Bones | smithsonianmag.comhttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/rss/tag/bones/RSS feed for BonesenWed, 16 Sep 2026 13:15:00 +0000Tasmanian Devils Lived Alongside Humans in Northwestern Australia as Far Back as 45,000 Years Ago, Researchers Findhttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/tasmanian-devils-lived-alongside-humans-in-northwestern-australia-as-far-back-as-45000-years-ago-researchers-find-180989503/Fossils and marked bones unearthed in a Juukan Gorge cave suggest that the marsupial species not only once lived in the region but may have been a “garbage compactor on four legs” for its human populationWed, 16 Sep 2026 13:15:00 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/tasmanian-devils-lived-alongside-humans-in-northwestern-australia-as-far-back-as-45000-years-ago-researchers-find-180989503/Unsealed for the First Time in 600 Years, This Tomb in Peru Was Just Declared the 'Discovery of the Decade'https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/unsealed-for-the-first-time-in-600-years-this-tomb-in-peru-was-just-declared-the-discovery-of-the-decade-180989497/Archaeologists excavating Chan Chan, the capital of the pre-Inca Chimú civilization, found an undisturbed mausoleum that held the remains of at least 38 individuals, as well as a trove of rich funerary goodsMon, 14 Sep 2026 19:05:34 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/unsealed-for-the-first-time-in-600-years-this-tomb-in-peru-was-just-declared-the-discovery-of-the-decade-180989497/Archaeologists Discover the World's Oldest Evidence of Habitual Drug Use in the Teeth of a Hunter-Gatherer Who Lived Up to 25,000 Years Agohttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/archaeologists-discover-the-worlds-oldest-evidence-of-habitual-drug-use-in-the-teeth-of-a-hunter-gatherer-who-lived-up-to-25000-years-ago-180989485/This individual may have regularly sucked on betel nuts, known for their mind-altering properties, leading to worsening dental disease. Researchers say the discovery sheds light on addiction in prehistoric environmentsFri, 11 Sep 2026 15:12:39 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/archaeologists-discover-the-worlds-oldest-evidence-of-habitual-drug-use-in-the-teeth-of-a-hunter-gatherer-who-lived-up-to-25000-years-ago-180989485/Archaeologists Excavating a Roman-Era Cemetery in Poland Were Surprised to Stumble Upon a 5,000-Year-Old Necklace Made of 42 Teethhttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/archaeologists-excavating-a-roman-era-cemetery-in-poland-were-surprised-to-stumble-upon-a-5000-year-old-necklace-made-of-42-teeth-180989471/Crafted from the teeth of large mammals, such as wolves, deer, bears and perhaps even humans, the jewelry was found in a grave in southern Poland that may belong to an important patriarch of the Corded Ware cultureWed, 09 Sep 2026 21:05:23 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/archaeologists-excavating-a-roman-era-cemetery-in-poland-were-surprised-to-stumble-upon-a-5000-year-old-necklace-made-of-42-teeth-180989471/See the Digitally Reconstructed Face of an Ancient Man Who Witnessed England’s Greatest Upheavalhttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/see-the-digitally-reconstructed-face-of-an-ancient-man-who-witnessed-englands-greatest-upheaval-180989425/The so-called “Conquest Man” was buried in England in 1079, just over a decade into the reign of William the Conqueror. Researchers recently analyzed the skeleton’s DNA and teeth to learn more about himMon, 31 Aug 2026 20:35:48 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/see-the-digitally-reconstructed-face-of-an-ancient-man-who-witnessed-englands-greatest-upheaval-180989425/Why Was This 17th-Century Polish Woman Buried With a Padlock on Her Toe and an Iron Sickle Across Her Neck?https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/why-was-this-17th-century-polish-woman-buried-with-a-padlock-on-her-toe-and-an-iron-sickle-across-her-neck-180989408/New research suggests that the people who buried the young woman took precautionary measures to stop her from coming back to life and exacting revenge on themThu, 27 Aug 2026 17:51:52 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/why-was-this-17th-century-polish-woman-buried-with-a-padlock-on-her-toe-and-an-iron-sickle-across-her-neck-180989408/A Human Skeleton Was Found Inside a Mysterious Stone Structure in Scotland. Archaeologists Still Don't Know Why It Was Buried Therehttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/human-skeleton-found-inside-mysterious-stone-structure-in-scotland-archaeologists-still-dont-know-why-it-was-buried-there-180989391/Built with fitted stone and a clay-like material that may have helped retain liquid, the unusual structure has left researchers searching for an explanationTue, 25 Aug 2026 17:51:55 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/human-skeleton-found-inside-mysterious-stone-structure-in-scotland-archaeologists-still-dont-know-why-it-was-buried-there-180989391/Construction in Austria Revealed a Roman-Era Mass Grave Beneath a Soccer Field. New Research Suggests That the Men's Enemies Targeted Their 'Sensitive