Artifacts

There are undoubtedly millions of ancient artifacts from the past that have served to shed light on the lives of our ancestors from many millennia ago. But some ancient mystical artifacts stand out for their uniqueness, their intrigue, or their ability to expand our knowledge about previously unknown aspects of our history. Here we feature many such ancient history artifacts, from amazing examples of ancient technology, to artistic masterpieces, unexplained objects, ancient texts, and mysterious artifacts that shed light on the daily lives of our ancestors.

The Roman bronze plaque measures only 26-28 mm in diameter. Source: Museum Vestsjaelland

12 April, 2024 - 22:32 Nathan Falde

Roman Era Bronze Plaque Showing Alexander the Great Found in Denmark

During explorations on the Danish Island of Zealand, a pair of amateur archaeologists unearthed a small but remarkable artifact. While using metal detectors to search for coins or other items at a...

Roman Colosseum, Rome, Italy. Source: Sergey Yarochkin/Adobe Stock

12 April, 2024 - 20:39 Robbie Mitchell

Six Things That Made the Colosseum Unique (Video)

The Colosseum , an architectural marvel in Rome, is renowned for its unique features that set it apart from other ancient structures. Its oval design, accommodating over 50,000 spectators , ensured...

The relics humans have chosen to worship over the course of human history can often help us understand the extent of belief systems and the anatomies of faith. Source: Top: Village Preservation Blog Bottom: epic_images / Adobe Stock; Public domain; Golden Palace Events

12 April, 2024 - 13:09 Aleksa Vučković

Footprints, Fairies and even a Foreskin: 9 Bizarre Relics from History

From time immemorial, people had the need to venerate objects of great significance: religious relics, mythical symbols or depictions of holy figures. As if in answer to this need, the religious...

Helen and Paris fresco, indicated in a Greek inscription placed between the two figures with his other name ‘Alexandros’. Source: Archaeological Park of Pompeii

12 April, 2024 - 00:53 ancient-origins

Spectacular New Frescoes Uncovered in Pompeii

A spectacular banqueting room with elegant black walls, decorated with mythological characters and subjects inspired by the Trojan War, is one of the rooms recently brought to light during the...

The underside of the Etruscan lamp of Cortona. Source: Museo dell'Accademia Etrusca e della città di Cortona/DeGruyter, edited by R. Alburz

11 April, 2024 - 18:04 Sahir

Bronze Lamp Revealed as Dionysus Cult Object in Cortona Italy

An interesting new study has challenged the previous estimations surrounding a beautiful bronze lamp unearthed in a ditch near Cortona, central Italy. Using literary sources and iconographic evidence...

Alan Baxter with his detecting equipment. Source: Alan Baxter

11 April, 2024 - 14:17 Gary Manners

The Carrot Patch Hoard: A Detectorist's Dream Comes True

In a fortunate turn of events, a routine carrot harvest in Fife, Scotland, led to the remarkable discovery of a hoard of ancient coins dating back 500 years. Alan Baxter, a 44-year-old detectorist...

Geometric petroglyphs at Toro Muerto, Peru, possibly represent ancient songs and human figures dancing. Source: A. Rozwadowski, Wołoszyn JZ. / Cambridge Archaeological Journal

10 April, 2024 - 17:50 Sahir

Are Toro Muerto's Petroglyphs in Peru Hallucinogenic Visions in Stone?

A new study has offered a fresh perspective on the enigmatic petroglyphs discovered at Toro Muerto in the Peruvian coastal desert. The site contains intricate designs and petroglyphs, etched onto...

Neolithic settlement of Çatalhöyük, Turkey. Source: Omar hoftun/CC BY-SA 3.0

9 April, 2024 - 23:02 Joanna Gillan

The Unmatched 9,500-Year-Old Honeycomb City of Çatalhöyük

Overlooking the Konya Plain in Turkey lies the remarkable and unique ancient city of Çatalhöyük, the largest and best-preserved Neolithic site found to date. At a time when most of the world's people...

Left; Byzantine silverware, Right; Medieval silver coins from the study. Source: Left; Johnbod/CC BY-SA 4.0, Right; Antiquity Publications Ltd

9 April, 2024 - 17:12 Gary Manners

Medieval England’s Sudden Silver Currency Conversion Solved

After years of speculation, researchers have finally traced the origins of Europe's revolutionary adoption of silver coins in the mid-7th century, uncovering a tale of economic evolution and...

Huge 16th century statue known as the Apennine Colossus by Giambologna in the garden of the Villa Demidoff di Pratolino, Tuscany, Italy. Source: Antonio Scaramuzzino/CC BY NC ND 2.0

9 April, 2024 - 14:50 Riley Winters

Man Out of Mountain: The Striking Figure of the Apennine Colossus

At the feet of the Apennines, Aeneas and his men defeated the Latins in one of the first victories of the early Romans. Amid flying arrows and screaming men, the Latins laid down their weapons and...

Left: Liang Tebo burial features of the 29000-BC amputee of Borneo, Indonesia: a) A single adult inhumation (TB1); the skull is to the right of the scale bar; Middle: Artist ‘s impression of Tebo1, the oldest amputee on record; Right: Surgically amputated site of the left tibia and fibula showing the evidence of amputation. Source: Maloney, et al. / Nature; Jose Garcia (Garciartist) and Griffith University / Nature; Maloney, et al. / Nature

6 April, 2024 - 20:50 Robbie Mitchell

Ancient Medicine: What Was the Earliest Surgery? (Video)

Around 30,000 years ago in Borneo, an ancient surgeon performed a groundbreaking operation on a child with a severe leg injury. Using rudimentary tools likely made of stone, they skillfully severed...

