news 2024

An international team of archaeologists, including researchers from the VUB, has analyzed more than 3,000 human bones and bone fragments from the Charterhouse Warren site in England, a location dated to the Early Bronze Age. The site represents the first evidence from the Bronze Age of a human massacre carried out by another hostile group, with indications of cannibalism.

University of Bonn Researcher Involved in Sensational Find in Frankfurt University of Bonn Researcher Involved in Sensational Find in Frankfurt Inscription on 3rd-century amulet capsule highly significant, says Professor Wolfram Kinzig Some time ago, archaeological excavations in the Praunheim district of Frankfurt am Main uncovered a burial ground from the 3rd century.

Scientists unravel timing and impact of Neandertal gene flow into early modern humans Ancient DNA research suggests that our non-African ancestors mixed with Neandertals about 50,000 years ago, resulting in one to two percent Neandertal DNA in non-African modern humans. In a study of 300 genomes, researchers from the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology in Leipzig and the University of California, Berkeley found that this likely occurred in a single instance about 47,000 years ago, suggesting a human migration out of Africa no later than 43,500 years ago.

Genomes of seven early Europeans show they belonged to a small, isolated group that had recently mixed with Neandertals but left no present-day descendants Few genomes have been sequenced from early modern humans, who first arrived in Europe when the region was already inhabited by Neandertals. An international team led by researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology has now sequenced the oldest modern human genomes to date.

On the banks of the Rhône, at the foot of the Massif du Malpas, a team of Inrap archaeologists has excavated part of an ancient spa area, occupied between the 1st and 4th centuries AD.

In a surprising discovery, researchers have found evidence of an African intestinal parasite in a 500-year-old cesspit in Bruges. The find offers valuable insights into how diseases spread in the past. The research, a collaboration between Canada's McMaster University and Ghent University, shows how migration and trade contributed to the spread of infectious diseases such as schistosomiasis.

Major 25-year study reveals a "dual pathway" for when people start carrying. Carrying a concealed firearm is now a common event in the life course for Americans Charles Lanfear Around a third (32%) of people who grew up in Chicago have carried a concealed firearm on the city streets at least once by the time they turn 40 years old, according to a major study of gun usage taking in a quarter of a century of data.

Genetic study also reveals long-distance travelling in Neolithic societies An international team of researchers led by Pere Gelabert and Ron Pinhasi of the University of Vienna and David Reich of Harvard University has produced the most complete set of Early Neolithic genetic data from Central Europe to date.

A new study in the journal Nature shows that the oceans were less cold in the early 20th century (1900-1930) than previously thought. During this period the ocean appears too cold due to the way some measurements were taken. This makes global ocean surface temperature measurements during this period inconsistent with both land air temperatures and palaeoclimatic data and the differences between land and ocean are larger than shown in climate models.

Evidence of oldest known alphabetic writing unearthed in ancient Syrian city Archaeological findings suggest alphabetic writing may be some 500 years older than other discoveries What appears to be evidence of some of the oldest alphabetic writing in human history is etched onto finger-length, clay cylinders excavated from a tomb in Syria by a team of Johns Hopkins researchers.

A new study published in the journal Nature Communications examines the use of ochre in southern Africa and shows that the earth mineral has been used there as a dye and for ritual purposes for almost 50,000 years. The researchers analyzed 173 samples from 15 Stone Age sites and reconstructed methods of ochre extraction, use and transport networks, with local strategies and long-distance trade playing a role.

The Roman-era temple of Esna, 60 kilometers south of Luxor in Egypt, is undergoing extensive restoration work in an Egyptian-German cooperation project.

In a thrilling quest to uncover secrets from one of Scotland's most significant historical sites, archaeologists and volunteers have begun a remarkable dig at Culloden Battlefield, where the course of British, European and world history changed dramatically nearly 280 years ago. Experts armed with both traditional archaeology tools and cutting-edge technology are peeling back layers of earth to reveal untold stories of the final clash of the Jacobite Rising in 1746.

Göttingen archaeology team uncovers representative room - colonnaded courtyards with fountains For more than 20 years, archaeologists from the University of Göttingen have been researching how people lived and traded in Sicily in the past. Now they have made another important discovery: In the province of Catania, they excavated the remains of a Roman house with a mosaic floor from the 2nd to 4th century AD.

Joint discovery by an Armenian-German team in the ancient city of Artaxata Archaeologists from the National Academy of Sciences of Armenia and the University of Münster have discovered the remains of a previously unknown early Christian church in the ancient city of Artaxata. The find consists of an octagonal building with cruciform extensions.

PUM launches a collection of comic strips. The first two volumes address the problems of access to vaccination during the pandemic and the sociology of young people in public places. A new collection entitled "Enquêtes scientifiques" is being launched this autumn by Presses de l'Université de Montréal (PUM), offering an original and accessible approach to disseminating scientific approaches in the form of comic strips.

Researchers study marks on spearheads creating reference data to understand fighting in past   How can we tell whether and how a prehistoric weapon was used? How can we better understand the dexterity and combat skills involved in Bronze Age spear fighting? A research team including Göttingen University present a new approach to answering these questions: they simulated the actual fight step-by-step to get new insights into fighting styles and the formation of marks on the weapons.

Multi-disciplinary archaeological survey at the site of Oued Beht, Morocco, reveals a previously unknown 3400-2900 BC farming society, shedding new light on North Africa's role in Mediterranean prehistory. For over thirty years I have been convinced that Mediterranean archaeology has been missing something fundamental Prof Cyprian Broodbank Archaeological fieldwork in Morocco has discovered the earliest, previously unknown 3400-2900 BC farming society from a poorly understood period of north-west African prehistory.

The skeletal remains of a senior officer of Sir John Franklin's 1845 Northwest Passage expedition have been identified by researchers from the University of Waterloo and Lakehead University using DNA and genealogical analyses. In April of 1848 James Fitzjames of HMS Erebus helped lead 105 survivors from their ice-trapped ships in an attempt to escape the Arctic.