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Denisovan fossil, discovered in Laos' Annamite Mountains, redefines their story.  Source: ginettigino / Adobe Stock

Unexpected Denisovan Fossil Location Reveals More (Video)

In a surprising turn of events, Denisovan fossils have emerged in an unexpected location, challenging established notions of their habitat. Archaeologists recently uncovered a 160,000 to 130,000-year...
Kabayan cave mummy of the ancient Ibaloi people, Philippines. Tadolo/ Flickr

Fire Mummies - The Smoked Human Remains of the Kabayan Caves

Mummification of the deceased is a well-known practice from ancient times. Most notably, the Egyptians utilized a mummification process that led to today’s cliché image of a deceased body covered in...
View of the cave ‘Cueva de los Marmoles’ entrance from inside, where the manipulated human remains have been found. Source: J.C. Vera Rodríguez/ PLoS ONE

Manipulated Human Remains Found at Cave Site in Spain

The Iberian Peninsula witnessed a particular form of human burials in caves, which were later manipulated and modified, over thousands of years! In the southern Iberian Peninsula, this practice...
Ancient Cave Art at Mfangano Island, Kenya. Source: Avi Kumar

Ancient Cave Art at Mfangano Island Kenya, Revered For Generations

Mfangano Island in Kenya’s Lake Victoria hosts some ancient rock art that is an estimated to be 4000 years old. It consists of concentric circles built by a culture long gone but still revered. Lake...
Partly-flooded chamber of Cova Dones cave complex where the Paleolithic art has been detected.	Source: © A. Ruiz-Redondo, V. Barciela & X. Martorell/ Antiquity Publications Ltd

Largest Collection of Cave Art Found in Eastern Spain Dated to 22,000 BC

A team of archaeologists from the Universities of Zaragoza and Alicante in Spain discovered a cave near the Eastern Iberian coast that is more heavily decorated with ancient artwork than any other...
Direkli Kilise (Column Church) cave church in Cappadocia, Turkey. Source: Matyas Rehak / Adobe Stock.

The Centuries-Old Cave Churches of Turkey (Video)

Nestled in the Turkish region of Cappadocia , the Goreme Open Air Museum boasts a fascinating collection of cave churches dating back to the fourth century. Carved meticulously into soft rock caves...
Bamiyan caves in Afghanistan. Source: trentinness / Adobe Stock.

Bamiyan's Ancient Cave Dwellings Shelter Homeless Afghans (Video)

The caves of Bamiyan, originally carved by Buddhist monks nearly 2,000 years ago, now offer refuge to a significant number of homeless Afghans. These historic caves , nestled within the cliffs of...
Entrance to Te’omim Cave, or Twins cave, near Jerusalem which has produced evidence of a necromancy cult. Source: Yair Aronshtam/CC BY-SA 2.0

Human Skulls from Roman Necromancy Cult Found in Cave Near Jerusalem

In Te’omim Cave in the Jerusalem Hills of central Israel, excavations that took place between 2010 and 2016 recovered a huge collection of Roman oil lamps, weapons, pieces of pottery and actual human...
Cave Temple of Dambulla, UNESCO. Source: JoseMaria/Adobe Stock

From a King’s Refuge to Buddhist Grandeur: Dambulla Cave Temple

One of Sri Lanka’s most well-preserved gems is the Dambulla Cave Temple, a renowned Buddhist temple complex from the 1st century BC. Sometimes referred to as the Golden Temple of Dambulla, the...
A corridor at the Lyobaa underground network at Mitla. Source: ©Marco M. Vigato / Arx Project

Have Archaeologists Found Lyobaa, the Zapotec Land of the Dead?

Beneath monumental stone structures discovered at the archaeological site of Mitla in the southern Mexican state of Oaxaca, it has long been believed that the ancient Zapotec people built a huge and...
Trine Freiesleben and Jean-Claude discussing the fingerprints and where to take OSL samples. Source: Kristina Thomsen / PLoS ONE

Study Finds Oldest Ever Neanderthal Cave Engravings, Destroying Established Timeline

In recent years, interest in the subject of Neanderthal cave art has exploded, as new discoveries have illuminated the fascinating truth about the artistic abilities and advanced symbolic...
Grotte di Osimo. Source: Giulia Lavagnoli / CC by SA 4.0.

Uncovering Templar Secrets In the Grotte di Osimo (Video)

Beneath Osimo, Italy, lies a concealed network of tunnels and chambers connecting the city's palaces. This underground maze carries an air of mystery, as it once held strategic importance for the...
Man standing in underground city of Derinkuyu, Turkey. Source: Parilov / Adobe Stock.

