coin

View through sacred rocks beyond Dhambala Homeland center, Elcho island.

12 May, 2019 - 22:03 Ed Whelan

Will Ancient African Coin Found in Australia 'Change Everything'?

The tenacity of amateur archaeologists and historians searching on a remote island off the coast of the Northern Territories in Australia seems to have finally paid off. The team has found a small...

The ruined Christian church in Turkey's Lake Iznik is thought to have been built over a Roman Pagan temple

6 September, 2018 - 01:42 ashley cowie

Christian Basilica, and now Possibly a Roman Pagan Temple Found in a Turkish Lake

The foundations of a massive submerged ancient church in Turkey are suspected to have been built on top of an even greater treasure, an older Roman pagan temple dedicated to the sun god Apollo...

Three silver-gilt Roman piperatoria or pepper pots (CC BY NC SA 4.0), a gold body chain (Mike Peel/CC BY SA 4.0), toiletry items (Fæ/CC BY SA 3.0), two gold bracelets (Fæ/CC BY SA 3.0), and spoons (CC BY NC SA 4.0) found in the Hoxne hoard.

4 August, 2018 - 13:52 dhwty

The Hoxne Hoard: How a Mislaid Hammer Led to the Largest Roman Treasure in Britain

The Hoxne Hoard is a huge treasure from the late Roman period. To date, this is the largest hoard of late Roman gold and silver that has been found in the UK, and indeed, anywhere in the Roman world...

The ‘devil coins’ were found when stalls were removed for restoration work in the abbey.

28 June, 2018 - 18:52 ashley cowie

Satanic Panic Hit As ‘Devil Coins’ Were Unearthed Beneath Bath Abbey

Hidden beneath 19th century stalls in Bath Abbey, Somerset, England, ‘bewildered’ restoration archaeologists discovered a pair of coins depicting a horned and hoofed, trident-wielding devil and the...

The 2,200-year-old coin will go on display at the Cairns Museum later this year.

4 June, 2018 - 18:53 ashley cowie

WW1 Souvenir? Or Proof Ancient Egyptians Sailed to Australia?

While the legacy of an ancient Egyptian coin discovered in a rainforest in far north Queensland, Australia baffles experts, it equally excites a growing faction of people who believe that ancient...

The baby had been partially mummified and had green bones due to copper from a coin placed in its hand.

27 May, 2018 - 13:56 ashley cowie

Green-Boned Baby Clasps A Copper Ticket to The Afterlife

500 graves dated to between the 12th and 16th centuries were found in a cemetery at Nyárlőrinc, a village in southern Hungary. They contained a unique set of bones. In 2005, Dr. János Balázs, a...

A selection of silver jewelry from the Bluetooth treasure.

17 April, 2018 - 22:46 Alicia McDermott

Bluetooth Treasure: Metal Detector Dings on Silver of the Danish King in Germany

Over one thousand years ago, Danish King Harald Bluetooth had to flee his homeland. He would have taken whatever treasured possessions he could as he sought safety in distant lands. Fast forward to...

The worn cast copper alloy Chinese coin, from the Northern Song dynasty (960 AD to 1127 AD), minted during the Xining reign between 1068 and 1077 AD, and found in Britain

3 April, 2018 - 22:59 Alicia McDermott

An Out of Place Chinese Coin Prompts Wonder: Did Medieval Asia and Britain Interact?

Britain’s antiquities experts have written it off as a loss from a curate collection; but the presence of a Chinese Northern Song dynasty (960 - 1127 AD) coin unearthed in Cheshire, England does have...

3 February, 2018 - 19:52 Riley Winters

Paying for Services: Illicit Brothel Coins of Pompeii Show What’s on The Menu

Today, there is a strong, negative stigma surrounding the occupation of prostitution. It is often looked upon as “sinful”, “detestable”, and “shameful”—both for the prostitute and the participant. In...

Some of the Song Dynasty coins found under a house in Fuliang county of Jingdezhen city in East China's Jiangxi province.

27 October, 2017 - 13:56 Alicia McDermott

A Staggering 5.6 Tons of Coins Are Unearthed in China and Archaeologists Struggle to Fathom Who Hid Them

When a villager living in the Jiangxi province of China started to work on the foundation of his home, he couldn’t have imagined what he would find. The discovery of a hoard of coins soon led...

The gold coin and rings recently unearthed at Sandby Borg.

13 October, 2017 - 01:56 Alicia McDermott

Archaeologists Strike Gold While Searching for Answers to the Sandby Borg Massacre

Researchers piecing together the horror story of a 5th century massacre off the coast of Sweden have a new element to add to the tale – a gold coin and rings. But does this additional aspect provide...

Coin of Mithridates I of Parthia (Classical Numismatic Group, Inc.and illustration depicting a sacrifice being made on behalf of a family, by the chief priest Conon and two assistants, first century AD. Graeco-Iranian style

29 September, 2017 - 15:36 Cam Rea

Mithridates Clashes with Kings and Swallows up Territory: The ‘King of Kings’ of Ancient Iran — Part II

Mithridates (“The Gift of Mithra) exhibited qualities that most kings rarely have: experience and maturity. He understood that a king could retain his power only as long as the people and nobles were...

The famous Roman theater at Aspendos, Turkey.

