Ancient news stories

Stone tools from a cave on South Africa’s coast speak of life at the end of the Ice Age
20th June 2025 phys.org | Ancient, Humans

A new study analyzes stone tools from the cave that date to about 19,000 to 18,000 years ago, and discusses how the techniques used to make them hint at the ways that prehistoric people traveled, interacted, and shared their craft.

Earliest evidence of humans in the Americas confirmed
19th June 2025 phys.org | Ancient, Humans

A new study supports the 2021 findings—this time relying on ancient mud to radiocarbon date the footprints, not seeds and pollen, and an independent lab to make the analysis. The paper was published in the journal Science Advances.

Neanderthal extinction: a space physicist reopens the debate
19th June 2025 theconversation.com | Ancient, Humans, Space

One of the latest developments is a recent study from the University of Michigan, published in the journal Science Advances. It proposes that Neanderthals went extinct for astrophysical reasons.

First ever skull from ‘Denisovan’ reveals what ancient people looked like
19th June 2025 | nature.com | Ancient, Humans

A prominent brow ridge with a brain as large as modern humans and Neanderthals — that’s what the archaic human group, the Denisovans, looked like, according to work published this week in Cell and Science.

Ancient DNA reveals new clues about the incredible journey of dogs in the Americas
18th June 2025 | ox.ac.uk | Ancient, Humans

major new study led by Dr Aurélie Manin from the School of Archaeology at the University of Oxford has traced the incredible journey of humankind’s best friend across the Americas, showing how dogs slowly spread southward alongside early farming societies – mirroring the rhythms of human migration, agriculture and cultural change. 

Ice Age shelter high up in the Blue Mountains reveals Aboriginal heritage from 20,000 years ago
17th June 2025 theconversation.com | Ancient, Earth, Humans

Looking around, you could easily assume this cold and barren high country was too difficult for people to spend time in. But our new research, published today in Nature Human Behaviour, indicates Dargan Shelter was occupied as early as the last Ice Age and repeatedly visited during this cold period.

Rare sperm whale tooth unearthed at Copper Age megasite sheds light on ancient human-sea connections
17th June 2025 phys.org | Ancient, Animal Life, Humans

This rare find, dating back to a 5,300- to 4,150-year-old mega-village, is the first of its kind ever recorded in Late Prehistoric Iberia, according to findings published in PLOS One.

Did the Big Bang take place inside a black hole?
16th June 2025 cosmosmagazine.com | Ancient, Humans

A new paper, published in Physical Review D (full preprint here), proposes a striking alternative. Their calculations suggest the Big Bang was not the start of everything, but rather the outcome of a gravitational crunch or collapse that formed a very massive black hole—followed by a bounce inside it.

Mysterious boat burial practices on the desert’s edge: Study sheds light on ancient Xiaohe funerary rites
16th June 2025 phys.org | Ancient, Humans

A recent study by Dr. Gino Caspari revisits early interpretations of Xiaohe burial practices, highlighting the importance of considering them within the broader cultural and environmental contexts. “The funerary ritual is completely different from the surrounding cultures, and that is part of the fascination of this culture.”

Research shows how pigs were domesticated from wild boars in China
12th June 2025 cosmosmagazine.com | Ancient, Animal Life, Humans

Analysis of 8,000-year-old teeth has revealed how pigs were first domesticated from wild boars in what is today South China. The new study was published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Anthropologists map Neanderthals’ long and winding roads across Europe and Eurasia
10th June 2025 phys.org | Ancient, Humans

Recent scholarship has concluded that Neanderthals made a second major migration from Eastern Europe to Central and Eastern Eurasia between 120,000 and 60,000 years ago. But the routes they took have long been a mystery—primarily because there are few archaeological sites connecting the two regions. The research, which appears in the journal PLOS One.

New evidence reveals advanced maritime technology in the philippines 35,000 years ago
9th June 2025 | sciencedaily.com | Ancient, Humans

In a bold reimagining of Southeast Asia s prehistory, scientists reveal that the Philippine island of Mindoro was a hub of human innovation and migration as far back as 35,000 years ago. Advanced tools, deep-sea fishing capabilities, and early burial customs show that early humans here weren t isolated they were maritime pioneers shaping a wide-reaching network across the region. See the paper here: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S2352226725000261?via%3Dihub

Scientists Used Mushrooms To Invent a Plastic That’s Alive
9th June 2025 | vice.com | Ancient, Earth, Humans

Scientists are turning to something that’s been quietly fixing nature for billions of years: mushrooms.

Ancient DNA reveals Asian connection to Papua New Guinean people
9th June 2025 cosmosmagazine.com | Ancient, Humans

Despite their critical role in the human history of the Pacific region, this group’s genetic diversity is understudied, the researchers say. Their findings are in a paper published in the journal Nature Ecology & Evolution.

Tooth fossil analysis upends current theory of prehistoric human evolution
6th June 2025 | earth.com | Ancient, Humans

A new study, led by Palesa Madupe of the Globe Institute at the University of Copenhagen, has revealed protein-based evidence of hidden genetic variation within Paranthropus robustus. This suggests that the prehistoric humans may not have been a single, uniform species after all. The study is published in the journal Science.

Image by – José Braga;Didier Descouens (Wiki Commons)

‘Cone-headed’ skull from Iran was bashed in 6,200 years ago, but no one knows why
6th June 2025 | livescience.com | Ancient, Humans, Weird

Archaeologists in Iran have unearthed the unusual skull of a young woman who died in a traumatic incident over 6,000 years ago. The study was published May 22 in the International Journal of Osteoarchaeology.

News stories covering history, archaeology, ancient Egypt, and mysteries of the past.