After Ukraine’s Kakhovka Dam Disaster, a Hunt for Ancient Treasures
After the Kakhovka dam was blown up in June, the reservoir above it quickly drained, revealing a bonanza of artifacts that has electrified Ukrainian archaeologists.
Archaeology and Anthropology
Australia Will Return Looted Sculptures to Cambodia
A centuries-old Buddhist sculpture was taken from a rural area in Cambodia nearly 30 years ago. It was later sold with two other statues to the National Gallery of Australia.
Move Over, Men: Women Were Hunters, Too
Anthropologists are finding that women in modern foraging societies have played a major role in catching game.
Nero’s Theater Believed to Be Found in Rome
A dig at a palace set to become a hotel has unearthed traces of a theater that archaeologists hypothesize was built by Nero, the emperor with a disputed reputation for tyranny and debauchery.
Archaeologists Find Maya City in an ‘Empty Zone’ of the Yucatán Map
In a biological preserve in Mexico’s Campeche State, a team of archaeologists has documented pyramids, palaces, a ball court and other remains of an ancient city they call Ocomtún.
Artifacts Stolen From Kenya Decades Ago Are Returned
Even after museums decide to return stolen artifacts to their countries of origin, tariffs and red tape can prolong the process.
Tourist Seen Defacing Rome’s Colosseum Says He Didn’t Know It Was Ancient
A man who etched his initials and those of his girlfriend in a wall of the nearly 2,000-year-old monument wrote a letter of apology, and his lawyer says he is hoping for a plea bargain.
Cannibalism, or ‘Clickbait’?
A recent study offered the “oldest decisive evidence” that our ancient hominid ancestors ate one another. But the field has a long history of overstating such claims, other paleoanthropologists note.
Building Boom on Mykonos Reveals ‘Wretched’ Side of Greece’s Recovery
Investors are eager to cash in on soaring demand for luxury properties, but an attack on an archaeologist investigating building violations brought a darker underbelly to light.
DNA Confirms Oral History of Swahili People
A genetic analysis of dozens of ancient skeletons from East Africa helps pin down the origins of coastal Swahili society.