pyramids

This is the huge ‘Chinese Pyramid’ mound of the Maoling Mausoleum of Emperor Wu of Han.

30 November, 2018 - 01:49 ancient-origins

Archeoastronomy Reveals Cosmic Dynastic Divide in Chinese Burial Pyramids

Politecnico di Milano The funerary complex of the first Chinese emperor of the Qin dynasty (3th century BC) is one of the most famous archaeological sites in the world. This is of course due to the...

LiDAR image revealing Maya structures beneath the jungle canopy in Guatemala

1 October, 2018 - 20:10 Joanna Gillan

Laser Scans Reveal 60,000 Previously Unknown Maya Structures Hidden in Guatemalan Jungle!

In a monumental archaeological discovery, whose magnitude hasn’t been seen in decades, an aerial survey over northern Guatemala revealed tens of thousands of Maya structures, including pyramids,...

Pillar in Gobekli Tepe (Deriv.) (sebnemsanders) with a starry night sky. (CC0) What can be discerned about the site from Gobekli Tepe archaeoastronomy?

17 September, 2018 - 14:08 Freddy Silva

Gobekli Tepe Archaeoastronomy and the Second Hill of Osiris

The naming of places in the ancient world was a serious affair, particularly with regard to temples. A name enshrined the purpose for which the site was intended, or reflected a truth about its...

10 September, 2018 - 13:58 Michelle Freson

Ruins of Malden Island and The Mysterious Roads that Lead into the Sea

Malden is a tiny, island in the central Pacific Ocean, covering about 15 square miles in area. It is one of the Line Islands belonging to the Republic of Kiribati and while there are no resident...

The magnificent Boat of Khufu, Solar Boat Museum, Giza

3 May, 2018 - 19:01 Istvan Soros

The Great Boat of Khufu: The ‘Black Box’ to the Construction of the Pyramids

Perhaps this is not the first time that the reader will have heard of how in 1954 the Great Boat of Khufu was discovered, practically intact, at the southern face of the Kheops Pyramid, and how it is...

20 March, 2018 - 00:59 ancient-origins

From the Pyramids to Stonehenge – were Prehistoric People Astronomers?

Daniel Brown / The Conversation Ever since humans could look up to see the sky, we have been amazed by its beauty and untold mysteries. Naturally then, astronomy is often described as the oldest of...

An illustration depicting the construction of the Egyptian pyramids

11 March, 2018 - 14:23 ashley cowie

Demystifying the Egyptian Pyramids with Hard Facts

It has always fascinated, and worried me at the same time, how many people I meet that are still mesmerized by aspects of the pyramids in Egypt that archeologists solved many years ago. The when, how...

24 February, 2018 - 01:58 ancient-origins

LiDAR Lifts the Veil on the Oldest Known Maya Settlement in Guatemala

With the help of airborne laser mapping technology, a team of archaeologists, led by University of Arizona professor Takeshi Inomata, is exploring on a larger scale than ever before the history and...

Pictorial representation of Pyramid in Teuchitlán Guachimontones Museum.

12 December, 2017 - 18:50 dhwty

Were Mexico’s Circular Pyramids Really Made for a Flying Ceremony?

Guachimontones (known alternatively as Huachimontones) is an archaeological site located in the western Mexican state of Jalisco. This is an important site of the Teuchitlan tradition, which was a...

New research looking at the density of particles called muons has found an empty space (shown in this illustration) more than 98 feet (30 meters) long right above the pyramid's Grand Gallery.

2 November, 2017 - 17:57 aprilholloway

Hidden Chamber Found? Cosmic Ray Tech Reveals Large Void in Great Pyramid

Scientists looking to uncover hidden chambers and other ancient secrets of the Egyptian pyramids using powerful scanning technology, have detected a large space within the Great Pyramid, which could...

7 October, 2017 - 18:51 aprilholloway

5 Pyramids of the Ancient World that You May Not Have Heard About

The Great Pyramid of Giza is undoubtedly one of the most well-known icons of the ancient world. But thousands of other pyramids exist, not just in Egypt, but across the entire globe, including Europe...

