Archaeology

Nov 24th, 2025 - The 3,000-year-old ceremonial complex of Aguada Fénix in Tabasco was designed as a monumental "cosmogram", according to new research A vast, 3,000-year-old earthwork hidden in the jungle of southern Mexico may represent one of the earliest known attempts to create a "cosmogram", a map of the cosmos in monumental form, according to a study recently published in Science Advances . Using airborne laser scanning and on-the-ground excavations, archaeologists identified the site known as ... [Read More]

Nov 24th, 2025 - It's quick and easy to access Live Science Plus, simply enter your email below. We'll send you a confirmation and sign you up for our daily newsletter, keeping you up to date with the latest science news. Archaeologists in Egypt have discovered 225 shabtis — figurines meant to act as servants for the deceased in the afterlife — that belonged to the pharaoh Shoshenq III inside a tomb of a different pharaoh. The figurines were found at the site of Tanis, in northern Egypt, in the ... [Read More]

Nov 21st, 2025 - A remarkably well-preserved Roman sarcophagus has been unearthed in Hungary's capital, offering a rare window into the life of the young woman inside and the world she inhabited around 1,700 years ago. The sarcophagus was untouched by looters and sealed for centuries. It was found with its stone lid fixed in place, secured by metal clamps and molten lead. When researchers carefully lifted the lid, they uncovered a complete skeleton surrounded by dozens of artifacts. "The peculiarity of the ... [Read More]

Nov 20th, 2025 - Follow Earth on Google Archaeologists in Germany have uncovered a Roman tomb on a circular stone foundation, roughly 39 feet wide, near the municipality of Wolkertshofen. The structure appears to be a tumulus, a circular burial mound built with a stone ring. What stunned the team was the emptiness. No bones or grave goods turned up, and the circle sits beside a Roman route that once cut across this part of southern Germany. Finding an empty Roman tomb The work was led by Prof. Mathias Pfeil, ... [Read More]

Nov 20th, 2025 - A rare vase opens a window into ancient drug use and ritual life. A 22-centimeter alabaster vase, inscribed to the Persian king Xerxes I, has revealed that narcotics were part of everyday life in ancient Egypt. Inside the vessel, Yale scientists discovered chemical traces of opiates, preserved for nearly 2,500 years. The analysis found noscapine, hydrocotarnine, morphine, thebaine, and papaverine — compounds that unmistakably point to opium. An Opium Vase That Bridged Empires The team's ... [Read More]

Nov 18th, 2025 - Archaeologists did some digging in and around the Kazakhstan steppe and discovered an ancient settlement. Further study proved that the settlement belonged to the Bronze Age and was a thriving city about 3,600 years ago. The discovery is now forcing researchers to rethink the history of metal production in prehistoric Eurasia. According to a study published in the journal Antiquity , the site, 346 acres of land, dates back to 1600 BC. It is also the only site discovered in the region with a ... [Read More]

Nov 4th, 2025 - After two decades and an estimated cost of $1bn, the Grand Egyptian Museum (GEM) opened its doors to the public on Tuesday, just a few days after the official opening ceremony on Saturday. Regarded as the world's largest archaeological facility for a single civilisation, the museum is located 2km (1.2 miles) from the pyramids of Giza and 8km (5 miles) from the capital, Cairo. The complex spans nearly 500,000sq metres (5,381,900sq ft) and will house more than 100,000 ancient artefacts from the ... [Read More]

Nov 4th, 2025 - It's quick and easy to access Live Science Plus, simply enter your email below. We'll send you a confirmation and sign you up for our daily newsletter, keeping you up to date with the latest science news. QUICK FACTS Milestone: Staircase to King Tut's tomb uncovered When: Nov. 4, 1922 Where: Valley of the Kings, Egypt Who: An archaeological team led by Howard Carter On a sunny morning, Egyptian workers were clearing the sands at the Valley of the Kings, when they uncovered the hint of stone ... [Read More]

