Archaeology
- Earth
Mexican silver made it into English coins
Chemical tests of currency help reveal where New World riches flowed.
- Humans
Oldest examples of hunting weapon uncovered in South Africa
A common ancestor of people and Neandertals may have flung stone-tipped shafts at animal prey.
- Humans
An ancient civilization’s wet ascent, dry demise
Cave data suggest that ancient rainfall patterns swayed the course of Classic Maya societies.
- Humans
Ancient blades served as early weapons
African find reveals complex toolmaking 71,000 years ago.
- Humans
Feather finds hint at Neandertal art
Plumage found at ancient sites may indicate capability for abstract thought among humans’ Stone Age cousins.
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- Humans
Herders, not farmers, built Stonehenge
Farming’s temporary demise in ancient Britain may have spurred the creation of the iconic stone circle.
- Humans
Good times led to grisly custom
Ancient Chileans developed artificial mummification after an increase in the numbers of living and dead people made naturally preserved bodies hard to ignore.
- Anthropology
Sticks, stones and bones reveal emergence of a hunter-gatherer culture
A cave in southern Africa was occupied by people very much like those living in the region today.
- Humans
Apocalypse, not so fast
Guatemalan find suggests mention of a date far in the future served a Maya king’s immediate needs.
- Archaeology
Oldest pottery comes from Chinese cave
New dates show that East Asian hunter-gatherers fired up cooking vessels 20,000 years ago.
- Humans
Ancient North Africans got milk
Pottery study unveils early dairy practices among Saharan cattle herders.