30 August, 2017 - 22:48 Alicia McDermott

Ancient Mall Found in Famous Theater City of Aspendos Shows Commerce and Entertainment Went Hand-in-Hand

The ancient city of Aspendos was a major commercial center in Roman times. The recent excavations of a large shop complex with offices and storage facilities dating back some 2,000 years provide more...

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...

Burghead, recognized as an important seat of power during the Early Medieval Period

2 August, 2017 - 02:36 Theodoros Karasavvas

Millennium Old Structure Unearthed at Medieval Pictish Fort in Scotland

Archaeologists have recently uncovered the traces of a millennium old building at the location of the Pictish fort of Burghead in Moray, Scotland. The fort dates back to the time of Alfred the Great...

Rare Ivory icon found in Rusokastro Fortress, Burgas District, Bulgaria

27 July, 2017 - 23:03 Theodoros Karasavvas

Revealing Discoveries of Rare Ivory and Unique Gold Coin from Byzantine Bulgarian Fortress

An extremely rare find of an ivory icon has been made just a few days after a unique Byzantine gold coin dating back to Emperor Phocas' reign (602-610 AD) was uncovered during excavation works at...

Pages

Myths & Legends

The Epic of Gilgamesh. Source: Luca Oleastri / Adobe.

The Epic of Gilgamesh Unveiled: Searching For a Way to the Home Planet

In contrast to many theorists, this unconventional retelling of key parts of the Epic explores the idea that Gilgamesh was not searching for life eternal on Earth, as has been suggested as the theme of the Epic, but was instead searching for the means of transport to return to his goddess mother Ninsun’s home planet in the heavens.

The Warriors of the Rainbow Prophecy

Say the Magic Word: The Origins of Abracadabra

The Epic of Gilgamesh Unveiled: Enlightenment and Source of Religions

The notorious and much feared ancient order of Hashshashins

Gateway to the Heavens: The Assyrian Account to the Tower of Babel

Human Origins

The Pagan Wheel of the Year: What Elaborate Rituals and Events Mark this Sacred Cycle?

Although it may be a long time (if ever) before pagans reclaim their Yule from Christmas or their Samhain from Halloween, it is worthwhile to explore these ancient religious traditions. The Wheel of the Year follows the cycle of pagan festivals.

The Epic of Gilgamesh Unveiled: Enlightenment and Source of Religions

The origins of human beings according to ancient Sumerian texts

Mysterious Worlds: Travels to the Faerie and Shamanic Realms

Rh-Negative Blood: An Exotic Bloodline or Random Mutation?

Evidence that Noah’s Ark Landed on a Mountain 17 Miles South of Ararat

Ancient Technology

Egyptian Blue – The Oldest Known Artificial Pigment

Egyptian Blue, also known as calcium copper silicate, is one of the first artificial pigments known to have been used by man. The oldest known example of the exquisite pigment is said to be about...

Secrets Behind the Creepy Plague Doctor Mask and Costume

Romans in Pompeii Repaired the Roads with Molten Iron

The revolutionary invention of the wheel

Norimitsu Odachi: Who Could Have Possibly Wielded This Enormous 15th Century Japanese Sword?

Ten amazing inventions from ancient times

Ancient Places

Royal Palace at Ebla. Source: CC BY-SA 3.0

First Kingdoms: The Forgotten Mesopotamian Kingdom of Ebla

Spectacular things were happening in Mesopotamia in the period we call the Early Bronze Age, particularly in the southern part of it, commonly called Babylonia.

Sumer: Where Written Language, Arithmetic and Civilization Were Born

Homer’s Iliad Casts Doubt on the Aegean Location of Troy

The Theopetra Cave and the Oldest Human Construction in the World

Fuerte De Samaipata - A Site of Ceremonial Carvings and Sacrifice

Explaining the Fall of the Great Akkadian Empire

Opinion

Mysterious Worlds: Travels to the Faerie and Shamanic Realms

There are many accounts of a land of immortality and eternal youth in world myths and legends, as well as shamanic and indigenous spiritual traditions. Mysterious Worlds Writing in his recent work,...

Pharaoh Akhenaten: An Alternative View of the Heretic King

Changing Colors and Scampering Across the Night Sky: What Did the Ancients Say about Sirius?

Cracking the Code to Discover Ancient Tarot Symbolism and Forgotten Universal Knowledge

The Secret Strategic Plans of Darius the Great

The Secrets of the Kabbalists Garden

Our Mission

At Ancient Origins, we believe that one of the most important fields of knowledge we can pursue as human beings is our beginnings. And while some people may seem content with the story as it stands, our view is that there exists countless mysteries, scientific anomalies and surprising artifacts that have yet to be discovered and explained.

The goal of Ancient Origins is to highlight recent archaeological discoveries, peer-reviewed academic research and evidence, as well as offering alternative viewpoints and explanations of science, archaeology, mythology, religion and history around the globe.

We’re the only Pop Archaeology site combining scientific research with out-of-the-box perspectives.

By bringing together top experts and authors, this archaeology website explores lost civilizations, examines sacred writings, tours ancient places, investigates ancient discoveries and questions mysterious happenings. Our open community is dedicated to digging into the origins of our species on planet earth, and question wherever the discoveries might take us. We seek to retell the story of our beginnings.