Archaeologists have unearthed the remains of a Mayan city nearly 3,000 years old in northern Guatemala, with pyramids and monuments that point to its significance as an important ceremonial site, the Central American country’s culture ministry said Thursday. The Mayan civilization arose around 2000 BC, reaching its height between 400 and 900 AD in what […]
1,500-year-old bucket with human bones found inside was cremation burial vessel, archaeologists say
A 1,500-year-old bucket discovered in England has been identified as an ancient cremation burial vessel, experts said. The 6th-century bucket was found at Sutton Hoo, an archaeological site near Suffolk, England, that is home to two ancient cemeteries. Fragments of the bucket, named the Bromeswell bucket, were first found in 1986. Researchers found more pieces […]
3 ancient tombs of prominent statesmen discovered in Egypt
Archaeologists in Egypt have unveiled the millennia-old tombs of three senior statesmen, identified by inscriptions left on the tombs. The three sites in the city of Luxor date to the New Kingdom era, Egypt’s Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities said on social media, which ranged from about 1550 to 1070 B.C. One of the tombs […]
U.S. returns parts of queen’s temple, ancient gold coin and other rare smuggled artifacts to Egypt, officials say
Sarcophagus lids, a Greco-Roman portrait and fragments of what is believed to be a temple of Queen Hatshepsut were among 25 rare artifacts returned to Egypt from the United States, the Egyptian antiquities ministry said Monday. The pieces — spanning centuries of Egyptian civilization — were handed over following a three-year recovery effort by Egypt’s […]
Vienna archaeologists discover skeletal remains in mass grave of fighters in Roman Empire-era battle
As construction crews churned up dirt to renovate a Vienna soccer field last October, they happened upon an unprecedented find: A heap of intertwined skeletal remains in a mass grave dating to the 1st-century Roman Empire, likely the bodies of warriors in a battle involving Germanic tribes. On Wednesday, after archaeological analysis, experts at the […]
Ancient altar found in Guatemala jungle apparently used for sacrifices,
An altar from the Teotihuacan culture, at the pre-Hispanic heart of what became Mexico, was discovered in Tikal National Park in Guatemala, the center of Mayan culture, demonstrating the interaction between the two societies, Guatemala’s Culture and Sports Ministry announced this week. The enormous city-state of Tikal, whose towering temples still stand in the jungle, […]
Remains of
Archaeologists in Peru announced they found the 5,000-year-old remains of a noblewoman at the sacred city of Caral, in an area which for decades was used as a garbage dump. The new discovery revealed the important role played by women in the oldest center of civilization in the Americas, researchers said. “What has been discovered […]
Study sheds new light on exclusive hallucinogenic drug rituals in ancient Peru
An ancient society in the Peruvian Andes likely used psychoactive drugs during exclusive rituals that may have helped establish social and political hierarchies seen later throughout the region, according to a new study. The prehistoric Chavín people held private and potentially secret gatherings where elite figures used “snuff tubes” to consume tobacco and hallucinogenic plant […]