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All the latest news on finds, advancements, and research in archaeology and ancient history, from the No 1 Ancient History website in the world

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The newly-discovered carving at Gebel el Sisila

Pharaoh bows to god of gods in newly discovered quarry carving

A team of archaeologists from a Swedish university has made some important discoveries at a large ancient Egyptian quarry. They’ve found a rock carving up to 3,000 years old depicting a pharaoh...
Triceratops Horn Dated to 33,500 Years

Did Humans Walk the Earth with Dinosaurs? Triceratops Horn Dated to 33,500 Years

A Triceratops brow horn discovered in Dawson County, Montana, has been controversially dated to around 33,500 years, challenging the view that dinosaurs died out around 65 million years ago. The...
Human Brain by J.M. Bourgery, 1831-1854.

Why do humans have such large brains? (And why aren’t they larger?)

Mauricio Gonzalez Forero / The Conversation Most animals have brains in proportion to their body size – species with larger bodies often have larger brains. But the human brain is almost six times...
The Porcelain Tower.

The Porcelain Tower of Nanjing: One of the Seven Wonders of the Medieval World

Many children have been warned to be careful around their grandmother’s fine porcelain plates. Those kids may grow up thinking that porcelain is a fragile material which has to be handled with care (...
Remains of 82 individuals have be recovered from the Alken Enge site.

Finds from Alken Enge Provide New Perspective on ‘Barbaric’ Germanic Tribes

Researchers from Aarhus University in Denmark have made a remarkable discovery concerning the human remains of Alken Enge, Jutland. A study published by PNAS that the size of barbarian armies in Iron...
The ‘mourning scene’ on the East wall in the Royal Tomb at El-Amarna (TA 26B - Chamber gamma). Akhenaten is shown leading the royal family in grieving the death of Princess Meketaten, their second daughter, who stands inside a pavilion associated with childbirth. Julian Tuffs.

Challenges of Infant Mortality in Ancient Egypt: Amulets, Spells and the Divine—Part II

Among all the perils that the ancient Egyptians battled through their use of religion and magic, none came close to the poignant and desperate prayers they made to save the lives of their offspring...
The older set of bones found on Tuyana site dated to 50,000 years ago. Source: Vesti Irkutsk

50,000-year-old Siberian bones may be the ‘oldest Homo sapiens' outside Africa and Middle East

By: The Siberian Times reporter Bones unearthed in eastern Siberia could be the oldest modern humans outside Africa and the Middle East. The discovery would change thinking about the arrival of man...
Detail of a figure of a Xianbei warrior. (Editor at Large/CC BY SA 2.5) Background: Filial sons and virtuous women in Chinese history, a lacquer painting over a four-panel wooden folding screen; from the tomb of Sima Jinlong in Datong, Shanxi province, dated to the Northern Wei Dynasty (386–534 AD)

The Xianbei: A Chinese Dynasty Emerges from Nomadic Warriors of the Steppe

The Xianbei people … invade our frontiers so frequently that hardly a year goes by in peace, and it is only when the trading season arrives that they come forward in submission. But in so doing they...
The mound at Grand Caillou.

Louisiana Mound Builders Carefully Selected Sites to Ensure Longevity

A study of ancient mound builders who lived hundreds of years ago on the Mississippi River Delta near present-day New Orleans offers new insights into how Native peoples selected the landforms that...
2,800-year old tombs surrounded by 28 chariots and 98 horses in China

Archaeologists in China find 2,800-year old tombs surrounded by 28 chariots and 98 horses

A team of Chinese archaeologists unearthed a set of elaborate tombs surrounded by 28 chariots and 98 horses in the province of Hubei in China in 2015. The incredible discovery dates back 2,800 years...
Maoi statues on Easter Island

Demise of ancient Rapa Nui civilization linked to European contact

A 2015 study suggests that European “exploration” of the world resulted in the collapse of yet another indigenous people previously thought to have died out pre-contact: the Rapa Nui of Easter Island...
Megalithomania are running a tour to Peru and Bolivia in November 2018 so please consider joining Hugh Newman and JJ Ainsworth to hopefully get access to these rooms and the newly discovered Viracocha statue.

