Semiyarka: a special steppe site
Archaeologists are exploring a unique Bronze Age settlement in the heart of Kazakhstan’s grasslands.
World Archaeology
Making the moai
Easter Island (Rapa Nui) is famous for its monumental stone sculptures, known as moai. More than 1,000 have been found across the island, and over 95% of these figures were made in Rano Raraku, a quarry on the slopes of…
Urban jungles
A little urbanism can be a dangerous thing. Sometimes all it takes is a patch. In the modern world, for all its cities, there are still many places where one does not need to travel far to meet landscapes of villages, fields, and farm animals.
The last continent: Heritage on the Antarctic Peninsula
Amid the remote and beautiful Antarctic wilderness, a set of structures is preserved to tell the story of British science in the region. While the origins of a permanent presence on the continent lie in a covert wartime mission, this laid the foundations for an era of trailblazing scientific discovery. Matthew Symonds found out more from Camilla Nichol.
Understanding the ‘Band of Holes’
New research is shedding light on the possible function of a mysterious site in southern Peru.
109 Roman mounts: Excavating a military horse cemetery
Investigating the environs of a Roman fort at Stuttgart-Bad Cannstatt, in south-west Germany, has revealed the remains of a remarkable number of cavalry horses. Sarah Roth explains what these can teach us about a key instrument of Roman power.
A life less wealthy: The ordinary lives of Nabataean Petra
Petra is renowned for its extraordinary tomb architecture, but little is known about the builders of these mausolea. George H Nash, Genevieve von Petzinger, Lina Alrabab’h, and James Nash examine this funerary landscape and the traces of those who made it possible.
Small rings, great power: Assessing the Vimose mail coat
An extraordinary survival plucked from a Danish bog sheds light on the technical virtuosity available in the Roman Iron Age. Olympia Bobou, Ilaria Bucci, and Rubina Raja examine the significance of a remarkable piece of armour.
The changing faces of Easter Island: Revealing the secrets of shape-shifting figurines
Easter Island did not just produce monumental stone sculptures. It was also home to talented woodcarvers making an extraordinary range of figurines. Paul Horley, Rafal Wieczorek, Catherine Orliac, and Paul Bahn explore a side to these sculptures that was hidden in plain sight.
Pylos: From princes to a palace in Messenia
Over the last century, Messenia in Greece has produced an extraordinary range of archaeological riches. Together, these finds showcase sumptuous burials and flourishing settlements, and shed vivid light on life during a pivotal period for the Mycenaean world. To find out more, Matthew Symonds spoke to Claire Lyons, Jack Davis, and Sharon Stocker.
Kea: Settlement and sculpture on a Cycladic island
A visit to Kea allows Martin J P Davies to dip into the archaeology of a charming island.
Mother of invention
If you happen to be among the many people who are born and raised in the countryside, chances are that you have found yourself at some point in your life quarrelling about city people who seemed to imagine themselves to be naturally more innovative and progressive than the rest of humankind, your good self included.
In the Seine
An exhibition in Paris explores the history of the city through the objects recovered from the river at its heart.
Bronze warrior figurine
The statuette… is intricate and highly detailed… What is it? This small, bronze figurine, which measures 7.5cm tall and weighs 55g, depicts a warrior standing in a lunging pose. He holds a sword in one hand and a shield in…
Analysing an ancient Egyptian genome
A recent study has successfully carried out full genome sequencing of a person from ancient Egypt for the first time.
Reframing the ‘Desert Frontier’: studies in the ancient Near East and northern Arabia in honour of David Kennedy
REVIEW BY MATTHEW SYMONDS This volume honours Professor David Kennedy, a pioneering scholar of ancient Arabia and Rome’s eastern frontier, by bringing together 21 scholarly contributions examining both the archaeology of the wider region, and the way that it is…
Ice Age art now
REVIEW BY OSCAR MORO ABADIA This publication was created to accompany the British Museum Partnership Exhibition Ice Age art now, held at Cliffe Castle Museum in summer 2025. The exhibition showcased the British Museum’s remarkable collection of Pleistocene mobiliary art…
Between Two Rivers: ancient Mesopotamia and the birth of history
REVIEW BY TIMOTHY MATNEY The academic world inhabited by Sumerologists and Assyriologists is highly specialised and largely inaccessible for even the hardiest lovers of history. The texts themselves are fragmentary, often pieced together from disparate copies, deliberately anachronistic, and range…
CWA 134 crossword, and answers to crossword #133
Across 8 US state containing the Last Supper Cave archaeological site (6)9 Persian dynasty founded by Ardashir I (8)10 US state, location of the Hell Island archaeological site (8)11 Military governor of feudal Japan (6)12 ___ culture, Neolithic communities of…
An ancient solar observatory
Iván Ghezzi, Alcides Alvarez, and Cecilia Camargo discuss the unique site of Chankillo in Peru.