The Thracians made a keen impression on both their neighbours and the archaeological record, but how much do we really know about…
Most people think the Gutenberg Bible, printed in Latin in Germany c.1455, is the world’s earliest printed book. It is certainly the…
Ancient Egyptians believed death was survivable. Far from resting in peace, their demise catapulted them into a disorientating netherworld roamed by gods…
How did a slab of black granite become the key to deciphering hieroglyphs…
Should you be caught in a heavy rain storm in modern Ercolano, you will understand why the local residents talk about ‘lava’…
Rome is an iconic city. From Grand Tour etchings to nocturnal portraits of the cityscape, Rome’s monuments have become familiar images. Yet…
Rome had a problem. The Tiber River is too shallow for maritime craft. So Roman vessels plying the Mediterranean routes had to…
The story of the rise of Rome is best studied not in the city itself, but in the area surrounding it. It…
Estimates for the date at which early migration out of sub-Saharan Africa occurred vary from 200,000 to 80,000 years ago, the older…
The long-standing debate about the relationship between humans (Homo sapiens) and Neanderthals (Homo neanderthalensis) has just taken an unexpected twist with the…
Until now the study of ancient DNA has been based on the challenging science of extracting genetic material from fossilised bone, but…
Professor Adrian Newton, of the UK’s Bournemouth University, has called for better protection of the threatened fruit forests of Kyrgyzstan, the landlocked…
Among the oldest known examples of symbolic behaviour amongst humans and our close hominid relations is the use of ochre in burial…