Archaeology, features and articles | Educational Science

Feb 6, 2023

Statue of slain Roman emperor dressed as Hercules found near sewer in Rome

A newly found statue in Rome appears to depict a slain Roman emperor dressed as Hercules. It may offer insight to the viewpoint of a Roman emperor who embraced traditional Greco-Roman gods at a time when Christianity was spreading throughout the empire. Gaius Messius Quintus Trajanus Decius, also known as...

Feb 28, 2023

Ancient Roman 'spike defenses' made famous by Julius Caesar found in Germany

In 52 B.C., Julius Caesar used an ingenious system of ditches and stakes to defend his soldiers from an encroaching Gallic army in modern-day central France. More than two millennia later, archaeologists have discovered the first preserved example of similar defensive stakes, which likely protected an ancient silver mine. A...

Mar 9, 2023

Gladiators fought in Roman Britain, action-packed cremation urn carvings reveal

Vivid depictions of battling gladiators on a clay vase are the first concrete evidence that these combatants duked it out in Roman Britain, new research finds. The vessel, known as the Colchester vase, is well known to researchers; it was discovered in a Roman-era grave in Britain in 1853 and...

Mar 27, 2023

Roman-era trash dump containing naked Venus statue and other artifacts unearthed in France

Archaeologists in France have discovered a trove of up to 1,800-year-old artifacts — including statuettes of the goddess Venus, a potter's kiln, coins and clothing pins — in a rare location: a Roman shale quarry that was later repurposed into a trash pit in what is now the city of...

Apr 5, 2023

Mysterious mosaics depicting Medusa uncovered at 2nd-century Roman villa

While excavating a villa used by ancient Roman emperors in Italy, archaeologists uncovered something unexpected: two mosaics that depict the Greek mythological figure Medusa, whose hair was made of snakes and whose gaze was said could turn people into stone. The team found the mosaics in a circular room in...

Apr 13, 2023

Mystery of Roman coins discovered on shipwreck island has archaeologists baffled

Archaeologists are baffled but excited by the discovery of two silver coins from the Roman Empire on a remote island in the Baltic Sea, halfway between Sweden and Estonia. No clues reveal how the coins got there, but they may have been left by Norse traders, lost in a shipwreck...

Apr 20, 2023

2,000-year-old hoard of Roman coins may have been hidden by a soldier during a bloody civil war in Italy

A hoard of 175 silver coins unearthed in a forest in Italy may have been buried for safe keeping during a Roman civil war. The coins seem to date from 82 B.C., the year the Roman general Lucius Cornelius Sulla fought a bloody war across Italy against his enemies among...

Apr 24, 2023

'Lost' 2nd-century Roman fort discovered in Scotland

Archaeologists have discovered the foundations of a lost second-century Roman fort in western Scotland — part of an ill-fated effort to extend the empire's control throughout Britain. The fort was one of up to 41 defensive structures built along the Antonine Wall — a fortification of mainly earthworks and wood...

Apr 28, 2023

Ancient necropolis unearthed just feet away from bustling Paris train station

A forgotten necropolis packed with 50 graves has been discovered near a bustling train station in central Paris by archeologists excavating the site ahead of construction work. Thousands of commuters have been unknowingly treading the ground just 10 feet (3 meters) above the 2,000-year-old graves, which belong to the largest...

May 1, 2023

Ancient 'urine flasks' for smelling (and tasting) pee uncovered in trash dump at Caesar's forum in Rome

A Renaissance-era trash dump discovered inside the Forum of Caesar in Rome is brimming with old medical supplies, including 500-year-old medicine bottles and urine flasks — containers used to collect patients' pee for medical analysis, a new study finds. Initially excavated in 2021, the 16th-century medical waste dump was found...

May 3, 2023

Ancient Roman camps from secret military mission spotted using Google Earth

Three ancient Roman camps in the Jordanian desert, possibly built during a secret military mission in the second century A.D., have been discovered by an archaeologist using satellite images from Google Earth. Only a handful of Roman camps have been found in the Middle East — unlike in Roman territories...

May 4, 2023

1st-century burial holds Roman doctor buried with medical tools, including 'top-quality' scalpels

The grave of a medical man who died roughly 2,000 years ago has been unearthed in Hungary, along with needles, forceps, scalpels and other tools he used for his profession.. The medical toolset, dating from the first century A.D., is a rare find, according to a translated statement released on...

May 15, 2023

Diver unexpectedly discovers Roman-era shipwreck carrying beautiful marble columns off Israel's coast

A diver swimming in the Mediterranean Sea recently happened upon an 1,800-year-old shipwreck off the northwestern coast of Israel. Although archaeologists knew about the wreck, they didn't know its exact whereabouts as it was covered by sand, Koby Sharvit, director of the underwater archaeology unit at the Israel Antiquities Authority...

May 16, 2023

Ancient Romans sacrificed birds to the goddess Isis, burnt bones in Pompeii reveal

Archaeologists excavating the Temple of Isis in Pompeii have discovered the remains of a ritual banquet where dozens of birds were eaten, possibly to placate the goddess after her temple was downsized. The find shows the importance of birds to worshippers of Isis, an Egyptian cult that had become established...

May 17, 2023

1,700-year-old Roman watchtower ruins discovered in Switzerland

The remains of a Roman watchtower dating to the fourth century A.D. have been discovered by the Rhine River in northern Switzerland. The watchtower had a square base measuring 23 feet by 23 feet (7 by 7 meters) and 3-feet-thick (1 m) walls, researchers said in a translated statement. It's...