Romans

Beautiful woman with fashion make-up and hairstyle like Egyptian queen Cleopatra (EmotionPhoto / Adobe Stock)

9 February, 2019 - 13:31 Sarah P Young

8 Ancient Beauty Secrets We Can Still Use Today

Beautification and cosmetology have been important to humans for many thousands of years. Obsessing over our appearance is something that seems to go back to the very roots of modern human behavior,...

18 January, 2019 - 22:45 dhwty

When Julius Caesar Was Kidnapped by Pirates - And Made Them Increase the Ransom!

Piracy is a practice that can be dated all the way back to ancient times. In the Mediterranean, pirates were not a major threat as long as they could be kept in check, usually by a strong navy. By...

2 December, 2018 - 22:55 dhwty

Kom Ombo: An Egyptian Temple Dedicated to Two Rival Gods

Kom Ombo (meaning the ‘Mound of Ombo’) is an ancient Egyptian town located in what is today the Aswan Governorate of Upper Egypt, about 50 km (31 miles) to the north of Aswan. Kom Ombo is notable...

The restored horse head is on view for the first time since its discovery in 2009

30 August, 2018 - 14:04 Alicia McDermott

Bronze Horse Head of Waldgirmes Emphasizes that Germanic Tribes and Romans Sometimes Played Nice

Last week a rare Roman bronze horse’s head made international headlines because it gained a German farmer a pretty penny. Now the sculpture fragment is back in the limelight because archaeologists...

Place of execution in ancient Rome. The crucified slaves. Fedor Andreevich Bronnikov, 1878.

7 June, 2018 - 14:00 Gary Manners

Second (Or Third) Ever Skeleton with Evidence of Crucifixion Discovered

The remains of a 2000-year old man discovered in 2007 near Gavello, southwest of Venice in northern Italy are being claimed to be the second ‘crucified skeletal remains’ ever unearthed. Researchers...

26 April, 2018 - 14:02 dhwty

Gladiator Helmets: Fit for Purpose, Not Just Protection

The gladiator is most likely the first image one calls to mind when thinking about entertainment in ancient Rome. As most would already know, gladiators fought either each other or wild animals, in...

"Ertränken im Fass oder Sack", a 1560 sketch showing ‘punishment of the sack’.

23 January, 2018 - 02:00 ancient-origins

Mythbusting Ancient Rome: Cruel and Unusual Punishment

Early Roman history is full of stories about the terrible fates that befell citizens who broke the law. When a certain Tarpeia let the enemy Sabines into Rome, she was crushed and thrown headlong...

19 December, 2017 - 01:58 ancient-origins

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...

Saint Columba converting King Brude of the Picts to Christianity, Scottish National Portrait Gallery

13 May, 2017 - 01:42 ancient-origins

Does the Fierce Reputation of The Picts Reflect Reality?

It’s not that the Picts, a group of British Isle inhabitants, were that different from native Britons around the fourth century, a historian suggests in a new book. It’s just that Julius Caesar didn’...

23 March, 2017 - 18:04 dhwty

The Best Preserved Roman Temple? From Emperors to Founding Fathers, Elite Connections Maintained the Maison Carrée

The Maison Carrée (which means ‘Square House’ in French) is an ancient monument located in Nîmes, a city in the Occitanie region of southern France. This building was built during the 1st century BC...

Huns in battle with the Alans, 1870s engraving after a drawing by Johann Nepomuk Geiger (1805-1880)

14 March, 2017 - 17:54 Kerry Sullivan

Merciless Marauders or Fearsome Fighters? The Terror Tactics of the Huns

Ruthless and unpredictable, few armies have been as terrifying as the Huns. Descending on a town like a whirlwind from hell, the savage horsemen killed indiscriminately – combatants and civilians,...

6 March, 2017 - 01:50 Mark Miller

Valuable Enough to Kill For: 4,000-Year-Old Mine Which Was Hijacked by Foreign Forces Uncovered in Spain

Archaeologists in Spain have uncovered sophisticated mining operations in Munigua, which were in operation as long ago as 4,000 years, but first Carthage and then Romans hijacked them for the vitally...

A group of Trinovantes at a graveside in Colchester by Peter Froste.

14 December, 2016 - 14:47 Natalia Klimczak

The So-Called Druid of Colchester: Physician, Mystical Man, or Both?

