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Artifacts

There are undoubtedly millions of ancient artifacts from the past that have served to shed light on the lives of our ancestors from many millennia ago. But some ancient mystical artifacts stand out for their uniqueness, their intrigue, or their ability to expand our knowledge about previously unknown aspects of our history. Here we feature many such ancient history artifacts, from amazing examples of ancient technology, to artistic masterpieces, unexplained objects, ancient texts, and mysterious artifacts that shed light on the daily lives of our ancestors.

A gold plaque depicting a Scythian rider with a spear in his right hand. One of the artifacts currently on display.
13 September, 2017 - 22:57 Alicia McDermott

A Warrior’s Face Frozen in Time, Gold, Hemp, Tents and Cheese Tell the Scythian Tale

The Scythians were a mysterious and fascinating people. They were nomads and left no known writing, yet their elaborate burials and tattoos have given up some of their story. A new exhibition at the...
The 4000-year-old brain tissue found in Seyitömer Höyük, Turkey.
11 September, 2017 - 01:59 aprilholloway

Bronze Age Brain: 4000-Year-Old Human Cerebral Tissue Preserved by ‘Corpse Wax’

Tissue from a human Bronze Age brain has been preserved for 4000 years. Archaeologists hope that similar specimens can be found to discover more information on health conditions in the prehistoric...
Detail of Painting of Hopi man returning home. By Homer Coayama, ‘Hopi Man Coming Home From the Field’ (From author’s collection)
9 September, 2017 - 18:52 Thomas O. Mills

Help Find the Missing Corner of the Hopi Tablet To Prove Their Creation Story: Seeking Answers in the Chapel of the Tablet, Africa

[Editorial by Thomas O Mills, Hopi Cultural Center in Second Mesa, Arizona, USA ] I am sometimes asked, “How can we help the Hopi People?” Having lived with the Hopi for a number of years, I can...
Tar collected in a birch bark container from the pit roll experiment, a technique which uses glowing embers placed over a roll of bark in a small pit.
5 September, 2017 - 01:52 ancient-origins

How Neanderthals Made the Very First Glue 200,000-Years-Ago

The world's oldest known glue was made by Neanderthals. But how did they make it 200,000 years ago? Leiden archaeologists have discovered three possible ways and published their findings in...
A Dendera Zodiac with added blue and gold color, Neues Museum, Berlin
4 September, 2017 - 23:08 Tashi Javed

A Circular Egyptian Mythology: Does the Dendera Zodiac Represent the Most Ancient Astronomy?

In 1799, Napoleon and his armies were beginning to expand their presence throughout Egypt. Napoleon brought not only armies but artists to record sketches of his findings of a country that was...
Drawing of an obelisk.
3 September, 2017 - 23:05 Caleb Strom

Constructing an Obelisk: How the True Rocks of Eternity were Made

Since Classical antiquity, the West has had a fascination with ancient Egypt. Even Roman tourists would regularly visit Egypt in droves and all but one of the Egyptian obelisks were removed at some...
The head of the unknown ancient Egyptian pharaoh found at Hazor in Israel.
1 September, 2017 - 18:48 Alicia McDermott

Why Was This Sculpture of a Forgotten Pharaoh First Transported to Israel and Ultimately Smashed?

With a close-fitting, curled cap wig topped with a solar cobra, the head of a sculpture found in Israel in 1995 almost certainly depicts an ancient king of Egypt. But researchers are still trying to...
Detail of Alexandre Cabanel’s ‘The Birth Of Venus.’
31 August, 2017 - 02:00 johnblack

Linking the Planets and Human Life: Venus Calendars Helped Track Pregnancy in Neolithic Greece

Back in 4000 BC women of the ancient Aegean civilization may have used a calendar tracking the movement of the planet Venus to follow their pregnancy milestones. This is an intriguing explanation for...
Monastery of St. Catherine at Mount Sinai.
30 August, 2017 - 01:58 Theodoros Karasavvas

More Revelations From St. Catherine’s Monastery Include Lost Ancient Languages

Scientists have found languages not used since the “Dark Ages” among ancient manuscripts revealed at the St. Catherine’s monastery in Egypt. It is the latest findings to be released from the 1,500-...
Egypt: The pyramids at Giza and the Sphinx. Colour lithograph by G.W. Seitz, ca. 1878
29 August, 2017 - 18:58 Calumy

A Forgotten Sphinx and Faked Cartouche: Changing the Course of Ancient Egyptian History?

When Gerry Cannon invited me to co-author his forthcoming book, “The Giza Plateau Secrets and a Second Sphinx Revealed”, I’m sure that neither of us could have foreseen the most explosive revelation...
A chunk came out of the coffin after visitors put a child inside it Image
26 August, 2017 - 02:00 Gary Manners

No, It’s Not a Cot: 13th Century Coffin Smashed in Photo Attempt at Priory Museum

In the UK, some careless and one might say foolhardy visitors to the Prittlewell Priory Museum in Southend, Essex caused damage to an 800-year-old stone sarcophagus when they placed their child into...
Five carved stone spheres from Scotland held at the Ashmolean Museum
22 August, 2017 - 23:06 Hugh Newman

Geometric Stone Spheres of Scotland: Part 2 – Explanations From Platonic Solids to Sexual Healing

