A remarkable site containing Palaeolithic stone tools was found in modern rainforest near Anyama, Côte d’Ivoire, in the 1980s. The chronology of these deposits remained unclear, but could modern dating techniques help to fill in this blank? Matthew Symonds learnt from Eslem Ben Arous, James Blinkhorn, and Eleanor Scerri what happened when a field team returned to Anyama.
In the second part of our series on the coming of the Cold War, Taylor Downing explains how the defeat of the Nazis brought new division to the Austrian capital.
In the first part of our series examining the transition from World War to Cold War, Taylor Downing looks at how the end of the fighting in 1945 sowed the seeds of the conflict to come; while in the second part he explains how the defeat of the Nazis brought new division to the Austrian capital.
The French Revolution was a turbulent era of shifting loyalties, during which even humbly born soldiers could rise to the top, as Nigel Jones reveals in the final part of his series on treachery.
King John’s reign was a disaster – but, as Stephen Roberts reveals in the second of two articles about early civil wars, it left as its legacy one of the most important agreements in English history.
Although the Vandals gave their name to wanton destruction, their king Gaiseric is less well-known. Tim Newark reveals how one of the greatest barbarian warlords made Rome tremble.
Continuing our series on Imperial Germany’s Great War allies, Graham Goodlad reveals how defeat led to the end of an empire.
Recent excavations in Southwark have uncovered one of the largest collections of painted Roman wall plaster ever found in London. Carly Hilts spoke to Han Li about ongoing efforts to piece this 2,000-year-old jigsaw puzzle back together.
The valley of the western Rother is best known to archaeologists as the location of Butser Ancient Farm and Bignor Roman villa, as well as the Weald and Downland Museum and the settlements at Selborne, Liss, Petersfield, Midhurst, and Petworth. Adopting a whole-landscape approach, taking in the entire river catchment, a recent study of the valley shows how natural and cultural heritage are inextricably intertwined, as Chris Catling reports.
Excavations at Eaton Socon, near St Neots, have revealed illuminating traces of a rural hamlet and the experiences of its working-class inhabitants over the course of more than a century. Isobel Woolhouse outlines some of the key findings.
The early days of Romano-British research are often thought to have been dominated by male excavators, but many female archaeologists also made vital contributions to the discipline, in spite of social and academic barriers that stood in their way. Tatiana Ivleva and Rebecca Jones highlight some of these heroines of heritage.
Julian Maxwell Heath describes the excavation history of the Predynastic ‘City of the Falcon God’ and some of the important discoveries made there.
Robert R Frost explores Graeco-Roman Egypt through the scenes in a stunning Nilotic mosaic.
Continuing his series focusing on the kings of the Twelfth Dynasty, Wolfram Grajetzki explores the reign and innovations of Khakheperra Senusret II.
Hilary Wilson describes the way ancient Egyptian artists and craftsmen depicted the human form (especially the hands) in wall paintings and sculpture.
Continuing our occasional series focusing on people who have made a significant contribution to Egyptology, but are often forgotten, Hilary Forrest discusses the life of Aquila Dodgson.
In the second of her articles describing the practice of tattooing in ancient Egypt and Nubia, Renée Friedman looks at the surviving evidence from the New Kingdom onwards.
What can the famous papyrus corpus tell us about the ordinary people of late-ancient Egypt? Richard J Britton investigates.
Who was buried in the passage tombs of Neolithic Ireland? For centuries, many thought that these monuments were the final resting places of a ruling elite, and in 2020 this seemed to be confirmed by ancient DNA analysis which revealed that some of the individuals interred within them were related. Now, however, Penny Bickle, Kerri Cleary, Catherine J Frieman, Neil Carlin, Daniela Hofmann, and Jessica Smyth describe recent research that examines the results in light of their wider archaeological context, exploring complex funerary rites which, they argue, were just one form of kin-building among
a community with much wider social networks.
In her new book about High Street heritage, Kathryn Morrison takes us on a trip down memory lane and reminds us that design quality was once a proud part of a retailer’s branding and public appeal, shaping our shopping experiences and the appearance of our historic town centres. Some claim that the High Street is in decline, but the best shops from the past provide a legacy on which to build a bright future, as Chris Catling reports.
A major new exhibition explores the impact of the Viking Age across northern England. Carly Hilts visited the displays and spoke to Adam Parker to learn more.
An exhibition at Cliffe Castle Museum showcases artworks dating back 24,000 years, bringing together Continental artefacts with two key British finds. Carly Hilts reports.
A surge in development associated with Black Sea tourism has provided numerous opportunities for excavations in the ancient Greek city of Apollonia Pontica. Matthew Symonds talked to Margarit Damyanov about how the results are revolutionising our knowledge of this major site.
Over the course of a few centuries, the devotional art of three major world religions underwent a profound change in India. To find out what happened, Matthew Symonds spoke to Sushma Jansari and Kajal Meghani.
A remarkable discovery in the fields near Vindelev revealed objects that are both beautiful and informative. Olympia Bobou, Ilaria Bucci, and Rubina Raja bring us up-to-date about a find shedding fresh light on runic writing, the history of religion, and royal power in Denmark.
Burials found in three different cemeteries in Sweden defied explanation until a connection with polio was proposed. Caroline Arcini and Emma Karlsson weigh the evidence and look at how the impact of this disease has changed over the centuries.
In this new mini-series, we examine the wartime record of Austria-Hungary, Ottoman Turkey, and Bulgaria. We begin with a ‘special’ centred on Austria-Hungary’s army, which struggled to make an impression against its Russian, Serbian, and Italian foes. In this first part, Graham Goodlad assesses the performance of the Habsburg army in the war that culminated in the empire’s collapse.
In the second part of our special, Graham Goodlad assesses Austria-Hungary’s failure to achieve victory against Italy.
In a new book, Jonathan Glancey tells the inside story of Operation Bowler, the audacious WWII plan to destroy German strategic outposts around Venice’s port, while leaving the legendary city unscathed.
In the second part of his series on military turncoats, Nigel Jones profiles more commanders who changed allegiance, from Benedict Arnold to Friedrich Paulus.
A bloody succession crisis that tore England apart also gave rise to a dynasty that would rule for 300 years. In the first of two pieces about early civil wars, Stephen Roberts examines one of the country’s darkest periods.
Edmund West traces the history of the small island with an outsized natural harbour that played a critical role in the battle for naval superiority in the Mediterranean.
The first research excavation to take place at Wroxeter in more than 30 years has illuminated a previously unexplored area of one of the largest urban centres in Roman Britain. Peter Guest, Roger H White, and Mike Luke report.
David Neal’s name is synonymous with Romano-British mosaics: since 1960, he has documented every new discovery (more recently in collaboration with Stephen Cosh). His meticulous records and reconstructions fill the five-volume corpus of Roman Mosaics of Britain published by the Society of Antiquaries between 2002 and 2024 (see CA 223). Based on his new autobiography, Chris Catling reports on David’s formative years and the people who led him to a life in archaeology.
Historic England’s laboratories at Fort Cumberland, near Portsmouth, recently reopened after major refurbishment. Carly Hilts visited the new facilities and spoke to Gill Campbell, Jen Heathcote, Ian Morrison, Simon Mays, Francesca Gherardi, and Angela Middleton to learn about some of the latest advances in archaeological understanding to which the site’s specialists have contributed.