Stonehenge quiz: What do you know about the ancient monument?
The massive monument Stonehenge has captivated people's attention for centuries. Built out of enormous stones on Salisbury Plain, the prehistoric landmark is arguably the most famous ancient construction in England, and it became a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1986.But Stonehenge is not just a singular, one-off monument — it was built, added to, altered…
1.4 million-year-old jaw that was ‘a bit weird for Homo’ turns...
A 1.4 million-year-old fossil jaw belongs to a previously unknown human relative from southern Africa, a new study finds.The extinct human relative is from the genus Paranthropus, whose nickname is "nutcracker man" because of its massive jaws and huge molars. However, the newfound Paranthropus species has a more diminutive jawbone and teeth, indicating that the…
Dolní Věstonice Portrait Head: The oldest known human portrait in the...
Name: Dolní Věstonice Portrait HeadWhat it is: A face carved out of mammoth ivoryWhere it is from: The South Moravian region of the Czech RepublicWhen it was made: About 24000 B.C.Related: Bayeux Tapestry: A 1,000-year-old embroidery depicting William the Conqueror's victory and King Harold's grisly deathWhat it tells us about the past:This sculpture, discovered at…
Dolní Vĕstonice Portrait Head: The oldest known human portrait in the...
Name: Dolní Vĕstonice Portrait HeadWhat it is: A face carved out of mammoth ivoryWhere it is from: The South Moravian region of the Czech RepublicWhen it was made: About 24000 B.C.Related: Bayeux Tapestry: A 1,000-year-old embroidery depicting William the Conqueror's victory and King Harold's grisly deathWhat it tells us about the past:This sculpture, discovered at…
Here’s how ancient Amazonians became master maize farmers
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Ice age Europeans as young as 10 years old rocked cheek...
Strange, flat patches on the teeth of ancient Europeans have puzzled archaeologists for centuries. But one researcher thinks he's solved the mystery: Ice age people as young as 10 years old rocked cheek piercings.These piercings likely signaled a person's membership in a group, according to John Willman, a biological anthropologist at the University of Coimbra…
Human evolution quiz: What do you know about Homo sapiens?
Ever since Charles Darwin detailed the mechanism of evolution by means of natural selection in 1859, scientists have had a way to understand how life on Earth changed over millions of years. Today, we know that Homo sapiens evolved from a primate ancestor, and we can trace our history back through multiple species.But how much…
7,000-year-old bone holds 3 arrowheads with mixed poisons — the oldest...
In 1983 archaeologists excavating a cave in South Africa discovered an unusual femur bone. It belonged to an unspecified antelope and was found to be 7,000 years old. X-rays revealed that three modified bone arrowheads had been placed into the marrow cavity.At the conclusion of the 1983 excavation the bone, together with other artifacts recovered…
7 haunting caves ancient humans used for art, burials and butchering
Caves are natural shelters. Throughout our history, humans have made extensive use of them as spaces to create art, inter the dead and butcher animals for food and clothing. In this countdown, Live Science takes a look at seven incredible caves that people used over the ages, leaving behind evidence of their crafts, dead and…
Medieval ‘vampire’ burial in Croatia contains decapitated and twisted remains
The discovery of an unusual "vampire" burial in Croatia shows the endurance of such beliefs in eastern medieval Europe, according to researchers."We know that in many Slavic countries, belief in evil spirits persisted" even after the adoption of Christianity, Nataša Šarkić, an independent archaeologist who researched the find, told Live Science in an email. "The…