The tablet is the earliest discovered example of applied geometry. A 3,700-year-old clay tablet has revealed that the ancient Babylonians understood the Pythagorean theorem more than 1,000 years before the birth of the Greek philosopher Pythagoras, who is widely associated with the idea. The tablet, known as Si.427, was usedContinue Reading
Four of the panels date as far back as 40 years before Thomas Becket’s grisly death. The stained-glass windows of England’s Canterbury Cathedral are so old that they “witnessed” one of medieval England’s most infamous murders, a new study reveals. The analysis shows that some of the cathedral’s stained-glass windows,Continue Reading
A farmer living near Ismailia in Egypt has uncovered a 2,600-year-old stela erected by pharaoh Apries, who ruled from about 589 B.C., to 570 B.C., the Egyptian antiquities ministry reported. The farmer found this ancient slab of sandstone while preparing his land for cultivation, about 62 miles (100 kilometers) northeastContinue Reading
People living across Europe around 1,400 years ago had a habit of reopening graves and taking out objects for reasons that archaeologists are trying to understand, according to a new study. “The practice of reopening and manipulating graves soon after burial, traditionally described — and dismissed — as ‘robbing,’ isContinue Reading
The tiny object is made up of two different stamps. Archaeologists recently discovered Israel’s oldest known seal impression, a device that stamps a pattern onto soft material such as clay or wax in order to seal an object. The tiny clay impression dates back 7,000 years and was likely usedContinue Reading
The skeleton of a soldier found on a beach at Herculaneum, an ancient town that was buried when Mount Vesuvius erupted in A.D. 79, may be that of a rescue-party member sent by Roman naturalist and military officer Pliny the Elder to help evacuate people, a researcher has suggested basedContinue Reading
Napoleon Bonaparte may have died 200 years ago, but the vast ramifications of his rule can still be felt – and not only in France. This year marks the last in a series of bicentenaries since 1969, the 200th anniversary of his birth, but the chance to give the mostContinue Reading
Second only to COVID-19 recovery, the continued unity of the United Kingdom is the key political issue across the British Isles. Debates about independence have dominated Scottish politics for the past decade, while in Wales, polling suggests there is increasing support for Welsh independence. In Northern Ireland, meanwhile, many believeContinue Reading
The 16th and 17th centuries were a notably litigious period in British history. New rights, wealth and obligations had to be protected through legal transactions – and that needed documentation. Such was the importance of deeds – legal documents concerning the ownership of property – that lawyers chose to writeContinue Reading
Africa is the continent most vulnerable to the impact of climate change. That’s largely because many of its people and governments are too poor to do what’s needed to cope under the expected new conditions. Yet Africa has a long and successful history of learning to live with changing climates.Continue Reading