Vivant Denon’s sketch of the sphinx in 1798 depicts a man being pulled out of a hole in the sphinx’s head

6 October, 2017 - 19:00 Malcolm Hutton

The Big Egyptian Sphinx Cover Up: Hidden Chambers, An Unexcavated Mound and Endless Denial

In 1935, Egypt was still the main draw for archaeologists digging for answers. It was hardly more than a decade since the British Egyptologist Howard Carter discovered the tomb of Tutankhamen on...

Great Pyramid of Egypt. Source: BigStockPhoto

24 September, 2017 - 14:58 aprilholloway

Archaeologists Announce that New Discoveries Solve Mystery of How the Great Pyramid Was Built

A new set of investigations in ancient Egypt have led to some startling discoveries – the translation of an ancient papyrus, the unearthing of an ingenious system of waterworks, and the discovery of...

12 January, 2017 - 00:48 Clyde Winters

2,000-Year-Old Maya Superhighway Discovered in the Jungle of Guatemala

Few ancient civilizations have left us evidence of the roads they built to maintain effective communication and transportation within their sphere of influence. Until recently, the model for...

10 December, 2016 - 02:04 Armando Mei

The Enigmatic Columns of Horus: Divine Tools of Energy– Part II

The supreme being of the pharaohs’ pantheon was associated with the sun’s disk and, according to the myth, he emerged from the ocean of the Nun, carried by the goddess Mehetueret, the Celestial Cow...

8 November, 2016 - 16:49 ancient-origins

27 Little Known Facts About Teotihuacan

Teotihuacan is one of the largest and most important sacred cities of ancient Mesoamerica, whose name means "the city of the gods" in the Nahuatl language of the Aztecs. It once supported an...

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Myths & Legends

The Epic of Gilgamesh. Source: Luca Oleastri / Adobe.

The Epic of Gilgamesh Unveiled: Searching For a Way to the Home Planet

The Epic of Gilgamesh is regarded as one of mankind’s greatest literary and historical works. Many authors have studied the text in an effort to explain the nature of Gilgamesh’s tyranny and his erratic behavior.

Decoding Viking Signs: Nine Norse Symbols Explained

Say the Magic Word: The Origins of Abracadabra

The Menhune of Hawaii – Ancient Race or Fictional Fairytale?

Vlad the Impaler the Inspiration Behind Count Dracula

Skaði, The Norse ‘Giantess’ with a Godly Vendetta

Human Origins

‘Indian Barbers Saharanpore’ by Edwin Lord Weeks. Scientists have recently found just how diverse both Indian and Jewish genes really are.

Unity in Diversity: Studies Reveal Surprising Stories for the Genes of Ancient Hindus and Jews

New research using ancient DNA is rewriting the genetic history of two ancient peoples; the Hindus and the Jews - and it shows that their two religious civilizations are the result of multiple ancient ethnic migrations; into the Land of India in the case of the Hindus, and into diaspora Jewish communities in the case of the Jewish people.

The Pagan Wheel of the Year: What Elaborate Rituals and Events Mark this Sacred Cycle?

The origins of human beings according to ancient Sumerian texts

Mysterious Worlds: Travels to the Faerie and Shamanic Realms

Drugs in Ancient Cultures: A History of Drug Use and Effects

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

Ancient Technology

The passage of carts over decades could cause ruts (like the one shown), particularly in high-traffic areas of Pompeii.

Romans in Pompeii Repaired the Roads with Molten Iron

The buried city of Pompeii continues to provide many insights into Roman society , economy, and culture. The ash and pumice , that fell on Pompeii from Mount Vesuvius , froze the city in time. A...

Why Are There 365 Days in a Year? Organizing Dates with an Ancient Egyptian Calendar

Ancient Journeys: What was Travel Like for the Romans?

Ten amazing inventions from ancient times

The revolutionary invention of the wheel

The Evidence is Cut in Stone: A Compelling Argument for Lost High Technology in Ancient Egypt

Ancient Places

The destruction of the Great Library of Alexandria

Alexandria, one of the greatest cities of the ancient world, was founded by Alexander the Great after his conquest of Egypt in 332 BC. After the death of Alexander in Babylon in 323 BC, Egypt fell to...

Explaining the Fall of the Great Akkadian Empire

The Great Serpent Mound of Ohio, the Largest Earthen Effigy in the World

The Construction of Venice, the Floating City

The 9,000-year-old underground megalithic settlement of Atlit Yam

The White Temple and the Great Ziggurat in the Mesopotamian City of Uruk

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.

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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.