News
Unexpected past customs at Paquimé, Mexico, uncovered by ancient DNA
Check out the latest Antiquity blog, in which Antiquity author Dr Jakob Sedig from Harvard University writes about how ancient DNA shed light on past customs in pre-contact Mexico, revealing close-relative mating and child sacrifice amongst elites.
The discovery and investigation of a thirteenth-century shipwreck
Antiquity author and Diving and Maritime Archaeology Officer at Bournemouth University Tom Cousins explores the exciting discovery of a rare example of a medieval shipwreck in English waters.
Jamestown DNA helps solve a 400-year-old mystery and unexpectedly reveals a family secret
Ancient DNA evidence supports the identification of two early colonists buried at the first permanent English settlement in North America, revealing a family secret that was never recorded: one was illegitimate.
Shipwreck highlights medieval England's lucrative trade in valuable stone
Examination of England’s only 13th-century shipwreck finds it was transporting Purbeck Marble, a valuable stone used in many of England’s most iconic religious monuments, presenting a snapshot into medieval England’s complex and flourishing trade networks.
Child sacrifice and close relative mating among elites in precontact Mexico
DNA analysis reveals that a child sacrificed and buried in a ritually-important building at the AD 1200-1450 Mogollon-culture site of Paquimé, Mexico, had closely-related parents. Close relative mating was uncommon in most ancient societies, suggesting it only occurred amongst elites, possibly exclusively for specific rituals.
WHO came to America and WHY? Ancient DNA may hold the answers
Check out the latest Antiquity blog on how ancient DNA revealed a 400-year-old family secret at Jamestown, the first permanent Enlglish settlement in North America, written by Karin Bruwelheide.
Surviving the Apocalypse: Catastrophe Archaeology in Japan
Check out the latest Antiquity blog on the impact of a super-volcano's eruption on prehistoric life in Japan, written by Junzo Uchiyama and Peter Jordan.
Ask an Archaeologist Day
Antiquity is sponsoring the CBA Festival of Archaeology #AskAnArchaeologist Day on Friday 19 July!
The day is a chance for people from all over the world to ask archaeology questions, and for archaeologists to share their knowledge. Follow @AskAnArchDay on Twitter (X) to stay up to date with the day's top tweets.
Festival of Archaeology
It's the Council for British Archaeology Festival of Archaeology! We have made several articles free to access for the festival, check them out here.
Southern African Archaeology Collection
The biennial meeting of the Association of Southern African Professional Archaeologists took place in Lesotho from Monday 24th-Friday 28 June. In recognition, we put together a collection containing the latest research on the archaeology of Southern Africa.
‘Legion: life in the Roman Army’ - the British Museum exhibition
Our latest Review Article (by M.C. Bishop) explores the Legion: life in the Roman Army exhibition at the British Museum, which runs until Sunday 23rd June 2024.
Antiquity Prize 2024
Congratulations to the winners of this year’s Antiquity Prize, whose research on agriculture in the medieval Mediterranean shows how impactful Islamic expansion was on Europe.
Ben Cullen prize 2024
Congratulations to the winners of the 2024 Ben Cullen prize, whose research on a ‘super-eruption’ in south-western Japan shows how Jōmon communities responded to and bounced back from natural disasters in the past.
Glass beads indicate Indigenous Americans shaped early trans-Atlantic trade
Chemical analysis of over 1000 European-made glass beads reveals some reached the Western Great Lakes region of North America before European settlers, showing how Indigenous Americans shaped early trans-Atlantic exchange networks.
Enormous rock engravings may be prehistoric territorial markers
Prehistoric rock engravings in Venezuela and Colombia are likely the biggest in the world, with the largest images measuring more than 40m in length. Their large scale and striking appearance suggest the engravings were intended to mark territorial boundaries.
Earliest cattle herds in northern Europe found in the Netherlands
Archaeologists discover evidence for the earliest cattle herds in northern Europe dating to 4240 BC, at the archaeological site of Swifterbant in the Netherlands, pushing dates for the earliest clear evidence of livestock husbandry in northern Europe back by 200 years.
Origins of medieval coinage revealed
Check out the latest Antiquity blog on the origins of medieval silver coins in western Europe, written by Jane Kershaw and Rory Naismith.
Call of the conch: Indigenous Americans used sound to organise local communities
Computer modelling recreates the range of conch-shell trumpets blown from the great houses of Chacoan settlements in New Mexico, suggesting that communities were built around the sound.
Prehistoric Irish monuments may have been pathways for the dead
Lidar technology reveals hundreds of unrecorded monuments at Baltinglass in County Wicklow, showing clear connections between the dead, major solar events and seasonal farming cycles.
Dramatic burning of royal remains reveals Maya regime change
The public burning of royal remains in a Late Classic Maya pyramid coincides with the takeover of a new political regime, suggesting the desecration was a display of political power.