Oct 30th, 2025 - For the first time since the boy king's tomb was discovered in 1922, all the items will stored in one place, a museum director told NBC News. GIZA, Egypt — They're the crown jewels of the Grand Egyptian Museum — two galleries devoted to the ancient pharaoh Tutankhamun . Showcasing more than 5,300 objects from the young king's tomb, including his iconic death mask and glittering royal regalia, the new section of the vast museum here on the outskirts of Cairo is expected to draw ... [Read More]

Oct 5th, 2025 - CAIRO (AP) — Egyptian antiquities officials on Sunday said a Pharaonic painting has disappeared from the famed Saqqara necropolis just outside of Cairo, becoming the latest artifact to disappear in a country known for its rich history. Mohamed Ismail, secretary-general of the Supreme Council of Antiquities, said the limestone painting was in the tomb of Khentika in the Saqqara necropolis. The mastaba tomb, which housed the painting, was found in the 1950s, and hasn't opened since 2019, he ... [Read More]

Oct 4th, 2025 - One of the largest tombs in Egypt 's Valley of the Kings reopened to visitors after more than 20 years of renovation. The huge tomb of Amenhotep III, who ruled ancient Egypt between 1390 B.C. and 1350 B.C., is carved into the hillside on the west bank of the Nile River near the southern Egyptian city of Luxor. It was discovered in 1799 by two people, and its contents were looted, including the sarcophagus, Egyptian antiquities authorities said. It has been under a Japanese-led, three-phased ... [Read More]

Sep 29th, 2025 - An "unparalleled" funerary statue of an ancient Egyptian man whose name may be Messi has been discovered at the Saqqara necropolis — and it shows him standing with what appears to be his tiny wife and even tinier daughter, who is holding a goose. Measuring just over 40 inches (103 centimeters) tall and carved out of limestone, "the most prominent figure depicted is that of a nobleman standing tall with an advancing left foot representing youth, vitality and strength," researchers wrote in ... [Read More]

Sep 26th, 2025 - You can now listen to Fox News articles! Egyptian archaeologists recently uncovered a hidden harbor at an ancient temple connected to Cleopatra VII – an unexpected find for historians.  The Egyptian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities announced the discovery of the harbor on Sept. 18. It was found at the Temple of Taposiris Magna, about 30 miles west of Alexandria. The temple, built in the Ptolemaic era, was dedicated to Osiris, the Egyptian god of the afterlife. Though the temple ... [Read More]

Sep 23rd, 2025 - It all used to be so simple. The story of how we – that is Homo sapiens , today's humans – emerged from Africa and spread across what's become Europe and Asia was a neat, straightforward narrative. It began around 50,000 years ago when our brains experienced a lightbulb moment of advancing cognition and creativity, stimulating our ancestors to journey beyond our cradle continent. When they reached Eurasia, around 40–30,000 years ago, they encountered another group of humans, a ... [Read More]

Sep 22nd, 2025 - Hundreds of coins depicting Cleopatra VII, an Egyptian pharaoh who was a lover of Julius Caesar and Mark Antony, have been discovered at Taposiris Magna, a temple site from ancient Egypt . On top of that, the same team recently found a submerged port on the Mediterranean coast of Egypt and say that it's possible that her tomb could be located underwater near the port. Both finds are part of "Cleopatra's Final Secret," a new documentary that premieres on the National Geographic channel Sept. 25 ... [Read More]

Sep 21st, 2025 - The ancient Egyptians took a number of measures to safeguard the pyramids. But did they ever resort to booby traps? The answer, Egyptologists told Live Science, is an emphatic no. "No, they didn't use booby traps in the pyramids, but they could make it damn difficult to get in!" Reg Clark , an independent scholar and Egyptologist who has written extensively about ancient Egyptian tomb security, told Live Science in an email. It's not clear where the idea of booby traps inside Egypt's pyramids ... [Read More]