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Archaeology
The ancient Maya enjoyed filling their teeth with gemstones. A new study reveals how the procedure was done and how it didn't kill them.
The sonnenrad is a Heathen symbol composed of 12 repeated runes.
The long-standing debate over whether dinosaurs were more like birds or lizards is drawing to a close.
Experimental archaeology is the practice of recreating past events using knowledge and tools available at the time. Sometimes, it involves elephants.
OmnesViae is a modern route planner based on the roads of the Roman Empire.
Human sacrifice appears to be as old as humanity itself. Still, experts disagree on how and where the practice first originated.
A recent advance in 3D imaging techniques helped spark the biggest ever discovery of North American cave art.
Was there an intelligent, technologically advanced species long before humans existed? Could there have been a dinosaur civilization?
Paintings played an important role in these ancient civilizations. Unfortunately, pigment is not nearly as durable as marble.
The Mayan calendar is revered for its impeccable accuracy. Now, a recent excavation in Guatemala reveals how the system developed over time.
Presidential gravesites are spread out “democratically” — but this is more by accident than design.
A toxicological study shows that the victims of human sacrifice consumed coca leaves and ayahuasca before they were killed, but not for reasons we originally thought.
The underground burial tombs were used at least as far back as 2500 B.C.
Archaic humans ventured into Eurasia in waves, not always successfully. They may have started their journey in North Africa or West Asia.
The Assam stone jars were described as early as 1929. Almost a century later, archaeologists still puzzle over their placement and purpose.
Most cities reeked of death, defecation, and industrial waste. Still, focusing only on stench means turning a blind eye (or nose) to the many other smells that helped shape human history.
There have been some 6,000 Great Lakes shipwrecks, which have claimed an estimated 30,000 lives. These maps show some of them.
We have a morbid curiosity about nautical disaster stories. The Irish "Wreck Viewer" offers a window into centuries of marine misfortune.
At the Great Lakes Shipwreck Historical Society in Michigan, retrieving sunken vessels is the order of the day. Here’s how they do it.
In the shadow of the Shard, the mosaics help paint a picture of Roman London.
Researchers speculate the famous monument was one of the world’s first solar calendars, possibly inspired by trade with ancient Egyptians.
As always, aDNA research raises as many questions as answers.
An ancient continent called Balkanatolia rose and fell in the area in and around what is now the eastern Mediterranean.
Using the Book of Mormon as a sacred but ambiguous atlas, the Latter-day Saints have been looking for the lost city of Zarahemla for decades.
Was this a moment when humans interbred with Neanderthals?
A study proposes that an ancient trading network, called the Hopewell tradition, may have been wiped out by what is known as a cosmic airburst.
A new analysis of an ancient hominin fossil sheds light on the "Out of Africa" dispersal events that occurred more than one million years ago.
Dating of volcanic ash suggests the remains are at least 230,000 years old.
We are generally taught that there is an arc of history — an inevitable path of progress that leads to modern society. Maybe it isn't true.
Many key inventions were unique: one-offs.