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The secret staircase at la Casa del Rey Moro in Ronda. Source: Ingo Bartussek / Adobe Stock

‘Moorish King's House’ Had a Secret Staircase to Survive Sieges

Nestled within the rugged landscape of Ronda, Spain, lies a hidden gem of ancient ingenuity: La Casa del Rey Moro, or the House of the Moorish King. While this historic site is renowned for its...
The Iron Age child’s shoe found in an Austian salt mine. Source: Deutsches Bergbau-Museum Bochum

2000-Year-Old Child’s Leather Shoe Found in Austrian Salt Mine

This is not the first time German archaeologists have recovered well-preserved shoes from the Dürrnberg salt mine in Austria. However, what is a first, is the remarkable discovery of a child’s shoe,...
Serbian coal miners found the remains of a Roman ship that likely supplied an ancient frontier city and military headquarters. Source: Institute of Archaeology, Belgrade

42-Foot Roman Ship Unearthed in Serbian Mine, Part of an Ancient River Fleet!

The ancient woodwork of a Roman ship, likely part of an ancient river fleet from the 3rd or 4th century AD, has been accidentally uncovered by the Drmno coal miners in Serbia. The hull measures 42...
Giant sinkhole that has opened up in the Atacama Desert, Chile. Source: Sernageomin

Giant Sinkhole Is Growing In Chile’s Atacama Desert

An enormous sinkhole that appeared on a plot of mining land in Chile’s Atacama Desert region has continued to grow. The gigantic cavity was first seen on July 30 in a rural area outside the town of...
Derbyshire Caving Club member examines a pipe found in the Alderley Edge Cobalt mine. Source: National Trust

Time Capsule Opened at Alderley Edge Cobalt Mine, England

Cavers exploring underground spaces in Alderley Edge, Cheshire in northwestern England were stunned to discover a sealed and abandoned mineshaft that hadn’t been visited by anyone since the early...

Wyoming Declared Oldest Mine in Americas: Red Ochre Mined there 13,000 Years Ago!

Excavations that concluded in 2020 have confirmed an ancient mine in eastern Wyoming that was allegedly used by humans to produce red ochre 13,000 years ago! It is now officially the oldest known...
Oklo, Gabon has the world's first and only natural nuclear reactor. Source: WORLDKINGS

Gabon: The Home of Ancient Nuclear Reactors

Nuclear reactors, manmade machines designed to generate energy from nuclear fission, have been around since 1942. Some may be surprised to find out, however, that though manmade nuclear reactors were...
Replica of Fet Mats Israelsson, Falu Grava Visitors Center, Falun, Sweden. (Tidsspegeln) Inside Falun copper mine. (bluecoomassie/CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)

The Mummified Miner: Fet Mats Israelsson and His Unfortunate Demise

Mining is an industry that really doesn’t sound all that entertaining or enigmatic. Rocks, drills, and pickaxes - not much happens in the world of a miner. But when it does - it tends to be...
The Shining History of Gold: From Ancient Treasure to Modern Tech

The Shining History of Gold: From Ancient Treasure to Modern Tech

Gold is arguably the human race’s most valued commodity and a lot could be written about the history of this metal. The luster, beauty, resistance to tarnishing, malleability, and overall brilliance...
Salt man - Iran Baastan museum.

Preserved by Nature: Studying the Spectacular Salt Mummies of Iran

The saltmen are a group of natural mummies that were discovered in the Chehrabad Salt Mine in Iran. This mine is in the Zanjan Province and located about 340 km (211.27 miles) northwest of Tehran...
Inside the Wieliczka salt mine in Poland

The Wieliczka Salt Mine in Poland is a Timeless Masterpiece

A travel along the corridors of the Wieliczka salt mine inspired Polish writer Bolesław Prus to write his most famous novel -''Pharaoh''. Over the centuries, all of the explored chambers of the salt...
Searching for the Gold of the Lost Dutchman Mine in the Superstition Mountains

Searching for The Gold of the Lost Dutchman Mine in Superstition Mountain

The Lost Dutchman Mine is said to be a rich goldmine located somewhere in the southwestern American state of Arizona. Generally speaking, this mine is claimed to be situated in the Superstition...
Representation of an open pit mine to show what the Adivasi tribe are trying to fight against in their home.    Source: Parilov / Adobe stock

