Popular Archeology – exploring the past

Pushing Back the Timeline on the Earliest Stone Tools
by Michael Gordon
New discoveries in Kenya may be changing long-accepted paradigms on stone toolmaking.
Laetoli 2: The Unfolding Story
by James Kensington
A NEW UPDATE: 3.66-million-year-old footprint finds at the iconic hominin site of Laetoli may be changing what we know about ancient human-related ancestors.
The Update: Trackways of Otero 2
by Michael Gordon
The latest unequivocal evidence of a human presence more than 20,000 years ago in present-day New Mexico may help confirm a changing paradigm on the early settling of the Americas.
Revealing a Medieval City in the Land of Fire
by Fariz Khalilli and Shola Bayramova
Archaeologists are unearthing the remains of medieval Agsu City in Azerbaijan.
Excavating & Drawing in Oaxaca: Discussions with Archaeologist Guy Hepp
by Richard Marranca
An interview with archaeologist Guy Hepp about his experience and knowledge related to the ancient people of Oaxaca in current-day southwestern Mexico.
National Geographic Wayfinder Award Recipient – Aliaa Ismail and the New Era of Techno-Archaeology
by Eric Vasallo
Aliaa Ismail pioneers the 'magic' and use of technology to make ancient Egypt accessible to everyone.
Petrarch…The Original Latin Lover
by Frank Korn
His storied life was dominated by two enduring loves: one of the heart, the other of the mind. The stunningly beautiful Laura was the object of the first; the romantic mystery of long ago Rome, the second. Both held him in thrall throughout his earthly days. Born to a Florentine exile and his wife at ... Read more »

Popular Archaeology is a quarterly online magazine exploring the human past, from prehistoric beginnings to the present day. See About Us for more details. Regular subscriptions are FREE. Access to all premium level content (our best articles, including all back-issue premium articles) is only $9.00 annually.

Travel and learn with Far Horizons.

Cover Stories

Ancient Balkan genomes trace the rise and fall of Roman Empire’s frontier, reveal Slavic migrations to southeastern Europe

A multidisciplinary study has reconstructed the genomic history of the Balkan Peninsula during the first millennium of the common era.

Baboons in captivity in Ancient Egypt: insights from collection of mummies

Skeletal pathologies in baboons from near Thebes indicate likely poor diet and limited sunlight.

Straight-tusked elephant exploitation by Neanderthals

Early humans hunted beavers 400,000 years ago

Evidence from eastern Germany shows that early humans had a more varied diet than previously known.

‘Woman the hunter’: Studies aim to correct history

AI: Researchers develop automatic text recognition for ancient cuneiform tablets

Radiocarbon dating meets Egyptology and Biblical accounts in the city of Gezer

New dates allow testing of proposed correlations between texts and archaeological remains.

Giant Stone Hand Axe May Rewrite Prehistory in a Region of Saudi Arabia

Initially assessed at over 200,000 years old, it sheds more light on the Middle Paleolithic presence of humans in present-day Saudi Arabia.

Long-distance weaponry identified at the 31,000-year-old archaeological site of Maisières-Canal

A study conducted by TraceoLab at the University of Liège reveals the existence of long-distance weaponry 10,000 years earlier than previously estimated.

Larger-scale warfare may have occurred in Europe 1,000 years earlier

See the full Cover Articles archive →

Other Stories

Royal Commission for AlUla (RCU) partners with luxury hotel operator GHM to develop The Chedi Hegra within the Hegra UNESCO World Heritage Site

Rare Roman wooden figure uncovered by HS2 archaeologists in Buckinghamshire

Earliest human remains in eastern Africa dated to more than 230,000 years ago

HS2 archaeologists uncover vast Roman trading settlement in Northamptonshire

Mysterious ancient tombs reveal 4,500-year-old highway network in north-west Arabia

Research reveals ancient Maya lessons on surviving drought

Huge variety of plant foods made their starvation unlikely.

Nits on ancient mummies shed light on South American ancestry

New technique means head lice can provide clues about ancient people and migration.

Scientists digitally ‘unwrap’ mummy of pharaoh Amenhotep I for the first time in 3,000 years

Study shows that 21st dynasty restorers ‘lovingly restored’ mummy, dispelling theory that they were bent on reusing old royal burial equipment.

Tsunami debris from Late Bronze Age eruption

Preservation of ancient DNA in sediments

Ancient DNA reveals the world’s oldest family tree

New dates for Viking trade

Solar flare throws light on ancient trade between the Islamic Middle East and the Viking Age.

Ostrich eggshell beads reveal 50,000-year-old social network across Africa

Humans Reached Remote North Atlantic Islands Centuries Earlier Than Thought

Faroes Settled Well Before Vikings Arrived, Lake Sediments Show.

Europe’s earliest female infant burial reveals a Mesolithic society that honored its youngest members

2,700-year-old leather armor proves technology transfer happened in antiquity

Mystery solved: Footprints from site A at Laetoli, Tanzania, are from early humans, not bears

Findings provide conclusive evidence that multiple species of hominins co-existed on the landscape.

Canine tooth sexual dimorphism in human evolution

Volcanic eruptions contributed to collapse of China dynasties

Eruptions create sulfuric acid clouds in the upper atmosphere and can cool the climate.

Siege ramps and breached walls: Ancient warfare and the Assyrian conquest of Lachish

A Child of darkness

The first partial skull of a child of Homo naledi begins to give us insight into all stages of life of this remarkable species.

Rediscovering the ancient social networks and industries of Indus Civilization villages

Experts name new species of human ancestor

More than ceremonial, ancient Chaco Canyon was home, new study says

Early puebloans impacted the ecosystem around Chaco Canyon earlier than previously believed.

A wooden toe: Swiss Egyptologists study 3,000-year-old prosthesis

See the full archive for Other Articles →