Ancient Egypt

These brightly colored geese have no modern, real-world counterpart.

Tomb Painting Known as Egypt's 'Mona Lisa' May Depict Extinct Goose Species

Only two of the three kinds of birds found in the 4,600-year-old artwork correspond to existing kinds of animals

Enemy combatants likely captured and bound the ruler before delivering a series of fatal blows.

CT Scans Suggest Egyptian Pharaoh Was Brutally Executed on the Battlefield

During the 16th century B.C., multiple Hyksos soldiers assaulted the captive Seqenenre-Taa-II, inflicting serious facial and head injuries

The brewery “may have been built specifically to supply the royal rituals that were taking place inside the funeral facilities of the kings of Egypt,” says lead archaeologist Matthew Adams.

World's Oldest 'Industrial-Scale' Brewery Found in Egypt

Located in an ancient necropolis, the 5,000-year-old facility was capable of producing up to 5,900 gallons of beer at a time

Villa Adriana, or Hadrian's Villa, is a Unesco World Heritage Site in Tivoli, Italy, that spans 200 acres and was built around 210 A.D. by Roman leader Hadrian.

Archaeologists Discover Ruins of Emperor Hadrian's Ornate Breakfast Chamber

In the second century A.D., the Roman ruler entertained his guests on a raised marble platform surrounded by elaborate fountains

The mud shell was added after the woman's original mummification, perhaps to repair damage inflicted by grave robbers.

Why Was This Egyptian Mummy Encased in Mud?

Researchers have never previously observed the unusual, low-cost embalming method

Researchers found the mummy at a temple in the ancient Egyptian city of Taposiris Magna.

Archaeologists in Egypt Discover Mummy With Gold Tongue

Ancient embalmers likely placed the tongue-shaped, gold foil amulet in the deceased's mouth to ensure they could speak in the afterlife

Researchers have identified a pyramid in the vast Saqqara necropolis as the tomb of King Teti’s wife, Queen Naert.

Archaeologists Unearth Egyptian Queen's Tomb, 13-Foot 'Book of the Dead' Scroll

The team also discovered dozens of sarcophagi, wooden masks and ancient board games

Authorities recovered thousands of ancient artifacts, including these stone Roman statues.

Authorities in Israel Seize Thousands of Artifacts Looted From Ancient Graves

Thieves stole most of the objects—including coins and pottery—from tombs across the Mediterranean, Africa and South America

Hieroglyphs line the walls in a shrine to the goddess Hathor at Serabit el-Khadim.

Who Invented the Alphabet?

New scholarship points to a paradox of historic scope: Our writing system was devised by people who couldn’t read

People may have eventually accepted the mixed alloys as legitimate currency.

Ancient Canaanites Added Arsenic to Copper to Create Counterfeit Currency

The toxic chemical gave the metal a luminous sheen, enabling forgers to pass off cheap alloys as silver

A new, noninvasive technique allows researchers to study mummies without damaging them.

Researchers Reveal Mummy's Surprising Contents Without Unwrapping It

Technique described in a new study combines X-ray and CT scans to examine remains without damaging them

A curatorial assistant found the wood fragments in a misfiled cigar box bearing the image of Egypt's old flag.

Missing Great Pyramid Artifact Found in Cigar Box in Scotland

The wood fragments—among just three items ever taken from the Giza tomb—date to the fourth millennium B.C.

Newton held unconventional religious beliefs and dabbled in alchemy and the occult.

Isaac Newton Thought the Great Pyramid Held the Key to the Apocalypse

Papers sold by Sotheby's document the British scientist's research into the ancient Egyptians and the Bible

A new book Incredible Archaeology: Inspiring Places From Our Human Past, out this month from Smithsonian Books, explores some of the world's most spectacular ancient wonders.

Twelve Ancient and Enduring Places Around the World

From Smithsonian Books, towering temples, dramatic works of art and early settlements that have stood the test of time

The sealed wooden coffins, unveiled at Saqqara amid fanfare, belonged to top officials of the Late Period and the Ptolemaic period of ancient Egypt.

Archaeologists Are Just Beginning to Unearth the Mummies and Secrets of Saqqara

The latest finds hint at the great potential of the ancient Egyptian pilgrimage site

Detail of a medical treatise from the Tebtunis temple library with headings marked in red ink

Why Did Ancient Egyptian Scribes Use Lead-Based Ink?

A new study uncovers the science behind ancient writing traditions

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

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

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)

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

One of the 14 sealed coffins found at the Saqqara necropolis

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

The Meroe pyramids in northeastern Sudan sit about1,650 feet from the banks of the Nile. Now, the site's royal bath is at risk of damage from record flooding.

Record Flooding Threatens Millennia-Old Pyramids in Sudan

Rising water levels could damage ancient structures at Meroe and Nuri

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