funerary

This ‘mud mummy’ has revealed a previously unknown mortuary practice for non-elite ancient Egyptians.

4 February, 2021 - 01:25 Alicia McDermott

Ultra-Rare Mud Mummy Exposes Previously Unknown Mortuary Practice

CT scans of an Egyptian mummy from approximately 1,200 BC have exposed a type of mortuary treatment which has not been documented in the Egyptian archaeological record before now. The individual is...

21 January, 2021 - 00:00 Alicia McDermott

Early Medieval Europe – Dark Age Death Practices Spread Quickly

A new study suggests that Europe has been ‘global’ for over a millennium. The evidence for this claim comes from a set of shared cultural practices spread over a wide area in early Medieval Europe...

18 January, 2021 - 21:50 Jonathon Perrin

Mound to Mountain: The Long Road to the Great Pyramid

Who built the Great Pyramid? Was it built by simple Egyptian farmers with mud ramps, or aliens, or a lost society from the last Ice Age? Did the ancient Egyptians inherit this massive stone building...

Pharoah’s Little Helpers: The Shabti Funerary Statuettes of the Ancient Egyptians

29 December, 2020 - 17:31 dhwty

Pharaoh’s Little Helpers: The Shabti Funerary Statuettes of the Ancient Egyptians

A shabti is a funerary figurine used by the ancient Egyptians. These statuettes were placed in tombs as grave goods and were believed to function as servants for the deceased in the afterlife...

Skeleton of a 30–40 year-old woman with a decorated ivory button on her chest, from the first tomb

12 December, 2020 - 18:04 ashley cowie

Unique Cyprus Death Cult Treasures Uncovered at Mass Burial Site

Excavators in Cyprus have discovered a series of “sensational finds” of death cult artifacts dating to 3,500 years ago, during the Bronze Age. A vessel used as a cult funerary object, a seal with...

Part of the Egyptian Book of Breathing, a hieratic papyrus probably from Thebes, Egypt written during the Ptolemaic dynasty.

23 November, 2020 - 15:59 ashley cowie

Resuscitation of the Ancient Egyptian Book of Breathing

Recently, an American professor has for the first time analyzed the First Book of Breathing , a famous ancient Egyptian book that reveals incredible insights into the afterlife. What happens to us...

Bladelets and flakes with two pairs of notches interpreted as Neolithic figurines. Source: Kharaysin archaeological team / Antiquity Publications Ltd

7 July, 2020 - 02:01 ashley cowie

10,000-Year-Old Neolithic Figurines Discovered in Jordan Burials

The historical time period for the mid-9th millennium BC onwards is known as the early Neolithic . At this time in the Near East human iconography began expanding, but archaeological theories to...

4 March, 2020 - 18:09 Joanna Gillan

Ancient Beehive Tombs of Oman – So, Where are the Bodies?

Lined up dramatically atop a rocky ridge, the beehive ‘tombs’ of Bat and Al Ayn are two of Oman’s most celebrated prehistoric sites. Little is known about the stone structures, or the culture that...

16 January, 2020 - 17:14 dhwty

Unique and Unsettling: The Hanging Coffins of Sagada, Philippines

The Igorots are an indigenous tribe living in Sagada, Luzon Island, Philippines. The Igorots practice unique funerary customs, in which the dead are buried in coffins which are tied or nailed to the...

Zoroastrians have used Towers of Silence in their funerary practices

6 December, 2019 - 16:55 dhwty

Zoroastrian Towers of Silence: Leaving the Dead for the Vultures

A tower of silence (known also as a ‘dakhma’) is a type of structure used for funerary purposes by adherents of the Zoroastrian faith. This Zoroastrian practice for the disposal of the dead involves...

Infant discovered at Salango, Ecuador, with a skull helmet. Source: Twitter.

15 November, 2019 - 22:59 ashley cowie

Ecuadorian Infants Discovered Wearing Child Skull ‘Helmets’

Archaeologists in Ecuador have found two buried infants wearing “helmets” fashioned from the skulls of two other children. The ritual complex and funerary platform of Salango on the central coast of...

: Aerial view of the large Roman necropolis found in Narbonne, France

19 October, 2019 - 16:03 ashley cowie

Roman Necropolis of "Regular Folk" Found in France

A magnificent Roman necropolis has been unearthed at Narbonne, in Occitaine, southwestern France. Archaeologists from the National Institute for Preventive Archaeological Research ( INRAP ) have...

Stone cist graves on Saba represent the burial practices of British settlers. Source: J Haviser/ Antiquity Publications Ltd

15 October, 2019 - 15:15 ashley cowie

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...

