Jerusalem

2 April, 2019 - 22:55 Ed Whelan

Telling Seal Unearthed in Jerusalem Names Biblical Figure

Archaeologists in Israel have announced an amazing discovery that could add further evidence for the historicity of the Bible. Two beautifully crafted seals found in Jerusalem are providing new...

A modern representation of a member of the Knights Hospitallers.

2 January, 2019 - 13:49 dhwty

The Knights Hospitallers: Courageous Crusaders of Many Names, Homes, and Roles

The Order of Knights of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem (known simply also as the Knights Hospitaller) was a religious military order that was founded in Jerusalem during the 11th century AD...

28 December, 2018 - 15:33 Cam Rea

Political Landscape of the Nativity of Jesus

To paint the canvas around the time of the birth of Jesus, one needs to examine the unfolding political landscape of Judea a generation before Jesus’ birth. By 40 BC, Judea was under Parthian rule...

The Dome of the Rock glistens in Jerusalem’s cityscape.

13 November, 2018 - 18:57 dhwty

The Dome of the Rock: A Magnet Attracting Multiple Religions to a Single Sacred Spot

The Dome of the Rock (known also as Qubbat al-Sakhrah in Arabic) is an Islamic shrine located on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem. This shrine dates to the 7th century, and is the oldest extant Islamic...

The seven trumpets of Jericho, by James Tissot.

12 November, 2018 - 15:57 Prof Willem Boshoff

How a Woman Toppled the Legend of the Walls of Jericho: The Legacy of Kathleen Kenyon

According to the Bible, in the Book of Joshua , the Israelites encountered the city of Jericho as the first Canaanite stronghold they had to conquer in order to settle in their promised new land. In...

“Taking of Jerusalem by the Crusaders, 15th July 1099” (1847) by Émile Signol / Giraudon / The Bridgeman Art Library. The Crusaders were mostly successful in the First Crusade.

6 November, 2018 - 14:00 dhwty

The First Crusade: Christian and Muslim Bloodshed as Peasants, Princes, and Turks Clash in the Holy Land

The First Crusade (1095-1099 AD) was a military campaign launched by Christendom in an attempt to retake Jerusalem from the Muslims to make the holy site safe once more for Christian pilgrims. The...

Vipera palaestinae, Israel, the same species seen at the Western Wall

3 November, 2018 - 22:13 ancient-origins

The End of The World is Here if Snake Appearing in Israel's Western Wall is Symbolic of Ancient Biblical Prophecy

We had all better get ourselves prepared for a very big day in next year’s calendar, if a snake seen scaring away a pigeon between the ancient stones of Israel’s Western Wall is indeed, as some are...

The inscription bearing the word ‘Jerusalem’, was found in the excavation near the Jerusalem International Convention Center.

10 October, 2018 - 18:59 ashley cowie

Earliest Known Inscription of the Word ‘Jerusalem’ Discovered at Ancient City’s Entrance

The earliest-ever carved inscription of the word ‘Jerusalem’ has been discovered on a waist-high lime stone column, in a Roman building, near the ancient city's entrance. Whispers From A Holy Past...

King David in Prayer by Pieter de Grebber, circa 1600–1652/1653.

5 July, 2018 - 18:53 ancient-origins

In the Footsteps of King David: Stories of Love, War, and Bravery

Beneath the tranquil pastoral green landscapes of the Sorek and Elah valleys lies a dramatic story about the region in ancient times. Draining the western slopes of the Jerusalem Hills, the two...

The Burning of Jerusalem by Nebuchadnezzar’s Army (1630-1660)

9 May, 2018 - 18:44 Mark Oliver

By the Rivers of Babylon: Life in Ancient Babylon’s Thriving Jewish Community

In the 6th-century BC, the armies of Babylon destroyed Jerusalem and the Kingdom of Judah. They tore down the city walls, burned the temples, and ran down every person who tried to escape. The few...

King David Playing the Harp by Gerard van Honthorst (1662).

3 May, 2018 - 13:56 Ed Whelan

Discovery of Lost Citadel May Prove the Existence of King David

In Israel, experts believe that they have found a long-lost citadel from the time of King David. Some argue, according to Breaking Israel News , that the building is the Canaanite stronghold of Eglon...

The Immovable Ladder at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre

27 January, 2018 - 18:53 dhwty

The Immovable Ladder: Bizarre Feud Prevents Ordinary Ladder Being Moved for 3 Centuries

The Immovable Ladder is an ordinary wooden ladder with an extraordinary history. It was placed under a window on the exterior of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in the Old City of Jerusalem and, due...

The most recent seal found at the excavation site near the Western Wall, Jerusalem.

2 January, 2018 - 22:57 Theodoros Karasavvas

Is this Seal More Evidence for the Biblical Account of Jerusalem?

Israeli archaeologists announced the discovery of a 2,700-year-old clay seal of “immense archaeological value” near the plaza of the Western Wall in the Old City of Jerusalem, five years after the...

The tomb of Jesus Christ in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, Jerusalem.

29 November, 2017 - 14:00 Alicia McDermott

The Tomb of Jesus Christ is Proven Older than Experts Thought

The tomb where Jesus Christ is said to have been prepared for burial and then buried following his crucifixion has now been dated to the imperial Roman era around the time of Constantine. A recent...

A photo of the interior of the Siebenberg House.

20 November, 2017 - 23:02 dhwty

The Siebenberg House: How a Home Became a Museum

The Siebenberg House is a house / museum located in the Old City of Jerusalem’s Jewish Quarter. The Siebenberg House is best-known for the archaeological finds that have been made beneath the present...

A modern interpretation of King Solomon’s Temple.

26 October, 2017 - 18:56 dhwty

The First Temple: Crowning Achievement of King Solomon and Home of the Legendary Ark of the Covenant

The Biblical figure King Solomon was the son of King David, was reputedly both wealthy and wise. He is recorded as a prophet in both Judaism’s Talmud and Islam’s Quran and one of his major legacies...

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.