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ANCIENT HISTORY DISCOVERY
In the 1950s, J. Desmond Clark found a notched log at Zambia’s Kalambo Falls but died without proving its age; 60 years later, dating revealed the world’s oldest wooden structure at 476,000 yearsIn the 1950s, archaeologist J. Desmond Clark discovered a notched log at Zambia’s Kalambo Falls. He died without ever proving its true age....
In 218 BCE, Hannibal crossed the Alps with 37 war elephants, 7,000 horses and 40,000 men. 2,244 years later, models show the elephants may have lost just 4% of their fat reserves on the most efficient routeResearchers used modern models to estimate Hannibal's arduous Alpine crossing. The Col de la Traversette appears as the most energy-efficie...
In 1948, scientists abandoned this giant fossil. Nearly 80 years later, it became something nobody expectedScientists identified a new species of ancient amphibian-like creature from an Arctic fossil. This previously unknown creature, Arctobatrac...
Ancient microbes in our backyardA groundbreaking find near Jamshedpur, India, reveals microscopic fossils that may date back 3.5 billion years, showcasing early life forms...
Our Milky Way devoured a galaxy 11.8 billion years ago. Another crash may happen in 4.5 billion yearsThe Milky Way swallowed a smaller dwarf galaxy about 11.8 billion years ago, marking the earliest known merger in its history. Scientists u...
In the 1870s, someone borrowed a book from Kiama Library for one month; 150 years later, Ross Simmons returned it after finding it in a fireplace, but the $20,000 inflation-adjusted fine was never charged by librariansA remarkable library mystery has been solved in Australia after Ross Simmons returned The Antiquities of Athens to Kiama Public Library, ar...
2,000 years ago, a Tamil trader left his name across 5 ancient tombs in Egypt’s Valley of Kings; Here’s what inscriptions revealTamil Brahmi inscriptions were recently identified in ancient Egyptian tombs. These inscriptions reveal Tamil merchants travelled deep into...
'Big Pig Dig': In 1994, two hikers discovered a 34-million-year old site in South Dakota's Badlands with fossils of prehistoric rhinos, small horses and huge carnivorous pigsIn 1994, two hikers stumbled upon enormous bones in South Dakota's Badlands, igniting a wave of scientific exploration that lasted years. T...
112 million years ago, a rainforest thrived in what is now Ecuador; amber from the lost Early Cretaceous forest preserved insects, pollen, and a strand of spider webScientists discovered ancient amber in Ecuador's Napo Province, dating back 112 million years. This amber contains preserved insects and sp...
Pompeii remained frozen in time for nearly 1,700 years. It was discovered by a Spanish engineer looking for ancient treasures in 1748The unearthing of Pompeii in 1748 unveiled a Roman city encased in volcanic ash, granting a unique glimpse into the lives and customs of an...
Why did the Maya hide a jade stone inside their tooth? A mysterious inlay found in an ancient molar offers new clues about one of history’s most intriguing dental practicesNew research indicates that the ancient Maya employed jadeite inlays to repair damaged teeth, as demonstrated by a piece found embedded in ...
In 1969, Australia recovered the Murchison meteorite after it fell near Victoria. Years later, scientists studied stardust hidden inside and discovered grains dating back roughly 7 billion years, before the Solar System existedThe Murchison meteorite carried something far older than Earth. Scientists found tiny silicon carbide grains inside it that formed nearly 7...
Italian divers found a 2,100-year-old Roman shipwreck beneath 151 feet of water; its cargo still held about 500 wine jarsAn underwater fisherman discovered a Roman shipwreck near Mazara del Vallo. Hundreds of ancient wine jars, called amphorae, were found pile...
‘The Walking Dead’s Merle Dixon was almost real: 1,400 years ago, an Italian man lost his hand and replaced it with a knifeA 1,400-year-old skeleton found in northern Italy revealed the remarkable story of a Medieval man who survived the loss of his right hand a...
In the 2nd century CE, Romans built a mysterious structure near the Colosseum decorated with sea creatures. Nearly 2,000 years later, its mosaic offered a surprising clue that it may have housed Rome's firefightersBeneath the ancient soil of Rome’s Caelian Hill, just steps from the iconic Colosseum, archaeologists stumbled upon a stunning two-thousand...
Humans built cities, fought wars & watched empires disappear while one tree kept growing: Over 5,000 years old, the world’s oldest tree Methuselah was discovered like thisMethuselah, a venerable bristlecone pine believed to be nearly five millennia old, grows in California’s White Mountains. This extraordinar...
Colourful mosaic, bathhouse, luxury artifacts: 1600-year-old Roman villa discovered beneath English farmlandArchaeologists discovered an elaborate Roman villa beneath farmland in southwest England. The site revealed a well-preserved polychrome mos...
120 kg of gold, 2 million ancient coins and a rare Confucius portrait found in the tomb of a Chinese emperor who ruled for just 27 days — archaeologists uncover a 2,000-year-old fortune buried with the fallen rulerA 2,000-year-old Chinese tomb linked to Liu He, the emperor who ruled for just 27 days, has revealed more than 2 million ancient bronze coi...
In 2017, hundreds of fossil eggs in China revealed that Pterosaurs or ancient flying reptiles may have raised their youngIn a remarkable discovery, paleontologists in China unearthed hundreds of fossilized pterosaur eggs and bones, dating back 120 million year...
300 mysterious paintings in a cave with no sunlight: For 1500 years, Native Americans kept returning to this site. Now scientists know whyA new study has revealed why Native Americans kept returning to Missouri's Picture Cave for nearly 1,500 years. By radiocarbon dating pigme...