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Caves

View of the Old Khndzoresk cave village. Source: EdNurg / Adobe Stock

Old Khndzoresk Cave Village: Armenia’s Abandoned City of Caves

In 2016, Armenia was included in National Geographic 's list of ten places that deserve more travelers. First on the list was Armenia, and amongst the locations they recommended travelers visit was...
The haunting beauty of the deep labyrinth of Buda Castle. Source: CC BY-SA 3.0

The Labyrinth of Buda Castle: Caves Inexplicably Evacuated by Police

Deep under the imposing stone walls of the 13th century Buda Castle, the Labyrinth of Buda contains, in its twisting paths and pitch-black corridors, the dark history of the ancient castle district...
The Cradle of Humankind visitors’ complex in Maropeng, South Africa.	Source: Olga Ernst / CC BY-SA 4.0

Denizens of South Africa’s Cradle of Humankind: The First Walking Apes

The human story begins in Africa. Of the many fascinating fossil sites in Africa, an important one is the Cradle of Humankind outside of Johannesburg, South Africa. The many caves and rock outcrops...
In China the Longyou Caves are known as the ninth wonder of the ancient world. Source: Zhangzhugang / CC BY-SA 4.0

Ten Enduring Mysteries of China’s Longyou Caves

Located near the village of Shiyan Beicun in Zhejiang province, China, lie the Longyou Caves - an extensive, magnificent and rare ancient underground world considered in China to be “the ninth wonder...
This spectacular, large Navulá-type monochrome vessel, used in pre-Hispanic Maya rituals, was complete but for one of its two handles.		Source: INAH

Yucatán Cave Was Used For Pre-Hispanic Maya Rituals

A recent pottery find dating to the Late Postclassic Maya period by archaeologists from the National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH) in Chemuyil town of Mexico’s Quintana Roo state shows...
The analysis of dripstones within the Shennong Cave (main image) and Jiulong Cave provided scientists with evidence related to the collapse of the Liangzhu culture. Source: Haiwei Zhang / Xi'an Jiaotong University

Fatal Flooding Destroyed China’s Liangzhu Culture 4,300 Years Ago

A thriving metropolis often referred to as “China’s Venice of the Stone Age” was mysteriously abandoned in approximately 2300 BC, leading to the extinction of China’s ancient Liangzhu culture. Now, a...
The Bizmoune Cave sea snail shell beads have been dated to at least 142,000 years ago, according to the latest research study, making them the oldest jewelry

Were Bizmoune Cave Shell Beads A Form Of Ancient ID?

Humans were adorning their persons to make fashion statements 142,000 to 150,000 ago, according to a new analysis of the sea snail shell jewelry beads found in Morocco’s Bizmoune Cave. Conducted by a...
Neanderthal hunting birds in a cave at night. The latest study, using role play, has shown that Neanderthals were likely also nocturnal hunters, which is a completely new aspect for our ancient cousins.		Source: Gorodenkoff / Adobe Stock

Researchers Role Play Neanderthals Hunting, In the Name of Science

A recent research study published in the online journal Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution has thrown up exciting new evidence about collaboration on complex tasks amongst our closest ancient human...
Hunting scene painted on the wall of Picture Cave, Missouri, USA.       Source: Selkirk Auctioneers & Appraisers

Missouri’s Native American Picture Cave Has Sold for $2.2million

To the dismay of the Osage Nation leaders, Missouri’s ‘Picture Cave’ has been sold at auction today and bought by an unnamed private bidder. The 43 acres of land in which the sacred cave lies went...
Tierradentro Hypogea

Tierradentro Hypogea, Colombia’s Mysterious Underground Necropolis

Tierradentro is a national archaeological park in Colombia. Within the Tierradentro Park are structures known as hypogea as well as stone statues. This unique South American site gives visitors a...
Ancient DNA Sample From Indonesia Is From An Extinct Human Lineage

Ancient DNA Sample From Indonesia Is From An Extinct Human Lineage

Genetic researchers have confirmed what archaeologists had previously suspected. A 7,200-year-old fossilized skeleton found in a cave on the Indonesian island of Sulawesi in 2015 cannot be linked to...
The stalagmite section in the Ardales Cave in Malaga, Spain that was painted with red ochre, pigment making it probably the oldest Neanderthal painting ever found in a European cave. Source: University of Barcelona

Study Confirms Cave Painting Was Made By Neanderthals

A team of European archaeologists used high-tech testing procedures have confirmed that painted stalagmites found in the Ardales Cave (Cueva de Ardales in Spanish) in Malaga, Spain really were...
Inside the hyena cave of Umm Jirsan, one of the most spectacular lava tube caves in the world.                      Source: Kingdom of Saudi Arabia For UNESCO

Hyena Cave in Saudi Arabia Yields Huge Pile of Animal and Human Bones

A team of international scientists searching inside a Saudi Arabian cave made by ancient lava flow found one of the most substantial collections of human and animal bones ever assembled. Deep inside...
Example of the Paleolithic paintings discovered in the Indian state of Haryana. Source: ANI

Does Haryana Cave Hold the Oldest Art in India?

