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Pre-Inca wall has been discovered in Huaca Tomabal, Valley of Viru in Peru. It supported a ceremonial temple, experts explain. Source: University of Trujillo

4,500-Year-Old Andean Temple Polychrome Painted Wall Revealed

In 2020, archaeologists in northern Peru unearthed the crumbling remains of a 4,500-year-old wall. This wall is historically valuable because it was painted with geometric patterns, but what makes...
Swiss archaeologist Sâm Ghavami with his team of students at the Peruvian Huaca Pintada in northern Peru. Source: Sâm Ghavami

Lost Peruvian Huaca Pintada and its 1,000-Year-Old Mural Rediscovered

The last time anyone saw this Peruvian Huaca Pintada was over a century ago. Now, a team of intrepid archaeology students and their professor have painstakingly rediscovered the lost 1,000-year-old...
Earliest Maya Calendar Fragment Found in Guatemala

Earliest Maya Calendar Fragment Found in Guatemala

A new study published in the journal Science Advances has announced the discovery of the earliest known use of the Maya calendar. This discovery of the glyph “7 Deer” on mural fragments from deep...
Brick fresco in one of the Yuan Dynasty tombs discovered in Jinan, China. Source: Jinan Archaeological Research Institute

Cluster of Yuan Dynasty Tombs with Stunning Brick Murals Found in China

Archaeologists working in Jinan, Eastern China, have concluded excavations of a series of tombs in advance of development in the area. Among the most exciting aspects of the dig was the discovery of...
Researchers found the charred remains of wooden furniture at the site of the former Astra cinema in Verona leading them to the discovery of the ancient Roman building that is now being called a "miniature Pompeii."

Roman Building Found Under Cinema in Verona A “Miniature Pompeii”

Recently, during excavations carried out in Verona, Italy under an abandoned cinema, archaeologists discovered the remains of a second-century Roman building. According to the Superintendency of...
The knife-wielding spider god mural was discovered at a 3,200-year-old ceremonial site in Peru.

Knife-Wielding Spider God Mural Found at Shrine in Peru

Archaeologists have identified a 3,200-year-old ceremonial center in Peru’s northern Virú province. The site has been partially destroyed and is still waiting full excavations, but they’ve already...
Farmers in Inner Mongolia discovered this ancient fresco depicting Khitans playing music. Source: Xinhua

Tomb Murals Show Life of the Khitans, A War-Torn Lost Culture

The Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region of northern China includes the rolling green steppes, an arid desert through which the Great Wall of China courses, the Hulunbuir grasslands which are a vast...
Decoration of an ancient tomb in Tierradentro 	Source: Matyas Rehak / Adobe Stock

A Fascinating Look into the Lives and Deaths of the Tierradentro People of Colombia

One of the greatest Pre-Columbian civilizations of Colombia were the Tierradentro who flourished for centuries. They created a remarkable series of cave tombs and monuments which offer us a unique...
Detail of a mural around a niche in one of the Roman tombs found at Beir Al-Shaghala archaeological site in Egypt’s Dakhla Oasis.

Roman Tombs Found in Egyptian Oasis Reflect Cultural Blending Evident in Burial Practices

If they stayed almost any length of time, the ancient Romans left a cultural mark on the place they visited, conquered, and/or had extensive trade with. One way this makes itself known in Egypt is in...
The ‘Bird Man’, one of the mural paintings in Cacaxtla

Cacaxtla: Where the Rain Dies on Earth and Murals Tell Tales of Forgotten Lives

Warriors in jaguar skins stand over their defeated opponents dressed as quetzal birds, priests invoke the sacred avian and feline powers, and a merchant sets off on a journey with a pack full of...
Two people portrayed on the walls of the ancient Egyptian general’s tomb.

Immense Tomb Provides a Fascinating Peek at the Life of High Steward of Ramesses II

Saqqara has given Egyptologists a wealth of knowledge on life and death in ancient Egypt. Recently, it has provided information on Queen Ankhnespepy II , King Tut’s Wet Nurse , and a royal messenger...
Mural from a Pompeii brothel.

