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.
There has long been an air of mystery and intrigue surrounding a set of wooden tablets with writing on them found on the tiny, remote South Pacific island of Rapa Nui (more commonly known as Easter...
After five years of research two German scientists have published translations of a collection of Egyptian magical texts. Cutting through the love spells, curses and protection rituals, this work...
During excavations at a 2,500-year-old archaeological site in Puyang, China, a set of 10 polished and painted bone slips or sticks were unearthed, all of which were inscribed with an ancient Chinese...
Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology A mortuary practice known as ‘Log Coffin culture’ characterizes the Iron Age of highland Pang Mapha in northwestern Thailand. Between 2,300 and 1,...
While digging at the site of a rural, first-century AD Roman settlement in Houten-Castellum in the Netherlands, archaeologists uncovered a most unusual artifact. Inside a hollowed-out animal bone,...
In a fascinating addition to our understanding of ancient Britain, recent archaeological work at Vindolanda, a key Roman garrison south of Hadrian's Wall in Northumberland, has unearthed evidence...
A dazzling Bronze Age hoard, discovered 60 years ago in Spain, referred to as the Treasure of Villena, and dating back to the period between 2200 and 750 BC, has now been found to possess ‘extra-...
A team of student researchers have combined 3D-mapping and AI to decipher a Greek scroll that was encased in ash during the 79 AD eruption of Mount Vesuvius. The philosophical musing reveals Greek...
Archaeologists from the Déri Museum have unveiled an exciting find: the burial of an Avar warrior accompanied by a fully intact ‘lamellar’ armor set within a solitary early Avar tomb. This discovery...
In 2019 I wrote a news article on Ancient Origins about the UK’s first “flat-pack” medieval home. Now, archaeologists in London have announced their discovery of an incredibly well-made, and...
Researchers have been “completely blown away” by the uncovering of an Iron Age workshop belonging to a "master blacksmith" in the English countryside, complete with bellow protectors and small metal...
In a remarkable fusion of local knowledge and academic expertise, Yale University's Veronica Waweru has uncovered what she thinks is an ancient "arcade" of Mancala game boards in central Kenya,...
An international team of researchers has been awarded a grant of more than £11.5 million (about $14.5 million USD) to organize an underwater archaeological survey of ancient ruins that are currently...
If you’ve been following the news, you will have heard references to the use of the term Amalek which was cited by South Africa at the International Court of Justice in The Hague in January 2024. But...
Documents published from the Vatican archives in 2014 revealed an incredible tale of pirate attacks and corruption involving a 14th century bishop, whose lifelong accumulation of treasure was...
Leigh Hopper /University of Southern California You might think age-related dementia has been with us all along, stretching back to the ancient world. But a new analysis of classical Greek and Roman...
Where is Alexander the Great buried? This mystery, that has baffled historians and devotees of the legendary conqueror, might be closer to an answer, as a group of archaeologists found the occupants...
The first analysis results now confirm that the grave in Tiarp is one of the oldest stone burial chambers in Sweden . “It’s an early grave which dates to the Early Neolithic period, about 3500 BC,”...
An ancient Maya tomb, dating back 1,700 years, has been uncovered at the site of Chochkitam in Guatemala, near the border of modern-day Mexico and Belize. This looted, pyramid tomb revealed an...
A fascinating new study has explored the cultural behavior of prehistoric humans in Europe from tens of thousands of years ago, and learnt that our ancestors adorned themselves with a diverse array...
Archaeologists in Poland have unearthed a trove of over 550 pieces of Bronze Age jewelry believed to have been part of an ancient burial ceremony. Discovered at the Papowo Biskupie site, which was...
In a small gallery of the Cueva del Tesoro, in Cadereyta de Montes, Querétaro, authorities have recovered one of the few sets of hunting tools from pre-Hispanic times discovered so far in Mexico. It...
Five decades on from the start of an archaeological dig by the University of Reading, the findings of the investigation will be brought to the public, showcasing the incredible discoveries from...
Many times, evidence of fantastic finds vanishes, leaving behind only legends (think the Tulli Papyrus or Robin Hood’s Hideout). However, sometimes, fabulous artifacts from history manage to survive...