Conducting the first large-scale, genome-wide analyses of ancient human remains from the Near East, an international team led by Harvard Medical School has illuminated the genetic identities and population dynamics of the world's first farmers.
The study reveals three genetically...
It is still unclear how the Neanderthals died out. For long, one theory seemed most likely: the emergence of the highly intelligent Homo sapiens, or modern humans. This competition hypothesis is no longer the dominant theory among scientists, research...
It was all about the ochre.
Thousands of years ago, the first inhabitants of the Americas journeyed deep into caves in present-day Mexico to mine red ochre, a highly valued, natural clay earth pigment used as paint.
Now, according to a new...
New archaeological research from The Australian National University (ANU) has found that Homo erectus, an extinct species of primitive humans, went extinct in part because they were 'lazy'.
An archaeological excavation of ancient human populations in the Arabian Peninsula during...
By analysing a prehistoric site in the Libyan desert, a team of researchers from the universities of Huddersfield, Rome and Modena & Reggio Emilia has been able to establish that people in Saharan Africa were cultivating and storing wild...
Was burial of the dead practiced by Neandertals or is it an innovation specific to our species? There are indications in favour of the first hypothesis but some scientists remain sceptical. For the first time in Europe, however, a...
An examination of two documented periods of climate change in the greater Middle East, between approximately 4,500 and 3,000 years ago, reveals local evidence of resilience and even of a flourishing ancient society despite the changes in climate seen...
Funnel for beer making from Mijiaya. Credit: Jiajing Wang.
Residue on pottery unearthed at an archeological site in northern China has revealed traces of a 5,000-year-old beer recipe that contained elements of East and West, researchers said Monday.
The site offers...
General dorsal view of holotype of new late Cretaceous worker ants Ceratomyrmex ellenbergeri. Credit: WANG Bo
Ants comprise one lineage of the triumvirate of eusocial insects and experienced their early diversification within the Cretaceous. The success of ants is generally...
An international team, led by an archaeologist from the University of Southampton and the University of Bordeaux, has revealed the first example of Palaeolithic figurative cave art found in the Balkan Peninsula.
Dr. Aitor Ruiz-Redondo worked with researchers from the...
A two-meter-long painting of a kangaroo in Western Australia's Kimberley region has been identified as Australia's oldest intact rock painting.
Using the radiocarbon dating of 27 mud wasp nests, collected from over and under 16 similar paintings, a University of Melbourne collaboration...
