Ancient Technology

Dating back thousands of years are numerous examples of ancient technology that leave us awe-struck at the knowledge and wisdom held by people of our past. They were the result of incredible advances in engineering and innovation as new, powerful civilizations emerged and came to dominate the ancient world. These advances stimulated societies to adopt new ways of living and governance, as well as new ways of understanding their world. However, many ancient technology mysteries were forgotten, lost to the pages of history, only to be re-invented millennia later. Here we feature ancient technology history and dozens of amazing artifacts that reflect the brilliance of ancient minds.

Roman marbled glass piriform unguentarium.

16 August, 2018 - 16:40 dhwty

The Beautiful and Complex Artisanship of Glass-making in the Ancient World

In today’s society, glass is a material that is easily available. Due to mass production, glass objects are considered common and can be found everywhere. In the ancient world, however, glass-making...

A bannerstone, the Metropolitan Museum of Art. (CC0) Background: Rocks and water. (CC0)

27 July, 2018 - 18:55 dhwty

Boggling Bannerstones of Ancient Americans: Were They a Function of Flight or More a Flight of Fancy?

A bannerstone is an enigmatic Native American artifact found in the eastern United States. They come in a range of shapes and sizes and are made of various types of stone. These stones have been...

The Hoddøya spearhead – beautiful, mysterious and devine.

26 July, 2018 - 01:57 ancient-origins

The Amazing Hoddøya Bronze Age Spear – A Gift to the Gods

By ThorNews Year 872 BC, Hoddøya, an island in the Namsen Fjord in Central Norway : A tall man with long gray hair wearing a bear claw necklace is standing in the middle of a circle surrounded by...

A Roman Swiss Army Knife? 200-300 AD.

15 June, 2018 - 22:51 Carly Silver

The Original Swiss Army Knife: Check Out This Must Have Gadget for Guys on the Go

The modern Swiss Army Knife didn’t make its debut until the nineteenth century, revolutionizing convenient tools on the go. But, as with so many other things, the ancient Romans did it first! Meet...

Restored statue platform with standing moai on the south coast of Rapa Nui. Note that one of the moai is adorned with a red scoria pukao.

6 June, 2018 - 01:55 ancient-origins

How the Easter Island Statues Received Their Hats: Final Report

How do you put a 13-ton hat on a giant statue? That's what a team of researchers is trying to figure out with their study of Easter Island statues and the red hats that sit atop some of them. "Lots...

With a blade of Damascus steel (similar to Wootz steel), the blade makes this object a treasured piece.

2 June, 2018 - 15:43 dhwty

Wootz Damascus Steel: The Mysterious Metal that Was Used in Deadly Blades

Wootz steel was amongst the finest in the world. It is the metal that was used to fashion weapons such as the famous Damascus blades of the Middle Ages. However, Wootz steel dates back much further...

Bronze Corinthian helmet found in 5thcentury BC burial mound in, Taman Peninsula, Russia.

28 May, 2018 - 22:53 Ed Whelan

First Corinthian Helmet North of the Black Sea Has Been Discovered in Russia

The Russian RIA news agency has reported a remarkable find of an ancient Greek Corinthian helmet. The discovery was made in the Taman Peninsula in the southwest of Russia . The helmet was unearthed...

The Roman Tantalus Bowl, a Pythagorean Cup. (Journal of Roman Archaeology) Background: ‘Aeneas and a Sibyl in the Underworld’ by Jan Brueghel the Elder.

26 May, 2018 - 18:55 dhwty

More than a Sip and You Feel a Drip: A Morbid Motif for the Crafty Pythagoras Cup

The Pythagoras Cup (Pythagorean Cup) is the name given to a drinking cup attributed to the ancient Greek philosopher, Pythagoras of Samos. This cup is also known as the Greedy Cup and the Tantalus...

Scythians shooting with the Scythian bow, Kerch (ancient Panticapeum), Crimea, 4th century BC.

24 May, 2018 - 22:59 Cam Rea

Pick Your Poison: The AK-47 of the Ancient Near East

The Scythian bow was the AK-47 of the Ancient Near East and the weapon of choice to dominate the battlefield. Even though the bow was uniquely designed to deliver the utmost damage, the arrow itself...

Cleopatra's Needle, NYC (CC BY-SA 3.0); Cleopatra's Needle Obelisk in the Hold of the Steamship Dessoug, 1880. (Public Domain); Bob Brier in Egypt. (Sharon Janet Hague)

15 May, 2018 - 19:01 Sharon Hague

Bob Brier and the Hunt for the New York Obelisk

Bob Brier is arguably the world's most famous Egyptologist. Professor at Long Island University in New York, where he has tenure, he teaches both philosophy and Egyptology. A popular host on Learning...

The helmet of a gladiator

26 April, 2018 - 14:02 dhwty

Gladiator Helmets: Fit for Purpose, Not Just Protection

The gladiator is most likely the first image one calls to mind when thinking about entertainment in ancient Rome. As most would already know, gladiators fought either each other or wild animals, in...

All Giza Pyramids in one shot.

