This huge jar from northern Laos contains the remains of at least 37 individuals #TombTuesday Used over a 270-year period, it may have been owned by a family group, indicating ancestral rites were performed over generations in ancient Southeast Asia. 🆓 doi.org/10.15184/aqy... 🏺 #Archaeology

Ground Stone Axes from Later Stone Age (c. 13,000–12,000 BP) Nigeria. Use-wear analysis indicates they were used for many different tasks, such as wood working, butchery/bone working and digging, making them a kind of prehistoric multi-tool! 🆓 doi.org/10.15184/aqy... 🏺 #Archaeology

📰 4000-year-old skull with evidence of trepanation found in Uzbekistan, making it the oldest documented evidence of surgery in Central Asia and one of the oldest examples of surgery in all of Asia. 🏺 #ArchaeologyNews via @livescience.com www.livescience.com/archaeology/...

Enjoying some chicken this #RotisserieChickenDay? Thank the Romans! In Iron Age Europe, chickens were not eaten and were possibly venerated. It was the Romans who popularised chicken as a food. 🔗 from 2022 🆓 doi.org/10.15184/aqy... 📷 C. Raddato / CC BY-SA 2.0 🏺 #Archaeology

NEW When #Neanderthal remains were discovered in Shanidar Cave, Iraqi Kurdistan, the fragile and crushed condition of the bones prevented detailed analysis. A year of conservation work helps explore the complex mortuary practices observed at the site. 🆓 doi.org/10.15184/aqy... 🏺 #Archaeology

Were pigeons among humanity’s earliest semi-domesticated birds? New research from Late Bronze Age Cyprus suggests these familiar birds may have played symbolic and ritual roles alongside people thousands of years ago. @antiquity.ac.uk #Archaeology

Our June issue is out now! Featuring great #archaeology such as: 🛞 How the Melsonby Hoards reroute our understanding of Iron Age Britain 🪸 Dating the coral architecture of French Polynesia 🏠️ How public opinion influenced Maya divine kings & more! 🏺 www.cambridge.org/core/journal...

This is your official #DinosaurDay reminder that archaeologists don't do dinosaurs! If you want to learn about the exciting research archaeologists really get up to, check out a whole world of Antiquity articles at antiquity.ac.uk 🏺 #Archaeology

Metal helmets found off the coast of Spain, dating to the late 14th or early 15th centuries AD #MedievalMonday Pre-dating standardisation of European plate armour systems, they offer a rare glimpse into small-scale, regional medieval armour production. 🆓 doi.org/10.15184/aqy... 🏺 #Archaeology

From today, every research article accepted for publication in Antiquity will be published #OpenAccess, completely free to read online! We have an OA option for every author, so head over to our website to find out how you can publish your research: antiquity.ac.uk/submit 🏺 #Archaeology

Learn about ancient parasites, health in Roman Britain, diet in medieval towns and more!

NEW Rock art from South Africa's Makgabeng Plateau, near an area affected by a forthcoming platinum mine. Our latest #MethodsPaper proposes a new way to utilise development-led archaeological data, making better-use of large, but often limited, records. 🆓 doi.org/10.15184/aqy... 🏺 #Archaeology

#AntiquityResearch #ArchaeologyNews in New Scientist! Read the new research article in Antiquity 🆓 doi.org/10.15184/aqy...

Did you know that even prehistoric people had tableware for special occasions? In Neolithic Arabia, imported Mesopotamian Ubaid Ware was a luxury item, whilst locally-produced Coarse Red Ware was more commonplace. 🔗 from 2025 🆓 doi.org/10.15184/aqy... 🏺 #Archaeology

📢 We are delighted to announce that - from today - all research articles accepted for publication in @antiquity.ac.uk will be #openaccess, published with a Creative Commons licence and 🆓 to read online. Find out more: 🔗 https://cup.org/4wDOMF3 #archaeology

How important was olive oil to the Romans? #NationalOliveDay 🫒 Vast quantities were produced in the province of Hispania Baetica and exported across the Empire. We can even measure fluctuations in the Roman economy just by tracking oil exports! 🆓 doi.org/10.15184/aqy... 🏺 #Archaeology