In 1996, a team of researchers unearthed a unique burial of a mysterious man. The odd remains and specific funerary equipment thrilled the archaeologists. Was the man who lived 2,000 years ago an...

6 September, 2016 - 01:43 Cam Rea

The Hunnic War Machine: Horsemen of the Steppe – Part II

The steppe has produced many notable horse archers who brought terror and devastation to the known world during ancient times. But of the many steppe peoples who penetrated the civilized world, none...

Reenactors of Hunnic Warriors of the Steppe

3 September, 2016 - 02:02 Cam Rea

The Hunnic War Machine: The Push Westward – Part I

Main: Featured image: Oak Island, Nova Scotia, Inset: The Roman sword found in water just off the mysterious Oak Island, Nova Scotia.

17 December, 2015 - 02:56 aprilholloway

Roman Sword discovered off Oak Island radically suggests Ancient Mariners visited New World 1,000 years before Columbus

Researchers investigating the mysterious Oak Island, located on the south shore of Nova Scotia, Canada, have made a startling announcement regarding the discovery of a Roman ceremonial sword and what...

Pages

Myths & Legends

Magu, Goddess of Longevity and immortal hemp maiden.

Magu: The Hemp Goddess Who Healed Ancient Asia

"Cannabis" and "criminal" are synonymous in many countries. While cannabis has been steadily weaving onto the "right" side of the law in recent years, the "high" people get from the plant is still often associated with negativity.

The symbol of the Swastika and its 12,000-year-old history

Ancient Symbolism of the Magical Phoenix

The Glastonbury Giant: Who Did the Mystery Bones of A Nine Foot Skeleton Belong To?

Ten Mythological Creatures in Ancient Folklore

The Real Story of Medusa and the Gorgons

Human Origins

Facing the Facts: Just How Accurate Are Facial Reconstructions?

There have been a number of high-profile reconstructions of historical figures recently and it seems like whenever a reconstruction is shared there is controversy and argument about whether the person it portrays really looked like their facsimile.

The origins of human beings according to ancient Sumerian texts

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

The human skull that challenges the Out of Africa theory

Australian Aboriginals - Creation Myth

Pangu and the Chinese Creation Story

Ancient Technology

Both a Princess and a Priestess, What Did the First Known Author Have to Share with the World?

The world’s first known author is widely considered to be Enheduanna, a woman who lived in the 23rd century BC in ancient Mesopotamia (approximately 2285 – 2250 BC).

The High-Tech Stonework of the Ancients: Unsolved Mysteries of Master Engineers

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

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

Excavation of two quarries in Wales by a UCL-led team of archaeologists and geologists has confirmed they are sources of Stonehenge's 'bluestones'– and shed light on how they were quarried and transported.

The Where, When and How of Quarrying Stonehenge 'Bluestones' Is Revealed in New Report

Geologists have long known that 42 of Stonehenge's smaller stones, known as 'bluestones', came from the Preseli hills in Pembrokeshire, west Wales.

Were the Women of Petra More Important Than the Men?

Spectacular Royal Han Tombs Reveal Wealth and Glory of China’s Golden Age

It Looks Like a Laser Cut But What Really Split the Ancient Al Naslaa Rock?

Axum: Legendary Kingdom of Ancient Ethiopia

The Construction of Venice, the Floating City

Opinion

The astronomical ceiling at the Pronaos, Detail of the first Band west from the center. From left to right: two wind creatures (the winged ram with four heads personifies the south wind), the snake- and frog-headed eight goddesses and gods of the Ogdoad who ruled the cosmos before the creation of the world and Osiris seated on a throne sails across the sky as personification of the full moon accompanied by the seated goddesses Nephtys (left) and Isis on the right (Maat stands near the bow of the ship). Siri

Changing Colors and Scampering Across the Night Sky: What Did the Ancients Say about Sirius?

In Egypt, Sirius was the Star of Isis, Isis being the companion and rescuer of the god Osiris. In a very deep way, Osiris was Egypt.

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

Alchemy and Generating Lifeforce —Global Temples Made in the Shape of Lingams: Shaivite Bull Cult Part II

From Green Man to Bull Son, The Universal Shaivite Bull Cult – Part I

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.