Smart News History & Archaeology

The researchers used carbon dating of seeds above and below the footprints to determine their age.

Cool Finds

Prehistoric Footprints Push Back Timeline of Humans' Arrival in North America

Found in New Mexico, the fossilized impressions date to between 21,000 and 23,000 years ago, a new study suggests

In this 2017 photo, employees set up scaffolding to remove stained-glass windows depicting Robert E. Lee and Stonewall Jackson at Washington National Cathedral.

National Cathedral to Replace Confederate-Themed Stained Glass With Art Dedicated to Racial Justice

Artist Kerry James Marshall will create two new windows for the historic Washington, D.C. church

Construction of the pyramid, which stood 43 feet tall and roughly 130 feet wide, began within 5 to 30 years of the Tierra Blanca Joven eruption.

The Maya Built This Monumental Pyramid Out of Volcanic Rock

New research cites the colossal construction as evidence of the civilization's rapid recovery from a devastating eruption

A limestone pillar depicts the goddess Hathor, who was worshipped at the temple.

Cool Finds

Ancient Egyptian Tools Used in Worship of the Goddess Hathor Discovered

The find also includes works of art, as well as a bath with running water

Hobby Lobby acquired the cuneiform tablet for display at the Museum of the Bible in Washington, D.C.

Smuggled Gilgamesh Dream Tablet Returns to Iraq

Forfeited by Hobby Lobby in July, the ancient artifact will be repatriated in a ceremony held at the Smithsonian's National Museum of the American Indian

Researchers estimate that ancient builders used roughly 226,085,379 square feet of rock, dirt and adobe to construct the three main pyramid complexes in Teotihuacán's city center. Pictured here is the Pyramid of the Sun.

Mexico's Ancient Inhabitants Moved Land and Bent Rivers to Build Teotihuacán

Architects of the Mesoamerican city transformed the landscape in ways that continue to impact modern development today, a new study finds

“Air temperatures rapidly rose above 3,600 degrees Fahrenheit,” writes study co-author Christopher Moore. “Clothing and wood immediately burst into flames. Swords, spears, mudbricks and pottery began to melt. Almost immediately, the entire city was on fire.”

Ancient City's Destruction by Exploding Space Rock May Have Inspired Biblical Story of Sodom

Around 1650 B.C.E., the Bronze Age city of Tall el-Hammam was wiped out by a blast 1,000 times more powerful than the atomic bomb used at Hiroshima

Umeno Sumiyama (left) and Koume Kodama (right) with their official certificates

107-Year-Old Japanese Sisters Are the World's Oldest Identical Twins

Umeno Sumiyama and Koume Kodama were born on the island of Shodoshima on November 5, 1913

Mary Shelley was just 20 years old when she published the first edition of her Gothic novel Frankenstein. Pictured: Richard Rothwell's portrait of Shelley, circa 1840

First Edition of Mary Shelley's 'Frankenstein' Sells for Record-Breaking $1.17 Million

A rare copy of the iconic Gothic novel is now the most expensive printed work by a woman sold at auction

Approximately 71 percent of modern Japanese people's ancestry comes from the newly identified Kofun period population.

New Research

DNA Analysis Rewrites Ancient History of Japan

A new study suggests the island's modern populations trace their ancestry to three distinct groups, not two as previously proposed

The French queen purchased the pair of diamond bracelets for 250,000 livres in 1776.

Marie Antoinette's Diamond Bracelets Are Going Up for Auction

The jewels carry an estimate of $2 to $4 million but may fetch a far higher price

Edward Sherriff Curtis, Diomede Mother and Child

Trove of Unseen Photos Documents Indigenous Culture in 1920s Alaska

New exhibition and book feature more than 100 images captured by Edward Sherriff Curtis for his seminal chronicle of Native American life

Researchers say it's "highly likely" that the men died in battle in either 1253 or 1260.

Mass Graves of 13th-Century Crusaders Reveal Brutality of Medieval Warfare

Found in Lebanon, the 25 soldiers' remains bear unhealed wounds from stabbing, slicing and blunt force trauma

Whether the ten hand and footprints constitute art is up for debate, scholars say.

Cool Finds

These 200,000-Year-Old Hand and Footprints Could Be the World's Earliest Cave Art

Found at a hot spring on the Tibetan Plateau, the impressions were likely left by hominin children

William Trost Richards, Along the Shore, 1903

The Sights and Sounds of the Sea Have Inspired American Artists for Generations

Exhibition spotlights crashing waves, maritime voyages and seafaring vessels painted by Georgia O'Keeffe, Normal Rockwell and Jacob Lawrence

Despite heavy erosion, the camels remain visible some seven millennia after their creation.

Life-Size Camel Sculptures in Saudi Arabia Are Older Than Stonehenge, Pyramids of Giza

New research suggests the animal reliefs date to between 7,000 and 8,000 years ago

Medicine Lodge Archaeological Site is home to hundreds of petroglyphs and pictrographs.

Centuries-Old Pottery Could Reveal When the Crow Arrived in Wyoming

Radiocarbon dating of ceramics found at Medicine Lodge Archaeological Site may offer new insights on the region's Indigenous history

Italian artist Girolamo di Tommaso da Treviso created the ceremonial shield around 1535.

Ornate Medieval Shield Looted by the Nazis Will Be Returned to the Czech Republic

Created in the 16th century, the intricately decorated piece of armor was once owned by Archduke Franz Ferdinand

At one point, archaeologists thought the art might be modern graffiti due to its high level of detail.

Missouri Cave Filled With Ancient Artwork Sold Against Osage Nation's Wishes

The Native American tribe had hoped to preserve and protect the site, which may be associated with the Mississippian culture

The restoration project is expected to last two weeks.

Stonehenge Is Undergoing Repairs for the First Time in Decades

Threatened by erosion, outdated restorations and climate change, the monument’s megaliths are in need of extensive conservation

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