The blue stingray’s disc-like shape would have made it ideal for tracing. Source: Kyle Smith/The Conversation

6 April, 2024 - 01:00 ancient-origins

Stingray Sand ‘Sculpture’ on South Africa’s Coast May Be World’s Oldest

By Charles Helm & Alan Whitfield /The Conversation South Africa’s Cape south coast offers many hints about how our human ancestors lived some 35,000 to 400,000 years ago during the Pleistocene...

Reconstructed wall of Ain Dara Temple with cherubim relief in lower panel. Right, Giant or godly footprints at the gate. Source: Odilia/CC BY-SA 3.0, Right; homocosmicos/Adobe Stock

5 April, 2024 - 15:01 dhwty

The Enigmatic Ain Dara Temple and the Giant Footsteps of the Gods

Ain Dara is a small village in the northwest of Aleppo, Syria, which, until 2018, boasted a remarkable structure – the Ain Dara Temple, located just west of the village. The temple was discovered in...

Fig.1 The experimental henge “Nesshenge” as it looked in 2008. Source: Dr John Hill

3 April, 2024 - 18:00 Dr. John Hill

Nesshenge Revisited: How Does the Reproduction Neolithic Henge Look 15 Years On?

It is not every day that one gets the opportunity to build a replica Neolithic henge earthwork. Moreover, after 15 years of “weathering”, one is amazingly surprised to see that it not only survives...

Building materials piled up ready for installation at the Regio IX part of Pompeii. Source: Pompeii Sites

2 April, 2024 - 22:33 ancient-origins

Preserved Building Site at Pompeii Reveals Roman Construction Techniques

New information relating to Roman construction techniques is emerging from the ongoing excavations at the Archaeological Park of Pompeii. In the rooms of the ancient domus in Region IX, insula 10...

Left: The tiny votive axes were probably utilized within an ancient ceremonial practice. Right: Rolled up lead Roman curse tablets found at the site. Source: Red River Archaeology Group

2 April, 2024 - 17:47 Sahir

Remarkable Roman Villa Unearthed from a Bronze Age Site in England

A Bronze Age site in England, housing a ‘richly decorated Roman villa’ from a later period, has revealed a bounty of artifacts and architectural evidence, which includes aisled buildings adorned with...

The Abydos Kings list cartouches in the Temple of Seti, Abydos. Source: Olaf Tausch/CC BY 3.0

2 April, 2024 - 14:50 mrreese

The Abydos King List Safeguards the Identities of 76 Egyptian Kings

Abydos is one of the oldest ancient Egyptian cities (3,100 – 332 BC) and is one of the most important archaeological sites in all of Egypt. Many ancient temples and tombs can be found there, offering...

Facsimile of Diogo Ribeiro's 1529 Carta Universal. Source: Public Domain

31 March, 2024 - 17:29 Robbie Mitchell

History of Maps: From Ancient Artifacts to Modern Marvels

The history of cartography traces humanity's relentless quest to understand and depict the world around us. From ancient civilizations sketching rudimentary maps to modern digital cartography, this...

The copper axe seems to have been made by the Trypillia, but their culture never made it as far west as Poland. Source: Lublin Provincial Conservator of Monuments / Heritage Daily.

30 March, 2024 - 13:42 Joe Green

Lost in Time and Out of Place: Trypillia Copper Axe is Poland’s Oldest

A remarkable discovery has been made in eastern Poland. Archaeologists have unearthed a copper axe in Poland’s Hrubieszów district which looks for all the world like it belongs to the ancient...

King John’s final campaign in 1216 cost him his life and his crown jewels, but there is new hope the priceless treasure will be found again. Source: Charles A. Buchel / Public Domain.

29 March, 2024 - 16:47 Sahir

Search is On to Find King John’s Lost Crown Jewels

The year is 1216 and King John of England, made famous as the usurper who faced off against Robin Hood, faces open rebellion from his nobles across much of the country. The ailing king is forced to...

Detail of a mural from an Eastern Han tomb (25 to 220 AD) at Zhucun, Luoyang, Henan province. The painting utilizes Han purple and Han blue pigment. Source: Public domain

29 March, 2024 - 13:45 Joanna Gillan

Han Purple: The 2,800-Year-Old Mystery Solved by Quantum Physicists

Han purple, an artificial pigment created by the Chinese over 2,500 years ago, was used in ancient artworks such as wall paintings, the famed terracotta warriors, ceramics, metalware and jewelry. A...

The excavation site of Herculaneum. Source: Jerónimo Roure Pérez/CC BY-SA 4.0

28 March, 2024 - 19:52 Robbie Mitchell

Wooden Furniture of Herculaneum Preserved by Vesuvius (Video)

The wooden furniture unearthed from the ruins of Herculaneum , preserved by the devastating eruption of Mount Vesuvius , provides an extraordinary window into the daily existence of ancient Romans...

Illustration of Paleolithic elephant hunting using spears. Source: Dana Ackerfeld/Tel Aviv University

27 March, 2024 - 22:00 ancient-origins

Stone, Water, and Elephants: Survival Secrets of Early Humans

Tel-Aviv University Archaeologists from Tel Aviv University have uncovered the mystery surrounding extensive Paleolithic stone quarrying and tool-making sites: Why did Homo erectus repeatedly revisit...

Replica of the Hallaton Helmet. The original is set to be displayed at the Harborough Museum in Leicestershire, UK. (Inset; the original helmet) Source: Harborough Museum (Inset; CC BY 2.0)

27 March, 2024 - 17:00 Sahir

The 2,000-year-old Hallaton Helmet Is Reborn in Beautiful Reproduction

A Roman cavalry helmet, initially called a ‘rusty bucket’ has been replicated to show its former glory, 23 years after the original was found in a field in Leicestershire, England. The Hallaton...

Pages