Archaeologists in Egypt have unearthed a previously unknown tomb and several artifacts. Source: Egyptian Ministry of Antiquities

11 October, 2019 - 14:13 Ed Whelan

Industrial Zone Found In Luxor’s Valley of the Monkeys

Archaeologists in Egypt have made two remarkable discoveries at the Valley of the Monkeys in Luxor . They have found evidence of industrial areas or zones, where workers lived and worked. Then they...

How the Viking mausoleum would have looked according to archaeologists. Source: Raymond Sauvage, NTNU Vitenskapsmuseet

26 September, 2019 - 19:35 Ed Whelan

An Abnormal Viking Mausoleum Shows Ship Burials Weren’t for Everyone!

Archaeologists have found a Viking burial house in central Norway. It was located in an area which is revealing many archaeological treasures, including a Roman-era bronze cauldron. The mausoleum is...

This bronze vessel was one of many Macedonian treasures missed by looters at Ahlada, near Florina, in Macedonia Source: Greek Ministry of Culture

24 September, 2019 - 14:07 Ed Whelan

A Wealth of Macedonian Treasures Overlooked By Looters

Archaeologists at a Macedonian graveyard in Greece have been ecstatic to find that graverobbers had far from cleaned out the ancient resting place. The burial ground was looted in ancient times and...

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Myths & Legends

The Thirteen Legendary Treasures of Britain

The ancient Greek writer Hesiod once wrote that there were five ages of mankind – the Golden Age, the Silver Age, the Bronze Age, the Heroic Age, and the Iron Age. Similarly, in Hinduism, there are...

The Dogon’s Extraordinary Knowledge of the Cosmos and the Cult of Nommo

The Dark Reputation of the Dunmore Cave of Ireland

The Real Story of Medusa: Protective Powers from a Snake-Haired Gorgon

Baldr: The Shining God Who Shines No More

Tomoe Gozen - A fearsome Japanese Female Warrior of the 12th Century

Human Origins

Footprints, Fairies and even a Foreskin: 10 Bizarre Relics from History

From time immemorial, people had the need to venerate objects of great significance: religious relics, mythical symbols, or depictions of holy figures. And as if answering this need, the religious establishment has provided.

The Faces of Ancient Hominids Brought to Life in Remarkable Detail

Research Confirms that Neanderthal DNA Makes Up About 20% of the Modern Human Genome

The human skull that challenges the Out of Africa theory

The origins of human beings according to ancient Sumerian texts

Dark Skin and Blue Eyes: European Hunter-Gatherers Did Not Fit with Common Representations

Ancient Technology

The Man Who Stopped a Desert Using Ancient Farming

Desertification is a serious problem facing numerous countries in the world today. Various measures have been taken to counter the negative effects, with some providing better results than others. A farmer in Burkina Faso looked to his ancestors and came up with an innovative solution.

Han Purple: A 2,800-year-old artificial pigment that quantum physicists are trying to understand

Catapult: The Long-Reaching History of a Prominent Medieval Siege Engine

The Kangyur Written with 9 Precious Stones

Ancient Chinese Earthquake Detector Invented 2,000 Years Ago Really Worked!

The revolutionary invention of the wheel

Ancient Places

The magnificent Boat of Khufu, Solar Boat Museum, Giza

The Great Boat of Khufu: The ‘Black Box’ to the Construction of the Pyramids

Perhaps this is not the first time that the reader will have heard of how in 1954 the Great Boat of Khufu was discovered, practically intact, at the southern face of the Kheops Pyramid, and how it is believed by the majority to have had cultic significance, although opinions vary within scientific circles. One belief was that the Sun sailed in such a vessel during the day, crossing over to another during the night hours.

Varna Man and the Wealthiest Grave of the 5th Millennium BC

The 9,000-year-old underground megalithic settlement of Atlit Yam

The tragedy of Queen Ankhesenamun, sister and wife of Tutankhamun

Pavlopetri: 5,000-Year-Old Town Discovered Underwater in Greece

Tollund Man – the preserved face from Prehistoric Denmark and the tale of ritual sacrifice

Opinion

Unearthing Ancient Magic in The Runes –Messages with Hidden Symbols and Powerful Numbers

The etymology of the word “rune” means: “to carve, or to cut.” In Low German the word is “raunen.” As the runes were cut and carved into wood, metal or stone, the word “rune” was analogous to the rune letters themselves.

Petroglyphic Features of Portable Rock Art

The Northern Mysteries Current: Futhark and Mystery Schools of the Viking Age

Was There Ever a Trojan War?

Floki and the Viking Discovery of Iceland

Messiah on Temple Mount: Are We Nearing the End of Time?

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.