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 work at Tikal has uncovered evidence of extensive contact between…
Iron Age cemetery in UAE An Iron Age necropolis recently discovered in Al Ain is the first to be found in the United Arab Emirates. The burial ground, which was unearthed as part of the Funerary Landscapes of Al Ain…
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 the image lies the Mound of the Hostages, an ancient…
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. From new perspectives on famous heritage sites to lesser-known archaeological…
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 to eat. Catching, cultivating, cooking, and consuming food have been…
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, inspiring more than a century of scholarly research. Vera Tiesler…
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 as far back as the Middle Palaeolithic – including evidence…
A cache of Roman and British coins found in the Netherlands seems to be associated with the emperor Claudius’ invasion of Britain in AD 43. Study of the hoard is shedding new light on the circumstances surrounding this major historical event. Matthew Symonds found out more from Jasper de Bruin.
Roman frontiers are often viewed as measures to increase security, but did this concern extend to soldiers locking the doors of their towers? Thomas Becker, David Breeze, Christof Flügel, Erik Graafstal, Elisabeth Krieger, Orsolya Lang, Felix Marcu, Martina Meyr, and Andreas Thiel weigh the evidence for how tower access was controlled on the European frontiers, and what it means.
Richard Hodges introduces the Emperor Augustus’ city of victory at Actium and interviews its renowned excavator, Kostas Zachos.
Traces of the First World War are often seen in terms of trenches, battlefields, and cemeteries, but the soldiers caught up in this conflict left more subtle testimonies to their presence. Graffiti ranging from pencilled names to patriotic artistry provide powerful and personal glimpses of the combatants, as David Crossland reveals.
Recovering an assemblage of trafficked prehistoric swords from Iran presented an opportunity to undertake scientific analysis of these weapons. The results reveal both the skills of ancient metalworkers and how these swords have been tailored to meet the expectations of the illicit antiquities trade, as Alex Rodzinka explains.
A line of pits unearthed during excavations in Dijon contained rare examples of Iron Age individuals buried in a seated position. Hervé Laganier reveals what has been found, and how it compares to other examples of this enigmatic phenomenon.
Across 7 Portico or vestibule at the western entrance of an early Christian church (7)8 Green semi-precious mineral (7)10 US state, location of the Jeffers Petroglyphs archaeological site (9)11 Covered colonnade in ancient Greece (4)12 Father of Aeneas in Greek…
The emergence of bipedal walking has long been recognised as a central aspect of hominid evolution, but much less is known about the development of running. Recently, a team of researchers from the UK and the Netherlands set out to…
Tacitus, in his book on the life and character of his father-in-law Julius Agricola, the Roman Governor of Britain from c.AD 77 to 84, makes the often-quoted observation that ‘Britons make no distinction of sex in their leaders’. In his Annals (XIV.35), the same author depicts Boudica (AD 30-61) rallying her supporters with the cry: ‘we British are used to women commanders in war’.
I have already described here the new discoveries at Sanxingdui, the great city that commanded the Sichuan Plain in China from 1200 BC (CWA 110). However, I cannot refrain from returning to it, because a couple of months ago a most welcome and unexpected email arrived.
This theatre is part of the archaeological site of Aptera, near present-day Chania, in western Crete. The ancient coastal city-state was once one of Crete’s most important commercial centres, at its peak in the Hellenistic period (late 4th-3rd centuries BC).…
‘The unknown town now had a name… All that day “Naukratis” rang in my mind, and I sprang over the mounds with that splendid exultation of a new discovery, long wished for and well found.’ The prospect of discovering ancient cities, lost for centuries in the depths of jungles or deserts, was part of the original lure (and original sin) of archaeology.
A major exhibition at the National Museum of Denmark is exploring the mysterious Viking Age Völva.
REVIEW BY GEORGE NASH Given the severity of the ongoing war in Ukraine, it is no surprise that the rich prehistoric archaeology of the country has been largely forgotten, especially within its southern and eastern regions, but it makes this…
REVIEW BY QUITA MOULD In this volume, the author describes a range of Roman shoe- and foot-shaped artefacts and considers the cultural significance of such representations. She summarises the ancient written sources available and the thoughts of previous researchers, before…
REVIEW BY KATHERINE V BOYLE This book looks at an often-overlooked aspect of European prehistory, more specifically the Neolithic/Eneolithic, but one that, fortunately, is gradually changing with work undertaken in recent years by scholars across Europe. The subject is the…
Excavations on the northern coast of the island of Muharraq have identified the first early Christian building ever found in Bahrain. Amy Brunskill spoke to project leader Timothy Insoll to find out more.
Excavations in coastal Ecuador have uncovered an intriguing burial belonging to a woman who appears to have died under violent circumstances before being interred with a striking selection of grave goods. Buen Suceso is a site primarily from the Valdivia…
Excavations in Egypt have identified the long-lost tomb of King Thutmose II, the fourth pharaoh of the 18th Dynasty. Thutmose II is believed to have ruled for just a few years around 1493-1479 BC, and is perhaps best known as…
Ongoing excavations in Insula 10, Regio IX, at Pompeii have uncovered a luxurious private bathhouse, one of the biggest ever found in a domestic context in the ancient city. The thermal complex is the latest remarkable discovery inside the grand…
Recent research suggests that engraved stones discovered on the Danish island of Bornholm may have been ritual offerings in response to climatic change caused by a huge volcanic eruption almost 5,000 years ago. Over the past few decades, hundreds of…
Another advance has been made in the efforts to decipher a collection of ancient papyrus scrolls from Herculaneum that were burnt during the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in AD 79. Remarkable progress has been made in recent years thanks to…
Neanderthal fossil hunters? Excavations of Prado Vargas cave in northern Spain have uncovered 15 marine fossils in a Neanderthal assemblage dating to 39,800-54,600 years ago. With the exception of one, which had been used as a hammer, none of these…
At first glance, it looks like an ornate coffee spoon… What is it? This curious object, which looks at first glance like a large, ornate, cruciform coffee spoon, is in fact rather an elegant counterpoised coin balance. Suspended on a…
The Thracians made a keen impression on both their neighbours and the archaeological record, but how much do we really know about them? Sara E Cole and Jens Daehner introduced Matthew Symonds to an enigmatic group of peoples.
In partnership with: Current Archaeology Live! 2025 will be here before we know it, and tickets are selling fast. Our sister-magazine’s Current Archaeology upcoming conference will be held on Saturday 1 March. We are delighted to be returning to University…
Thanks to an ingenious digital technique, a particle accelerator, and an internet competition, we stand on the threshold of being able to enjoy what is potentially the greatest influx of ‘new’ Classical texts since the Renaissance. Brent Seales told Matthew Symonds why scrolls that were once widely believed impossible to read are now on the verge of becoming legible.
Strictly speaking Saranda cannot be saved. When I first came here in September 1993, a year after Albania became a democracy, it was a blissful Ionian seaport. Many of its citizens had left for Greece, so it felt empty, yet…
Even those who have never ploughed through Proust’s Remembrance of Things Past will know that the French author’s multi-volume reminiscences were sparked by the taste and smell of madeleine cake crumbs combined with lime-flower tea.