The purpose of these, predominantly Scottish in origin, spheres is unknown, although simple theories range from projectiles to predictive devices and more. But the sophistication of their design and...
Example of Roman coins from a hoard at Llanvaches, Monmouthshire, Wales in 2006. Roman coins have been found in a few locations across Scandinavia as well.
22 August, 2017 - 01:56 Riley Winters

Making Money Divine: Roman Imperial Coins had a Unique Value in Scandinavian Cultures

"My fleet sailed from the mouth of the Rhine eastward as far as the lands of the Cimbri to which, up to that time, no Roman had ever penetrated either by land or by sea, and the Cimbri and Charydes...
Figure 1. Geometric stone spheres. (Photo Credit: Martin Morrison, taken at Hunterian Museum, Glasgow)
21 August, 2017 - 19:01 Hugh Newman

Geometric Stone Spheres of Scotland: Part 1 – More Than A Projectile - What Possible Purpose 5,000-years Ago?

“O nly in the period when Megalithic Man was setting out the sophisticated stone rings has a sufficiently high standard of mathematical knowledge and skill ever been reached before the fifteenth...
The Battle of Cannae was a major battle of the Second Punic War that took place on 2 August 216 BC in Apulia, in southeast Italy. The army of Carthage, under Hannibal, surrounded and decisively defeated a larger army of the Roman Republic
16 August, 2017 - 13:58 Theodoros Karasavvas

Analysis of Roman Coins Proves Roman Empire Got Rich on Iberian Silver

An analysis of Roman coins has revealed information about the defeat of the Carthaginian General Hannibal and the rise of the Roman Empire . The scientists who examined them suggest that the defeat...
Clockwise: Rhodesia Man (YouTube Screenshot), H. H. Nininger (Fair Use), Auroch skull (Technology of the Gods: The Incredible Sciences of the Ancients), Salzburg Cube (Public Domain),Roman Nails (CC BY-SA 2.0)
15 August, 2017 - 13:58 Sam Bostrom

The Lost Knowledge of the Ancients: Were Humans the First? Part 5

This series has highlighted many real modern world phenomena that don’t quite fit the conventional wisdom regarding the ancient history of the world as we think we know it. In this section, we will...
Loutrophorai: Greek, Attica, c.440BC, (Penn Valley); Greek, Classical Period, 450–425 BC (MFA);Greek, South Italian, Early Hellenistic Period c.320–310 BC
15 August, 2017 - 02:01 Veronica Parkes

From Cremated Ashes to Holy Water for a Bride’s Ritual Bath, The Loutrophoros Was No Ordinary Vase

A loutrophoros is a distinctive type of Greek pottery characterized by an elongated neck with two handles. It is a specific type of amphora , which was a type of Greek container used as early as the...
The theatre at Aspendos, Turkey is famous for its magnificent acoustics. Even the slightest sound made at the center of the orchestra can be easily heard as far as the upper most galleries. It is the best preserved and most complete example of a Roman theatre.
13 August, 2017 - 01:53 ancient-origins

Ancient Acoustic Artifacts and Communication with the Gods

In this article, I will introduce the subject of archaeoacoustics and ancient “musical instruments”. As we will see, these can be used in conjunction with a number of ancient sites from around the...
Maori Warrior
11 August, 2017 - 22:54 Theodoros Karasavvas

Maori Artifacts Indicate Early Polynesian Settlement on New Zealand Island

Live Science reports that a team of archaeologists in New Zealand has been untangling the mysteries of an early Polynesian settlement near the northern tip of the islands that could have been...
Detail of portrait from 1807 showing a young man in ‘sunglasses.’
11 August, 2017 - 13:58 Riley Winters

Sunglasses: A History of Protective, Stylish, and Popular Eyewear

I never leave my house without a pair of sunglasses. Usually, there are also pairs in my purse, in my car, and in a coat that I keep in the trunk. In fact, I am both proud and ashamed to admit that I...
Detail of a rattle, 1100-1470 AD, Chimu, north coast Peru, gold or gold-plated silver - Art Institute of Chicago.
11 August, 2017 - 02:01 aprilholloway

Golden Years: Metal Coating Techniques Used 2000 Years Ago Outshine Modern Methods

Ancient technology used by craftsmen 2000 years ago to apply thin films of metal onto their statues surpassed modern standards for producing DVDs, solar cells, and electronic devices. It makes you...
Picture of a reed boat at the Floating Islands, on Lake Titicaca.
6 August, 2017 - 01:50 garydavid

The Sacred Meaning of the Reed: From Houses and Boats to Rituals, Ceremonies and Portals

Many cultures around the world either place a special importance on the hollow-stemmed reed plant or recognize a certain “place of the reeds” within their territory. Legends of the Hopi tribe in...
Reconstruction of the Palace at Knossos
5 August, 2017 - 01:59 Riley Winters

A Discovery That Shook the Archaeological World: Sir Arthur Evans and the Unveiling of Knossos

"A gentleman and a scholar." There are few such men who fit this description from the "archaeological" community of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. There were certainly gentlemen and scholars...
The Medieval ring found in Kavarna, Bulgaria (Image: Kavarna Municipality)
3 August, 2017 - 02:02 aprilholloway

Jewelry to Die For: 14th-Century Bulgarian Ring with a Killer Dose

When a medieval ring was uncovered by Bulgarian archaeologists excavating the remains of the medieval fortress on Cape Kaliakra, near the town of Kavarna on the Bulgarian Black Sea coast, they were...

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