Galicia

2 August, 2017 - 15:35 Elyn and Gary

Following Symbols and the Bones of a Dead Sorcerer: Mysteries of the Camino de Santiago – Part II

The popular 500-mile-long pilgrimage road, the Camino de Santiago (specifically the French Way that leads from the French Pyrenees across northern Spain to Santiago de Compostela) seems like a...

Santiago el Mayor’ Saint James the Great (Public Domain), and sign on the Camino de Santiago (Manuel/ CC BY 2.0);Deriv.

31 July, 2017 - 15:31 Elyn and Gary

Pilgrims Flock on an Ancient Road to the Ends of the Earth: Mysteries of the Camino de Santiago – Part I

The Spanish poet, Antonio Machado wrote, “Caminante, no hay camino; se hace el camino por andar.” (Walker/Seeker, there is no path; the path is made by walking.) Rarely has this been truer than with...

Virtual reconstruction of Villa Romano de Toralla

19 April, 2017 - 01:54 Natalia Klimczak

Villa de Toralla: Who Lived in This Luxury High-Tech Roman Villa on the Galician Coast?

When Julius Caesar arrived in Spanish Galicia in 61 BC the history of this place changed forever. The impact of Roman architecture and many aspects of Roman culture are still visible. The remarkable...

Urraca I of Leon by Jose Maria Rodrigues de Losada (deriv.)

26 March, 2017 - 23:01 Natalia Klimczak

Urraca the Reckless: How Did a Child Bride Unify a Kingdom?

Feminine, inspiring, and powerful – these three words could be sufficient to describe the queen whose rule transformed the position of women in medieval courts. Her original stamp on society is felt...

5 March, 2017 - 01:51 Natalia Klimczak

Secret Hidden Under Galician Soil: What Happened to the Castle de Rocha Forte?

Imagine a castle that has been in ruins for centuries, with all its secrets covered by the ground. Now, you are allowed to explore the basement of this lost fortress and be one of the few people to...

11 February, 2017 - 01:51 Natalia Klimczak

Galician Faith in the Enchanted Mouros and Mouras: Is There Reality Behind the Fairytales?

Numerous folk stories in Galicia, Spain, tell of supernatural spirits that dwell in forests, among the waters of the rivers, or on sandy beaches. Many of them are related in some ways to ancient...

22 January, 2017 - 19:56 Natalia Klimczak

Santa Compaña: A Procession of Souls That Spreads Fear Through the Villages of Iberia

Picture a group of the dead passing down the street next to your house. They sing out deathly stories and spread a creepy energy that makes you feel your skin crawl. You want to escape, but you can’t...

YouTube screenshot of what Maria Solina may have looked like

8 January, 2017 - 03:45 Natalia Klimczak

The Powerful Woman Known as Maria Solina - The Most Famous Witch of Galicia

Witchcraft has a very special place in the culture of Spanish Galicia. One of the most famous people related to the old magical traditions is Maria Soliña, a Galician witch who lived during the 17th...

4 January, 2017 - 14:46 Natalia Klimczak

Pedro Madruga: Galician VIP…and Another Name for Christopher Columbus?

Pedro Madruga is remembered as one of the most important Galicians. His life was full of adventure and also created one of the greatest mysteries of this region. According to many researchers and...

3 December, 2016 - 00:51 Natalia Klimczak

A Tower for Power Reduced to Ruins: The Forgotten Story of Torre San Sadurniño

Tower ruins hidden in a bay near the waters of the Atlantic Ocean are one of the greatest treasures of a small community in Cambados, Galicia, Spain. The stones remember battles with Vikings and...

19 November, 2016 - 03:38 Mark Miller

4,000-Year-Old Megalithic Tomb in Spain Vandalized with Harry Potter References

A vandal has defaced a fine specimen of an ancient dolmen tomb, made of large rock slabs, in Vigo, Galicia, Spain. The graffiti vandal spray-painted the word “Always” and arcane symbols, both...

30 October, 2016 - 02:45 Natalia Klimczak

Rediscovering the Story of Egeria, a Remarkable 4th Century Female Pilgrim

Egeria was a young woman who decided to make the trip of a lifetime and go to the Holy Land. But what inspired her to make that journey and walk half of the world all alone? She was born in beautiful...

29 September, 2016 - 14:50 Natalia Klimczak

Saint, Witch or Both? The Strange Case of St Columba of Sens

The cult of St Columba is connected to France, where she died. She was beheaded in Sens - the major center of her cult now. However, while French religious people pray to the historical figure as an...

26 September, 2016 - 21:57 Natalia Klimczak

Celts, Medieval Monks, and Pirates: The Secrets of the Cíes Islands

Paradisiacal islands near the city of Vigo in the Pontevedra district of Galicia, Spain have been the witnesses to many visitors, stories, and mysteries. Although the area is difficult to live in,...

The Christ of Victory in the Concatedral de Santa María in Vigo, Galicia, Spain.

23 August, 2016 - 03:47 Natalia Klimczak

Storms, Religious Persecution, and War: The Arrival of a Famous Spanish Christ Statue

Every year, on the first Sunday in August thousands of Galicians take part in a spiritual journey. They travel through the city streets of Vigo with the religious treasure of their hometown – a large...

1 July, 2016 - 14:54 Natalia Klimczak

Did the Legendary Irish Milesians Come from Spanish Galicia?

The legend of Irish Milesians is one of the strangest stories connected with the origins of these islanders. Where did they come from? Is it possible that the early ancestors of modern Irish people...

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.

Say the Magic Word: The Origins of Abracadabra

The Warriors of the Rainbow Prophecy

The Epic of Gilgamesh Unveiled: Enlightenment and Source of Religions

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

The notorious and much feared ancient order of Hashshashins

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...

Romans in Pompeii Repaired the Roads with Molten Iron

Secrets Behind the Creepy Plague Doctor Mask and Costume

Ancient Journeys: What was Travel Like for the Romans?

The revolutionary invention of the wheel

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

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

The Theopetra Cave and the Oldest Human Construction in the World

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

Explaining the Fall of the Great Akkadian Empire

Fuerte De Samaipata - A Site of Ceremonial Carvings and Sacrifice

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.