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Ancient Origins Tour IRAQ

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Colonial sources attest that Juan Cortés, slave of the soldier Juan Sedeño, was the first African registered in New Spain. He was part of the military consortium led by Hernán Cortés in 1519 (Bishop Diego Durán). Source: Arqueología Mexicana / Raices / Antiquity Publications Ltd

Cross-Cultural Living and Dying in Colonial Campeche, But No Sex

2022 is shaping up to be a big year for colonial era discoveries in Central and South America. Only in May Ancient Origins covered the story of archaeologists studying “42 syphilis-ridden colonial...
A  Farmer with a drink.

Switchel: The Energy Drink of Colonial America

Before Americans had sports drinks, switchel was the beverage of choice for rehydration. Also known as haymaker’s punch, harvest drink, harvest beer, and swanky, this is a refreshing drink that was...
Aerial view of the ancient Inca cemetery recently discovered in Ecuador.

Mysterious Artifacts Found in Ancient Inca Cemetery in Ecuador

The construction of a long-awaited irrigation water tank will have to wait a little longer for farmers living in the central region of Ecuador. When work began they found ancient human remains and...
Painting titled ‘Free Women of Color with their Children and Servants in a Landscape.’ Life changed for American women as the eighteenth century progressed. Source: Public Domain

Culturally Misunderstood: The Struggles and Advances of Early American Women

The seventeenth and eighteenth centuries saw a series of transitions in life in America, as many, particularly women, strove to find their identities in patriarchal society. Early American women were...
Miagao Church, a Baroque Spanish Style Historic Site, Philippines.      Source: nathanallen/ Adobe Stock

Miagao and The Baroque Churches of the Philippines

There are many important architectural and historic sites in the Philippines dating from the four centuries of Spanish occupation . Their influence is to be found in many areas, including the Baroque...
Main: Indigenous Polynesians. Credit: adrenalinapura / Adobe Stock. Inset: Bananas. Credit: Pongsak / Adobe Stock

Bananas Helped Ancient Lapita Culture Colonize Oceania

Scientists studying the teeth of the ancient Lapita people of Oceania , have found evidence that they survived on bananas, along with seeds and other fruits. This discovery is helping researchers to...
Stone cist graves on Saba represent the burial practices of British settlers. Source: J Haviser/ Antiquity Publications Ltd

Tiny Caribbean Island is the Only Place with Cist Graves in the Americas

Stone cist graves on the Caribbean island of Saba are found to represent a cultural continuity with the burial practices of rural 17th-century British settlers. It is known that since the Bronze Age...
Illustration of an old tavern. Credit: Chorazin / Adobe Stock

Burned Down Colonial Tavern that May Have Doubled as a Brothel Found in North Carolina

Archaeologists examining a recently discovered colonial tavern in eastern North Carolina were stunned to discover that when the 18th Century building burned to the ground a “treasure trove of...
Sao Miguel das Missoes, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil.   Source: GF de Almeida / CC BY 2.0

Sao Miguel das Missoes Brazil, A Mission Forced to Abandon its Converts

Brazil is a huge country, well known for its carnivals, rich coffee, fantastic soccer players, and diverse heritage. One of its most remarkable archaeological sites is the São Miguel das Missões...
Main Street, Levuka historical port town.

Fascinating Levuka Historical Port Town: Former Home to Fijian Cannibals and Kings

Ovalau Island is Fiji as it used to be in days gone by - an unspoiled paradise with friendly locals, the rare tourist, and an incredibly interesting history. With its unhurried lifestyle, most things...
Trading Treasures and Curiosity: The Fascinating History of Manila Galleons

Trading Treasures and Curiosity: The Fascinating History of Manila Galleons

Every remarkable story starts with curiosity. That is the primary reason why people travel and want to discover new lands. It applies to every period in history, from antiquity to our times. The...
Little is known about the natives with whom the Luna expedition made contact, but they left behind these beads, which were unearthed in Pensacola, Florida.

Lone Archaeologist Discovers First Multi-Year European Settlement in the U.S.

An archaeologist and historian working on his own found the first multi-year settlement by Europeans on U.S. soil, in Pensacola, Florida. The mid-16th century expedition of about 1,500 people led by...
A photograph of the colonial church that has emerged out of the Nezahualcoyotl reservoir in Chiapas, Mexico

Stunning 17th Century Church Emerges from Mexican Reservoir after Drought

The remnants of a 400-year-old Spanish colonial church have emerged from the depths of the Nezahualcoyotl reservoir in Chiapas, Mexico, after a drought caused the water level to drop by 82 feet (25...
View of Rich Hill (Cerro Rico).

Mountains of Silver: Tiny Bolivian village of Potosi was once the largest industrial mining complex in the world

Empires may rise and fall, but the impact they have on their conquered subjects and the future may continue beyond their passing, for better or for worse. The Spanish Empire, which began in the 15 th...