Cover Story
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. Features
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… 
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 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… News
Forging ahead New research is exploring the sophisticated metalworking involved in the creation of the famous Nebra Sky Disc. 
Early bone-tool production An assemblage of bone tools found in Tanzania is revolutionising our understanding of early human technologies. 
Rare Dionysian frieze in Pompeii In recent months, excavations in Pompeii’s Insula 10, Regio IX, have uncovered several sections of a grand domus, including a black-walled dining room decorated with scenes from the Trojan War… 
Polynesian vessel resurfaces The remains of a waka (traditional boat) have been found on Rēkohu Wharekauri Chatham Island, the largest of the Chatham Islands archipelago, 800km east of New Zealand. Fragments of the… 
A battlefield burial A mass grave recently unearthed in Austria is believed to be associated with a Roman battlefield. In autumn 2024, construction workers carrying out renovations of a playing field in Simmering,… 
Mesolithic mariners Malta is one of the most remote archipelagos in the Mediterranean, located almost 100km from the nearest landmass, Sicily. For many years, it was thought that European hunter-gatherers were unable… 
A Teotihuacán altar at Tikal Excavations at the Maya site of Tikal in Guatemala have uncovered a painted altar associated with the city of Teotihuacán, located more than 1,000km away in central Mexico. Previous archaeological… Views
CWA #131 crossword, and answers to crossword #130 Competitions 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… 
Seeing red Comment A few years ago, Sarah Paris – then a graduate student at Cambridge University – asked if she could access the human skeletons from Khok Phanom Di in order to… 
Transport, technology, and trade Comment Parallel tracks have been found in fossilised mud at White Sands National Park, New Mexico, USA, and interpreted as the marks left by a travois: a timber frame used by… 
Apsaros Roman fort: Guarding a distant shore Travel The Roman frontier in Georgia follows the edge of the Black Sea. Matthew Symonds visited the remains of Apsaros fort to find out more. 
Garden cities Comment Spring is upon us in the northern hemisphere and people are venturing out into the open again: into their gardens, onto their balconies, into urban parks or the countryside to… 
Roman miniature padlock Objects A unique find, this tiny object is very finely crafted. What is it? This Roman miniature padlock, comprising a gold exterior and an iron core, measures just 1.2cm by 1.1cm.… 
Ashby and Strong: A golden partnership and its end Travel Dedicated to the memory of Amanda Claridge In 1925, thanks to Winston Churchill, Britain returned to the gold standard; Italy slipped into a dictatorship under Benito Mussolini after a speech… 
The Ancient World The Picture Desk The Hill of Tara, once the seat of the High Kings of Ireland, is a site steeped in mythology and history, dating back over 5,000 years. At the centre of… CWA Photo of the Year Competition 2025: Winners announced Competitions Sponsored by: We have had a brilliant selection of entries for this year’s photo competition, with images that have taken us on a journey through history and around the world.… Reviews
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… Apsaros Roman fort: Guarding a distant shore The Roman frontier in Georgia follows the edge of the Black Sea. Matthew Symonds visited the remains of Apsaros fort to find out more. 
In the grip of gold A unique exhibition at the Wereldmuseum Leiden in the Netherlands explores how gold has inspired humankind throughout history. Gillis Kersting visited to find out more. Ashby and Strong: A golden partnership and its end Dedicated to the memory of Amanda Claridge In 1925, thanks to Winston Churchill, Britain returned to the gold standard; Italy slipped into a dictatorship under Benito Mussolini after a speech… 
Repast: The story of food REVIEW BY CARLY JONES If there is one thing that unites the many, incredibly varied cultures that have inhabited the world throughout human history, it is that we all need… 
Ancient Maya Teeth: Dental modification, cosmology, and social identity in Mesoamerica REVIEW BY JOSHUA T SCHNELL The decorated smiles of the ancient Maya, characterised by their carved, incised, and inlaid dental arches, have long fascinated those who have gazed on them,… 
Landscapes of Death: Early Bronze Age tombs and mortuary rituals on the Oman Peninsula REVIEW BY GEORGE NASH The Oman Peninsula and the surrounding Gulf States have been the focus of archaeological research for at least 120 years. Although the region’s archaeological record extends… 
From the editor
In the 1990s, an aerial photograph captured a circular feature in the fields near the village of Pömmelte, Germany, sparking the beginning of an extraordinary archaeological endeavour. The feature proved to be the remains of a henge monument built around 2350 BC. Although its uprights were fashioned from timber rather than rock, the monument displayed a number of tantalising similarities to Stonehenge in Britain. One area of overlap is that both sites lay within much wider ritual landscapes. This area has been carefully examined in Germany, providing an astonishing glimpse of prehistoric activity.
The fruits of ancient labour in the form of lapis lazuli mining have long been known. This semi-precious stone has been exploited for thousands of years, producing a wealth of striking artefacts. When it comes to understanding prehistoric use of this material, though, the stumbling block has always been isolating its origin. Now a scientific breakthrough has finally solved this mystery, exposing the source of a coveted commodity.
For a few decades in the 13th century, Viterbo in Italy found itself at the heart of papal affairs. This significance is reflected in the presence of a well preserved medieval papal palace. Studying the architecture and surviving documents reveals how this complex developed, and the consequential events that unfolded there.
A pair of sumptuous silver cups discovered in a grave in Iron Age Denmark testify to connections of some kind with the Roman world. Examining these links illustrates the ability of objects to act as a bridge between cultures.
In our travel section, Richard Hodges examines the unlikely partnership that helped usher in a golden era of pioneering archaeological studies in Rome, before turning to tragedy.
Finally, a trip to the Roman fort at Apsaros in Georgia presents an opportunity to contemplate imperial priorities on the eastern Black Sea shore.
