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Ancient Origins Tour IRAQ

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Europe

Ancient places can be found all over Europe. Their fascinating histories and impressive artifacts open intriguing glimpses to times past, and open up a window on European history. Visiting such ancient places in Europe 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 Europe, as well as new discoveries of ancient places that are worth paying a visit.

An aerial view of the Latvian shipwreck as it was found in deep beach sand near the country’s capital, Riga. Source: Rigas Brivosta
19 October, 2021 - 14:34 ashley cowie

Mysterious 40 Foot Latvian Shipwreck Unearthed On the Beach Near Riga

A 40-foot-long (12-meter-long) Latvian shipwreck has been found on a beach near the country’s capital, Riga. Might this be the ghostly remains of a lost British Royal Navy warship? Or perhaps, it’s a...
The rock slab at Trachilos, Crete, where the 6-million-year-old hominin Crete footprints were first discovered in 2002. Source: Olaf Tausch / CC BY 3.0
18 October, 2021 - 22:45 Sahir

Cretan Footprints Challenge Darwin’s Out of Africa Theory, Says Study

The evolution of human bipedalism is supposed to be 4 million years old, beginning with primates, which caused the separation of the first hominids from the rest of the four-legged apes. Walking on...
The Mount Vesuvius eruption of 79 AD claimed countless lives including a man who almost made it to the beach at Herculaneum. Source: James Steidl / Adobe Stock
17 October, 2021 - 22:56 Sahir

Mutilated Remains of a Man Trying to Escape Vesuvius Eruption Found

Mount Vesuvius occupies a very special place in the fables and tales of not just the Neapolitans of the southwestern Italy, but also in accounts written by the Greeks and Romans. The Romans saw...
Hallstatt, an idyllic lakeside town that was oblivious of its grandiose history as the birthplace of the Hallstatt culture until 1846. Source: janoka82 / Adobe Stock
15 October, 2021 - 22:54 Aleksa Vučković

The Powerful Hallstatt Culture: Foundation of the Proto-Celtic World

The European Bronze Age was the cradle of many world-changing cultures and civilizations. As it shifted towards the new and revolutionary Iron Age , it saw the emergence of the famed Hallstatt...
According to the latest study, the Iron Age diet of Europeans was rich in grains, fermented blue cheese, and beer. Source: wideonet / Adobe Stock
14 October, 2021 - 18:40 Sahir

The Iron Age Diet: Lots Of Blue Cheese and Beer, Poop Study Shows

Research on poop samples, or palaeofaeces, preserved in the underground salt mines of the UNESCO World Heritage site of Hallstatt in Austria has revealed startling new facts about the Iron Age diet...
The Doge’s Palace in Saint Mark’s Square, Venice. Source: Mapics / Adobe Stock.
14 October, 2021 - 14:47 Aleksa Vučković

The Republic of Venice, The Greatest Jewel of the Mediterranean?

To visit Venice is a dream of every passionate traveler. The city, crisscrossed with channels and marvelous relics of art and culture, is one of Italy’s most sought-after tourist destinations. But...
View of the Romanelli Cave in Italy. Source: Sigari et. al. / Antiquity Publications Ltd
13 October, 2021 - 01:50 Nathan Falde

New Stone Age Rock Art Discovered at Romanelli Cave

Expert researchers with an interest in ancient European rock art have just completed an exhaustive study of Romanelli Cave, an impressively decorated rock art site located on the southeastern tip of...
: England’s Althorp House, Lady Diana’s family home, is the center of a huge estate on which archaeologists discovered a 40,000-year-old Neanderthal camp. Source: Steve Daniels / The rear of Althorp House / CC BY-SA 2.0
11 October, 2021 - 22:57 Sahir

Neanderthal Camp Discovered at Princess Diana’s Althorp House Estate

At Althorp House, the stately home on the late Princess Diana’s family estate northwest of central London, excavations have led archaeologists to suspect that its known history may be predated by...
Derbent: Contested Ancient City Stronghold on the Silk Road
5 October, 2021 - 01:56 dhwty

Derbent: Contested Ancient City Stronghold on the Silk Road

Nestled between the Caspian Sea and the Caucasus Mountains, the Russian city of Derbent and its famed citadel tells the story of ancient power struggles to control the Silk Road trade route which...
The mostly silver Vale of York Hoard found in 2007 by two (father and son) metal detectorists. Photo source: Wikimedia.
28 September, 2021 - 14:47 dhwty

The Vale of York Hoard: The Finest Silver Viking Treasure Find In The UK

The Vale of York Hoard is a Viking hoard dating to the 10th century AD. The hoard, which consists primarily of silver coins, was discovered by a pair of metal detectorists in 2007. The objects in the...
Phaistos Disc Side A. Source: C Messier/ CC BY-SA 4.0
25 September, 2021 - 22:57 Robin Ashdown

The Phaistos Disc: Spiral Secrets Suggest It’s a Festival Calendar

In 1908, Italian archaeologist Luigi Pernier was working in southern Crete at an ancient Minoan palace located in the town of Phaistos. Digging amid the ruins he found a clay circular tablet that has...
Lipci’s Prehistoric Rock Paintings: Montenegro’s Primitive Art Site
16 September, 2021 - 14:55 Aleksa Vučković

