Astonishing artifacts: A glimpse into how people lived in the past
Latest about astonishing artifacts

Babylonian tablet preserves student's 4,000-year-old geometry mistake
By Kristina Killgrove published
A small clay tablet from the site of Kish in Iraq reveals a student calculated the area of a triangle incorrectly 4,000 years ago.

Mask of Xiuhtecuhtli: A 600-year-old mask of the Aztec fire god taken as treasure by conquistadors
By Kristina Killgrove published
This stunning blue mask may represent the Aztec cycle of death and renewal.

Book of Kells: A 1,200-year-old manuscript made by monks escaping the Vikings
By Tom Metcalfe published
The Book of Kells is considered one of the finest surviving medieval manuscripts.

Oracle bones: 3,250-year-old engraved bones and tortoise shells from ancient China were used to foretell the future
By Tom Metcalfe published
Archaeologists say the "oracle bones" from ancient China were used in magical attempts to predict the future.

The 3,300-year-old ancient Egyptian statue of Ramesses II said to have inspired Percy Shelley's 'Ozymandias'
By Tom Metcalfe published
This statue of an Egyptian pharaoh is said to have inspired the English poet Shelley to write his famous poem "Ozymandias."

Pazyryk Swan: A 2,400-year-old plush swan from Siberia tied to the 'creation of the universe'
By Tom Metcalfe published
Archaeologists think the felt figurine was used as a symbol of life by the Iron Age people of the region.

Mask of Agamemnon: A gold death mask once thought to be evidence of the Trojan War
By Tom Metcalfe published
The archaeologist who discovered the mask believed it showed the Trojan War was real.

Phaistos Disk: 3,000-year-old inscriptions from Crete that have never been deciphered
By Tom Metcalfe published
None of the many interpretations of the Phaistos Disk's inscriptions are universally accepted.
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