Hunting

1 October, 2019 - 02:05 ancient-origins

Modern Humans' Advanced Weapons Outclassed the Neanderthals

A team of Japanese and Italian researchers, sponsored by Tohoku University, have proven evidence of mechanically delivered projectile weapons in Europe dating to 45,000 - 40,000 years ago -- more...

The human heart have evolved to be longer and thinner. Source: unlimit3d / Adobe Stock.

18 September, 2019 - 18:42 ashley cowie

Human Hearts Streamlined for Stamina by Neolithic Revolution

Farming caused the human heart to evolve less “ape-like” and be better for endurance and stamina. New research suggests human hearts significantly changed when we dropped hunting and began leading...

The Icelandic walrus began extinct at the arrival of the Norse. Source: Calvin / Adobe Stock.

17 September, 2019 - 01:59 ancient origins

Norse Settlers Wiped Out Icelandic Walrus 1100 Years Ago

An international collaboration of scientists in Iceland , Denmark , and the Netherlands has for the first time used ancient DNA analyses and C14-dating to demonstrate the past existence of a unique...

The huge settlement from the Neolithic period that was discovered in the archaeological excavations at the Motza intersection near Jerusalem. Source: Eyal Marco / Israel Antiquities Authority

17 July, 2019 - 18:48 Ed Whelan

9,000 Year-old ‘Mega Site’ Found Near Jerusalem Changes History

The Israel Antiquities Authority has announced a discovery that could change the history of the Middle East . Archaeologists have unearthed a highly developed site that is approximately 9000 years...

Reproduction of a prehistoric cave painting showing hominins hunting

12 May, 2019 - 14:45 ashley cowie

Million-Year-Old Cannibals Took Advantage of the Easy Calories

Research scientists have discovered that almost one million years ago an ancient human relative, Homo antecessor, ate humans “in preference” to other animals. Inhabiting hunting planes in what is...

Golden eagle, majestic bird revered by Neanderthals who used eagle talons to make jewelry.

30 April, 2019 - 22:56 Ed Whelan

Ancient Raptor Captors Weren’t Thugs: Neanderthals Caught Eagles and Treasured Their Talons

The golden eagle has had a special place in many human societies for millennia. They have been hunted , used to hunt and also honored. But the Neanderthals also seem to have prized and revered these...

29 January, 2019 - 01:44 ancient-origins

Our Capable Cousins Were Tech Savvy – Practical Tests Prove Neanderthal Spears Could Kill at a Distance

By Dr. Annemieke Milks and Dr. Matt Pope / Science Daily Neanderthals have been imagined as the inferior cousins of modern humans, but a new study by archaeologists at UCL reveals for the first time...

Mammoth tusk found at the kill site in Austria.

12 September, 2018 - 13:59 ashley cowie

28,000-Year-Old Mammoth Kill Site Discovered in Austria

Archaeologists in Austria have announced the discovery of what they have described as a “Stone Age kill site.” The hoard of ancient mammoth remains indicate a zone into which ancient people must have...

A bannerstone, the Metropolitan Museum of Art. (CC0) Background: Rocks and water. (CC0)

27 July, 2018 - 18:55 dhwty

Boggling Bannerstones of Ancient Americans: Were They a Function of Flight or More a Flight of Fancy?

A bannerstone is an enigmatic Native American artifact found in the eastern United States. They come in a range of shapes and sizes and are made of various types of stone. These stones have been...

Mosaic with fishing scene, 3rd century Roman.

12 July, 2018 - 01:55 ancient-origins

Bones Suggest Romans Hunted Whales in the Mediterranean

Two thousand years ago the Mediterranean Sea was a haven for two species of whale which have since virtually disappeared from the North Atlantic, a new study analyzing ancient bones suggests. The...

Artists impression of a giant sloth being confronted by human hunters. Credit: Alex McClelland, Bournemouth University

1 May, 2018 - 02:00 ancient-origins

How to Hunt a Giant Sloth – Ancient Tactics Revealed in Human Footprints

Rearing on its hind legs, the giant ground sloth would have been a formidable prey for anyone, let alone humans without modern weapons. Tightly muscled, angry and swinging its fore legs tipped with...

Obsidian projectile point sourced to Batza Tena, Alaska.