New Discoveries at Tiwanaku & Puma Punku: The Lost Statue of Viracocha and Secret Rooms of Hidden Artifacts

In December 2017 myself and fellow megalithic researcher JJ Ainsworth stayed in Tiwanaku for a few days to thoroughly explore the sites of Tiwanaku and Puma Punku looking for any anomalies or things...
Artist's depiction of the sunken city of Atlantis

Rare orichalcum metal said to be from the legendary Atlantis recovered from 2,600-year-old shipwreck

A team of marine archaeologists have discovered several dozen ingots scattered across the sandy sea floor near a 2,600-year-old shipwreck off the coast of Sicily. The ingots were made from orichalcum...
Modern representation of Sima Yan, the first emperor of the Jin Dynasty. (CC BY SA) Background: Detail of a moulded-brick mural identified as the “Seven Sages of the Bamboo Grove and Rong Qiqi.” (Gary Lee Todd/CC BY SA 4.0)

The Jin Dynasty: The Sima Clan Fights to Hold China Together

The Jin (晉) Dynasty was an imperial dynasty that ruled China between the 3rd and 5th centuries AD. It was established following the Three Kingdoms period, during which China was fragmented into three...
Statue of Ghengis Khan

Search to Find Tomb of Genghis Khan Picks up Pace

Before Genghis Khan, the founder of the Mongol Empire, died, he made it clear that he did not want to be found. So far, this wish has remained fulfilled as nearly 800 years after the death of one of...
ANU Archaeologist Dr Catherine Frieman & co-director James Lewis with funerary pot in situ.

Cornish Barrow Dig Uncovers 4,000-year-old Human Burial

An archaeologist from The Australian National University (ANU) has hailed her excavation of a Bronze Age burial mound in south west England a huge success with the discovery of an intact 4,000 year...
Stone faces in the walls of the Tiahuanaco temples

Was Tiahuanaco the Seat of the Mightiest Ancient Civilization in the Americas?

In Bolivia at 4000 meters above sea level, right in the middle of the Andean plateau, stands the megalithic city of Tiahuanaco, which represents a fascinating enigma and one of the most important...
Mother Love: Detail from a relief shows Pharaoh Seti I as a child sitting on the lap of goddess Isis. Her right arm is resting on his back while she gently caresses his face with her left hand. This scene can be found on the western wall of the Second Hypostyle Hall. Temple of Seti I, Abydos.

Challenges of Infant Mortality in Ancient Egypt: Disease, Death and Deliverance - Part I

Family came first in ancient Egypt. Be it the royal household or the commoner on the street, the bond between parents and their children was considered sacred. Right through the Old Kingdom period...
Re-creation of the port at the Sumerian city of Eridu.

What Was Life Like in Sumer, History’s First Civilization?

Life went through some incredible changes when the first cities were built. Up until then, nearly every person had to work as a farmer or a hunter, moving from place to place in a constant struggle...
The Armada Tree.

The Armada Tree: Sprouted from a Seed in the Pocket of a Fallen Invader

The Armada Tree is the name given to a sweet chestnut tree in the graveyard of a small church in Northern Ireland, UK. According to local legend, the tree grew, rather unintentionally, from a...
Chinese temple on a lake

The Chinese Emperor Who Built A Lake of Wine and a Forest of Meat

The last ruler of China’s Shang Dynasty knew how to relax. When he and his Queen wanted to unwind, they would head to his pleasure palace and take a dip in their lake of wine. That wasn’t just a cute...
 Wall fragment with Two Women Roman 1-75 CE Plaster and pigment fresco.

Scientists Amazed to Discover 2,000-Year-Old Face Cream Still Containing Last Finger Imprints

When archaeologists came across a tin containing an unknown 2000-year-old ointment they were both pleased and bemused. It was not discovered in a home as one might think, but rather near an ancient...
"Three visits to the thatched cottage" (三顧茅廬), the second visit is depicted here. Portrait at the Long Corridor of the Summer Palace, Beijing. This is a scene from the Romance of the Three Kingdoms.

The Romance of the Three Kingdoms - A Well-Loved Chinese Classic

When saying the names Liu Bei, Guan Yu and Zhang Fei, although the surnames are different, yet we have come together as brothers. From this day forward, we shall join forces for a common purpose: to...
A photo of the sacred cat rug.

Strange Tale of the 2,400-Year-Old Cursed Cat Fur Rug and the Mummified Appendage

A museum in St. Augustine, Florid has a rather unusual artifact – an ancient rug made completely out of cat fur. This rug is sometimes referred to as the ‘Sacred Cat Rug’ and has a claim on the title...

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