Hidden deep in India’s northwestern state of Haryana, archaeologists have discovered cave paintings dating to the Upper Paleolithic age. The cave art was found at Faridabad's Mangar Bani hill forest...
Two entrances to the Barabar Caves: Sudama Cave (small entrance, left side), and Lomas Rishi Cave on Barabar Hill.   Source: Klaus-Norbert / CC BY 3.0

The Architecture and Spiritual History of India’s Famous Barabar Caves

The Barabar Caves are a group of rock-cut caves located in the eastern Indian state of Bihar. The Barabar Caves contain a total of seven caves, the oldest of which date to the Mauryan period. The...
It was in a canyon like this one in the Judean Desert in the West Back of Israel that archaeologists found two ancient Jewish coins (one from 67 AD and one from circa 135 AD). That the coins were found in the same area rewrites existing assumptions about the Jewish revolts against the Romans in an area assumed to be uninhabited after the first Jewish revolt stage.

Two Coins Found in Israel Prove That Jewish Revolt History is Wrong!

East of Jerusalem lies the historic Judean Desert and the hilltop fortress of Masada overlooking the Dead Sea. Masada was the setting of the mass suicide of almost 1,000 Jewish zealots, including men...
Ancient Elites Mutilated Their Faces Says Iroungou Cave Study

Ancient Elites Mutilated Their Faces Says Iroungou Cave Study

It is now known elite members of an ancient culture living around Africa’s deep and inaccessible Iroungou Cave in Gabon mutilated their faces by removing selected teeth, which changed the shape of...
The Araña Caves are best known for their rock painting of honey hunting. Source: Right: Turismo Comunidad Valenciana / Left: GNU Public Licence

The Araña Caves of Valencia: Entering a Bygone Era Through Rock Art

In 1920, a teacher named Jaime Poch heard of some cave paintings near Bicorp in the Caroig mountain range in Valencia, Spain. Now, over a hundred years later, the site known as the Araña Caves is a...
Neanderthal DNA Recovered from Cave Dirt Using Breakthrough Technology

Neanderthal DNA Recovered from Cave Dirt Using Breakthrough Technology

Utilizing a new technique that allows for more precise analysis of ancient DNA, scientists have achieved a revolutionary breakthrough in the field of paleogenetics. For the first time, they’ve been...
Oxygen Deprivation Led To Altered States For Subterranean Artists

Oxygen Deprivation Led To Altered States For Subterranean Artists

Getting stoned, or high, has always been a way to escape the pressures of day-to-day reality. However, modern artists and psychonauts are at the end of a long chain of stoners that apparently began...
The facial cream found in a 2,700-year-old nobleman’s grave in Liujiawa, China.

Jar Of 2,700-Year-Old Facial Cream Found In A Chinese Nobleman’s Tomb

Archaeologists who opened and searched the 2,700-year-old tomb of a buried nobleman at the Liujiawa site in northern China found something unusual . In among the long-deceased nobleman’s ample...
New Evidence Suggests Early Humans HIBERNATED In Caves, Like Bears

New Evidence Suggests Early Humans HIBERNATED In Caves, Like Bears

Did Stone Age Neanderthals wait out the coldest days of winter snuggled up safely beneath furs deep inside caves, in a state of suspended animation for months while the winds raged, and the snow...
The Pskov-Caves Monastery and its 10,000 Monk Necropolis

The Pskov-Caves Monastery and its 10,000 Monk Necropolis

The Pskov-Caves Monastery is a Russian Orthodox monastery located in the town of Pechory, in the northwestern part of Russia. The monastery was established during the 15th century AD and is well-...
The Wemyss Caves: Ancient Pictish History and the Writing on the Walls

The Wemyss Caves: Ancient Pictish History and the Writing on the Walls

The Ancient Picts were amongst the most enigmatic inhabitants of ancient British Isles. Still a big puzzle to scholars around the world, the Pictish culture was filled to the brim with unique aspects...

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