siege

6 May, 2019 - 02:04 Ed Whelan

Caerphilly Castle, Wales - Strategically Brilliant for Its Time and Haunted in Ours

Caerphilly Castle in south Wales stands proud amongst the medieval fortifications and strongholds in the United Kingdom and is classed among the finest in Europe. It is also one of the largest in...

7 April, 2019 - 22:12 Theodoros Karasavvas

Ragnar Lothbrok: A Real Viking Hero Whose Life Became Lost to Legend

Ragnar Lothbrok was a fearless Viking hero who ransacked England and France and fathered the Great Heathen Army. However the historicity of the man with “hairy breeches” is subject to debate. Where...

Old catapult in Les Baux-de-Provence, France

30 December, 2018 - 13:54 Ed Whelan

Rare Find of Stone Catapult Ball Fired During Medieval Siege Unearthed in Scotland

Archaeologists in Scotland have made the rare discovery of a stone ball that was used like a cannonball during a medieval siege. The find is helping experts to better understand Scotland’s Wars of...

26 September, 2018 - 02:21 dhwty

King Alaric: His Famous Sacking of Rome, Secretive Burial, and Lost Treasure

The Sack of Rome in 410 AD by the Visigoths is often regarded as an event that marked the beginning of the end of the Western Roman Empire. The man responsible for the second sacking of Rome (the...

5 February, 2018 - 14:02 dhwty

Predjama Castle: The Castle in a Cave that Housed a Slovenian Robin Hood

Once home to the Slovenian Robin Hood, Predjama Castle is a site rich in history. It is built into the mouth of a cave high up on a cliff and has a commanding view over the landscape. That position...

Window with a portrait of Harald in Lerwick Town Hall, Shetland

20 December, 2017 - 15:16 Cam Rea

A Military Life for Clever King Harald: Serving the Empire and Stopping the Pirates – Part I

In 1015, Harald Sigurdsson was born. He was the youngest of three sons born to Sigurd Syr, who ruled over a petty kingdom in Ringerike, located in the region of Buskerud. Harald’s upbringing is not...

Assyrian attack on a town with archers and a wheeled battering ram, 865–860 BC.

27 August, 2017 - 13:56 Cam Rea

Were the Lost Ten Tribes of Israel Ever Lost?

When examining the mysteries of the 8th century BC, all one has to do is look in the Bible or an ancient history book to realize that Assyria had no outside threats. The Hittites and Egyptians were a...

Detail; The entry of Sultan Mehmed II into Constantinople, painting by Fausto Zonaro (1854-1929)

15 May, 2017 - 15:33 Cam Rea

Orban’s Colossal Cannon: Holding a Tiger by the Tail – Part II

Sultan Mehmed II was so pleased with Orban’s massive, destructive cannon that he wanted another twice its size! Orban headed back to his foundry in Edirne (Adrianople) acquiring more timber and...

Modern painting of Mehmed and the Ottoman Army approaching Constantinople with a giant bombard, by Fausto Zonaro

12 May, 2017 - 15:37 Cam Rea

Orban: The Man Whose Cannon Brought Down the Walls of Constantinople – Part I

For 53 days, starting on Friday, 6 April, the forces of the Ottoman Empire shook what was left of the Eastern Roman Empire (known as Byzantium, or the Byzantine Empire) until they were able to breach...

The Byzantine coins found near Jerusalem have been dated to around the time of a 614 siege.

22 March, 2017 - 22:01 Theodoros Karasavvas

1,400-Year-Old Coins are the Forgotten Remnants of a Terrifying Siege on Jerusalem

Israeli archaeologists have announced the discovery of a hoard of rare Byzantine bronze coins from a site dating back to 614 AD. The coins were discovered during excavations for the widening of the...

17 March, 2017 - 12:47 Theodoros Karasavvas

Crusader Shipwreck Yields Coins and Other Artifacts from the Final Years of a Holy Land Fortress

Marine archaeologists have discovered some intriguing artifacts in the wreck of a ship belonging to the Crusaders in Acre, Israel. It dates to the time of the valiant last stand by the few remaining...

Thutmosis III statue and Ancient Egyptian military in battle

24 February, 2017 - 15:59 Cam Rea

What Was in Store for the Citizens of the Besieged City? The Battle of Megiddo—Part II

Pharaoh Thutmose III pushed his 12,000-strong army towards the banks of the Orontes River. His scribe, Tjaneni, kept a daily journal in order to have the Pharaoh’s military exploits inscribed by his...

6 February, 2017 - 22:57 Theodoros Karasavvas

Archaeologists to Explore Mysterious Underground Structure at the Desert Fortress of Masada

A team of archaeologists from Tel Aviv University have returned to Masada in Israel, after a 11-year hiatus, in order to excavate previously unexplored areas of the desert mountain fortress,...

Assyrian relief of a horseman from Nimrud, now in the British Museum

1 November, 2016 - 00:59 Cam Rea

The Iron Army: Assyria - Deadly and Effective Siege Machine - Part II

Assyrian sappers (soldiers for building, demolitions, general construction) would approach the walls possibly under the cover of shield bears, the same type that protected the archers one could...

29 October, 2016 - 02:37 Cam Rea

The Iron Army: Assyria - Terrifying Military of the Ancient World - Part I

Before the famed Persian Empire, whose borders spanned from India to Thrace, there was another empire—the Assyrians. The Assyrian Empire, while much smaller than the future Persian Empire to come,...

15 October, 2016 - 02:08 Cam Rea

The Persian War Machine: The Immortals – Part II

The Persian war machine made empires beforehand look miniature. The Persians were able to take the best from all over the Near East and turn it into a force that could not be defeated for many...

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.

The notorious and much feared ancient order of Hashshashins

The Epic of Gilgamesh Unveiled: Enlightenment and Source of Religions

English Nursery Rhymes with Unexpected and Sometimes Disturbing Historical Origins

Say the Magic Word: The Origins of Abracadabra

The Powerful Symbol of the Swastika and its 12,000 Year History

Human Origins

Work using the Statue of Gilgamesh and Lamassu. Source: CC BY 4.0

The Epic of Gilgamesh Unveiled: Enlightenment and Source of Religions

This retelling of key parts of the Epic explores the unconventional 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. Taking poetic licence, the author merges some ideas from modern science and technology with the story from the ancient text.

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

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

Do you dare enter a fairy ring? The mythical mushroom portals of the supernatural

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

Norimitsu Odachi: Who Could Have Possibly Wielded This Enormous 15th Century Japanese Sword?

The revolutionary invention of the wheel

The incredible earthquake detector invented nearly 2,000 years ago

The legacy of Dujiangyan: China’s ancient irrigation system

Ancient Places

Sumer: Where Written Language, Arithmetic and Civilization Were Born

The Sumerian civilization (known also as Sumer) was one of the earliest civilizations in the world. This ancient civilization emerged in the region of southern Mesopotamia (modern day southern Iraq), between the Tigris and Euphrates River.

Homer’s Iliad Casts Doubt on the Aegean Location of Troy

Is Makhunik an Ancient City of Little People?

Fuerte De Samaipata - A Site of Ceremonial Carvings and Sacrifice

Mystery Hill Megaliths May Be 4,000 Years Old—Did Celts Build It?

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

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.