20 March, 2018 - 00:59 ancient-origins

From the Pyramids to Stonehenge – were Prehistoric People Astronomers?

Daniel Brown / The Conversation Ever since humans could look up to see the sky, we have been amazed by its beauty and untold mysteries. Naturally then, astronomy is often described as the oldest of...

Mammoth in the Royal BC Museum in Victoria (Canada). The display is from 1979, and the fur is musk ox hair.

16 February, 2018 - 18:57 Ingvar nord

Surprising Stone Age Knowledge Revealed on a Mammoth Bone Bracelet

In Sivershchina, close to the village of Mizyn in Ukraine is one of the oldest and most unique settlements of humans – and it was discovered in a parking lot. The now well-known archaeological site,...

Handle of one of the wooden tools from the Poggetti Vecchi site.

6 February, 2018 - 22:56 ashley cowie

171,000-Year-Old Fire Forged Tool Discovered Beneath a Giant Elephant

171,000 years ago, in Tuscany, a set of ancient tools were crafted and forged with fire. Archaeologists in Florence, Italy, made an incredible discovery during construction work at Poggetti Vecchi. A...

Obsidian projectile point sourced to Batza Tena, Alaska.

4 February, 2018 - 22:41 ancient-origins

Reconstructing an Ancient Lethal Weapon

Archaeologists are a little like forensic investigators: They scour the remains of past societies, looking for clues in pottery, tools and bones about how people lived, and how they died. And just as...

The Lycurgus Cup.

3 February, 2018 - 01:55 aprilholloway

Romans Mastered Nanotechnology and Used it for Eye Catching Decoration

A strange chalice made its way into the British Museum’s collection in the 1950s. It is a 1,600-year-old jade green Roman artifact called the Lycurgus Cup. The image on the chalice is an iconic scene...

South Bridge, Dujiangyan, Sichuan, China.

2 February, 2018 - 01:50 aprilholloway

Dujiangyan: The 2,200-Year-Old Chinese Irrigation System That is Still Used Today!

The oldest irrigation system in the world is in China. Called Dujiangyan, it is also the only surviving monumental non-dam irrigation system from the ancient past. A marvel of Chinese science and...

Romano-British silver toothpick. (The British Museum) An ivory toothpick found in India. (The British Museum) A gold case with matching a tooth and earpicks.

19 January, 2018 - 01:58 dhwty

The Strange History of the Toothpick: Neanderthal Tool, Deadly Weapon, and Luxury Possession

A toothpick – the go-to little tool you select after a meal of corn on the cob, an object you absentmindedly chew on while listening to an unremarkable conversation, the piece of wood you carelessly...

Roman glass (not the legendary flexible glass). Landesmuseum Württemberg, Stuttgart.

18 January, 2018 - 01:50 dhwty

An Unbreakable Story: The Lost Roman Invention of Flexible Glass

Imagine a glass you can bend and then watch it return to its original form. A glass that you drop but it doesn’t break. Stories say that an ancient Roman glassmaker had the technology to create a...

Main: A scene of the Qing dynasty campaign against the Miao (Hunan) 1795 (public domain). Inset: Model of a Chinese South Pointing Chariot, an early navigational device using a differential gear.

15 January, 2018 - 13:59 dhwty

The South-Pointing Chariot: This Ancient Chinese Invention Led Armies In a Unique and Impressive Way

The south-pointing chariot is a Chinese invention that functioned in a similar way to a compass. Instead of pointing north, however, this device could point south, or any other direction it was ‘...

Prehistoric hand axe found in Israel.

10 January, 2018 - 13:59 Theodoros Karasavvas

Half-a-million-year-old Feeding Ground for Homo Erectus Found Near Tel Aviv

Archaeologists from Israel have announced the discovery of hundreds of hand-axes, most likely used by prehistoric humans from five hundred thousand years ago at Jaljulia, north-east of Tel Aviv...

Reconstruction of the Myklebust Viking ship burial chamber c. year 870 AD, Norway, probably containing King Audbjorn of the Fjords. The king’s head is resting on pillows filled with bird feathers.

10 January, 2018 - 01:50 ancient-origins

What Comforting Items Did Vikings Have That Are Still the Height of Luxury Today?

By ThorNews In the largest and most richly equipped Viking burial mounds discovered in Norway there are usually found beds and several types of bird feathers and down from pillows and duvets,...

Mount Ararat is located near the border between Armenia and Turkey. Insert: Image of Mount Ararat.

9 January, 2018 - 01:57 ancient-origins

Does ‘New Evidence’ Prove Noah’s Ark Is Buried on a Turkish Mountain?

By Tom Ozimek , Epoch Times Conclusive evidence of the existence of Noah’s Ark has eluded ark hunters since time immemorial. The Bible says the vessel made landfall on the “mountains of Ararat” in...

Aerial view of an ancient irrigation system discovered in the foothills of Xinjiang, China.

6 January, 2018 - 01:58 ancient-origins

Did Ancient Irrigation Technology Travel Silk Road?

Using satellite imaging and drone reconnaissance, archaeologists from Washington University in St. Louis have discovered an ancient irrigation system that allowed a farming community in arid...

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