New details about the domestication of dogs
Dogs are man’s best (and oldest – see CA 352 and 401) friends, but how they came to be that way is still a bit of a mystery. Based on morphological changes
The comprehensive website for archaeology, history, heritage and the ancient world. Find out more about us here
Antonine Wall fortlet found
Archaeological investigations in Bearsden, near Glasgow, have revealed evidence of a previously unknown fortlet on the Antonine Wall. This is the 13th Antonine Wall fortlet to have been confidently identified, adding to
Bronze Age watering hole found near Gloucester
Excavations south of Gloucester have uncovered a remarkably well preserved Bronze Age watering hole, with many of its wooden structures surviving in situ. The discovery was made last year during investigations by
The ‘Ossick Lass’: Identifying the earliest human remains discovered in northern Britain
Newly published analysis of 11,000-year-old fragments of human bone and teeth
from Heaning Wood Bone Cave in Cumbria has revealed that they belonged to
an early Mesolithic child. Carly Hilts reports.
Re-examining the Hjortspring boat
A century ago, an Iron Age boat was found in Denmark. Now it is revealing new secrets. Amy Brunskill spoke to Mikael Fauvelle to find out more.
Africa’s oldest cremation
Archaeological investigations by an international team of researchers have unearthed the earliest evidence for intentional human cremation in Africa. Around 9,500 years ago, a community of hunter-gatherers gathered more than 30kg of
Early Neolithic Cultural exchange
Archaeological work at Eilsleben, in northern Germany, has uncovered unexpected evidence of connections between the early farmers living at this site and the pre-existing hunter-gatherer communities of the region. Eilsleben was discovered
Zapotec tomb unearthed in Mexico
A spectacular tomb associated with the ancient Zapotec civilisation has been uncovered on Cerro de la Cantera, in San Pablo Huitzo, Oaxaca, south-western Mexico. The burial was brought to the attention of
Basilica built by father of Western architecture
A basilica built by the pioneering Roman architect Vitruvius has been rediscovered in the city of Fano, in the Le Marche region of Italy. Marcus Vitruvius Pollio was born in Fanum Fortunae
Earliest poison arrows?
Analysis of quartz arrowheads from South Africa reveals that they may represent the earliest use of poison arrows in hunting. Researchers from Sweden and South Africa carried out gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC-MS)
Exploring ancient graffiti
The walls of Pompeii are littered with messages left behind by the city’s inhabitants two millennia ago. Recent research is shedding new light on one of the richest concentrations of these ancient inscriptions.
Military mass graves unearthed in the Czech Republic
Archaeologists have discovered four military mass graves from the 18th and 19th centuries during rescue excavations in advance of the construction of the D11 highway between the towns of Jaroměř and Trutnov
Excavations at former concentration camp
During World War II, a number of German armament factories were relocated underground as a result of Allied air raids. In August 1944, a work detail of the Buchenwald concentration camp was
Richly furnished warrior burials discovered in Hungary
The graves of three elite warriors, dating to the period of the Hungarian Conquest (AD 920s-930s), have been discovered near the village of Akasztó in southern Hungary. One of these burials, belonging
Project to preserve Second World War Devastator torpedo bomber
When it first took to the skies in 1935, the Douglas TBD-1 Devastator represented a significant leap forward in aircraft design, with its all-metal construction and single low-mounted wing. It was the
Export ban placed on flag from Battle of Trafalgar
A temporary export ban has been placed on a Union Flag that flew from HMS Royal Sovereign – the ship that led the British charge at the Battle of Trafalgar on 21
A rock and a hard place: Sarsen study sheds new light on the construction of Stonehenge
How did the builders of Stonehenge manage to work with sarsen – a notoriously hard material – to create the Neolithic monument’s towering trilithons? Carly Hilts spoke to Phil Harding of Wessex Archaeology about his recent research exploring whether flint-knapping techniques might hold the key.
New dating of Buckquoy dispels Viking story
First excavated in the 1970s and now mostly eroded into the sea, the settlement of Buckquoy in Orkney has frequently been used as an example of how the Pictish-Viking transition occurred in
Science Notes: Towards solving the secrets of syphilis
Apart from the Black Death, there is not another historical disease that piques public interest quite like syphilis. The question of whether the bacterium responsible was brought to Europe from the New
New timeline for the drowning of Doggerland
Analysis of a sediment core from Doggerland – the prehistoric landscape that once connected Britain to mainland Europe – has provided the clearest chronology yet for when this area became submerged beneath
Tracing historical children’s burial grounds in Ireland
Historically, the Roman Catholic Church in Ireland did not permit the burial in consecrated ground of stillborn babies and infants who died before they could be baptised (a rule that ended with
Elite Anglo-Saxon centre uncovered near Skipsea Castle
Excavations near Skipsea Castle in East Yorkshire have uncovered a series of high-status early medieval buildings, suggesting this site may have been a ‘lordly centre’. The project, which is led by Dr
Bronze Age brought to life at Harden Quarry
Excavations at Harden Quarry, an active hard-rock quarry that is operated by Tarmac at Biddlestone in the Cheviot Hills of Northumberland National Park, has revealed a near complete view of Bronze Age