Anthropology
How mythology could help demystify dog domestication
The path that dog myths took around the world closely parallels that of dog domestication, a new study finds.
Archaeology
More Stories in Archaeology
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ArchaeologyBritons’ tools from 560,000 years ago have emerged from gravel pits
A new study confirms that an archaeological site in southeastern England called Fordwich is one of the oldest hominid sites in the country.
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ArchaeologyAncient bacterial DNA hints Europe’s Black Death started in Central Asia
Archaeological and genetic data pin the origins of Europe’s 1346–1353 bubonic plague to a bacterial strain found in graves in Asia from the 1330s.
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AnthropologyA new origin story for domesticated chickens starts in rice fields 3,500 years ago
Chickens, popular on today’s menus, got their start in Southeast Asia surprisingly recently, probably as exotic or revered animals, researchers say.
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ArchaeologyLasers reveal ancient urban sprawl hidden in the Amazon
South America’s Casarabe culture built a network of large and small settlements in what’s now Bolivia centuries before the Spanish arrived.
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ArchaeologyA special brew may have calmed Inca children headed for sacrifice
The mummified remains contained a substance that may reduce anxiety and is found in ayahuasca, a psychedelic ceremonial liquid still drunk today.
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HumansPrehistoric people may have used light from fires to create dynamic art
When brought near flickering flames, prehistoric stone engravings of animals seem to move, experiments with replicas and virtual reality show.
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ArchaeologyAncient ‘smellscapes’ are wafting out of artifacts and old texts
In studying and reviving long-ago scents, archaeologists aim to understand how people experienced, and interpreted, their worlds through smell.
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Particle PhysicsMuons spill secrets about Earth’s hidden structures
Tracking travel patterns of subatomic particles called muons helps reveal the inner worlds of pyramids, volcanoes and more.
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ArchaeologyThis hieroglyph is the oldest known record of the Maya calendar
Plaster fragments with the markings date to at least 200 B.C. and indicate that the calendar system, still used today, might be centuries older.