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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.

Stone balls, aka petrospheres were found at Qesem cave, Israel.        Source: Assaf et al 2020

Mystery of Stone Balls at ‘Magic’ Qesem Cave Finally Solved

Petrospheres, or spheroids, are two archaeological names for any man-made spherical object made from stone. These mostly prehistoric artifacts have been found intricately carved and painted,...
Macquarie student Hannah Newman discovered the bronze calf figurine during the last week of the excavation at the Ziklag site. Source: Macquarie University

Students Unearth Rare Treasures at Lost Biblical City of Ziklag

A team of students working on what may be the long-lost biblical city of Ziklag have uncovered a hoard of rare objects at a site in Israel . Their finds are adding to the body of evidence that the...
Nazareth Inscription.

New Evidence Throws Doubt On Nazareth Inscription’s Ties To Jesus

During the 1930s, a stone tablet was sent from Nazareth to the Louvre Museum in Paris, which became the focus of religious scholars and biblical archaeologists after its inscription was translated...
Sacrificed Bulls of Ramses II Excavated in Abydos Temple

Sacrificed Bulls of Ramses II Excavated in Abydos Temple

Ramses II, or the Great (c. 1303– 1213 BC), was the third pharaoh of the Nineteenth Dynasty of Egypt and is often regarded as the greatest and most powerful pharaoh of the New Kingdom. During recent...
Wood from an ancient bald cypress forest buried off the coast of Alabama was uncovered by storms. Newly exposed wood offers a unique habitat for marine organisms and creates a novel ecosystem in the Gulf of Mexico. Source: Francis Choi

60,000-Year-Old Underwater Forest May Hold Next Medical Breakthrough!

About 60,000 years ago, pre-historic humans began emerging out of Africa and shared hunting places and cave residences with Neanderthal populations in what is today Europe. Meanwhile, on the other...
Detail of “A verger's dream: Saints Cosmas and Damian performing a miraculous cure by transplantation of a leg.’ Master of Los Balbases, ca. 1495. Source: Public Domain

Brain Surgeons Performed Complex Procedures on Byzantine Warriors

Human remains found on a Greek island are changing how experts view the development of surgical interventions in the proto-Byzantine period. A skull shows the traces of complex brain surgery . The...
Main: depiction of the crucifixion/death of Jesus Christ and the thieves, Gestas and Dismas. (Andrea Mantegna / Public domain).        Inset: The calcaneus of Yehohanon ben Hagkol, with transfixed nail. (Israel Museum / Ilan Shtulman)

New Crucifixion Evidence Sheds Light on the Death of Jesus Christ

An investigation into crucifixions reveals evidence using the latest medical technology on how the horrific form of execution was slow and excruciating, providing new insights into the death of Jesus...
Close-up of modern flax cordage showing twisted fiber construction. (S. Deryck) and a modern representation of a Neanderthal

Crafty Neanderthals Made String, More Evidence for Their Intelligence

Sometime between 41,000–52,000 years ago an innovative person took some fibers, twisted them together, and put them with a thin stone tool. Their creation may have been a handle, net, or bag for the...
6,000-year-old prehistoric pottery from the Sahara Desert, which was subjected to the new dating technique. Source: Emmanuelle Casanova et al. / University of Bristol / Nature

‘Holy Grail’ Dating Technique Sheds New Light on Prehistoric Past

A new archaeological dating technique has been successfully applied to shards of pottery uncovered from a dig in East London’s Shoreditch. The “groundbreaking” new dating technique analyzes fatty...
One of the decorated ostrich eggs used in the study.  Source: Tamar Hodos et al. / Antiquity Publications Ltd

Scientists Unscramble Secrets to World of Ancient Ostrich Eggs

An international team of scientists have revealed secrets about the ancient creation skills, trade and economy of decorated ostrich eggs in the Mediterranean and Middle East. Easter is here again and...
Example of a small farm on a river island in the Amazon in Brazil. 10,000 years ago people made forest islands by domesticating plants in the Amazon. Source: Silvio /Adobe Stock

Earliest Amazon Inhabitants Created Thousands of 'Forest Islands'

The earliest human inhabitants of the Amazon created thousands of artificial forest islands as they tamed wild plants to grow food, a new study shows. The discovery of the mounds is the latest...
Ectocranial view of the brain surgery of paleopathological specimen: a) red arrow points to orifice on the mastoid process, and b) surgical preparation dimensions peripheral to trephination.         Source: Anagnostis P. Agelarakis / Adelphi University

Researchers Reveal Early Complex Brain Surgery in Ancient Greece

New research from Adelphi University has revealed the first forensically-assessed archaeological discovery of remains of a group of domineering mounted archer-lancers and their kin of the Eastern...
The human remains on the riverbank may be part of a medieval cemetery. Representative image. Source: milkovasa /Adobe Stock

