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History & Archaeology

We bring you all the latest historical news and archaeological discoveries relating to ancient human history. Read more history news from around the world here at Ancient Origins.

Researchers have re-evaluated a helmet discovered in the 1950s in Yarm, Stockton-on-Tees. Known as the Yarm helmet, this is the first Anglo-Scandinavian helmet to have been discovered in Britain and is the second nearly complete Viking-era helmet discovered in the world to date. Source: Durham University.

First Ever Viking Helmet Discovered in Britain

A re-evaluation of a helmet discovered in Yarm has led experts to believe that it is the earliest Anglo-Scandinavian helmet ever to have been found in the British Isles. The remarkable Yarm helmet is...
A facial reconstruction of the Renaissance painter Raphael. Source: Tor Vergata University

Remains of Famous Renaissance Artist Raphael Finally Identified

The Italian Renaissance artist Raffaello Sanzio, more famously known as Raphael, died in 1520 AD. In 1833, an anonymous skeleton was exhumed from its grave in Rome's Pantheon that was suspected of...
Aerial view of the Shimao archaeological site. (dfdaily) Insert: A pit of skulls unearthed at Shimao. (Zhouyong Sun et al. 2017)

Pits of Skulls Found in Shimao: China’s Neolithic City of Mystery

Shimao is an ancient Chinese city that was lost for a long time. But in recent years it has yielded many of its secrets to archaeologists. Among the most astonishing finds are a step-pyramid and...
Representation of how Perdigões’ Neolithic “Woodhenge” would have looked (with full worked area highlighted).       Source: ERA Archueologia

Neolithic “Woodhenge” Discovered at Perdigões’ Complex Portugal

Remains of a Neolithic “Woodhenge” have recently been unearthed by a team of archaeologists at Perdigões in Portugal . The newly found wooden structure was built at the end of the Stone Age and is...
Damaged 19th century sculpture of Paolina Bonaparte by Antonio Canova      Source: Gypsotheca Antonio Canova Museum (Inset, Carabinieri Treviso)

Tourist Damages A Valuable Italian Sculpture And Just Walks Away

CCTV in an Italian museum has captured the moment a tourist snapped two toes off a 200-year-old sculpture’s model. This horrendous act of vandalism followed by sheer negligence of all adult...
Researchers have solved the mystery of the origins of the best Roman glass. Source: cascoly2 /Adobe Stock

Scientists Prove Rome’s Ancient Glass Was Not From Rome!

Many of the Roman elite enjoyed notoriously luxurious lifestyles. For example, Senators and nobles liked to drink from transparent glasses which were of the highest quality. The origin of the best...
The never seen before Mesoamerican mural minerals of cinnabar and hematite found in this early Teotihuacan mural. The distinctive reds on the left side of this image are especially noteworthy.            Source: Denisse Argote Espino / INAH

Mesoamerican Mural Minerals Reveal Secrets of Ancient City

In Mexico , researchers have for the first time ever discovered previously unknown Mesoamerican mural minerals. The mercury sulfate and iron oxide were found in wall paintings in one of the most...
Top image: The Orkney River is part of the recently discovered Orkney Viking waterway. The researcher shown in this photo is carrying remote-sensing geophysical mapping equipment.           Source: Express and Star

Evidence of Waterway Engineered By Vikings Discovered In Scotland

Archaeologists in Scotland have discovered an extensive ancient Viking waterway cutting right through Orkney’s Mainland island. The Orkney Islands , known for their tall sandstone cliffs and world-...
Tools featuring Nubian Levallois technique found in situ by Dimona, in the Negev Desert, Israel. Source: Emil Eladjem, Israel Antiquities Authority

Artifacts Reveal Out of Africa Route Through Negev Desert

A spectacular Meso-Paleolithic site has been found in the Negev Desert in Israel. Artifacts from this desert site are enhancing archaeologists’ understanding of how modern humans made their way into...
Stolen Serbian Roman artifact composite photo showing both sides of the stone, the sandal-covered feet, and the Roman inscription.  Source: National Museum in Belgrade

Serbian Roman Artifact Vanished 24 Hours After Discovery

In 2020, a recently excavated ancient Serbian Roman artifact, a stone slab covered with engraved Latin text, was stolen only 24 hours after it was discovered. The rare Roman artifact was discovered...
This massive 10,000-year-old skull was just a small part of the Siberian mammoth remains discovery. Source: Artem Cheremisov / Siberian Times

Amazing New Siberian Mammoth Remains May Lead to Cloning Breakthrough

Russian scientists have retrieved the nearly complete remains of a woolly mammoth in Russia. The Siberian mammoth remains are so well-preserved that they still have flesh and hair. These remains are...
King Arthur. Detail. Charles Ernest Butler, 1903.

Archaeologists May Have Discovered the Birthplace of King Arthur: Legends Come to Life?

