What if one of our oldest ideas about ancestry is simply wrong? Harvard geneticist David Reich argues that ancient DNA has exposed the myth of purity and uncovered a far messier history of who we are and where we came from.

Archaeologist Eric Cline has spent his career forensically reconstructing why the Bronze Age collapsed, and the answer is far stranger and more unsettling than a single catastrophic event.

Historian Eric Cline illuminates the 400-year period following ancient collapse that shaped the modern world.

Historian Eric Cline argues the Bronze Age collapse wasn't the work of one invading force or one bad harvest, but something far harder to stop: An overly interdependent system that had no way to absorb multiple shocks at once.

Sam Kean examines how rogue archaeologists are recreating the sounds, tastes, smells, and practices of the ancient past.

The revival of Pasto Varnish shows how living heritage can survive if knowledge is passed on in time.

Ernst Stromer discovered Spinosaurus in Egypt. His fossils were destroyed in WWII, yet still shape how we imagine this mysterious dinosaur today.

Scientists found a massive underwater wall off the coast of France that might help explain the origin of the legend of Ys.

In this excerpt from The Breath of the Gods, Simon Winchester explores how the Sumerians first named the wind and shaped our early understanding of the natural world.

“Everyone's image of [Ancient Rome] is based on modern movies. In some ways, I think those were rather impressive, but they got some things terribly wrong.”

In this excerpt from "Seven Rivers," historian Vanessa Taylor explores how Ancient Egyptian pharaohs harnessed the Nile River to build empires and secure their power.

In “The Secret History of Denisovans,” Silvana Condemi and François Savatier trace the story of our mysterious hominin ancestor.

"One of the ways you can see the Roman Empire is it's the worldwide web of its day."

In "The Headache," Tom Zeller Jr. explores one of the human brain's most enduring, and painful, enigmas.

In "Dinner with King Tut," Sam Kean examines how a burgeoning field is recreating ancient tasks to uncover historical truths.

In "The Shortest History of the Dinosaurs," Riley Black reveals the bold mammals that thrived in the Age of Reptiles.

The Gospels aren’t historical biographies but genre-defining works that blend myth, theology, and a promise of hope.

The Roman Empire at one point emitted roughly 3,600 tons of lead dust per year, causing “widespread cognitive decline.”

Dubbed "Valeriana" by researchers, the city of 50,000 peaked around 800 AD before being swallowed by the jungle.

Even with just a momentary view of our galaxy right now, the data we collect enables us to reconstruct so much of our past history.

Magnificent time-tested buildings are filled with lessons in resilience and stability — and the benefits for investment strategy can be huge.

From tribal hunts to Stonehenge and into the modern day, the peer instinct helps humans coordinate their efforts and learning.

Early modern humans interbred with Neanderthals — and scientists recently pinpointed a key site of contact.

Some biologists believe natural selection produces animals that are just good enough. Dawkins disagrees.

Fifteen human space oddities.

In popular culture, the eruption is usually depicted as an apocalyptic event.

An analysis of Indonesian cave paintings is reframing the history of human art, though whether the paintings really were created by human hands remains an open question.

19 rooms. 1,636 square feet. 1,800 years of history.

A new method of mapping migration factors in erratic movements and changing climate.

How (not) to end up in the ash heap of history.