Archaeology

While looters discard bones, they are invaluable to archaeologists’ research.

As Mongolia Melts, Looters Close In On Priceless Artifacts

Climate change and desperation are putting the country’s unique history at risk

Runaway Slaves Built This Fort to Defend Their Freedom

An archaeological expedition into the wilderness of North Carolina uncovers evidence of a remarkable settlement once filled with runaway slaves

Grizzly, a detection dog in training, is learning to sniff out stolen antiquities.

Dogs May Soon Be on the Front Lines in the Fight Against Artifact Smuggling

A project with the University of Pennsylvania is seeking a new tool in an important battle

At La Pasiega in Spain, the scalariform, or ladder shape, composed of red horizontal and vertical lines (center left) dates to older than 64,000 years.

New Research

Were Neanderthals the Earliest Cave Artists? New Research in Spain Points to the Possibility

Archaeologists pushed back the date of cave paintings at three sites to 65,000 years ago—20,000 years before the arrival of humans in Europe

When it comes to ancient remains, isotope analysis could help scientists separate dogs from wolves.

New Research

Dogs and Humans Didn’t Become Best Friends Overnight

First, we feared and ate them, a new isotope analysis reveals

Greek Orthodox priests taking part in a procession inside the Katholikon, or Catholicon Chapel, in the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem.

A Crusader-Era High Altar Resurfaces in Jerusalem’s Holy Sepulcher

This reminder of centuries-old history was sitting in plain sight all along

The gold and silver coins in the Hoxne hoard, found in Suffolk, date to the end of the Roman Empire in Britain at the start of the 5th century A.D.

A Search for a Lost Hammer Led to the Largest Cache of Roman Treasure Ever Found in Britain

Today, archaeologists are still debating just how old the hoard is—and what it tells us about the end of the Roman Empire in Britain

Evidence Suggests Stonehenge Was an Elite Cemetery

Scientists have little doubt that Stonehenge functioned as a Neolithic cemetery

Armenia

What's an Ancient Roman Temple Doing in Armenia?

Shrouded in mystery, the Temple of Garni offers a rare glimpse into pre-Christian Caucasia

Forensic Test Reveals a Mummy's Travels Before Death

A ground-breaking scientific technique is tracing the life of one of the bog bodies of Northern Europe

A scientific illustration of the Upward Sun River camp in what is now Interior Alaska.

New Research

Genetics Rewrites the History of Early America—And, Maybe, the Field of Archaeology

The genome of an infant from Upward Sun River, Alaska offers tantalizing insight into the story of human migration

Gladiator Teeth Reveal Signs of Infant Malnourishment

By all accounts, Roman gladiators were the rock stars of their day, performing in a packed coliseum to a crowd of thousands

The Top Ten Most Important Ancient Documents Lost to History

Either due to conquest or simply the ravages of time, these founding papers of civilizations around the world will remain mysteries forever

Scientists Recreate a Stone Age Cremation

A scientist recreates a Stone Age funeral pyre using nothing but resources from that era. The makeshift pyre achieves same temperatures as a crematorium

Members of Puerto Rico's Concilio Taíno Guatu-Ma-cu a Boriken presented a dance ceremony to invite the public to recover the collective spirituality of their Native ancestors.

Puerto Rico

Bringing Taíno Peoples Back Into History

A traveling Smithsonian exhibition explores the legacy of Indigenous peoples in the Greater Antilles and their contemporary heritage movement

This Mass Grave Discovery Could Alter Roman History

There's plenty of evidence to suggest that a mass grave discovered in the north of England is a gladiator cemetery

Statue of Memnon in the westbank in Luxor, with the community of Qurna in the background.

The Greatest Clash in Egyptian Archaeology May Be Fading, But Anger Lives On

After 200 years, the sad story of Qurna, a so-called 'village of looters', is coming to a close

The Ainu, the Indigenous people of Japan, have fought Japanese domination for centuries. As this century unfolds, their efforts are finally paying off.

How Japan's Bear-Worshipping Indigenous Group Fought Its Way to Cultural Relevance

For a long time, Japanese anthropologists and officials tried to bury the Ainu. It didn't work

Cat's Head, 30 BCE to third century CE

Freer|Sackler: Reopens

Why the Ancient Egyptians Loved Their Kitties

A show opening at the Sackler dramatizes the various meanings that the people of Egypt once associated with cats

Skeleton of the Neanderthal boy recovered from the El Sidrón cave complex (Asturias, Spain).

New Research

Modern Humans and Neanderthals May Be More Similar Than We Imagined

A remarkably preserved 49,000-year-old skeleton shows that Neanderthal kids may have grown slowly, like us

Page 10 of 20