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Archaeology

Archaeology is fundamentally the study of humanity and its past. Archaeologists study things that were created, used or changed by humans. They do this by studying the material remains, in other words, the stuff we leave behind.

Related Topics: Anthropology, Fossils, Human Origins, Shipwrecks

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This therianthrope, showing a human figure with a tail, is part of the hunting scene found in cave art in Leang Bulu' Sipong in Indonesia.

Humanity's Oldest Cave Art Shows Shape-Shifting Supernatural Hunters

By Charles Q. Choi

Researchers have discovered humanity's oldest cave art. The paintings depict a hunting scene with what may be part-animal, part-human figures.

Archaeologist think the ancient building on the small island of Chrysi was inhabited by the local leaders of the purple dye-making settlement between 3500 and 3800 years ago.

Gold and Jewels Found on Minoan Island Devoted to the Color Purple

By Tom Metcalfe

A storehouse of ancient treasures, including precious jewels and gold beads, has been uncovered by archaeologists on an island near Crete devoted to making a precious purple dye from sea snails.

This woman, who was between age 20-29 at time of death, was found buried with a head cone made of beeswax. She lived more than 3,300 years ago and was buried in a cemetery at the site of Amarna in Egypt.

The First Evidence of 'Head Cones' Found in 3,300-Year-Old Egyptian Tomb

By Owen Jarus

Archaeologists have uncovered two ancient Egyptian burials holding bodies wearing head cones, the first physical evidence of the practice.

Parts of the buried town of Beta Samati were occupied for more than 1000 years, from the Pre-Aksumite era around 750 B.C. through the early Christian period from about A.D. 325, until about A.D. 650.

Buried Christian (and Pagan) Basilica Discovered in Ethiopia's 'Lost Kingdom' of Aksum

By Tom Metcalfe

An ancient church from the fourth century, containing both early Christian and what may be pagan artifacts, has been unearthed in a buried town in northern Ethiopia.

One of the stones uncovered in Finstown, Orkney that resembles a human form.

Archaeologists Discover Mysterious 4,000-Year-Old Carved Stones That Look Like Humans

By Yasemin Saplakoglu

Archaeologists discovered nine mysterious stone-carved objects scattered around an ancient hearth.

About 30 inches (75 centimeters) in diameter, this shield was found in July 2018; but it wasn't until conservation was complete that its decorations and details could be seen.

Stunning Warrior Grave — Complete with Chariot, Horses — Uncovered in England

By Owen Jarus

Inside a 2,200-year-old grave, archaeologists have discovered a stunning Iron Age shield, along with a chariot and two ponies buried in a leaping pose.

This horned "rook" may be the world's oldest-known chess piece.

Two-Horned 'Rook' Might Be the Oldest Chess Piece on Earth

By Brandon Specktor

Archaeologists think they may have discovered the oldest chess piece in the world, excavated from a seventh-century trading site in Jordan.

two docked viking boats

Unusual Viking Burial Site in Norway Contains Two Stacked Boats, Each with a Body

By Nicoletta Lanese

Archaeologists found not one, but two Vikings buried in boats — right on top of each other.

The full-color model is made up of more than 6 million triangular polygons — 2D shapes that are the building blocks of a 3D digital object.

Long-Hidden 3D Scan of Ancient Egyptian Nefertiti Bust Finally Revealed

By Mindy Weisberger

The "Bust of Nefertiti" was scanned years ago by the Egyptian Museum and Papyrus Collection in Berlin, but the scan was not previously available.

Archaeologists uncovered a 3000-year-old megalithic temple in Peru.

Archaeologists Discover 3,000-Year-Old Megalithic Temple Used by a 'Water Cult'

By Yasemin Saplakoglu

The temple may have been used for fertility rituals.

The newly discovered Nazca Line is humanoid shaped. It has a rectangular head and appears to be wearing a headdress and carrying a stick. The three dots in the rectangular head probably depict a nose and eyes.

Ancient Humanoid-Shaped Nazca Line Discovered in Peruvian Desert

By Owen Jarus

A sprawling humanoid-shaped Nazca Line etched into the Peruvian desert has just been discovered by a team of scientists using artificial intelligence.

The infants were buried wearing helmets made from the skulls of children.

2 Infants Were Buried Wearing Helmets Made from Kids' Skulls. And Archaeologists Are Puzzled.

By Owen Jarus

Two infants were buried some 2,100 years ago wearing "helmets" made from the skulls of other children, archaeologists have discovered.

In the seated woman's burial, she wore a short cape made of feathers, a slate necklace and a belt made of 130 animal teeth.

Ancient 'Shaman' Woman's Piercing Gaze Brought to Life in Stunning Reconstruction

By Mindy Weisberger

An artist’s reconstruction of an ancient hunter-gatherer woman shows a stern-faced woman wearing a feather cape and sitting upright on a bed of antlers.

This facial reconstruction of a Viking woman's skull shows a deep head wound, possibly sustained during battle.

Battle-Scarred Viking Shield-Maiden Gets Facial Reconstruction for First Time

By Brandon Specktor

Scientists reconstructed the face of a battle-scarred Viking shield-maiden for the first time ever.

The east end of the tunnel, where the water exited, was decorated in petroglyphs and stucco reliefs.

17th-Century Tunnel Decorated with Pre-Hispanic Carvings Discovered in Mexico

By Yasemin Saplakoglu

Archaeologists have uncovered a 17th-century tunnel filled with indigenous rock carvings in the city of Ecatepec in Mexico.

This satellite image was taken on July 31, 2019 by the WorldView-2 satellite. The red arrows show a surviving section of the Gawri Wall.

Ancient 70-Mile-Long Wall Found in Western Iran. But Who Built It?

By Owen Jarus

Archaeologists have identified the remains of a stone wall in Iran about the length of the famous Hadrian's Wall that was built across England by the Romans.

A cave at Creswell Crags in the U.K. contained hundreds of marks upon its walls, carved to ward off evil.

Centuries-Old 'Witch Marks' in Hidden Cave Can Finally Be Seen ... in 3D

By Mindy Weisberger

A cave that held hundreds of carved medieval wards against evil was inaccessible to the public — until now.

Researchers think the bones were buried in the 1850s, to avoid the penalties of a law restricting the grisly practice of "anatomising" – which culminated in 16 murders by William Burke and William Hare to sell the corpses for anatomical lectures.

Medical Students May Have Secretly Practiced on Human Bodies Found in 19th-Century Burial in Scotland

By Tom Metcalfe

The northern aurora lights up the sky over the Gulf of Finland.

Assyrian Tablets Contain Earliest Written Record of Aurora’s Sky Glow

By Mindy Weisberger

Cuneiform tablets from ancient Assyria dating to 679 B.C. contain the earliest written record of an aurora.

A digital facial reconstruction reveals the face of "Skeleton 125," or "SK125," a man who lived in medieval Scotland and died when he was about 46 years old.

Medieval Scottish Man Who Died 600 Years Ago Was Short and Balding, with Bad Teeth and Back Problems

By Mindy Weisberger

Archaeologists have reconstructed the weathered face of a middle-age man who died more than 600 years ago and was buried in Aberdeen, Scotland.