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Ancient Places

Ancient places can be found all over the world. Their fascinating histories and impressive artifacts open intriguing glimpses to times past, and visiting such ancient places in the world can be an unforgettable experience.

Science is constantly discovering new archaeological places and uncovering more evidence into what we once thought we knew about our history, therefore offering new pieces to the ever changing puzzle of humanity’s past and altering how we interpret it. This section will present the most interesting archaeological sites all over the world, as well as new discoveries of ancient places that are worth paying a visit.

Field archaeologist Michael Gibbons, left, discovered the outlines of this gigantic Bronze Age fortress, partially visible in the background of this image, which may be nearly 3,200 years old, while carrying out routine field work in a nature preserve in County Galway, Ireland. Source: YouTube screenshot / RTE News
28 June, 2022 - 14:55 Nathan Falde

Huge New Bronze Age Fortress Discovered in Irish Nature Preserve!

While carrying out routine field work in the Burren lowlands of County Galway in Ireland, field archaeologist Michael Gibbons discovered a Bronze Age fortress that may be almost 3,200 years old. The...
Kelenderis archaeological excavation site. Source: Suzi / Adobe Stock
27 June, 2022 - 22:56 Sahir

Infant Burial Site Along with Furnace Discovered at 2,800-year-old Kelenderis

The ancient city of Kelenderis on the Mediterranean coast of Turkey is the site of the Greek Celenderis, a port and fortress in ancient Cilicia and later Isauria. From here, a furnace for commercial...
Greek hoplite in armor and with weapons and shield. Source: anibal / Adobe Stock
27 June, 2022 - 18:54 Jake Leigh-Howarth

Soldiers of Bronze: The Greek Hoplite, the Phalanx, and the Battle that Defined Them

Hoplite comes from the Greek word “ ta hopla ,” which means “tool” or “equipment,” and was the name given to legions of citizen soldiers who were tasked with protecting their territories from outside...
Close-up of one of the Palmyra Aramaic inscriptions to the “Anonymous God”. Source: Aleksandra Kubiak-Schneider / PAP
27 June, 2022 - 14:47 Sahir

Aramaic Inscriptions in Palmyra, Syria, Solve Mystery of the ‘Anonymous God’

The analysis of over 2,500 Aramaic inscriptions in Palmyra in south-central Syria has helped solve a 100-year-old mystery. Two hundred texts, dated mainly to the 2nd and 3rd century AD have been...
The skin-on Yukon baby mammoth that is now the most complete mammoth specimen ever found in North America! Source: Government of Yukon
26 June, 2022 - 18:42 ashley cowie

30,000-Year-Old Baby Mammoth Is The Most Preserved Mammoth Ever Found in America

A 30,000-year-old baby mammoth has been discovered perfectly preserved in permafrost in the far reaches of Canada’s northwest Yukon province. Covered in skin and patches of hair, the Yukon baby...
The history of Egypt is very much the history of ancient Egyptian weapons and how they evolved. Here Egyptian pharaoh Ramesses II charges his war chariot into battle against the Nubians in south Egypt. Source: Ahmed88z / CC BY-SA 4.0
25 June, 2022 - 18:51 Robbie Mitchell

Ancient Egyptian Weapons: The Evolution of Warfare

Anyone interested in the history of warfare or weaponry should make sure to look at ancient Egyptian weapons and how the Egyptian armies utilized their technological superiority. Whilst most famous...
The grotto of the seven sleepers from the Menologion of Basil II. Source: Public domain
25 June, 2022 - 15:04 dhwty

The Ancient Grotto of the Seven Sleepers

The short story Rip Van Winkle , written in 1819 by the American writer Washington Irving, is about a man who woke up after a sleep of more than two decades. Although such a work of fiction is a...
Aethelred II or Aethelred the Unready sitting on his throne unaware that history would judge him to be unready for what lay ahead as the Anglo-Saxons battled the Danish Vikings. From the illuminated manuscript, The Chronicle of Abindon, circa 1220 AD. Source: The British Library / Public domain
24 June, 2022 - 22:48 Molly Dowdeswell

Aethelred II: Aethelred the Unready, or Was He Just Unlucky?

