Archaeology: Facts, Trivia, Quizzes, Brain Teasers & More

From King Tut’s treasure-stuffed tomb to one of the world's oldest human burial sites, these ancient resting places sent their occupants to the afterlife in style.

Three human-like figures and a large pig are drawn on a limestone cave wall.

The drawing of three human figures with a pig was discovered in an Indonesian cave—and might be the world’s oldest art that tells a story.

Detail of a diorama of a Neanderthal mother and child at the Moravian Provincial Museum in Brno, Czech Republic.

A fossilized ear bone supports the idea that Neanderthals helped raise the child collectively and altruistically.

The preserved hull of the Tudor warship ‘Mary Rose.’

King Henry VIII built the English Royal Navy around his favorite warship, the ‘Mary Rose,’ which sank under mysterious circumstances in 1545.

Rapa Nui (Easter Island) Moai at Ahu Tahai with dramatic clouds.

New satellite data of ancient rock gardens on Rapa Nui (Easter Island) is countering the “ecocide” narrative of the population’s supposed collapse—and offering a clue to a historical mystery.

Sir Ernest Shackleton stands on the deck of the ‘Quest’ before it left for Antarctica.

The ‘Quest’ was the ship on which Sir Ernest Shackleton carried out his final, uncompleted voyage to Antarctica.

A portion of the preserved Maya village Joya de Ceren (“Jewel of Ceren”) under a protective roof.

Buried by a volcanic eruption 1400 years ago, well-preserved remains of the Maya village in modern-day El Salvador have earned a provocative nickname: The Pompeii of the New World.

Andreas Pernerstorfer’s wine cellar renovations revealed a trove of at least three mammoth skeletons.

The three mammoth skeletons represent the first significant paleontology discovery in Austria in a century.

Pyramids of Giza, Egypt, at sunset, c26th century BC.

A recent study claims that the pyramids of Giza were constructed alongside an almost 40-mile long artery of the Nile river that no longer exists today.

Replicas of golden sarcophagi are showcased in “Tutankhamun: His Tomb and His Treasures.”

If you can’t make it to Egypt, head to Washington, D.C., where “Tutankhamun: His Tomb and His Treasures” puts visitors inside the artifact-stuffed rooms of King Tut’s tomb.

Angkor Wat reflected in one of its waterways.

Angkor Wat is one of the most significant archaeological sites in Southeast Asia. Here is what we know of its story, from its countless carvings to feats of engineering.

We invented jewelry (such as this ancient Egyptian beaded necklace) before we invented the wheel.

In the scope of human history, the wheel is actually a rather young creation. Beer, clothing, and jewelry are much older.

A replica of the Denisovan finger bone discovered in 2010.

The Denisovans went extinct around 30,000 years ago. Scientists are just beginning to unravel their genetic legacy.

A section of Hadrian’s Wall showing the remains of a Roman fort.

Uncover the story of Hadrian’s Wall and take a fascinating dive into life at the Roman Empire’s northern frontier.

Recreated Viking sod houses behind a wooden fence at L'Anse aux Meadows in Newfoundland, Canada.

Discover the mysteries of L’Anse aux Meadows, the only confirmed Viking settlement in North America.

Virginia Woolf, Charlie Chaplin, and Ludwig van Beethoven could be considered nepo babies.

Plenty of nepo babies have earned their places in history. But it’s always good to acknowledge the doors open to people who have rich relatives—or whose dad knows the manager of a clogging troupe.

Part of a tablet—regarding wheat, animal hides, and other supplies—on display in the British Museum.

The Vindolanda tablets tell us a lot about life in early Roman Britain.

The massive megafauna of the Ice Age / Getty / VICTOR HABBICK VISIONS/SPL

In this episode of Misconceptions, host Justin Dodd thaws out a few myths about the ice age, from the idea that Earth was once frozen solid to what actually caused the mammoths’ extinction.

The Lewis Chessmen: a few pieces from a collection of 93 found at Uig on the Isle of Lewis, Outer Hebrides, Scotland.

They're the most famous chess pieces in history—but much of their story is still unknown

This pair of men's black leather Blucher ankle boots from the 1840s was found under floor of an old military prison at Weedon, Northants, in 1939.

The folk magic tradition of concealing shoes to trap witches probably started in the Middle Ages.

The Great Sphinx of Giza and the Pyramid of Khafre.

The ancient Egyptian monument, thought to depict the likeness of the pharaoh Khafre, confounds scholars to this day.

There’s much more to this iconic statue than a couple of absent appendages.

The eruption of Mt. Vesuvius destroyed Herculaneum—but may have preserved a lost library of Epicurus's writings.

Historians were struck by the tantalizing possibility that this library might contain missing works of some of history’s greatest writers—works thought to have been lost forever.

Ötzi the Iceman may have gone bald in middle age—but hey, at least he had tattoos.

ARCHAEOLOGY

10 Fabulous Ancient Tombs

A 51,200-Year-Old Cave Painting Might Be the World’s Oldest Narrative Art

Neanderthals Cared for a Child with Down Syndrome

12 Facts About the ‘Mary Rose,’ Henry VIII’s Legendary Warship

Rock Gardens Contradict Easter Island “Ecocide” Theory, Study Finds

The ‘Quest,’ Sir Ernest Shackleton’s Last Ship, Has Been Found Off Eastern Canada

The “New World Pompeii”: 10 Fascinating Facts about the Maya Village of Joya de Ceren

Woolly Mammoth Bones Unearthed in Austrian Wine Cellar

Egypt’s Giza Pyramids Might Have Been Built Next To A Now-Vanished River

See Exact Replicas of King Tut’s Treasures in His Recreated Tomb

10 Facts about Angkor Wat, the World’s Largest Religious Temple

11 Inventions That Came Before the Wheel

9 Facts About the Denisovans, Our Mysterious Human Ancestor

10 Facts About Hadrian’s Wall, the Roman Empire’s Northern Frontier

10 Facts About L’Anse aux Meadows, North America’s Only Viking Ruins

18 Nepo Babies From History

8 Illuminating Facts About the Vindolanda Tablets

Misconceptions About the Ice Age

12 Fascinating Facts About the Lewis Chessmen

Lost Soles: When Concealed Shoes Kept Witches Away

15 Things You Might Not Know About the Great Sphinx of Giza

16 Fascinating Facts About ‘Venus de Milo’

The Lost Library of Herculaneum: Unravelling the Scrolls That Mount Vesuvius Almost Destroyed

The Iceman Baldeth: New Genome Analysis Shows Ötzi Had Surprising Ancestry—and Male-Pattern Baldness