The discovery of 1500-year-old ruins at Tintagel in south-west England made headlines around the world. What appear to the be the walls of a Dark Age palace have been found in the exact place, and...
The figurine and foil from the Inca treasure chest.     Source: Teddy Senguin, Université libre de Bruxelles / Antiquity Publications Ltd

Stone ‘Treasure Chest’ With Inca Offerings Discovered In Lake Titicaca

Underwater archaeologists in Peru have discovered an ancient stone box containing treasures pertaining to an “alternative” sacrificial ritual, they reveal in a study published in Antiquity. The Inca...
Left) A grave from Osłonki with valuable artifacts, visible near the hands; right) a drawing of the artifacts. Source: Peter Bogucki

Neolithic Wealth Gap Wasn’t Just for the Living

An international team of archaeologists in Poland have been working to answer a very interesting question. Were the people buried with rich grave goods necessarily as wealthy in life as they were in...
A closeup of one of the underwater AI robot cameras at the shipwreck site in the Aegean Sea, Greece             Source: NOUS

Ancient Greek Shipwreck Is Now Protected By Underwater AI Robots

Only 15 years ago scientists dreamed of a future in which new technologies would enable us to peer through tree canopies and see beneath the ground in our search for ancient lost cities, temples, and...
Stone-Age mammoth bone cordage tool found at Hohle Fels cave in Germany that scientists now recognise as a rope-making tool from 40,000 years ago.                     Source: University of Tübingen

The True Purpose of The Ancient Mammoth Bone Artifact

In 2020, a team of scientists identified a Stone-Age cordage tool used to manufacture rope, which completely changed human life and productivity in prehistoric times. A series of slow advancements in...
Marine archaeology students examine the pottery near the bulkhead at the Israeli shipwreck. Source: A. Yurman/Leon Recanati, Institute for Maritime Studies of the University of Haifa

Shipwreck Found With Both Christian and Muslim Artifacts

Off the Israeli coast, marine archaeologists have been excavating a mysterious shipwreck that is changing how experts think about the 7th century AD in the Middle East. The vessel sank in a period...
A professor of archaeology has made a controversial claim that a 3,000-year-old clay head, found at Khirbet Qeiyafa in Israel, is a Yahweh idol representing the Jewish god Yahweh. Source: Clara Amit / Israel Antiquities Authority

Professors Clash Over Controversial 3,000-Year-Old ‘Yahweh’ Idol

A professor of archaeology has claimed a 3,000-year-old clay head idol represents the Jewish god Yahweh. However, two other archaeologists have challenged this interpretation by pointing out why this...
The modern day remains of Olsztyn Castle which is strongly linked to the rule of Casimir the Great.     Source: Tomasz Warszewski / Adobe Stock

Hidden Caves and Lost Battlefield Linked to Casimir the Great Found

Casimir the Great is one of the greatest figures in Polish history and played an important role in Medieval Eastern Europe. Two recent finds are providing exciting new insights into his reign. In...
The Army of Saladin, Guillaume de TyrParis, 1337. Source: Public domain

Battlefield Where Richard the Lionheart Defeated Saladin Located

An Israeli archaeologist has identified the long-lost battlefield of Arsuf. This was a battle that took place during the Crusades between the legendary figures of Richard the Lionheart and Saladin...
Aerial view of 1,300-year-old church in the village of Kfar Kama, near the Mount of Transfiguration (Mount Tabor), Israel. Source: Alex Wiegmann, Israel Antiquities Authority

Archaeologists Make Biblical Discovery at Mount of Transfiguration

Archaeologists in Israel have discovered a 1,300-year-old church with exceptionally well-preserved mosaics beside the famous Biblical Mount of Transfiguration. Perhaps one of the widespread...
Origins of the sarsen stones is finally pinpointed.       Source: Alexey Fedorenko / Adobe Stock

Origin of Stonehenge’s Sarsen Stones is Finally Pinpointed

After years of uncertainty, experts have now solved the mystery of exactly where most of the Stonehenge sarsen stones came from, made possible through the return of a missing fragment of one of the...
Study finds that medieval remedy found in 1000-year-old medical text could hold key to treating antibiotic-resistant infections. Source: shaiith / Adobe Stock

Medieval Remedy Could Treat Antibiotic-Resistant Infections

A possible medical breakthrough has been made by experts, all thanks to a 1000-year-old medieval English medical text. A treatment, that dates to the Dark Ages , is helping researchers to treat a...
Trilogy statue of King Ramesses II, Ptah and Sekhmet. Cairo Egyptian Museum.          Source: JMCC1 / CC BY-SA 3.0

Has A “Royal-Trinity” Of King Ramesses II Been Discovered In Egypt?

A group of ancient statues has been discovered in the deserts of Egypt, and this remarkable timeworn ‘royal-trinity’ seems to feature the Egyptian creator god Ptah , the maintainer of Earth, King...

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