Lipci’s Prehistoric Rock Paintings: Montenegro’s Primitive Art Site

Prehistoric rock paintings are a true rarity in the Balkan region of southeast Europe. Of course, the region is a hotspot for all kinds of very ancient history, but oddly enough primitive rock...
Perast, Montenegro. Source: Givaga /Adobe Stock
10 September, 2021 - 14:54 Aleksa Vučković

A Tiny Town with an Enormous History: Perast, The Pearl of Boka

Montenegro’s illustrious Bay of Kotor is a maritime region filled with unique places that boast a long and far-reaching history. Amongst the numerous historic cities that dot the bay’s shores, Perast...
The gatehouse of Bury St Edmunds Abbey. Source: Charles / Adobe Stock.
3 September, 2021 - 18:29 Meagan Dickerson

Bury-St-Edmunds Abbey: Shrine of the King, Cradle of the Law

If you’ve never visited the Suffolk region of southern England, you may not have heard the name of Bury-St-Edmunds. But this small medieval town is home to one of the most important and powerful...
The Dolmens of Antequera, remnants of prehistoric Iberia. Source: goyoconde / Adobe Stock
31 August, 2021 - 14:59 Mark A. Carpenter

The Hominids of Hiberia: Neanderthals, Dolmens and Myths Entwined

At the southwestern tip of Eurasia, the geological cul-de-sac known as the Iberian Peninsula resides. With the majestic Pyrenees Mountains to the north, and the Pillars of Herakles at the Strait of...
The abandoned Bissingen-Nippenburg Chateau in Vlajkovac, Serbia as it looks today. Stock Source: Merlot Levert / Adobe
18 August, 2021 - 22:46 Aleksa Vučković

Bissingen-Nippenburg Chateau: Serbia’s Haunted Austro-Hungarian Estate

Serbia’s north – the dazzling Vojvodina region – is home to many charming and captivating chateaus, all of which are a testament to the rich history of this nation. The Bissingen-Nippenburg Chateau,...
Misleading 19th century depicting the “barbarian” Visigoths sack of Rome in Late Antiquity Source: Public domain
24 July, 2021 - 18:54 Meagan Dickerson

Barbarians versus Romans: Violence and Urban Life in Late Antiquity

The image of the savage, violent barbarian is well-entrenched in Western culture and has been a part of our literary, popular culture and even our language for centuries. Most people would not...
The Roman ruins at Valeria in Castilla-La Mancha. Source: Cultura Castilla-La Mancha
22 July, 2021 - 15:05 Cecilia Bogaard

Valeria: Thriving Roman Holiday Resort Emerging From Abandoned Ruins

Standing at these Roman ruins in the Spanish province of Cuenca, it’s hard to imagine that Valeria was a bustling Roman city 2,000 years ago. “You have to imagine a visitor entering the city through...
The Minoan Civilization of Crete: A Great Aegean Culture
16 July, 2021 - 18:48 dhwty

The Minoan Civilization of Crete: A Great Aegean Culture

The Minoan civilization was a Bronze Age civilization that was based on the island of Crete, in the Aegean Sea. This civilization flourished from around 3000 BC to around 1100 BC. The Minoan...
Dover Castle in Source: Alexey Fedorenko / Adobe Stock
13 July, 2021 - 01:51 dhwty

Dover Castle: The Key to England at the Gateway to Europe

Dover Castle has been dubbed the “Key to England” due to its location at the frontline of defense. Dover has played an important role in Britain’s history, both as a trading port and as the gateway...
Ta’ Cenc dolmen, one of the best-preserved Megalithic dolmens in Malta, sits on the edge of the Ta' Cenc Cliffs.
8 July, 2021 - 14:58 Laura Tabone

Secrets Of The Stones: Malta’s Lesser-Known Megalithic Design

Malta’s prehistory is as dazzling as it is opaque. The excavations and research by archaeologists and other academics have been incredibly thorough, and have helped to create fantastic insights into...
The Araña Caves are best known for their rock painting of honey hunting. Source: Right: Turismo Comunidad Valenciana / Left: GNU Public Licence
6 July, 2021 - 02:05 Cecilia Bogaard

The Araña Caves of Valencia: Entering a Bygone Era Through Rock Art

In 1920, a teacher named Jaime Poch heard of some cave paintings near Bicorp in the Caroig mountain range in Valencia, Spain. Now, over a hundred years later, the site known as the Araña Caves is a...
Healing Temple of Aesculapius (Asklepios) by Robert Thom
3 July, 2021 - 01:58 Sarah Janes

The Healing Power of Dream Incubation in Ancient Greece

In the ancient world, many cultures built elaborate temple complexes dedicated to their healer gods - Imhotep in Egypt and Asklepios in Greece for example. These gods were recognized as having the...
The Nine Maidens on Belstone. Source: Ethan Doyle White / CC BY-SA 4.0.
2 July, 2021 - 01:46 dhwty

Dancing Maidens or Cursed Brothers? The Nine Maidens Stone Circle

The Nine Maidens Stone Circle lies near the village of Belstone in Devon, England. In spite of its name, the site actually has a total of 17 stones. Based on our understanding today, the stone circle...

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