 9735 and 9319 from Gombore IB. Credit: Mussi 2025

Hominins Used Natural Stone Spheres for Over a Million Years

Liam McEvoy, a fourth-year UC Berkeley student majoring in anthropology and minoring in Egyptology, has spent much of his time on campus studying the cultural significance of the Egyptian blue lotus and the chemical properties that differentiate it from products sold online. Credit: Diego Moran/UC Berkeley

The Mysterious Blue Lotus: Ancient Egypt’s Sacred Flower, Rediscovered

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Ancient Sculptures: More Than Meets the Eye (And Nose!)

Iron shackles on the floor of Room 44.15 (photo by B. Redon). Credit: Antiquity (2025). DOI: 10.15184/aqy.2025.39

Shackles in the Sand: Unearthing the Harsh Truth of Ptolemaic Gold Mining in Ancient Egypt

Multi-angle views of the stained teeth of 07TSM11:B. Credit: Archaeological and Anthropological Sciences (2025). DOI: 10.1007/s12520-025-02188-5

First Case of Cinnabar-Stained Teeth Found in Ancient Burial

Credit: Muhammad Tuhin

The Cave That Changed Everything: Unveiling the Shared World of Early Humans

Photographs of dismembered remains and burial postures. Credit: Journal of Archaeological Science (2025). DOI: 10.1016/j.jas.2025.106184

The Forgotten Mass Grave that Redefines Han Xiongnu History

Left: Fitting pair of the grinding stone deposit of Sömmerda. Right: Fitting pair of the grinding stone deposit of Goseck circular enclosure. Credit: J. Soldevilla, LDA

Grinding Stones as Symbols of Women’s Lives in Neolithic Rituals

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The Discovery of Thutmose II’s Long-Lost Tomb