Immortalized forever as an incompetent, ill-advised monarch by his epitaph, King Aethelred II has been viewed unfavorably by history. Over the last decade, historians have made moves to reinterpret...
Discovery of an elite tomb was made ahead of renovation work in a working-class neighborhood in Lima. Source: Reuters / YouTube
24 June, 2022 - 18:46 ashley cowie

Pre-Colonial Elite Tomb Discovered Under Working-Class Home in Lima

In May 2022 I wrote an Ancient Origins news article about the discovery of “42, syphilis -ridden, colonial Spaniards.” These bodies were unearthed at a 500-year-old hospital in Lima, Peru’s capital...
Excavation site of the settlement believed to be Bassania, on a hill near Bushat village, Albania. Source: M. Lemke / Science in Poland
24 June, 2022 - 14:42 Sahir

Has the Lost Illyrian City of Bassania Finally Been Exposed in Albania?

Archaeologists believe they are uncovering the lost city of Bassania, an ancient Illyrian settlement mentioned by Livy as lying between two important ancient centers - the Illyrian capital of Shkodër...
The Macedonian Tomb of Lyson and Kallikles has long fascinated art scholars and more than a few see Roman stylistic influences in the ancient tomb. Source: Ancient painters of Macedonia / Public Domain
23 June, 2022 - 18:56 Mark Johnston

The Tomb of Lyson and Kallikles: A Roman-style Macedonian Grave?

The Tomb of Lyson and Kallikles is the smallest of the four Macedonian Tombs of Lefkadia and holds a mystery that has become the subject of debate amongst scholars of art and architectural history...
George Long performing genomic data analysis on the mummy where the E. coli was detected. Source: Georgia Kirkos / McMaster University
22 June, 2022 - 22:41 Sahir

436-Year-Old Neapolitan Mummy Found To Have E. Coli Hidden in Gallstone

Escherichia coli, popularly known as E. coli , is a bacteria that is commonly found in the lower intestine of healthy, warm-blooded organisms. Most E. coli bacteria are harmless, but a few have the...
A topographic reconstruction from satellite photos of the Richat Structure with false coloring. False coloring as follows: Brown: bedrock; Yellow/white: sand; Green: vegetation; Blue: salty sediments. Source: NASA/JPL/NIMA / Public domain
21 June, 2022 - 18:59 Mark Johnston

What Do Astronauts, Atlantis, and Africa Share? The Richat Structure!

Tucked away in Mauritania, surrounded by the imposing, shifting dunes of the Sahara Desert, lies the Richat Structure. A spectacular rock formation of many names, the “Eye of the Sahara” has guided...
The Stone of the Pregnant Woman at Baalbek quarry. Source: Lodo27 / CC BY-SA 3.0
18 June, 2022 - 18:46 Molly Dowdeswell

Baalbek’s Stone of the Pregnant Woman: How Was This 1000-Ton Megalith Moved?!

One of the biggest feats of Roman ingenuity lies in Lebanon’s historic Bekaa Valley, home to the ancient city of Heliopolis, now Baalbek. Here, the 2,000-year-old Temple of Jupiter was built on top...
The 17th-century tulipmania madness was not unlike the history of Bitcoin so far because in both cases a speculative bubble was created. Without spilling the beans, tulipmania ended suddenly and badly and put a tarnish on the Dutch Golden Age! Source: momosama / Adobe Stock
18 June, 2022 - 14:42 Sahir

Tulipmania: When Tulips Cost More than a House!