Discoveries of Ancient Underground Cities Around the World

Beneath the surface of our world, hidden under layers of soil, stone, and history, lie remnants of ancient civilizations - vast networks of tunnels, expansive underground cities , and complex...
The Reed Flute Cave in southern China is a beautiful geological marvel. Source: Dennis Jarvis / CC BY SA 2.0

China’s Reed Flute Cave: A Natural Masterpiece with a Rich History

There are a lot of fascinating natural wonders in the world, but one of the most interesting is the Reed Flute Cave in Guilin, in southern China. The Reed Flute Cave is a limestone cave known for its...
Researchers have found evidence in South Africa that Homo naledi used controlled fire within caves. Insert: Homo naledi facial reconstruction.  Source: Brilliant Eye / Adobe Stock, Insert; Cicero Moraes (Arc-Team) et alii, CC BY 4.0

Shocking Evidence Homo Naledi Used Fire 230,000 Years Ago

Ground-breaking new evidence has emerged from South Africa that suggests that Homo sapiens may not have been the first species to use controlled fire. Fossil remains of Homo naledi were discovered in...
The entrance to the Ganesha Gumpha section of the Udayagiri cave complex. Source:  Paramanu Sarkar / CC BY SA 4.0

Udayagiri and Khandagiri Caves: Intricate Jain Monuments to Faith

There is an incredible archaeological site just outside the city of Bhubaneswar in Odisha, India that attracts thousands of tourists each year. The Udayagiri caves are part natural, part man-made...
What began as an accidental discovery of a natural Israeli cave became a manmade Ramesses II era tomb full of artifacts, bronze and clay, from nearly 3,300 years ago! Source: Emil Algam / Israel Antiquities Authority

Ramesses II Era Tomb Found in Distant Israeli Beach Cave Is Astounding!

In what they refer to as an “exceptional and amazing” discovery, a team of Israeli archaeologists recently unearthed an ancient burial cave within the borders of Palmahim Beach National Park on...
The mythology of cultures around the world is filled with tales of underground cities and caves. Image of the underground city of Cappadocia in Turkey. Source: Wirestock Creators / Adobe Stock

Underground Cities Around the World – Myths and Reality

Underground structures, and sometimes even entire cities, have always been part of myths and religions around the world. While a few of these have been discovered, most of them have not. Alongside...
Excavation area in Cueva de Ardales with evidence from the Middle Paleolithic period.	Source: Ramos-Muñoz et al., CC-BY 4.0

The Ice Age Art Gallery Just Got Excavated at Cueva de Ardales

Last year mainstream archaeologists struggled to accept that almost 70,000 years ago someone painted rock art in Cueva de Ardales, a cave in modern day Spain. Now, a team of researchers has shown...
Archaeologist Kristborg Þórsdóttir standing at the site of the vast system of Viking era caves.  Source: Sigurjon Olason / Visir

Mysterious Viking Era Cave Network Found in Iceland is Enormous

Last summer, a series of man-made Viking era caves were discovered southwest of Oddi in southern Iceland dated to the 10th century AD. Excavations have now revealed a massive system of interconnected...
Evidence of Denisovans in Southeast Asia is growing one tooth at a time based on the recent find in Laos. The molar attributed to a young female individual of the extinct human species called the Denisovans was found in cave Tam Ngu Hao 2 in northeastern Laos.	Source: Fabrice Demeter / Handout via Reuters

Denisovan Girl’s Tooth Is First Physical Evidence of Denisovans in Southeast Asia!

A team of archaeologists and anthropologists recovered an exceptionally rare molar tooth fossil from a cave in northern Laos. While the fossil bears some resemblance to the teeth of modern humans, a...
The Chiapas cave sacrifice scene, where about 150 toothless skulls were found, as it was discovered in 2012.		Source: INAH

150 Toothless Skulls in Mexico ‘Crime Scene’ Cave are Ancient Sacrifice Victims

In 2012, a citizen alert brought the Mexican police to a cave on the Guatemalan border where a horrific cave sacrifice scene met their eyes. Some 150 skulls and other human skeletal remains lay piled...
The amazing ruins of Mitla and the San Pablo Church Domes, where high technology is being used to discover the truth behind the legends of subterranean Mitla.	Source: Rafal Cichawa / Adobe Stock

Searching for the Lost Subterranean Worlds of Mitla, Mexico

Ancient and colonial sources speak of an extensive underground labyrinth of caves and tunnels, considered by the ancient Zapotec to be a physical entrance into the Underworld of Lyobaa , located...
Rock cut houses south of Nottingham Castle, with the castle building just visible above. The city of Nottingham predates Anglo-Saxon times and was known in Brythonic as Tigguo Cobauc, meaning Place of Caves (known also as "City of Caves").            Source: CC BY-SA 4.0

Nottingham’s 1000-year-old Man-made Caves Are Focus of Regeneration

A new project has been launched by archaeologists and historians from the University of Nottingham to make the city’s medieval underground cave network the focus of a regeneration plan for the city...

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