The Grim Reality of the Brothels of Pompeii

Like the anxious men who began excavations at Pompeii in the 18th century and discovered more about the ancient Italians than they had bargained for – such as phallic-shaped lamps – historians of sex...
It is estimated 95% of the Ventarrón archaeological site in Peru has been destroyed by fire, including one of the oldest murals in the Americas.

Flames Ravage Peruvian Temple and one of the Oldest Known Murals in the Americas

A fire has destroyed much of a 4000-year-old temple site in Peru, including a wall painting which is said to have been one of the oldest known murals in the Americas. Almost 95% of the site has been...
This monster-like creature was found on the vaulted ceiling of the tomb's corridor.

1,400-Year-Old Tomb with Bizarre Images of a Blue Monster Found in China

Scientists have discovered a 1,400-year-old tomb in China which includes some of the most fascinating images ever found. Among others, a blue monster, a winged horse and a nude deity known as the...
Pre-Columbian Murals and Norse Sagas Suggest Vikings Met the Aztecs, and the Outcome Was Not Pretty

Pre-Columbian Murals and Norse Sagas Suggest Vikings Met the Aztecs, and the Outcome Was Not Pretty

Did the Vikings visit Pre-Columbian Mexico? The depiction of white people on Chichen Itza murals in the Temple of the Warriors probably represent Vikings - the major European navigators around the...
Star Maps and the Secrets of Senenmut: Astronomical Ceilings and the Hopi Vision of Earth

Star Maps and the Secrets of Senenmut: Astronomical Ceilings and the Hopi Vision of Earth

The builders of the pyramid complex in Egypt had a very good astronomer. We call him Senenmut (the Mother’s Brother, or the Uncle). Today, our astronomers are so good that they build computer...
Interpreting the Murals of Egypt through the Eyes of the Hopi

Interpreting the Murals of Egypt through the Eyes of the Hopi

There has to be something missing in our explanation of the murals of Egypt. Why are there so many symbols— snakes, birds with human heads, feathers, buzzards, life symbols, monkeys, scarabs,...
The Untold Story Behind Sardinian Banditry

The Untold Story Behind Sardinian Banditry

Sardinian banditry is a phenomenon associated with the island of Sardinia located in the Mediterranean. Part of Italy today, this island is generally believed to have taken its name from the Latin...
A close-up shows part of one of the murals that may date back 4,600 years—well before the brush-stroke process of painting was known previously in China.

Brush strokes on very ancient murals may rewrite the history of art in China

Recent discoveries in the ruins of a prehistoric city may rewrite the history of art in China. Archaeologists working in the ruins of the Neolithic Shimao Ruins have identified mural fragments that...
The mural shows a woman plucking a harp. (Photo by the Arles Museum of Antiques)

A rare treasure of ancient Roman frescoes comparable to Pompeii has been unearthed in France

Archaeologists have excavated an ancient Roman villa in Arles, France, with fresco murals depicting a musician playing a harp, Dionysus and the entourage of Bacchus. Researchers say it is rare to...
Kizil Caves

Kizil Caves, earliest Buddhist caves in China, hide rare images from the time of the Silk Route

The ancient Silk Route was not only a trade route where goods could be transported between East and West, but was also a corridor where ideas could flow freely. This transmission of knowledge would...
Junior Obsidian kneels before the Lord of Hammer-Stone Hill, the apparent ruler of Xultun.

Archaeologists study stunning murals adorning the walls of an ancient Maya home

In a complex, 1,300-year-old Maya mural in the Guatemalan jungle, a ruler with an elaborate plumed headdress and impersonating a god, consults with priest-scholars as they celebrate the new year...
Ancient Mexican mural depicting drunken

Ancient Mexican mural depicting drunken revelry revealed for the first time

An ancient mural which depicts a scene of drunken revelry as part of a pre-Hispanic ceremony dedicated to the goddess Mayahuel, is being opened up to the public for the first time, according to a...
Belize Maya mural

Archaeologists discover rare ancient Maya mural on cattle ranch

Archaeologists have discovered an ancient Maya mural underneath a mound of jumbled trees and bushes on a cattle ranch in Belize. The landowner has agreed to leave it untouched for now, but there are...

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