Cover Story
Embroidering history: Reconciliation and recrimination on the Bayeux Tapestry As the Bayeux Tapestry goes on show at the British Museum, Matthew Symonds explores some of the enigmatic messages encoded in its exquisite needlework. Features
The frontier in Raetia: Heritage on the edge of the Roman World From serving as the edge of an empire to falling within no fewer than three modern World Heritage Sites, Raetia's Roman frontier has long been a place of consequence. David… 
Castles in the cliffs: Archaeology and myth in the Pyrenees. In the 12th century, the counts of Foix began creating a unique network of fortifications using caves and other natural features in their part of the Pyrenees. Colin Duncan Taylor… 
Becoming America: How science shaped a nation What role did science play in the emergence of the United States of America? Matthew Symonds spoke to Elissavet Ntoulia about scientific knowledge and its practical applications as a nation… News
Ritual offering at Peñico An assemblage of objects discovered at Peñico on the north-central coast of Peru, dating to 3,800 years ago, provides new evidence for the continuity of the Caral culture. Caral is… 
Byzantine city discovered in Egyptian oasis Archaeologists from Egypt’s Supreme Council of Antiquities have uncovered the remains of a residential city dating to the 4th and 5th centuries AD at the Ain Al-Sabil archaeological site in… 
Ancient answers to climate crises The wetlands of La Mojana in northern Colombia are home to an ancient raised field system made up of canals and ridges (camellones) covering a vast area of c.500,000ha. Often… 
A sacred well An ancient votive well has been discovered at the Etruscan city of Kainua in northern Italy. Kainua, located on the outskirts of modern-day Bologna, was founded in the late 6th… 
Miniature masterpieces Two remarkably detailed bird figurines have been discovered at Hohle Fels cave in south-western Germany. The cave, which is part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site ‘Caves and Ice Age… 
Analysing ancient anaesthetic Examination of surgical tools from a Ming Dynasty tomb reveals evidence of early anaesthetic use in 14th-century China. 
Digging into Paris’ past Excavations on the Île de la Cité are uncovering thousands of years of Parisian history. Amy Brunskill spoke to Julien Avinain and Lucie Altenburg to find out more. Views
Calling all photographers! Current World Archaeology Photo of the Year 2027 Competitions As summer comes to an end, it is the perfect time to reflect on your heritage-filled travels, archaeological projects, and visits to historical sites around the world. Dig out your… 
CWA 139 crossword, and answers to crossword #138 Competitions Across 8 Greek island, location of the Loizos Cave archaeological site (6)9 ___ limestone, sedimentary rock made of small grains of calcium carbonate (7)10 Kathleen ___, British archaeologist, author of… 
The view from Vienna Comment Last year, in Vienna, we visited the salt mines at Hallstatt and the site beside the Danube where the Venus of Willendorf was discovered. 
Amphibious cities Comment When news about Tenochtitlan (nowadays Mexico City), the capital of the Aztec Empire, started to reach Europe around the time of the conquest by the Spanish Conquistadors led by Hernán… 
Giove: In Jupiter’s shadow Travel I first came to the Umbrian hilltop village of Giove half a lifetime ago. I was seeking sanctuary in the real Italy as I navigated potential closure of the British School at… 
Riches from the sea Comment Bronze Age sailors, metal prospectors, and traders regularly travelled between northern and southern Europe – a distance of more than 2,000 miles – according to new research looking at similarities… 
The Glozel controversy The Picture Desk Janice Kinory looks back on the curious case of the clay tablets from Glozel. 
Creatures of myth and imagination Museum, What's on An exhibition at the Met Cloisters explores depictions of fantastical hybrid creatures from medieval Europe and the ancient Americas. 
Sunken treasures The Picture Desk The identity of a 17th-century shipwreck containing hundreds of gold coins has been revealed, three decades after its discovery. The wreck, which lies at a depth of c.18m in Salcombe… 
Medieval notebook Objects We can see Latin, scratched into the book’s wax 700-800 years ago. What is it? This well-preserved medieval ‘notebook’ dates to the 13th or 14th century. Measuring 10cm by 7.5cm,… Reviews
Giove: In Jupiter’s shadow I first came to the Umbrian hilltop village of Giove half a lifetime ago. I was seeking sanctuary in the real Italy as I navigated potential closure of the British School at… Creatures of myth and imagination An exhibition at the Met Cloisters explores depictions of fantastical hybrid creatures from medieval Europe and the ancient Americas. 
Bell Beakers and the Mediterranean: maritime connections and networks This handsome 158-page volume focuses on the Mediterranean and its role in the Bell Beaker phenomenon. Throughout the book, the sea emerges both as an inhabited space and as a… 
Hunting: the pursuit that shaped humanity This sweeping history of hunting is the archaeologist and anthropologist Brian Fagan’s final book, helped into publication by his friend and collaborator Nadia Durrani. Fagan was an extraordinarily prolific writer,… 
From the editor
On 14 October 1066, King Harold Godwinson fell at the Battle of Hastings, and England changed forever. The Bayeux Tapestry leads us, step by step, through the events that brought this change about. It is a dazzling tale of rivalry and camaraderie, oaths and omens, banquets and battles. The embroidered images bring the events of 960 years ago to life with startling power. Even though the Bayeux Tapestry was most likely created after Norman control of England was secure in the 1070s, it seems to take a surprisingly even-handed approach to the actions of both conquerors and conquered. In our cover feature, the sublime British Museum exhibition provides an opportunity to ponder why the Bayeux Tapestry was made, and what messages it was intended to impart.
The intentions behind a remarkable group of cliff castles on the road from Toulouse to Barcelona have also long excited imaginations. They were once seen as hideouts for the survivors of a 13th century massacre, but more recent study has emphasised their value as highly visible statements of power. Indeed, they made one local count confident enough to defy the King of France.
Conflict could also be a feature of Roman frontier zones. The fortifications marking the edge of Raetia, in modern Germany, ran both overland and along the banks of the Danube. While these stretches had a different character, they are home to heritage that provides a vivid sense of life on the edge of the Roman world.
At the Science Museum, the role that scientific knowledge and its practical applications had in the emergence of the United States of America is under the microscope. The results show how new ideas and technologies shaped the land and peoples during this transformative period. At the same time, applying these concepts and methods in North America had a profound impact on how science itself developed.
Finally, in our travel section Richard Hodges examines the archaeology of Giove, a settlement in the Tiber valley that was once home to brickmakers who helped build ancient Rome.
MATT SYMONDS
