Middle East

“With this new tablet, we can actually see for the first time why they were interested in geometry: to lay down precise land boundaries,” says researcher Daniel Mansfield.

Babylonians Used Applied Geometry 1,000 Years Before Pythagoras

Calculations inscribed on a clay tablet helped ancient people document property boundaries, new research suggests

The four symbols seen in front of the king—a crescent moon, the sun, a snake and a flower—may hold religious significance.

Archaeologists Discover 2,550-Year-Old Carving of the Last King of Babylon

Found in northern Saudi Arabia, the inscription depicts sixth-century B.C.E. ruler Nabonidus holding a scepter

A new exhibition at the Museum for Islamic Art in Jerusalem explores the fascinating history of coffee.

Tracing Coffee's Travels From the East to the West

New exhibition explores how the caffeinated beverage sparked religious controversy and technical innovation

The Chinese port city of Quanzhou was crucial to maritime trade between the 10th and 14th centuries C.E.

Nine New Sites, From Chinese Port City to Saudi Rock Art Complex, Join Unesco World Heritage List

Other honorees include a group of European spa towns, a 13th-century Hindu temple and a lighthouse in France

DNA from the skin of this mummified sheep leg allowed researchers to study sheep husbandry practices in ancient Iran.

Researchers Recover DNA From 1,600-Year-Old, Naturally Mummified Sheep Leg

The molecules offer insights on ancient farming practices near the Chehrabad salt mine in Iran

The inscription represents a rare and valuable clue to the development and spread of writing systems in the region.

This 3,100-Year-Old Inscription May Be Linked to a Biblical Judge

A pottery fragment found in Israel bears the name Jerubbaal—a nickname for Gideon ben Yoash, who appears in the Book of Judges

The opulent public building dates to between 20 and 30 A.D.

Palatial, 2,000-Year-Old Public Building Revealed in Jerusalem

The grand structure, which once hosted events near the Temple Mount, will soon open to tourists

Archaeologists excavated the White Monument, which stood north of the village of Igraya until the area was flooded in the late 1990s.

Archaeologists Propose 4,500-Year-Old Burial Mound Was World's First Military Memorial

Mesopotamians turned a community tomb on the Euphrates into a battle monument

Researchers discovered a clay fragment bearing the impressions of at least two seals. One seal featured a long line intersected by shorter strokes.

7,000-Year-Old Seal Impression Found in Israel Offers Clues to Prehistoric Trade

The clay object—the oldest of its kind found in the region—may have been used to mark a shipment or secure a grain silo door shut

Ongoing excavations at the Haydarpaşa Railway Station (pictured here) in Istanbul revealed traces of a third- or fourth-century B.C. monument or mausoleum.

Ruins of Millennia-Old Monument Unearthed in Turkish 'City of the Blind'

Archaeologists conducting excavations at an Istanbul train station found traces of an ancient apse, or semicircular recess

Pourang Mokhtari watches over the family's goats and sheep high in the Zagros Mountains.

Passage Through the Zagros

True to an ancient way of life, a family in Iran makes a treacherous seasonal migration across the mountains

The oil crisis affected everything from home heating to business costs. But the impact was most obvious on the roads.

Gas Shortages in 1970s America Sparked Mayhem and Forever Changed the Nation

Half a century ago, a series of oil crises caused widespread panic and led to profound shifts in U.S. culture

The mustatils' monumental size and similarities are suggestive of "significant social organization and a common goal or belief," says lead author Hugh Thomas.

Did a Neolithic Cattle Cult Build These Sprawling Structures in Saudi Arabia?

The roughly 7,000-year-old mustatils, or rectangular monuments, predate both Stonehenge and the Egyptian pyramids

A virtual reconstruction featured in Baalbek Reborn

Virtual Tour Restores Baalbek's Stunning Roman Temples to Their Former Glory

The free online experience allows users to toggle between views of the ancient Lebanese city today and as it appeared in 215 A.D.

The genetic lineage of the plague that hit London in 1348 gave Green a data point to track the disease back to its origin.

Did the Black Death Rampage Across the World a Century Earlier Than Previously Thought?

Scholar Monica Green combined the science of genetics with the study of old texts to reach a new hypothesis about the plague

The amulet probably dates to the fifth or sixth century B.C.

Eleven-Year-Old Boy Discovers Ancient Fertility Amulet in Israeli Desert

The 2,500-year-old ceramic figurine was likely created to provide protection and promote conception

Researchers posit that the helmet's owner was a Greek soldier who fought in the fifth-century B.C. Persian Wars.

Was This Helmet Worn by an Ancient Greek Soldier During the Persian Wars?

Found in Haifa Bay, Israel, in 2007, the bronze headgear boasts an intricate, peacock-like pattern

Kilij Arslan I's forces defeated the People's Crusade at the Battle of Civetot.

Turkish Archaeologists Discover Grave of Sultan Who Defeated Crusaders

Kilij Arslan I was the second leader of the Seljuk Sultanate of Rūm

The stone reads "blessed Maria, who lived an immaculate life."

A Tombstone Inscribed in Ancient Greek Is Found in Southern Israel

The Byzantine-era stone reads 'blessed Maria, who lived an immaculate life'

This year's top stories included an explainer on murder hornets, a list of fun facts about love and sex in the animal kingdom, and a look at the true history behind Hulu's "The Great."

Our Ten Most Popular Stories of 2020

From Anglo-Saxon artifacts to copper's antibacterial properties, systemic racism and murder hornets, these were the most-read stories of the year

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