4 February, 2018 - 22:41 ancient-origins

Reconstructing an Ancient Lethal Weapon

Archaeologists are a little like forensic investigators: They scour the remains of past societies, looking for clues in pottery, tools and bones about how people lived, and how they died. And just as...

Iron Age arrow from Trollsteinhøe used to study the relationship between climate variability and how humans used alpine landscapes in the past.

24 January, 2018 - 23:00 Theodoros Karasavvas

Thawing Ice Reveals Norwegian Mountains Littered with Iron and Bronze Age Artifacts

A group of researchers have reportedly discovered artifacts of wood, textile, hide and other organic material on Jotunheimen and the surrounding mountain areas of Oppland, which include Norway's...

The Great Horned Serpent was powerful and magical in Native American mythology.

20 November, 2017 - 15:25 jason and sarah

Drowning, Poisoning, and the Dark Underworld. Meet the King of all Snakes, the wise Great Horned Serpent in Native American Cosmology

Since longer than history can recall, the western mind has been locked in a pattern of dualistic thinking. In the course of our experiences, the world is defined by a series of opposites, which...

Reconstruction of Sungir man with mammoth tusk spear.

24 October, 2017 - 01:57 ancient-origins

Is This Proof Early Man Weaponized Ivory from Woolly Mammoth Tusks to Kill...Woolly Mammoths?

By The Siberian Times reporter Deadly paleolithic spears - pictured below and manufactured from the ivory from extinct beasts - show the lethal genius of ancient craftsmen up to 28,500 years ago...

20 April, 2017 - 18:41 ashley cowie

From Mighty Bear Dogs to Breathless Bulldogs: How Human Manipulation Has Changed the Shape of Canines Forever

Dogs in Prehistory The early ancestors of Gray Wolves were a group of carnivores named the creodonts that roamed the northern hemisphere between 100 and 120 million years ago. About 55 million years...

Pages

Myths & Legends

“Full moon rising over Mount Shasta, as seen from northern valley.”

Mount Shasta: Inner Earth Realms and History of the Lava Beds

There are legends all over the world, found in every culture, which populate caves with spirits and supernatural guardians who dwell in a subterranean realm hidden just beneath surface of our own...

Baba Yaga: The Wicked Witch of Slavic Folklore

The Enigma of the Anasazi

The Pyramid Complex and the Hopi: Creation Myth Sheds Light on Building Plan

A Herculean Effort: What Led to the 12 Labors of Hercules and How Did He Succeed?

The Disturbing True Story of the Pied Piper of Hamelin

Human Origins

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,...

Pangu and the Chinese Creation Story

Do you dare enter a fairy ring? The mythical mushroom portals of the supernatural

The Origins of the Faeries: Encoded in our Cultures – Part I

The origins of human beings according to ancient Sumerian texts

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

Ancient Technology

Secrets Behind the Creepy Plague Doctor Mask and Costume

The plague doctor mask is one of the most recognizable symbols of the Black Death. Though the image is iconic the relationship may be a little anachronistic. While plague doctors have been plying their trade since the Middle Ages, it was only after this period, during the 17th century, that they acquired their creepy trademark costume. But what does it mean?

Did Egyptian Mummification Descend from a More Ancient and, Perhaps, Reversible Preservation Technique?

Poisonous Pigments: History’s Deadliest Colors

Ten amazing inventions from ancient times

The Indian Sage who developed Atomic Theory 2,600 years ago

The ancient invention of the steam engine by the Hero of Alexandria

Ancient Places

Why Isn’t This Map in the History Books?

By the age of 10, most children in the United States have been taught all 50 states that make up the country. But centuries ago, the land that is now the United States was a very different place...

The Dark Secret Behind the Hidden Room of Glamis Castle

Mount Shasta: Inner Earth Realms and History of the Lava Beds

The Anomaly of King Orry’s 5000-Year-Old Grave

Ancient Greek Theater and the Monumental Amphitheaters in Honor of Dionysus

The Lifegiving Aqueduct of Segovia, a Glorious Roman Heritage

Opinion

Mount Shasta: Spirits and Danger on a Sacred California Mountain

Mount Shasta, located near the Oregon border in northern California, holds the distinction of being one of the world’s preeminent sacred mountains. It is recognized as an eligible Native American...

Mysterious Worlds: Travels to the Faerie and Shamanic Realms

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

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.

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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.