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Archaeology

A high-resolution image depicts the brain axons discovered in the well-preserved remains of a Vesuvius victim

Well-Preserved Brain Cells Found in Vesuvius Victim

The volcanic eruption transformed the young man’s neural tissue into glass

Archaeologists pose in front of the 180-year-old cabin in Hagerstown, Maryland.

Log Cabin Excavation Unearths Evidence of Forgotten Black Community

Artifacts recall a thriving Maryland neighborhood that was once a stop on the Underground Railroad

The footprints found at White Sands National Park are more than 10,000 years old.

New Research

Fossilized Footprints Found in New Mexico Track Traveler With Toddler in Tow

Prehistoric tracks detail a moment when mammoths, sloths and humans crossed paths

An empty Machu Picchu pictured on June 15, 2020. Travel restrictions related to the Covid-19 pandemic have decimated Peru's tourism industry.

Covid-19

Machu Picchu Reopens for a Single Stranded Tourist

Jesse Katayama, 26, waited seven months for his chance to see the mountainous 15th-century Inca settlement

The deceased's mummified remains were wrapped in burial linen and laid to rest in a wooden coffin.

Cool Finds

Ancient Egyptian Coffin Opened for the First Time in 2,600 Years

The sarcophagus is one of 59 unearthed at the Saqqara necropolis in recent months

The male skeleton's neck and legs were arranged in an unnatural position, while the woman's remains were held in place by large stones.

New Research

DNA Analysis Suggests Mother and Son Were Buried in Famous Viking Grave

Researchers had previously posited that the man was an executed enslaved individual buried alongside the noblewoman he served

A 14th-century latrine in Riga, Latvia

New Research

Archaeologists Mine Medieval Toilets for Traces of Gut Microbiomes

New techniques could help researchers understand human diets in different times and places

An artist's recreation of what the Roman home may have looked like in its prime

Cool Finds

Ancient Roman Villa Discovered Beneath Italian Apartment Complex

Come November, the 2,000-year-old dwelling will open as a multimedia museum

A replica statue of Atlas at the Temple of Zeus in Agrigento, Sicily

A Colossal Statue of Atlas Will Rise Again

Sicily’s Temple of Zeus once featured 38 giant likenesses of the mythological Titan. Now, a reassembled version is set to go on view

Archaeologists inspect the Anglo-Saxon warlord's grave.

Cool Finds

Newly Unearthed Warrior’s Grave Poised to Redraw Map of Anglo-Saxon England

Nicknamed the “Marlow Warlord,” the six-foot-tall man was buried on a hill overlooking the Thames sometime in the sixth century A.D.

This Maliwawa Figure shows a kangaroo or similar animal.

New Research

Newly Documented Aboriginal Rock Art Is ‘Unlike Anything Seen Before’

The ancient paintings depict close relationships between humans and animals

When human men mated with Neanderthal women a hundred thousand years ago, Neanderthals inherited the human Y chromosome.

How Human Y Chromosomes Replaced Those of Neanderthals in a Quiet Genetic Takeover

When the two early human species mated, their genomes changed forever

Dionysus is the Greco-Roman god of wine, ecstasy and theater.

Cool Finds

Archaeologists in Turkey Unearth 2,400-Year-Old Dionysus Mask

The terracotta likeness was likely used in rituals associated with winemaking

This book, printed in 1634, contains what may be the first Shakespeare play to reach Spain.

Cool Finds

Rare Edition of Shakespeare’s Last Play Found in Spanish Library

The dusty volume may be the first copy of the Bard’s dramatic works to circulate on Spanish soil

A "mummy portrait" affixed to a 3- to 4-year-old Egyptian boy's mummy (left) and a 3-D facial reconstruction based on the child's bone structure (right)

New Research

3-D Reconstruction Reveals the Face of an Ancient Egyptian Toddler

The digital likeness bears a striking similarity to a portrait attached to the front of the boy’s mummy

The mud-brick buildings of Djenné, Mali, are among six at-risk African heritage sites spotlighted by a new study.

Study Suggests At-Risk African Heritage Sites Are Often Overlooked

Researchers cite a “total lack of quantifiable data on the impacts of climate change on heritage in sub-Saharan Africa”

The Delmenhorst sank in an October 1644 maritime battle.

Cool Finds

Wreck of 17th-Century Danish Warship Found in the Baltic Sea

The “Delmenhorst” sank during a 1644 naval battle between Denmark and a joint Swedish-Dutch fleet

Archaeologists unearthed shards of pottery, wine jugs, floor tiles and traces of crops, among other artifacts.

Cool Finds

Sourdough Bread Oven, ‘Air Freshener’ Found at Medieval Irish Monastery

During the 13th century, French monks created a Cistercian community at Beamore in County Meath

Researchers prepared meals made out of maize, wheat and venison every week for a year.

New Research

Millennia-Old Cookware May Be the Key to Recreating Ancient Cuisine

A year-long experiment’s ingredients, tools and cleaning techniques imitated early culinary practices as closely as possible

One of the 14 sealed coffins found at the Saqqara necropolis

Cool Finds

Trove of 27 Sealed Sarcophagi Unearthed in Egypt

Authorities say the 2,500-year-old coffins, found during excavations at the Saqqara necropolis, have likely remained unopened for millennia

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