Used frequently as a warning, almost, to deter people from shifting towards cryptocurrencies, particularly the Bitcoin boom, “tulipmania” is often recognized as the first recorded speculative bubble...
The interior of a mudhif in southern Iraq. Source: TasfotoNL / Adobe Stock
18 June, 2022 - 01:40 Robbie Mitchell

Saving Iraqi Mudhif Reed Architecture from Oblivion

Take a look around someone’s house and you can learn a great deal about their way of life and their culture. This is true for historic dwellings as well, and the Iraqi mudhif reed house is no...
Viking sword in a Norse landscape…or is it? Source: James Thew / Adobe Stock
17 June, 2022 - 18:51 Mark Brophy

What’s a Viking Sword? What’s not? The Distinctions of Norse Weaponry

A scourge of early medieval Europe, the Vikings were a fearsome group. The very thought of a Viking sword slashing before you conjures images of fearless warriors raiding and pillaging villages,...
A spectacular example of the mysterious “living and moving” trovants of Romania, a rare and complex geological formation. Source: Nicu Buculei / CC BY-SA 3.0
16 June, 2022 - 14:45 Tracy McLoughlin

Romania’s Enigmatic Trovants: Living Rocks That Grow and Move!

Roughly six million years ago, paleo-earthquakes created a type of geological phenomenon called trovants. They are also known as the stones of Costesti, after their most famous location in Romania,...
Robert the Bruce’s heart was found in 1921 and lost again until 1996. Now this King of Scots (Bust of Robert the Bruce at the National Wallace Monument) rests in peace, knowing his final wishes were granted. Source: Left: tussik / Adobe Stock; Right: Otter / CC BY-SA 3.0
13 June, 2022 - 22:44 Robbie Mitchell

The Long Road Taken By Robert the Bruce’s Heart

Robert the Bruce is one of the most, if not the most famous Scotsmen to have ever lived. Infamous for the 14th-century reign that saw him taking on England’s much bigger and better-equipped army and...
In the famous Eighty Years' War or Dutch War of Independence, ice skates played a crucial role in the final outcome between Spain and the Netherlands that also led to the end of the notorious Spanish Inquisition. Blades of ice skates, made by the German company "Kondor," from about 1890. Source: Christos Vittoratos / CC BY-SA 4.0
11 June, 2022 - 14:46 Lex Leigh

Battles on Ice Skates in the 1500s: The Dutch Against The Spanish!

When you think of Spain, you don’t normally think of ice skates. Yet, that’s exactly what the King of Spain wanted back in 1572. And it wasn’t just a single pair; the king specifically requested 7,...
A honey collecting honey hunter in Nepal. Source: Andrew Newey
11 June, 2022 - 01:48 Joanna Gillan

The Ancient Art of Honey Collecting on the Himalayan Cliffs of Nepal

The Gurung tribespeople of Nepal have been collecting honey from Himalayan cliffs for centuries, risking their lives in an ancient tradition that has been passed down over many generations. But now...
A knight taking a serf bride off to fulfill his right of jus primae noctis, or first night intercourse. Source: diter/Adobe Stock
10 June, 2022 - 14:47 Jake Leigh-Howarth

Jus primae noctis: Did Medieval Lords Really Sleep With Serf Brides First?

The jus primae noctis , droit du seigneur , or “right of the first night,” is an alleged medieval custom which permitted lords to engage in sexual intercourse with the brides of their male subjects...
The world famous York Viking poop fossil or Lloyds Bank coprolite that is about 900 years old. Source: Linda Spashett/ Wikimedia
8 June, 2022 - 19:00 Robbie Mitchell

The Lloyds Bank Coprolite: The Importance of One Huge Viking Poop

The scenic city of York in England has a lot to be proud of. The city, in one form or another has been nestled between the Ouse and Foss rivers for over 2,000 years. It has a rich history dating back...
An arson attempt at Malmesbury Abbey was stopped by heroic locals. Source: Lukas Gojda / Adobe Stock
8 June, 2022 - 14:58 ashley cowie

Local Heroes Save Historic Malmesbury Abbey from Fiery Ruin

Malmesbury Abbey in Wiltshire, England, was attacked by arsonists on Friday evening. The 12th century center of learning would have been entirely lost, if it were not for the brave actions of “heroic...

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