Archaeology
- Humans
The earliest known pants are surprisingly modern — and comfy
This 3,000-year-old garment was not only stylish but also functional. By recreating it, scientists also unraveled its complex and multicultural origins.
- Archaeology
Our species may have reached Europe while Neandertals were there
Archaeological finds from an ancient French rock-shelter show periodic settlements by both populations, just not at the same time.
- Animals
Mysterious kunga is the oldest known human-bred hybrid animal
People bred these animals — part donkey, part wild ass — some 4,500 years ago, probably for use in fighting wars.
- Archaeology
Vikings were in North America 1,000 years ago
Wooden objects provide the most precise dating yet for a Viking settlement on the coast of Newfoundland in Canada.
- Humans
Genetics show humans likely trace back to Africa
Our history began looking ever more complex once geneticists revealed our ancestors picked up new DNA as they traveled across time and continents.
- Archaeology
A medieval grave may have held a powerful nonbinary person
A 1,000-year-old grave in Finland, once thought to hold a respected woman warrior, may belong to someone who didn’t have a strictly male or female identity.
- Archaeology
Skeletons point to world’s oldest known shark attacks
The newfound remains came from people who had lived thousands of years ago in Peru and Japan, half a world apart.
- Humans
How torchlight, lamps and fire illuminated Stone Age cave art
Experiments with stone lamps and torches are helping scientists see 12,500-year-old cave art with fresh eyes.
- Archaeology
Fossils unearthed in Israel reveal possible new human ancestor
They come from a previously unknown Stone Age group that may represent a complex mashup of early members of our genus Homo.
- Archaeology
Tennessee site yields oldest known American tattoo tools
Native Americans may have used sharpened turkey leg bones as tattoo needles between 5,520 and 3,620 years ago.
- Genetics
Europe’s ancient humans often hooked up with Neandertals
DNA from ancient bones shows humans and Neandertals were regularly mixing genes by about 45,000 years ago.
- Archaeology
Unusual mud shell covers an Egyptian mummy
In ancient Egypt, commoners may have been mummified and then encased in mud to repair damage to the body or to imitate royal techniques used with royals.
