An international team of researchers has made a surprising archaeological discovery in the heart of Madagascar that could rewrite the history of the island’s settlement and its connections with distant civilizations. In Teniky, a site located in the remote Isalo Massif in southern Madagascar, they have found an enigmatic rock-cut architecture that has no parallels […]
Iran
The Zagros Mountains were the place where Neanderthals and modern humans interbred
An international team of researchers has used innovative ecological modeling techniques to identify, for the first time, the possible geographical areas where Neanderthals and anatomically modern humans might have encountered and interbred tens of thousands of years ago. The study, recently published in the journal Scientific Reports, highlights the crucial role played by certain geographical […]
Circular Building with Six Towers of the Iron Age Found in Khorasan
The Achaemenid Empire (550-330 BCE) was one of the largest, in terms of territory, in the ancient world, stretching from the River Syr Darya (in Central Asia) to Egypt. Although numerous excavations have been conducted in most of the places comprising the empire, Iranian Khorasan, located northeast of the country south of the Amu Darya […]
Oldest Lipstick Discovered in a Small Bronze Age Vial
A small vial of red cosmetic preparation was found among numerous looted and recovered artifacts in the Jiroft region of Kerman province, southeast Iran. It contains a dark red preparation that is likely a lipstick or lip paste. Analysis identified the mineral components of the reddish substance as hematite, darkened with manganite and braunite, and […]
Inscribed Bricks Reveal Elamite Water Supply System in Western Iran
Archaeologists have made a significant discovery in the town of Garan, located in the Dehloran plain, Ilam province, southwest Iran. They found inscriptions on bricks in Akkadian script, which likely were part of an ancient irrigation system in the area. These objects were found by Dr. Mohsen Zeinivand and his team, who have been excavating […]
Early Paleolithic humans ate roasted tortoises, among other things
Recent archaeological discoveries are providing new insights into what early humans ate thousands of years ago. Scientists have found evidence that Middle Paleolithic humans, who lived between 81,000-45,000 years ago, had a more varied diet than previously thought. Analysis of a site in the Zagros Mountains of Iran reveals they hunted not just large grazing […]