Areas'https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/construction-in-austria-revealed-roman-era-mass-grave-beneath-soccer-field-new-research-suggests-that-the-mens-enemies-targeted-their-sensitive-areas-180989372/No written records mention a fight in this specific part of Vienna at the time of the men's deaths. But the brutal nature of their injuries, particularly to the pelvis area, indicates that these individuals died on the battlefieldThu, 20 Aug 2026 15:06:00 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/construction-in-austria-revealed-roman-era-mass-grave-beneath-soccer-field-new-research-suggests-that-the-mens-enemies-targeted-their-sensitive-areas-180989372/Ireland's 'Kerry Cow' Bones Are Actually Wild Boar and Bear, Shaking Up the Story of Farming's Arrival on the Islandhttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/irelands-kerry-cow-bones-are-actually-wild-boar-and-bear-shaking-up-the-story-of-farmings-arrival-on-the-island-180989371/The bones were discovered on the Dingle Peninsula more than 30 years ago, but scientists recently decided to take another look at them, this time using modern techniquesThu, 20 Aug 2026 14:40:44 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/irelands-kerry-cow-bones-are-actually-wild-boar-and-bear-shaking-up-the-story-of-farmings-arrival-on-the-island-180989371/Archaeologists Have Found Thousands of Intact Ancient Human Brains. Scientists Say They've Figured Out Why the Organs Don't Always Rothttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/archaeologists-have-found-thousands-of-intact-ancient-human-brains-scientists-say-theyve-figured-out-why-the-organs-dont-always-rot-180989370/Under the right conditions—wet and oxygen-deprived—the same chemical reactions that cause tissue to break down can instead have the opposite effect, according to a new studyThu, 20 Aug 2026 14:00:00 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/archaeologists-have-found-thousands-of-intact-ancient-human-brains-scientists-say-theyve-figured-out-why-the-organs-dont-always-rot-180989370/A Medieval Man's Injuries Reminded One Archaeologist of Modern-Day Car Crash Victims. They Turned Out to Be the Work of an English Trebuchethttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/a-medieval-mans-injuries-reminded-one-archaeologist-of-modern-day-car-crash-victims-they-turned-out-to-be-the-work-of-an-english-trebuchet-180989346/A skeleton unearthed in Scotland likely belongs to a soldier struck by a high-speed projectile during Edward I's 1304 siege of Stirling Castle. The man suffered more than 160 fracturesFri, 14 Aug 2026 19:49:12 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/a-medieval-mans-injuries-reminded-one-archaeologist-of-modern-day-car-crash-victims-they-turned-out-to-be-the-work-of-an-english-trebuchet-180989346/Thousands of Years Ago, Denisovans Might Have Been Huge, Especially Compared to Their Archaic Human Neighborshttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/thousands-of-years-ago-denisovans-might-have-been-huge-especially-compared-to-their-archaic-human-neighbors-180989327/New research offers rare insight into our extinct cousins who lived in Asia and who may have towered over petite "Homo erectus"Wed, 12 Aug 2026 22:14:27 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/thousands-of-years-ago-denisovans-might-have-been-huge-especially-compared-to-their-archaic-human-neighbors-180989327/An 11-Year-Old Boy in a Small Midwestern Town Just Became the Guinness World Record Holder for Being the Youngest Museum Curatorhttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/an-11-year-old-boy-in-an-illinois-small-town-just-became-the-guinness-world-record-holder-for-being-the-youngest-museum-curator-180989313/Four years after Anderson Taylor began collecting specimens, he opened the Cambridge Natural History Museum in Cambridge, Illinois, offering school tours and attracting visitors from across the regionTue, 11 Aug 2026 17:53:00 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/an-11-year-old-boy-in-an-illinois-small-town-just-became-the-guinness-world-record-holder-for-being-the-youngest-museum-curator-180989313/Rare Fossil Reveals a Three-Tier Food Chain Frozen in Time: a Pterosaur Eaten by an Ichthyosaur Eaten by a Pliosaurhttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/rare-fossil-reveals-a-three-tier-food-chain-frozen-in-time-a-pterosaur-eaten-by-an-ichthyosaur-eaten-by-a-pliosaur-180989243/Uncovered in part by amateur fossil hunters in Australia, the fossil preserves a unique look at prehistoric predatory dynamicsFri, 31 Jul 2026 18:40:06 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/rare-fossil-reveals-a-three-tier-food-chain-frozen-in-time-a-pterosaur-eaten-by-an-ichthyosaur-eaten-by-a-pliosaur-180989243/Ice Age Humans Mostly Killed Female Woolly Mammoths, Suggests Ancient DNAhttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/ice-age-humans-mostly-killed-female-woolly-mammoths-suggests-ancient-dna-180989241/After analyzing more than 500 mammoth bones, researchers found that ancient humans disproportionately hunted female mammoths for reasons still unknownFri, 31 Jul 2026 17:41:16 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/ice-age-humans-mostly-killed-female-woolly-mammoths-suggests-ancient-dna-180989241/