Archaeology

The use of poison on arrows marked a revolution in human hunting technology—new evidence suggests it happened tens of thousands of years earlier than previously known

Romans living in ancient Britain were plagued by intestinal parasites, all of which are spread by fecal contamination

Making fire on demand was a milestone in the lives of our early ancestors. But the question of when that skill first arose has been difficult for scientists to pin down

Lime granules trapped in ancient walls show Romans relied on a reactive hot-mix method to making concrete that could now inspire modern engineers

The Black Death ravaged Europe, and scientists and historians are still working to understand how it became so deadly

Two new studies dig into the long, curving path that cats took toward domestication

New findings increase the known length of the Roman Empire’s road network by more than 60,000 miles

Archaeologists have uncovered evidence of a ritual-based site that may have been built long before the rise of Maya rulers

How can reconstructing long-lost smells of ancient artifacts help us connect with the past?

Cliff-rappelling scientists uncovered a crossbow bolt, part of a slingshot and 25 shoes in ancient vulture nesting sites

Camels in ancient Arabia may have led hunter-gatherers through deserts once thought uninhabitable

In his new book, Sam Kean reveals how re-creating ancient tools, techniques and traditions can unlock secrets about how our ancestors lived—and what they felt.