archaeology

3D scan of Stonehenge reveals hidden ax-head carvings

Stonehenge has long been one of the world's most mysterious monuments. The massive rock circle has given up a few of its secrets to a digital scanning project led by historical-preservation organization English Heritage with an assist from the York Archaeological Trust. The 3D laser-scanning data collected last year has unveiled 72 hidden ax-head carvings in the surface of the stone.

Stonehenge was given a complete 3D-scanning treatment, generating 850 gigabytes of data. Archeologists put software from Bentley Systems to work to analyze the data. The resulting data crunching showed 72 carvings depicting Bronze Age tools that had been hiding from the naked eye for thousands of years. Almost all show ax heads, but one is likely a dagger.… Read more

DNA decay rate makes 'Jurassic Park' impossible

Countless childhood dreams dissolved today upon the news that the calculated half-life of DNA figures out to around 521 years, all but invalidating the chances of a real-life "Jurassic Park."

The DNA fact-finding project involved a team of palaeogeneticists testing 158 leg bones belonging to three species of extinct giant moa birds ranging from 600 to 8,000 years old.

After running a series of comparisons between the age of the various bones and DNA degradation within each specimen, the researchers estimated that DNA's half-life works out to about 521 years after being kept in a swamp with an average temperature of 13.1 Celsius (55 Fahrenheit). Even a more ideal preservation temperature of minus 5 Celsius (23 Fahrenheit) would only result in readable DNA from specimens up to 1.5 million years old, meaning there is no possible way we can see a 65-million-year-old T-Rex waving its tiny arms about in this time frame. … Read more

Massive 'Indiana Jones' exhibit headed to U.S.

The "Indiana Jones" film saga contains a plethora of real-world archaeology and stunning cinematography, an epic score by John Williams, and cunning characters. Perhaps the greatest charm of the movies, however, falls upon the main protagonist played by Harrison Ford.

To celebrate the legacy of the films more than 30 years after the Indiana Jones franchise debuted with "Raiders of the Lost Ark," National Geographic and Lucasfilm teamed with X3 Productions on the Indiana Jones and the Adventure of Archaeology exhibition, which is set to open October 12 at the Discovery Science Center in Santa Ana, Calif. The exhibit runs through April 21, 2013, and features an extensive collection of film props, set designs, models, and concept art used in the films. … Read more

Robot could open door to Great Pyramid secrets

A tiny robot could help unlock the mysteries of the queen's chamber in the Great Pyramid of Giza.

Nobody knows where two unexplored air shafts leading from that ancient room lead. The hope is that the remote-controlled robotic tunnel explorer--which can fit through holes less than one inch in diameter--can drill through the secret door blocking the shafts and gather evidence that determines their purpose.

Leeds University in the U.K. is teaming with the Supreme Council of Antiquities in Egypt and a team of international engineers to construct the bot, which is also known as the Djedi project … Read more

Has Google Earth located El Dorado?

For some, the words "El Dorado" represent something magical, a place where untold riches and beauty are there for the taking.

For others, the words represent a much underrated album by the Electric Light Orchestra from 1974.

Still, it is the former that has interested historians, archaeologists, and greedy people for many centuries. There are many legends, some more plausible than others. Yet many seem to have located this wondrous place in Colombia.

But these speculators didn't have satellite technology, did they? So I was delighted, and only slightly skeptical, to read a New Yorker article that … Read more

What? They've finally dug up a vampire?

Oh, what would Buffy say to this? They've finally dug up a vampire.

A skeleton of a woman with a substantial brick wedged between her jaws has been exhumed by Italian scientists.

Matteo Borrini of the University of Florence came across this sad and lonely woman when he was digging up plague victims on the island of Lazzaretto Nuovo in Venice. The woman probably died in the Middle Ages, a time when it was believed that "vampires" were an actual cause of the plague.

These so-called vampires did not sup on the blood of their fellow man … Read more

Climate change and the origins of farming in Mexico

We're not going to be the first generation of humans to cope with severe climate change. We may simply be the first to know just what's happening.

An international research team traced the growth of farming in Mexico's Iguala Valley. Their new report charts the rise of agriculture as the climate became warmer and wetter. Farming began after the last Ice Age. New lakes formed. Corn and squash were being regularly farmed 8,000 years ago. Then farming spread. Agricultural burning was used. Sixty-three hundred years ago domestic crops were plentiful. Forest clearing increased.

Then, around 1,… Read more