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Ancient Civilizations

Colorado State University archeologist Chris Fisher has used the laser mapping technique in Mexico and Honduras.

Laser Mapping Shows Ancient City in Mexico Contained 40,000 Buildings

Researchers used LiDAR scanning to reveal the sprawling metropolis of Angamuco

Laser Scans Reveal 60,000 Hidden Maya Structures in Guatemala

Houses, fortifications, pyramids and causeways were among the discoveries

Why the Shift to Farming Ruined This Ancient City’s Health

The switch from a hunter gatherer society to a farming one appears to have resulted in a more sedentary lifestyle for the inhabitants of Catalhoyuk

This Recently Discovered 1,700-Year-Old Mouth Harp Can Still Hold a Tune

The mouth harp, found in Siberia’s Altai Republic, produces music when you strike or pluck it with a finger

Scythian Prince’s Sprawling Tomb Found in the “Siberian Valley of the Kings”

A summer dig unearthed what may be the oldest and largest tomb left behind by the ancient nomadic culture in southern Siberia

The "pyramid" of Keros

Cool Finds

Researchers Uncover Ancient Greek Island’s Complex Plumbing System

Excavations show the settlement of Dhaskalio at the pilgrimage site Keros was a sophisticated urban center

Tut and Ankhesenamun

Cool Finds

Archaeologists Could Be Close to Finding the Tomb of King Tut’s Wife

After Tut’s death, Ankhesenamun might have wed the Pharaoh Ay, and there’s a possibility she’s buried near him in the Valley of the Monkeys

Cool Finds

Researchers Are Trying to Figure Out How to Play This Ancient Roman Board Game

Found in a grave in Slovakia in 2006, it is one of Europe’s best-preserved ancient gaming boards

The repatriated mummy skull

Trending Today

After More Than 90 Years, Looted Mummy Parts Repatriated to Egypt

The skull and two hands were illegally acquired by a tourist in 1927 and were confiscated from an antiquities dealer

Tomb Door Engraved with Menorah Discovered in Israel

The artifact tells the story of the three major religious groups that have occupied Tiberias over the centuries

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

In this Dec. 21, 2012 file photo, people gather in front of the Kukulkan temple in Chichen Itza, Mexico. Mexican experts said Wednesday, Nov. 16, 2016 they have discovered what may be the original structure at the pyramid of Kukulkan at the Mayan ruins of Chichen Itza.

Ancient Maya Heritage Comes Alive…With Some Help From Google and the British Museum

Victorian explorer Alfred Maudslay’s images are now available online for all to see

In Fallujah, ISIS blew up this bridge during its 2016 retreat.

History of Now

What Does the Future of the Euphrates Spell for the Middle East?

In the wake of the war against Isis in Iraq, an ominous journey along the once-mighty river finds a new crisis lurking in the shallows

Some of the Roman defenses at Pegwell Bay

Cool Finds

Archaeologists Discover Where Julius Caesar Landed in Britain

A large camp along Pegwell Bay is the likely spot where 20,000 Romans landed in 54 B.C.

General view of incised pillar stone

Pictish Carving of Large-Nosed Warrior Found in Scotland

The carving may have marked the property of a high-ranking individual

Cool Finds

Masterpiece of Greek Art Found in the Griffin Warrior Tomb

The engraving on the Pylos Combat Agate is so tiny and intricate that it changes our understanding of what the ancient Greeks could produce

Trending Today

Most Antiquities Sold Online Are Fake or Illegal

Social media and ISIS have combined to flood the web with thousands of questionable artifacts

Cool Finds

Stone Age Britons Feasted While Building Stonehenge

A new exhibit shows that the builders gorged on animals from as far away as Scotland

Egyptians bringing in the harvest

New Research

Volcanic Eruptions Could Have Spurred Revolts in Ancient Egypt

A new study comparing eruptions and uprisings looks at how volcanoes meddle with annual Nile floods

A transcription of 95-foot-long inscription written in Luwian has been translated for the first time since its 1878 discovery

Scholar Deciphers 3,200-Year-Old Inscription That Could Shed Light on the “Sea People”

But the Luwian language text’s unproven provenance calls its authenticity into question

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