Archaeology 

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Latest news on archaeology (also spelled archeology), covering digs, excavations, ancient discoveries, artefacts, fossils, Neanderthals, Denisovans, hominins, Egyptology, Pompeii, Stonehenge, Roman Britain, Vikings, Bronze Age and Iron Age finds, radiocarbon dating and ancient DNA.

Archaeology is the study of human history through the excavation and analysis of ancient sites, artefacts, structures and human remains. From Neolithic settlements and Bronze Age burial mounds to Roman villas and medieval shipwrecks, the discipline spans every continent and era. Landmarks such as Stonehenge, Sutton Hoo, Pompeii and the tombs of ancient Egypt keep drawing public attention to the work of archaeologists.

New technology keeps reshaping fieldwork. LiDAR maps buried landscapes beneath forest canopy, geophysical survey reveals sites without digging, and radiocarbon dating refines the timeline of finds. Ancient DNA has transformed our understanding of Neanderthals, Denisovans and other early hominins, as well as the movements of Roman, Viking and prehistoric peoples.

Some of the field's hardest questions are ethical. Museums face calls to return looted artefacts to their countries of origin, illegal excavation and the antiquities trade threaten irreplaceable sites, and conflict puts heritage at risk. Debates over Indigenous consent and who controls knowledge of ancestral remains continue to grow.

Archaeology is also a human story. Community digs, volunteers and amateur metal detectorists have uncovered hoards, burials and settlements across Britain and beyond. Mummies, royal tombs and Iron Age warriors capture the public imagination because they show how ordinary people once lived, traded, believed and died.

The discipline is more than two centuries old. Early antiquarians focused on grand monuments and elite burials, while modern researchers study everything from ancient pollen to the microbiomes of mummified remains. Each new excavation can rewrite what we thought we knew about the past.

Our NewsNow archaeology feed brings together the latest headlines on excavations, discoveries, fossils, Egyptology, Roman Britain and the science of the human past, updated constantly from reliable sources.