Lost Treasures News

February 24, 2025

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Iberian Nailed Head Ritual Was More Complex Than Expected

Feb. 21, 2025 — The nailed heads ritual did not correspond to the same symbolic expression among the Iberian communities of the northeast of the Iberian Peninsula, but rather a practice that differed in each settlement. In some, external individuals were used as ...

New Study Unravels the History of the Largest Pastoral Population in Africa

Feb. 11, 2025 — Researchers have uncovered the origins and genetic diversity of the Fulani, one of Africa's largest pastoral populations. The study reveals a complex genetic ancestry with influences from both North and West Africa, shaped by historical migrations ...

Missing Link in Indo-European Languages' History Found

Feb. 5, 2025 — Where lies the origin of the Indo-European language family? Researchers contribute a new piece to this puzzle. They analyzed ancient DNA from 435 individuals from archaeological sites across Eurasia between 6.400--2.000 BCE. They found out that a ...

Archaeologists Find 'Lost' Site Depicted in the Bayeux Tapestry

Jan. 27, 2025 — Archaeologists have uncovered evidence that a house in England is the site of a lost residence of Harold, the last Anglo-Saxon King of England, and shown in the Bayeux Tapestry. By reinterpreting previous excavations and conducting new surveys, the ...

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New Strontium Isotope Map of Sub-Saharan Africa Is a Powerful Tool for Archaeology, Forensics, and Wildlife Conservation

Jan. 6, 2025 — A team of researchers has mapped predicted bioavailable strontium isotope ratios across all of Sub-Saharan Africa. Archaeologists, conservation ...

Unique Insights Into Lives of People Who Lived Over 5,600 Years Ago Near Kosenivka, Ukraine

Dec. 11, 2024 — A new study sheds light on the lives of people who lived over 5,600 years ago near Kosenivka, Ukraine. Researchers present the first detailed ...

Bad Weather Led Dutch Ship Into Western Australian Coast

Dec. 9, 2024 — The Dutch East India Company ship, the Zuytdorp, likely crashed into the shore of Western Australia due to a storm and not bad navigation, new research has found. Archaeologists analyzed ship logs, ...

Getting to the Bottom of Things: Latrine Findings Help Researcher Trace the Movement of People and Disease

Dec. 6, 2024 — A researcher has uncovered evidence of intestinal parasites in a 500-year-old latrine from Bruges, Belgium, and while the finding may induce ...

DNA of 1,000 Year-Old Maize Sheds Light on Origins of Globally Important Food Crop

Dec. 5, 2024 — Researchers have tested ancient DNA from corn found at archaeological sites in Arkansas, shedding new light on the dispersal of one of the world's ...

How Did Humans and Dogs Become Friends? Connections in the Americas Began 12,000 Years Ago

Dec. 4, 2024 — A new study sheds light on how long humans in the Americas have had relationships with the ancestors of today's dogs -- and asks an 'existential ...

New Hydrogel Could Preserve Waterlogged Wood from Shipwrecks

Dec. 3, 2024 — From the RMS Titanic to the SS Endurance, shipwrecks offer valuable -- yet swiftly deteriorating -- windows into the past. Conservators slowly dry marine wooden artifacts to preserve them but doing ...

Early North Americans Made Needles from Fur-Bearers

Nov. 27, 2024 — Paleoindians at Wyoming's LaPrele mammoth site made needles from the bones of fur-bearers, likely to creat garments from the animals' furs to keep warm in a cool ...

Focaccia: A Neolithic Culinary Tradition Dating Back 9,000 Years Ago

Nov. 25, 2024 — A new study indicates that during the Late Neolithic, between 7000 and 5000 BCE, the fully agricultural communities in the Fertile Crescent region of the Near East, developed a complex culinary ...

Innovating Archaeology: Scholars Utilize Immersive 3D Tech to Document and Study the Human Past

Nov. 21, 2024 — Archaeology studies the human past through the excavation of things people made and used thousands of years ago -- from architecture to objects like ...

Oldest Known Alphabet Unearthed in Ancient Syrian City

Nov. 20, 2024 — Researchers have discovered evidence of the oldest alphabetic writing in human history. The writing was etched onto clay cylinders discovered during a dig at an ancient Syrian ...

DNA Evidence Rewrites Story of People Buried in Pompeii Eruption

Nov. 7, 2024 — Researchers have used ancient DNA to challenge long-held interpretations of the people of Pompeii. Contrary to physical appearances, the DNA evidence revealed unexpected variations in gender and ...

