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Archaeology and palaeontology

Archaeology and palaeontology
The latest news, analysis and opinion on Archaeology and palaeontology. In-depth analysis, industry insights and expert opinion.
The prehistoric Doushan site in Wuxi is believed to date back about 6,000 years. Photo: Jiangsu Provincial Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology
Science

In eastern China, ancient ruins push back the date of Yangtze delta’s earliest cities

Excavations at the Doushan site near Wuxi suggest water may have spurred the development of the oldest centres in the area.

Egypt

Egypt reveals restored colossal statues of prominent pharaoh in Luxor

Britain

UK police hunt suspects after 600 British Empire artefacts stolen from museum

Science

Oldest evidence of humans making fire discovered in UK, dating back 400,000 years

Scientists found an ancient fireplace in Suffolk, providing crucial evidence that humans mastered fire far earlier than previously believed.

An artist’s impression shows sparks being produced with flint and pyrite. Image: Craig Williams/The Trustees of the British Museum via Reuters
France

Paris Louvre faces strike after major leak and robbery

Louvre staff warn of ‘collapse’ as they protest work conditions at the world’s most visited museum.

France

Water leak at Paris Louvre damages books at Egyptian antiquities department

The leak underscores the deteriorating state of the world’s most visited museum just weeks after a jewel heist exposed security flaws.

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Egypt

This man has gone viral for his resemblance to an ancient Egyptian king

Egyptian influencer Youssef Mohamed hopes his resemblance to Pharaoh Akhenaten fuels further interest in ancient Egyptian history.

Egyptian influencer Youssef Mohamed has gone viral for a photo he posted showing his resemblance to a pharaoh of ancient Egypt. Photo: Christoph Meyer/dpa
Trending in China

China brothers shocked that rock stepping stones are 190-million-year-old dinosaur fossils

Scientists conduct study in ‘home of Chinese dinosaurs’, discover that flat rocks with ‘chicken claw’ prints are from Jurassic period.

Hong Kong environmental issues

Hong Kong’s whale of a tale: famous skeleton at Shek O gets new lease of life

Damaged skeleton of infant mammal that wandered into Victoria Harbour in 1955 meticulously recreated and displayed at original resting spot in Cape D’Aguilar.

Louvre

France’s Louvre Museum closes gallery due to structural weakness

The Campana Gallery was shuttered as a precaution after an audit revealed beam issues in the floor above.

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The Louvre Museum in Paris, France. Photo: Reuters
Egypt

Grand Egyptian Museum introduces time slots to cope with crowds

The new museum, which has been averaging 19,000 daily visitors, will require online bookings starting December to regulate the rush.

People hold mobile devices in front of the golden burial mask of King Tutankhamun. Photo: AP
Crime

UK seizes US$15 million in dinosaur bones from Chinese money-laundering suspect

The Chinese businessman was previously wanted for involvement in Singapore’s biggest money-laundering case but has since struck a deal.

Art

After delays, mammoth Grand Egyptian Museum by the Pyramids is finally opening

The US$1 billion ‘GEM’, poised to be the world’s largest museum dedicated to one civilisation, houses King Tut’s treasures and 50,000 artefacts.

History

Where do witch hats come from? China’s Tarim mummies may hold the answer

The ‘witch hat’-wearing mummies have long caused debate among historians. Could they suggest Europeans reached Asia earlier than we thought?

The Princess of Xiaohe is one of the most famous mummies found in the Tarim Basin in Xinjiang, China. Can the origins of the modern witch hat be traced to this region? Photo: Xinjiang Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology
United States

Rare duck-billed dinosaur ‘mummies’ reveal a surprise: hoofed feet

Edmontosaurus fossils had large areas of preserved external skin surface, providing the most fleshed-out view of a large dinosaur to date.

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Paleontologist Paul Sereno of the University of Chicago examines the fossilised “mummy” of the duck-billed dinosaur Edmontosaurus at the Fossil Lab in Chicago, Illinois. Photo: Tyler Keillor / Fossil Lab / Handout via Reuters
Art

How ancient Egyptians depicted their gods shown in more than 200 objects

An exhibition at New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art explores how the gods were portrayed by Egyptians both royal and common.

Egypt

Ancient Pharaonic painting vanishes from famed necropolis in Egypt

The priceless artwork disappeared from an ancient tomb notable for its written curse warning intruders.

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Science

Was Venice’s winged lion made in China and delivered by Marco Polo’s family?

Italian researchers believe the famous statue may have originated in Tang dynasty China but Chinese scholars are not convinced.

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The bronze winged lion sculpture overlooking St Mark’s Square is one of Venice’s most iconic symbols. Photo: AFP
United Nations

UN heritage body opens virtual museum to spotlight artefact trafficking

Unesco’s online space will showcase hundreds of stolen cultural objects in the hopes of drawing attention to the vast illegal trade network.

Science

Conflict at China’s ancient Sanxingdui led to exodus, destruction: scholar

New theory about famous ruins stems from recent archaeological research suggesting a war erupted for control of the capital.

Chinese culture

China’s Sanxingdui Museum eyes future tech to showcase national treasures abroad

As China steps up soft power push, curators seek ways to engage a broader audience without putting national treasures at risk.

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Discovered in the late 1920s and excavated extensively since the 1980s, the Sanxingdui site has yielded more than 17,000 artefacts, including numerous bronze masks with exaggerated facial features. Photo: May Tse
Indonesia

Netherlands to return ‘Java Man’ fossils to Indonesia in historic move

The move will see the skull cap and other remains of the first-ever Homo erectus found returned, after they were looted during Dutch colonial era.

Original fossils of Pithecanthropus erectus (now Homo erectus) found in Java in 1891.The find is commonly referred to as Java Man. Photo: Handout
Chinese culture

How China’s earliest 3 dynasties shaped its society and culture

From 2070BC to 256BC, the Xia, Shang and Zhou dynasties paved the way for Chinese society with Taoism, written language, music and more.

Americas and the Caribbean

Scientists find new dinosaur from Argentina with crocodile bone in its mouth

Joaquinraptor hailed from a mysterious group of dinosaurs known for their huge and powerful claws.

Egypt

Outrage after pharaoh’s gold bracelet stolen from Egypt museum and melted down

The bracelet belonged to Pharaoh Amenemope, who reigned about 3,000 years ago. Four suspects have been arrested, the Interior Ministry said.

The Egyptian Museum in Cairo is illuminated at night. Photo: AP
Belt and Road Initiative

Central Asia beckons for China’s cultural tourists retracing ancient Silk Road

Beijing’s infrastructure programme and other partnership initiatives with the Central Asian republics have seen visitor numbers soar.

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Tourism is booming in Uzbekistan and other Central Asian countries, with visitors from China drawn to the “crossroads of civilisation”. Photo: EPA
History

Monumental tomb of Roman period discovered in Albania

The large tomb is the first discovery in Albania of what the experts believe to be a wealthy person’s resting place.

Trending in China

Tomb-raiding fiction-fixated China thief breaches burial site, steals 20 relics

Storybook fanatic who poured over works of fiction turns real-life tomb raider; puts together team of criminals, masterminds heist.

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