Current World Archaeology 137
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Ramses the Great: How a pharaoh built his legacy
Why is Ramses II considered to be ‘the Great’? An exhibition focusing on his life and times sheds light on how Ramses earned this accolade. Matthew Symonds shares what he learnt.
Beyond the luxurious: Tracing the Late Antique ivory tradeÂ
Study of ivory use in the early medieval world is revealing fresh insights into how this material was viewed. The results have important implications for our understanding of the scale of the trade, and its impact on the elephants it exploited, as Rowan S English and Julia Steding explain.
Secrets of the shipwrecks
A community-led project in Costa Rica has identified two wrecks as lost 18th-century Danish slave ships.
The Sanno shrine
August 2025 marks the 80th anniversary of the atomic bombing of the cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, which precipitated the unconditional surrender of Japan and the end of the Second World War.
A Tiwanaku temple
Research in the Bolivian Andes has identified a previously unknown Tiwanaku ceremonial complex. The Tiwanaku civilisation (c.AD 500-1000) was a pre-Inca culture centred around the southern shores of Lake Titicaca, in western
Herculaneum Scrolls: title revealed
For the first time, non-invasive technology has been used to recover a title from the ancient papyri from Herculaneum carbonised in the AD 79 eruption of Mount Vesuvius. Earlier this year, scans
Tracing Mexica obsidian
Obsidian was highly valued by many cultures across Pre-Columbian Mesoamerica, including the Mexica (Aztecs), for its natural lustre and sharpness, which made it a perfect material for both highly polished ornaments and
‘Dragon Man’ is a Denisovan?
New analysis of a hominin skull previously believed to represent a new species of ancient human suggests that it may in fact be a Denisovan. The Denisovans were first discovered in 2010,
A Viking Age cemetery
A Viking Age burial site has been uncovered at Lisbjerg, near Aarhus, in Denmark. Excavations carried out by archaeologists from Moesgaard Museum have revealed 30 burials, although it is possible that there
CWA news in brief
Cave treasures In 2023, two speleologists exploring the Cave of Tlayócoc in south-western Mexico came across a collection of 500-year-old objects. Archaeologists from INAH investigated further, revealing that the assemblage consisted of
A History of the World in Twelve Shipwrecks
REVIEW BY LISA BRIGGS It has been 15 years since A History of the World in 100 Objects by Neil MacGregor was first published and introduced readers to a novel method of
Birthing Romans
REVIEW BY PAULINE RIPAT Roman legends stressed the importance of babies in the foundation of Rome and its destiny to dominate. The unlikely birth of the twins Romulus and Remus from a
Over Land and Sea: the long-distance trade, distribution and consumption of ancient Greek pottery
REVIEW BY ROBIN OSBORNE Trade in Greek pottery long attracted little interest. Finley’s massively influential The Ancient Economy (1973) discouraged both the idea that archaeological data might have anything to add to
Metal stamping die
This design is… known from the Sutton Hoo and Valsgärde helmets. What is it? This rectangular copper-alloy object is 1-1.5mm thick and measures 4.5cm by 3.7cm. It dates to c.AD 550-625 and
Current World Archaeology 131
Forging ahead
New research is exploring the sophisticated metalworking involved in the creation of the famous Nebra Sky Disc.
Germany’s Stonehenge? Over 2,000 years of ritual landscape and settlement near Pömmelte
Investigating the hinterland of a timber henge in Germany has revealed a remarkable prehistoric landscape. Franziska Knoll shares the findings from an intriguing concentration of ritual monuments and settlement.
Viterbo: Early conclaves and a papal palace
During the 13th century, a series of popes made use of the palace at Viterbo in Italy. During this period, the city hosted five conclaves, while the palace grew increasingly impressive. Tim Tatton-Brown examines the evolution of this complex and the events that unfolded there.
CWA #131 crossword, and answers to crossword #130
Across 7 Member of a people who lived in northern Scotland during the Roman and early medieval periods (4)8 Fort ___, National Historic Landmark in Missouri (5)9 Greek hero of the Iliad
A decade of Doug’s drawings
Since 2015, CWA’s wonderful cartoonist Doug has delighted us with his sketches exploring the quirky and comedic sides of archaeology. Whether reflecting on the challenges faced by modern archaeologists, imagining the idiosyncrasies
Lapis Lazuli, The Blue Road: Seeking the sources of the longest trade
Establishing the origin of the lapis lazuli used in ancient artefacts has long been beyond the reach of science. Now an innovative technique has revealed, in a non-invasive way, where the precious stone was coming from. Alessandro Lo Giudice, Alessandro Re, Laura Guidorzi, Marta Magalini, Norman Hammond, Randall Law, Guy Clutterbuck, and Georgina Herrmann guide us from a laboratory in Italy to a remote mine.
The Hoby cups: Tracing connections in Iron Age Denmark
What can a pair of silver cups deposited as grave goods in Denmark reveal about links with the Roman world? Olympia Bobou, Ilaria Bucci, and Rubina Raja share a story of shifting political and cultural forces.