The 'Urban Revolution' Was Slow in Bronze Age Arabia

Oct. 30, 2024 — Settlements in northern Arabia were in a transitional stage of urbanization during the third to second millennium BCE, according to a new ...

Have We Found All the Major Maya Cities? Not Even Close, New Research Suggests

Oct. 29, 2024 — Researchers used laser-guided imaging to uncover vast unexplored Maya settlements in Campeche, Mexico, revealing more than 6,500 pre-Hispanic structures, including a previously unknown large city ...

Scientists Create Geochemical Fingerprints

Oct. 28, 2024 — Using new technology, researchers have been able to confirm the location of the world's oldest ochre mine and trace how ochre from the mine was dispersed to nearby ...

Underwater Caves Yield New Clues About Sicily's First Residents

Oct. 9, 2024 — Archaeological surveys suggest that coastal and underwater cave sites in southern Sicily contain important new clues about the path and fate of early human migrants to the ...

The Vikings Were Part of a Global Network Trading in Ivory from Greenland

Sep. 30, 2024 — New research shows that the Vikings traveled more than 6,000 kilometers to the Arctic to hunt for walrus. DNA analyses reveal that walrus ivory from Greenland was brought to Europe and probably as ...

Another Franklin Expedition Crew Member Has Been Identified

Sep. 24, 2024 — The skeletal remains of a senior officer of Sir John Franklin's 1845 Northwest Passage expedition have been identified using DNA and genealogical ...

Early Dingoes Are Related to Dogs from New Guinea and East Asia

Sep. 18, 2024 — New archaeological research has discovered for the first time clear links between fossils of the iconic Australian dingo, and dogs from East Asia and New ...

What a Submerged Ancient Bridge Discovered in a Spanish Cave Reveals About Early Human Settlement

Aug. 30, 2024 — Geologists examined a submerged 25-foot bridge to tackle a long-lasting archaeological controversy: When humans settled on the islands in the western Mediterranean. Their findings narrow a historical ...

New Study Reveals Devastating Power and Colossal Extent of a Giant Underwater Avalanche Off the Moroccan Coast

Aug. 21, 2024 — New research has revealed how an underwater avalanche grew more than 100 times in size causing a massive trail of destruction as it traveled 2000km across the Atlantic Ocean seafloor off the North ...

International Space Station Crew Carries out Archeological Survey in Space

Aug. 7, 2024 — An archaeological strategy adapted for space used daily photos to reveal how astronauts actually use areas aboard the International Space Station -- and how this differs from intended ...

Findings from First Archaeology Project in Space

Aug. 7, 2024 — The first-ever archeological survey in space has provided new insights into how astronauts use and adapt their living space on the International Space Station, which could influence the design of new ...

Underwater Mapping Reveals New Insights Into Melting of Antarctica's Ice Shelves

July 31, 2024 — Clues to future sea level rise have been revealed by the first detailed maps of the underside of a floating ice shelf in Antarctica. An international research team deployed an unmanned submersible ...

Evidence for Butchery of Giant Armadillo-Like Mammals in Argentina 21,000 Years Ago

July 17, 2024 — Cut marks on fossils could be evidence of humans exploiting large mammals in Argentina more than 20,000 years ago, according to a new ...

The Plague May Have Caused the Downfall of the Stone Age Farmers

July 10, 2024 — Ancient DNA from bones and teeth hints at a role of the plague in Stone Age population collapse. Contrary to previous beliefs, the plague may have diminished Europe's populations long before the ...

Archaeologists Report Earliest Evidence for Plant Farming in East Africa

July 10, 2024 — A trove of ancient plant remains excavated in Kenya helps explain the history of plant farming in equatorial eastern Africa, a region long thought to be important for early farming but where scant ...

Layers of Carbonate Provide Insight Into the World of the Ancient Romans

July 1, 2024 — Archaeologists face a major challenge when they intend to acquire information about buildings or facilities of which only ruins remain. This was a particular challenge for the remnants of the Roman ...

Almonds, Pottery, Wood Help Date Famed Kyrenia Shipwreck

June 26, 2024 — Researchers have identified the likeliest timeline of the famous Hellenistic-era Kyrenia shipwreck, discovered and recovered off the north coast of Cyprus in the ...

New Study Finds Dinosaur Fossils Did Not Inspire the Mythological Griffin

June 20, 2024 — For centuries, scientists thought they knew where the griffin legend came from. A new study takes a closer look at the data and folklore's influence on ...