Anthropology
Mass Grave of Women and Children Shows Brutality of Iron Age Culture
This recent archaeological find tells a chilling story
The Poison-Arrow Technology of Our Hunter-Gatherer Ancestors
Tipping their arrowheads with poison may have tipped the survival odds in their favor
Did Humans or Climate Push the Neanderthals Over the Edge?
A new model of what went down in one of the Neanderthals’ last holdouts
How Christianity Redrew Ancient Nubian Tattoos
Markings on remains unearthed from modern-day Sudan suggest that the religion’s rise influenced the design and application of body ink
Top Roman Military Officers Loved Their Pet Monkeys
An animal cemetery at a once-bustling port adds to growing evidence that Romans collected and deeply cared for these primates
How Monogamous Are Humans Actually?
How we rank among species on fidelity to a single partner may have shaped our evolution
Archaeologists Uncover Lost Opioid Tradition in Ancient Egypt
Chemical traces in a royal vase suggest the narcotic may have been a routine part of life
Was This Mysterious Mountain Feature an Incan Tax Document?
Thousands of holes dot a mountain in Peru—they might have been used by the Inca to tally tributes
Neanderthals: Do a Little Art and Take a Stroll on the Beach
Two recent discoveries about the extinct human species refine our understanding of our evolutionary kin
Have We Learned King Tut’s Lessons?
Just over a century ago today, British archaeologists discovered the entrance to the Ancient Egyptian monarch’s tomb … eventually scattering its treasures far and wide
This Inca Building was the Original Boom Box
A 600-year-old temple was likely designed to amplify drum beats and music
How Scavenging Made Us Human
Our early ancestors were more like vultures than we might like to think
