ArchaeoFeed

Structures of an ancient marine port of Ayla has been discovered in the the Red Sea city of Aqaba, Jordan, dating back more than 1000 years during the Islamic era (650-1116 AD).

Hundreds of hand-axes made half a million years ago were unearthed at Jaljulia, near Kfar Saba, next to one of Israel’s busiest roads.

Archaeologists discovered more than 1000 stone artefacts, some of which may be up to 1.76 million years old, have been discovered at Wadi Dabsa, Southwest Saudi Arabia.

Bronze helmets and remains of a ship, including a large ram were found near the Egadi Islands, off Sicily’s coast, by underwater archaeologists. The artefacts are dated to around 241 BC, to the battle during the First Punic War (264-241 BC).

Underwater archaeologists uncovered fragments of bronze statues, matching part of the original mechanism, and a section of the wooden hull revisiting the famous 1st-century BC shipwreck near Antikythera island off southern Greece discovered more than a century ago.

Recent study of ancient DNA obtained from 2000-year-old remains of a boy from Ballito Bay in KwaZulu-Natal, East Republic of South Africa, indicates that the split between modern humans and earlier human groups occurred between 350000-260000 years ago – earlier than previously thought.

A joint team of Chinese, American and Kenyan archaeologists unearthed three human skeletons at an archaeological site of Manda Island in Lamu county, Kenya. The individuals are believed to have been Medieval Chinese travellers.

Dating of Homo sapiens’ remains, discovered in an old mine in Jebel Irhoud, Morocco, revealed that they were about 300000 years old, challenging the belief that the species arose in a cradle of humankind in East Africa 200000 years ago.

Archaeologists uncovered part of the ancient city of Harlaa, dating back to 10th century AD, located in in eastern Ethiopia.

A treasure trove of more than 10000 colourful glass beads and evidence of glassmaking tools were found in Ile-Ife, South-western Nigeria, suggesting that the ancient city was one of the first places in West Africa to master the art of glassmaking.

Archaeologists analysed two known specimens of the fossil hominid Graecopithecus freybergi found in Bulgaria and Greece, revealing that common lineage of great apes and humans split several hundred thousand years earlier than hitherto assumed.

Comprehensive study of the bones of Homo floresiensis (dubbed “the hobbit”), discovered on the Indonesian island of Flores, Indonesia, in 2003, revealed that the species of tiny human most likely evolved from an ancestor in Africa and not from Homo erectus as has been widely believed.

An innovative technique known as accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS) allowed to date rock art at 14 sites in three regions of Southern Africa to 5723-4420 cal BP, making them the oldest to date in the area.

Underwater archaeologists discovered remains of an ancient Roman vessel that sank off the coast of Cabrera, near the southern coast of Mallorca. The shipwreck is believed to be 1800 years old.

First biological analysis of ancient terracotta figurines found at Yikpabongo in Northern Ghana’s Koma Land between 2010-2011 revealed that they were created by an unknown African civilisation. The figurines depict ancestral figures and animals.

Polish archaeologists discovered a unique graveyard in the Affad Basin, northern Sudan, which contains graves of people in the close vicinity of cow and sheep burials. The site is dated to Neolithic about 6000 years ago.

Burial site found at Clavijo farm in Santa Maria de Guia, Canary Islands, was confirmed being the oldest cemetery of slaves on the Atlantic sea coast, dating to between 15th-17th century.

Polish archaeologists discovered previously unknown settlement sites in Burkina Faso, West Africa, possibly being the oldest in the region. Among the finds are burial mounds, tells and numerous artefacts dating back even 50000 years.

Iranian archaeologists discovered numerous ancient rock art sites across the country. Among the art are depictions of ancient hunters, tribal dances, cup marks, possible deities and beasts. But their date of creation is uncertain.

Archaeologists study the wreck of James Matthews, a former slave ship lying just off the coast of Perth. The ship sunk in 1941 and was discovered in 1973 on the depth of 2-3 metres south of Fremantle, south-western Australia.