The mass grave held the remains of about 25 people, mostly women who were likely “dedicated to textiles.” In the 15th century, a group of elite women in the ancient city of Chan Chan spent their days making textiles while living … and in death. Archaeologists recently uncovered a massContinue Reading
Who left them behind is a mystery. More than 5,500 silver coins buried by a river about 1,800 years ago are now in the hands of archaeologists, following the hoard’s discovery in Augsburg, Germany. At the time of the coins’ burial, the Roman Empire was in full swing, with itsContinue Reading
The treasure consists of 131 gold coins and four golden objects. A metal detectorist in West Norfolk, England, has unearthed the largest Anglo-Saxon treasure hoard ever discovered: a bounty of 131 coins and four golden objects. Most of the items were found over the course of six years by aContinue Reading
The king’s effigy was unprecedented in medieval England. An “unprecedented” metal tomb effigy of Edward the “Black Prince” was likely created by his son King Richard II as medieval propaganda to bolster his troubled reign, new research reveals. Edward of Woodstock, commonly known as the Black Prince, was born inContinue Reading
The gods were lovers, so it’s fitting their statues were close. According to Greek mythology, the deities Aphrodite and Dionysus had a grand love affair. So, perhaps it’s fitting that archaeologists found the ancient statuary heads of the goddess of love and the drunk reveler near each other during aContinue Reading
Alexander the Great’s empire stretched from the Balkans to modern-day Pakistan. Alexander the Great was king of Macedonia from 336 B.C. to 323 B.C. and conquered a huge empire that stretched from the Balkans to modern-day Pakistan. During his reign, Alexander the Great had a massive impact in his timeContinue Reading
Deep within South Africa’s Rising Star cave system, in a dark passageway barely 6 inches (15 centimeters) wide, scientists have discovered the fragmented skull of a Homo naledi child they’re calling “Leti.” How the little skull ended up in such a remote part of the cave is a mystery, thoughContinue Reading
Nearly 20 “witches” were executed in the English colony. Between 1692 and 1693, accusations of witchcraft were made in and around the town of Salem in Massachusetts, leading to the arrests of about 150 people. These charges were taken seriously, and the ensuing trials resulted in the executions of 19Continue Reading
The mysterious Tarim mummies of China’s western Xinjiang region are relics of a unique Bronze Age culture descended from Indigenous people, and not a remote branch of early Indo-Europeans, according to new genetic research. The new study upends more than a century of assumptions about the origins of the prehistoricContinue Reading
It’s not like leftovers are a modern invention. Refrigeration is a pretty new phenomenon, so for millennia, people had to find clever ways to preserve food. These practices slowed the growth of microorganisms that could cause foodborne illnesses or lead food to rot. Many preservation practices other than refrigeration —Continue Reading