Tooth unlocks mystery of Denisovans in Asia
Denisovans, a sister species of modern human, inhabited Laos by 164-131,000 years ago with important implications for populations out of Africa and Australia.
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Cover Stories
Where were Herod the Great’s royal alabaster bathtubs quarried?
Bar-Ilan University study provides definitive evidence of the origin of the alabaster whose quality met Herod's lavish standards.
Composition of incense in ancient China
The genetic origins of the world’s first farmers clarified
Livestock and dairying led to dramatic social changes in ancient Mongolia, U-M study shows
Complex human childbirth and cognitive abilities a result of walking upright
Indigenous peoples have shucked billions of oysters around the world sustainably
Global study of indigenous oyster fisheries finds evidence of huge harvests spanning hundreds and even thousands of years.
Before Stonehenge monuments, hunter-gatherers made use of open habitats
Study investigates habitat conditions encountered by first farmers and monument-builders.
Neanderthals of the north
Flexible adaptation to changing environmental conditions.
Friendship ornaments from the Stone Age
See the full Cover Articles archive →
Other Stories
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.
New dates for Viking trade
Solar flare throws light on ancient trade between the Islamic Middle East and the Viking Age.
Humans Reached Remote North Atlantic Islands Centuries Earlier Than Thought
Faroes Settled Well Before Vikings Arrived, Lake Sediments Show.
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.
Volcanic eruptions contributed to collapse of China dynasties
Eruptions create sulfuric acid clouds in the upper atmosphere and can cool the climate.
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.
More than ceremonial, ancient Chaco Canyon was home, new study says
Early puebloans impacted the ecosystem around Chaco Canyon earlier than previously believed.
Multispectral imaging reveals ancient Hebrew inscription undetected for over 50 years
Military correspondence from the First Temple period discovered on reverse side of well-studied artifact at The Israel Museum, Tel Aviv University researchers say.