Skeleton On Irish Riverbank Points To Long Lost Medieval Cemetery

In Ireland, two people out for a walk made a disturbing discovery. They found the skeletal remains of a human on the bank of a river. It is believed that the skeleton comes from a long-lost medieval...
Left: The small cave is full of intricate engravings, initials and other markings, revealing insights into medieval religion. Right: Archaeologists investigating the cave, which could only be reached by abseiling.            Source: Archaeology South East

UK Landslide Unveils Cave Shrine Steeped in Medieval Religion

Railway engineers in Britain have made a remarkable discovery, uncovering a cave that may have been used as a shrine or hermitage in the Middle Ages . The cavern was uncovered after a landslide by...
There is much debate between scholars to Jesus’ crucifixion date, but there is no real consensus. Is there anyway of us knowing the truth? Left: portrait of Sir Isaac Newton. (Public domain).     Right: representation of Jesus’ crucifixion. (Kovalenko I / Adobe stock)

Sir Isaac Newton’s Astronomical Dating of Christ's Crucifixion

Whether he existed as a physical person, or as some believe, was merely an archetype from Jewish mysticism, Jesus has taken the world by storm and according to the Complete Pilgrim , very rough...
One of the two stone monuments found in Guatemala.

Monuments Depicting Olmec 'Descent of the Grandfather' Myth and the Rise of Mayan Writing Found in Guatemala

Two large carved stone monuments found in an archaeological park in the Central American country of Guatemala have proven to be more significant than originally believed. The finds were made in the...
IMAGE Upload an image to go with this article. Show row weights FILE INFORMATION	OPERATIONS   Image icon Modern.jpg (89.91 KB) Alternate text The Ras Al Khaimah excavation site where the ancient remains were found.   Source: Ras Al Khaimah Government Media Office This text will be used by screen readers, search engines, or when the image cannot be loaded.   Image icon Ras-Al-Khaimah.jpg (161.66 KB) Alternate text This text will be used by screen readers, search engines, or when the image cannot be loaded. A

4000-Year-Old Mass Burials Unearthed in Ras Al Khaimah

An ambitious joint project, between Ras Al Khaimah’s Department of Antiquities and Museums and two US universities, is studying 4,000-year-old human bones unearthed at two prehistoric tombs in the...
El Cid's crucifix, Cristo de las Batallas. (Garciadelosbarros / CC BY-SA 4.0)       Right: Representation of a knight. (Marla / Adobe stock)

Ancient Letter Reveals Clues to Spanish Warlord’s Battle Crucifix

A Spanish professor has established that a historic crucifix in a Christian cathedral was owned by one of medieval Europe’s greatest warriors. Based on documentary evidence, the professor has proven...
The sarcophagus of the ancient Egyptian woman Ta-Kr-Hb, where the artwork of the goddess was found.       Source: Perth Museum and Art Gallery / Culture Perth and Kinross

3000-Year-Old Egyptian Sarcophagus Revealed Mummy Secrets

Scottish scientists discovered never before seen paintings of the ancient Egyptian goddess Amentet on the 3,000-year-old sarcophagus of the famous mummy of ‘ Ta-Kr-Hb ’ (pronounced ‘takerheb’) who...
Ancient Egyptian Goddess. Credit: tk0920 / Adobe Stock

Ancient Egyptian Sex Spell Invoked a Ghost to Entrap a Man

Ancient, magical spells of subjugation, love, and sex sounds like the opening lines to an adult fairy tale, but these steamy evildoings are also found on an 1,800-year-old ancient Egyptian “erotic...
A new study finds that three different human species lived alongside each other. Source: pict rider / Adobe Stock.

Three Different Human-like Species Lived Concurrently in Ancient Africa

The oldest known Homo erectus and Paranthropus robustus fossils have been found in a hilltop cave and a new study details a critical period of hominin evolution showing that two million years ago “...
Coin hoard from early 18th century stashed in ceramic mug. Source: KPÚ Košice

Stashed Coin Hoard From Hapsburg Revolt Unearthed in Slovakia

Archaeologists have found a coin hoard in Slovakia . The silver treasure was uncovered in the foundations of an old church. No one is sure who owned the coins and they are somewhat mysterious, but it...
Once the Calusa captured fished, they were likely harvested with seine or dip nets or speared, said archaeologist William Marquardt. Source: Florida Museum / Merald Clark

Ingeniously Engineered ‘Watercourts’ Fueled Florida’s Calusa Kingdom

A research project has finally solved an archaeological mystery in America . Experts believe that they now know how a Native American people, the Calusa who lived in Florida, were able to develop and...
Homo antecessor shared many facial features with modern humans. Source: Terrae Antiqvae

‘Distinct’ Facial Features Have Been Around For A Very Long Time

A new study suggests that human facial features are found deep within our ancestry. Some say that the similarities between the facial features of modern humans and the controversial Early Pleistocene...

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