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Caves

On Scotland's uninhabited island of Staffa, Fingal’s Cave is formed from tall basalt columns created by ancient volcanic activity.

Seven Places in Europe That Legends Say Were Built by Giants, Devils or Dragons

Bridges, mountains, caves and rock formations that seem impossible to explain become magnets for folklore

Tasmanian devils used to live across mainland Australia, but wild populations now inhabit only the island state of Tasmania.

Cool Finds

Tasmanian Devils Lived Alongside Humans in Northwestern Australia as Far Back as 45,000 Years Ago, Researchers Find

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 population

Researchers documenting and analyzing the inscriptions

Deep Inside a Spanish Cave, Roman Women May Have Worshipped a Mysterious Goddess

Best known for its Paleolithic art, Valencia’s Cova de les Dones also contains a Roman sanctuary where researchers say women appear to have played an active role in the worship of a female deity

In Spain’s Cave of El Castillo, red ochre paintings depict rooflike shapes from the Upper Paleolithic.

The Prehistoric Paintings on the Walls of Caves Have Always Been Moving. But With the Right Kind of Light, Some Actually Seem to Move

As archaeologists study the work of ancient artists, they notice that the images aren’t simply static; some are painted into the contours of the rock, and others are set in motion in torchlight

Finland's Lake Saimaa is 111 miles long, 87 miles wide, dotted by about 14,000 islands, pierced by dozens of narrow straits, and surrounded by sheltered bays perfect for ringed seal breeding.

Before Cultural and Natural Wonders Earn UNESCO World Heritage Status, They Are Put on a ‘Tentative’ List. Here Are Five Nominees Worth Visiting Now

Featuring more than 1,800 sites from 181 countries and territories, UNESCO’s tentative list is a treasure trove of lesser-known marvels

Researchers discovered burned, ashy layers surrounding a standing stone that was placed in the cave 2,000 years ago.

Aboriginal Spiritual Leaders Performed ‘Magic, Healing, Cursing’ Rituals in This Australian Cave for 25,000 Years, New Research Finds

Archaeologists collaborated with members of the GunaiKurnai Aboriginal community to explore layers of ash from burned grasses dating back thousands of years inside Cloggs Cave

Researchers discovered that Neanderthals and Homo sapiens appeared to collect the same type of snail shell, possibly for ornamental or symbolic purposes.

Our Ancestors Loved Shell Trinkets, Just Like Neanderthals. New Research Suggests It’s a Sign of Shared Culture Across Species

Based on artifacts found in a limestone cave on the Mediterranean coast, scientists think the two species might have shared similar survival strategies, stone tool technologies and symbolic traditions

Scientists collected samples from 11 caves in Spain and Portugal.

In a Scientific First, Researchers Recovered Ancient DNA That Humans Left Behind on Rock Art and Cave Walls

DNA preservation on cave walls is highly variable, but scientists say their work is an important step on the path toward gaining a deeper understanding of our creative ancestors

Modern humans and our relatives have occupied Wonderwork Cave in South Africa for around two million years.

Early Humans May Have Used Fire 1.8 Million Years Ago, Nearly Doubling the Age of the Oldest Known Evidence for the Feat

In Wonderwerk Cave in South Africa, burned bones were found in a dirt layer associated with Homo erectus. The inhabitants probably hadn’t mastered fire-making, but researchers say they may have moved and maintained flames from a natural fire

A fossilized Homo naledi skull

New Research

Did These Prehistoric Primates Really Bury Just Their Female Dead Deep in a Cave?

Researchers say that the fossilized bones of “Homo naledi,” so far found exclusively underground in South Africa, lack a key genetic male marker

The painted wall in 2024, enhanced on the right by a DStretch filter

Cool Finds

A Century After Causing Controversy, Red Cave Markings in Wales Are Classified Again as Britain’s Oldest Rock Art

The team of scientists used modern dating methods to confirm an old hypothesis by the rock art’s initial discoverers

Two researchers wore goggles, snorkels and wet suits while exploring the underground stream.

These Snorkeling Scientists Stumbled Upon a Surprising Trove of Fossils in a Texas Water Cave

They found remains of animals that have never been uncovered in Central Texas. The fossils hint that the region was warm, moist and forested 100,000 years ago

A 2,000-year-old inscription by Cikai Korran

Cool Finds

This Traveler From India Graffitied His Name on Five Ancient Tombs in Egypt’s Valley of the Kings 2,000 Years Ago

Researchers have discovered 30 inscriptions written in Indian languages, which provide new evidence that visitors from India spent time in Egypt between the first and third centuries C.E.

The sewn hide, pictured from the front and the back, alongside another hide artifact from Cougar Mountain Cave

New Research

These 12,000-Year-Old Scraps of Elk Hide May Be the World’s Oldest Known Examples of Sewing

Indigenous groups in present-day Oregon stitched the fragments together using cord made from plant fiber and animal hair. Experts think they may have been part of a garment, bag, container or portable shelter

The giant structure—made up of thousands of individual funnel-shaped webs—spans over 1,000 square feet.

This Massive Web—Home to More Than 100,000 Spiders—Found in a Cave in Europe Could Be the World’s Largest

The cavern along the border of Greece and Albania is home to a terrifyingly high number of two species of arachnids that live together peacefully in complete darkness

Mexican tetras lost their eyes in multiple ways.

These Cavefish Lost Their Eyes, but They Gained Some Pretty Nifty Traits

Mexican tetras that got swept into pitch-black caverns had no use for the energetically costly organs

Archaeologists excavating the El Mirador cave in northern Spain have found physical evidence of prehistoric cannibalism.

Bones Found in Spanish Cave Suggest This Neolithic Group Butchered and Cannibalized a Rival Community

The 5,700-year-old remains exhibit signs of human consumption, including bite marks and traces of cutting, cremation and boiling

This flint arrowhead was found embedded in a human rib at the Roc de les Orenetes site in northeastern Spain.

An Archer Shot This Bronze Age Human in the Back. 4,000 Years Later, the Arrow Is Still Embedded in the Victim’s Rib Bone

The attack took place during a period of conflict between groups living in the Pyrenees mountains in modern-day Spain

The bones were discovered at two caves in the 1990s, but scientists recently revisited them to take a closer look at the cut marks.

Cut Marks on Animal Bones Suggest Neanderthal Groups Had Their Own Unique Culinary Traditions

Neanderthals in two nearby caves used different techniques when butchering animal carcasses in what is now Israel, according to a new paper

"Mysteries From the Deep: Exploring Underwater Archaeology" features interactive experiences, 3D models and excavated artifacts.

How Underwater Archaeology Brings Secrets to the Surface, From Lost Shipwrecks to Submerged Cities

An immersive new exhibition at the Intrepid Museum in New York City spotlights the science and technology behind the discipline

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