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1,400-year-old skeleton found in underground channel in Peru may have belonged to human sacrifice victimA mysterious burial in an underground water channel may help archaeologists understand a pre-Inca ritual in Peru.
americas -
Skeleton with 167 fractures discovered at Scottish castle may have been first victim of Edward I's 'War Wolf' trebuchetDozens of fractures in a medieval skeleton found buried near a castle suggest the person may have been killed by a direct trebuchet hit.
archaeology -
Fire-flame vessel: An exquisitely crafted 4,500-year-old pot from a mysterious culture in JapanAstonishing Artifacts Archaeologists aren't sure why prehistoric people in Japan made these elaborate vessels decorated with flames.
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'Full-on berserker mode': Archaeologists solve mystery of medieval soldiers with gruesome square holes in their skullA new analysis of skulls from a 14th-century battle in Sweden reveals a spiked club inflicted the death blow.
archaeology -
'The lance head was still inside the pelvis': Mass grave found in Austria may hold casualties of unknown ancient Roman battleA new analysis of skeletons recovered from an ancient mass burial has revealed a surprising number of groin injuries.
romans -
'They basically used these dried-up wells just to throw people in': 43 skeletons found in Roman-era well may be evidence of deadly plagueArchaeologists have analyzed dozens of skeletons from a mass burial in a well. The lack of injuries suggests the people may have died from a plague rather than a battle.
2 Commentsromans -
2,400-year-old grave of possible ancient pro wrestler discovered in TurkeyA tomb excavated in Aspendos, Turkey, revealed a skeleton buried with several coins featuring ancient wrestlers.
archaeology -
Berlin gold hat: A 3,000-year-old ceremonial headdress that a cult used to track the sun, moon and lunar eclipsesAstonishing Artifacts The pointy gold hat reveals evidence of a Bronze Age sun cult whose leader could predict eclipses.
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Rock crystal scraper: 45,000-year-old Neanderthal tool that shows they had an 'eye for beauty of form and color'Astonishing Artifacts A chance find of rare rock crystal tools a century ago paved the way for a better understanding of Neanderthals today.
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40,000-year-old bird figurines the size of a thumbnail discovered in German caveTwo newly discovered bird carvings reveal early humans' keen eye for artistry in the ice age world 40,000 years ago.
archaeology -
Lasers reveal hundreds of geoglyphs made by a mysterious civilization in the Amazon rainforest thousands of years agoA new lidar survey of dense Amazonian rainforest has revealed hundreds of earthworks made by a mysterious civilization two millennia ago.
3 Commentsamericas -
Ancient human relative cannibalized both adults and children in a cave in Spain 850,000 years ago, fossils revealNewly excavated bones from Gran Dolina cave in Spain reveal an ancient human relative practiced cannibalism on adults and children, but researchers still don't know why.
3 Commentshuman-evolution -
Relief fragment with vanquished enemies: A 3,400-year-old depiction of an Egyptian pharaoh crushing western Asian soldiers under his royal chariotAstonishing Artifacts This battle scene painted on stone was repurposed three centuries later to help build an Egyptian tomb.
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Archaeologists find 2,800-year-old burial of person clutching sea turtle vessel in El SalvadorAn unusual 2,800-year-old Mesoamerican burial found in El Salvador included a face-down skeleton clutching a sea turtle vessel.
americas -
1,200-year-old infant burial found near famous Temple of Artemis in Turkey contains twins — one with an unusual extra ribThe two infants buried in the same Byzantine-era grave may have been twins who died around the time of birth.
archaeology -
'Extremely rare' Roman military camp found in Slovakia holds hastily buried remains of Marcus Aurelius' soldiers — with some dumped in wellsArchaeologists found a Roman military camp in Slovakia with unusual burials of soldiers who likely fought in Marcus Aurelius' Marcomannic Wars.
romans -
Mummy mask with wig: A 1,000-year-old 'false head' found in Peru that was crafted with real human hair and toxic red cinnabarAstonishing Artifacts Stylized masks like this one adorned pre-Inca mummies in Peru hundreds of years ago.
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Scientists show that DNA can last for up to 50,000 years in Africa — much longer than previously thoughtResearchers extracted DNA from long-dead animals that lived in South Africa during the last ice age, revealing that genetic material lasts longer in hot climates than was previously thought.
human-evolution -
5 'extremely rare' iron shackles discovered in France highlight Celtic slave trade 2,300 years agoArchaeologists were surprised to find evidence of shackles in a pre-Roman settlement in France.
archaeology -
Elamite helmet with divine figures: A warrior king's 3,500-year-old bronze armor depicting a raptor and gold-plated godsAstonishing Artifacts This bronze helmet has been decorated with ancient deities from a civilization that flourished before the Persian Empire took over the area that is now Iran.
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'Some people called it horrifying': 'Dinner with King Tut' author on using Egyptian mummification techniques on a modern-day human bodyInterview "A lot of the book was actually me floundering around, failing to complete the projects or figuring out what I was doing wrong," author Sam Kean says about his experimental archaeology adventures.
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'He looked like Ramses the Great': How experimental archaeologists used ancient techniques to mummify a modern-day personExcerpt In his new book, "Dinner with King Tut: How Rogue Archaeologists Are Re-creating the Sights, Sounds, Smells, and Tastes of Lost Civilizations," science writer Sam Kean explains the odd and intriguing world of experimental archaeologists.
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Medieval babies and adults buried together in Sweden were not related, archaeologists discover — raising big questions about early Christian burial practicesIn an unexpected discovery, researchers found that three medieval Swedish cemeteries held children buried with unrelated adults.
archaeology -
100,000 years ago, one of the earliest Homo sapiens outside Africa was stabbed in the face, analysis findsA microscopic analysis of the skull of Qafzeh 25 revealed a cut mark likely made by a stone tool 100,000 years ago.
3 Commentshuman-evolution