Adivasi Tribe Fights to Save Indian Forest From Mining

In India , the land of an indigenous community is under threat from a mining company. A huge area of forest is going to be destroyed due to the proposed mine. This is despite the fact that the...
Left: Example of a tomb at Al Ayn. (Public Domain) Right: The recently unearthed Iron Age site in Oman.  (The National)

Secrets of Iron Age Oman Revealed By Copper Mining Necropolis

Archaeologists in Oman’s Al Sharqiyah governorate have discovered an Iron Age settlement, copper mine, and necropolis with 45 tombs. The tombs are located 700 meters (2296.59 ft.) from an ancient...
Photos of the Ice Age lake Dipsiz in Turkey before (Hurriyet Daily News) and after (Daily Sabah) the archaeological excavations.

12,000-Year-Old Lake Destroyed in Treasure Hunt for Roman Gold

A 12,000-year-old Ice Age lake has dried up after a team of treasure hunters conducted invasive excavations that were authorized but highly controversial. Having obtained permission from the...
Blockade of work on Adani Southern Galilee basin rail line. Credit: Takver / flickr

Aboriginal Australians Lose Land Rights to Coal Mine

With no public announcement whatsoever, the Queensland government in Australia has done away with a native title of over 1,385 hectares of Wangan and Jagalingou country for the controversial new...
Suspected Roman mine pits were uncovered, which would have intersected with a lost Roman road. Source: University of Exeter / Fair Use.

Roman Fort Excavation in England Reveals Lost Road and Ancient Mine

Setting this discovery in context, an article on the National Trust website declares that in 2006, the Cornwall and West Devon mining landscape achieved World Heritage Status recognized by UNESCO and...
An etched pot sherd with an image of a scribe holding an ink palette. Found near an ancient Egyptian amethyst mine.

3,900-Year-Old Lost Inscriptions Surface at the Ancient Egyptian Amethyst Mines

Archaeologists working in the timeworn deserts of Egypt have uncovered more than ‘100 ancient inscriptions' at Wadi el-Hudi, where ancient miners once collected amethysts which were believed to be...
The Big Hole, Kimberley, South Africa

Kimberley Mine is Better Known as ‘The Big Hole’, but Was it Cursed?

It has always been accepted that Kimberley Mine in Northern Cape, South Africa is the deepest and biggest mine dug by hand. And yet, it isn’t. Jagersfontein Mine claims that title, but this fact has...
Two photos of the ancient wheel.

Enigmatic Ancient Wheel: The 300-Million-Year-Old Wheel and Anomalous Ancient Tracks Across the World

In 2008, a curious find was discovered down a coal mine in the Ukrainian city of Donetsk. As it could not be safely or successfully cut out due to the nature of the sandstone in which it was embedded...
A corridor in the Tayos Caves

Who Stole the Gold? Part 3: Blow Smoke and Look the Other Way…

[Read Part 1] [Read Part 2] This is the thrilling conclusion to the investigation on the true mystery regarding the Tayos Caves – what has happened to the pure, prestigious, and lustrous golden ore?...
Left: Father Crespi with a metallic artifact at the church of Maria Auxiliadora. Right: Nivello, Hall, Moricz, Pena & Punin 1975.

Who Stole the Gold? Part 2: There is a lot of Smoke, But are There Any Smoking Guns?

[Read Part 1] This investigation acknowledges that more than one party was in involved in illegal gold extraction, and that gold may have been extracted in more than one form. That said, let’s...
The open chamber near the first descent in the Tayu Jee branch of the Tayos Caves.

Who Stole the Gold? The Smoke Clears Around the Tayos Caves in Ecuador

The Tayos Caves ( Cuevas de los Tayos in Spanish) in Ecuador are a subterranean complex that forms part of the incredible Napo System of Caves stretching from Venezuela to Chile. The Tayos Caves have...
The Visit of the Queen of Sheba to King Solomon, painting by Edward Poynter, 1890, Art Gallery of New South Wales

The Ethiopian Gold Mine that may have supplied the Queen of Sheba with her riches

Ever wondered where the Queen of Sheba got her gold from? Sudan and Ethiopia are both in the region of what was the kingdom of Sheba, and both have ancient mines. In fact, the Asosa zone of Ethiopia...

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