Aweek of excavations at Chapel Porth, near St Agnes, has revealed the walls of the original medieval building, among other interesting finds. The work was carried out with the National Trust and local volunteers as part of Cornwall National Landscape’s…
New interdisciplinary research from the University of Aberdeen has suggested that Holme I – a Bronze Age timber circle in north Norfolk that is also known as ‘Seahenge’ – was created as a response to a period of climatic deterioration.…
The University of York’s Department of Archaeology has uncovered a large timber hall in Skipsea, dating to the early medieval period, among other finds of ‘national significance’. Measuring 6m wide and 16m long, the hall is a rare find, thought…
A round-up of some of the latest news from the world of ancient Egypt.…
A new study from the University of Cambridge, published in the journal Advances in Parasitology, shows that ancient Egypt and Nubia had markedly different levels and types of parasitic disease compared to neighbouring ancient civilisations due to the geography of…
Radiocarbon dating of crop remains excavated at the Graeco-Roman site of Karanis (in the Fayum) shows that the town was inhabited at least into the middle of the 7th century AD – 200 years after it was thought to have…
There has been much debate about the exact nature of the perceived link between the Milky Way and the goddess Nut. A new study, published in the Journal of Astronomical History and Heritage, suggests that rather than the Milky Way…
Researchers from the University of North Carolina (USA), using remote sensing and other geophysical methods, have identified sections of an extinct branch of the Nile which flowed close to the line of Old and Middle Kingdom pyramids between Giza and…
The remains of a royal fortified military rest area have been discovered at Tell Habwa (northern Sinai) by a mission from the Egyptian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities. The team found the remains of a mud-brick building near the beginning…
Stunning painted banquet hall uncovered in Pompeii A banquet hall boasting some of the finest frescoes found in Pompeii has recently been uncovered by archaeologists working in Regio IX. The Third Style wall paintings depict particular imagery from the Trojan…
A previously undocumented steelworks dating to the 19th century has been discovered in Sheffield as part of continuing excavations, which began in 2015 to uncover the ‘lost castle’ (CA 351). The steelworks would have formed one of three similar works…
Recent photogrammetry work on Welwyn Roman Baths, Hertfordshire, hopes to aid conservation and enhance public engagement on the site. In March, experts Dr Kris Lockyear and Antonio Reis from UCL Institute of Archaeology conducted the project on the baths, which…
Radiocarbon dating at Woodhenge has revealed that it was built at almost exactly the same time as the circle at neighbouring Stonehenge. This exciting new data shows that Stonehenge was not a one-off in its original landscape. Woodhenge lies just…
In CA 411, we carried a news story about the exciting implications of recent research into early medieval silver coinage; for this month’s column, we delve deeper into the science behind the study to reveal how these conclusions were reached.…
Excavations as part of a project to create a new entrance to York railway station have revealed the original Victorian paved approach to the station, as well as ditches littered with medieval rubbish. As part of the project, a new…
Recent LiDAR work intended to record the state of the landscape in Baltinglass, Ireland, has revealed a complex of five Neolithic cursus monuments, shedding new light on the importance of the area during this period. The archaeological landscape of Baltinglass…
Testing on organic matter discovered by archaeologists from Wardell Armstrong has identified it as the first example of Tyrian purple pigment found not just in the UK, but in the whole of northern Europe. This exciting find was unearthed during…
Wemyss Casts returned Two plaster casts of a boat carving in Jonathan’s Cave, east Wemyss, have been returned to Scotland after 90 years. Dated to 1st millennium BC, the original carving is possibly the earliest depiction of a boat in…
Personal ornamentation is a powerful form of self-expression, often used to send messages about the wearer’s social identity, even today. But could such objects hold the key to understanding the cultural landscape of Palaeolithic Europe?
The abandonment of a military barracks in the centre of Tours, France, offered archaeologists a unique opportunity to excavate the entirety of an 11th-century abbey that was completely destroyed during the French Revolution. Philippe Blanchard tells us what the project has revealed so far.
Excavations in the highlands of northern Peru have identified a circular plaza that may be among the earliest examples of monumental megalithic architecture in the Americas. The Callacpuma archaeological site, located in the Cajamarca Basin, has been the subject of…
In 1994, the 300,000-year-old spears from Schöningen, Germany, made headlines as some of oldest wooden objects ever discovered. But these were not the only finds from the site. By the time excavations at Schöningen 13 (the ‘Spear Horizon’) came to…
DNA analysis of the Avar empire people, who lived on the Great Hungarian Plain some 1,500 years ago, is revealing details of their social structure, kinship practices, and marriage traditions. The Avar empire was founded by groups of mounted warriors…
Archaeologists working at Pompeii have uncovered a spectacular banquet hall decorated with mythological images connected to the Trojan War. This luxurious space, once used for feasting and entertaining, was part of a grand private residence located in Insula 10 of…
Early piercings A study recently published in Antiquity () has identified more than 100 ornaments used in body perforation as early as 11,000 years ago. The artefacts come from burials at the Neolithic site of Boncuklu Tarla, in Turkey, and…
New discoveries on a small Australian island are rewriting our understanding of the culture and technology of the country’s early people. It has long been believed that the ancient Aboriginal peoples of Australia did not have pottery. A few examples…
It was one of the most significant battles in English history. Now a new trail will reveal the ‘lost’ stories of the Battle of Bosworth in 1485. The trail will be launched in Leicestershire in spring next year. A crowdfunding…
A major new restoration project is under way at the 150-year-old Newhaven Fort, which is one of the largest defensive works ever built in Sussex. The £7.5 million project aims to open up previously inaccessible areas of the fort, such…
A forgotten air raid shelter, buried for more than 80 years, was found recently by a group of schoolchildren. Pupils at St Peter’s Independent School in Kettering, Northamptonshire, made the discovery during a clear-up of the school grounds earlier this…
A new memorial is being constructed to commemorate the forgotten sacrifice of 1,700 black South African servicemen who died during the First World War. The monument, funded by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC), will be known as the Cape…
It is generally assumed that archaeological remains buried in the ground are relatively safe, and that – aside from the effects of climate change and natural forces like erosion – human-created developments represent the main factor that might affect their…
Recent excavations by Gahan and Long Archaeological Services in advance of the construction of a new retail store in Carrickfergus, Co. Antrim, have unearthed a previously unknown medieval cemetery. As work began on the site in December of last year,…
New research, funded by the Department for Culture, Media, and Sport (DCMS) through its Culture and Heritage Capital Programme, has demonstrated that heritage has a positive effect on wellbeing, with the presence of nearby historic places having a direct benefit…
Excavations at Crowland, in Lincolnshire, have revealed new evidence of how this landscape was used over the millennia – from the Neolithic to the post-medieval period – and in particular how it continued to be seen as a sacred place…
A round-up of some of the latest archaeology news from around the UK.
Research recently published in the journal Britannia has proposed a way to estimate the possible population of Roman Silchester (Calleva Atrebatum), in Hampshire, suggesting that the town may have included many more residences than have yet been identified. As a…