This @antiquity.ac.uk blog and #openaccess article revisit the death jar - a forgotten mortuary tradition in Laos - offering new perspectives on ritual practice. 🔗 https://cup.org/3Rv8G4P #archaeology

This ceramic head from El Salvador doesn't seem too happy this #NationalSmileDay, but looks can be deceiving. Depending on the angle you look at it, it can appear happy, angry or scared. This versatility likely made it useful for ritual puppet shows. 🆓 doi.org/10.15184/aqy... 🏺 #Archaeology

19th century depiction of tourists in the Grotta Regina Margherita, Italy, marvelling at the vibrant interior. Used as an evocative burial place as early as the Bronze Age, it shows how core sensory experiences can span millennia. 🆓 doi.org/10.15184/aqy... 📷 Jeff Veitch 🏺 #Archaeology

#OnThisDay in AD 363, the Roman army defeated Sasanian forces at the Battle of Ctesiphon. Whilst conflict on the eastern Roman frontier is well recorded, research indicates it was also a place of trade and cultural exchange between east and west. 🆓 doi.org/10.15184/aqy... 🏺 #Archaeology

📰 Researchers find a large hydraulic system in Armenia, uncovering one of the largest irrigation networks of Antiquity 🏺 #AntiquityResearch #ArchaeologyNews via @labrujulaverde.bsky.social www.labrujulaverde.com/en/2026/05/a...

Did you know snails helped build England's impressive cathedrals? #NationalSnailDay 🏺 #Archaeology Purbeck marble; a fossiliferous limestone composed of snails; was a popular decorative stone and was used in most cathedrals built from 1170-1350. 🆓 doi.org/10.15184/aqy... 📷 14GTR / CC BY-SA 4.0

The use of shark teeth in weaponry was a phenomenon that spread across the Asia-Pacific region during the middle Holocene. They were possibly used for conflict, butchery or even ritual combat. 🔗 from 2023 🆓 doi.org/10.15184/aqy... 🏺 #Archaeology

Antiquity research features in the latest A Whole Lot of History! Check out the article on the controlled use of a toxic chemical as anaesthetic in Ming China 🆓 doi.org/10.15184/aqy...

NEW In the 1950s, forced labour was used to construct the world’s largest Stalin monument in Prague. Rediscovery of the forgotten labour camp sheds light on the workers' lives, indicating ideological pressure drove them more than physical violence. 🆓 doi.org/10.15184/aqy... 🏺 #Archaeology

Painting from a household shrine at Pompeii, depicting three guardian deities with an incense box #FrescoFriday Burning incense was an important part of domestic rituals and materials for it were sourced from as far away as India and sub-Saharan Africa. 🆓 doi.org/10.15184/aqy... 🏺 #Archaeology

NEW c. 3500 years ago, ceramic traditions began to spread around the Amazon, but their origins are poorly understood. Comparison of two early styles suggests they have a shared origin, spreading with increased migration and interaction across Amazonia. (£) doi.org/10.15184/aqy... 🏺 #Archaeology

Central to Indigenous Caribbean societies, woven objects rarely survive archaeologically. 'Anacaona's Gift' explores this understudied material culture, from everyday baskets to elaborate textile status symbols. Learn more in the latest #NewBookChronicle 🆓 doi.org/10.15184/aqy... 🏺 #Archaeology

The Darband Wall, in modern Uzbekistan, was an important boundary in ancient Central Asia. Traditionally thought to defend the settled ‘Greek’ Bactria from nomads threatening it from the north, new radiocarbon dates suggest an alternate interpretation. 🆓 doi.org/10.15184/aqy... 🏺 #Archaeology

Here's a publicly-accessible link to the article in News Scientist, and you can find the open access Antiquity article in the original thread! www.newscientist.com/article/2527...

📰 600-year-old anaesthetic residue uncovered in the tomb of a Chinese surgeon indicates Ming China's medical professionals knew a great deal about reducing pain during surgery. 🏺 #AntiquityResearch #ArchaeologyNews via @newscientist.com institutions.newscientist.com/article/2527...

Bronze solar disk from Bronze-Iron Age Javakheti, Georgia. Often associated with burials, they were likely a form of funerary display, highlighting the importance of celestial imagery to ritual practices and social identity #FolkloreThursday 🆓 doi.org/10.15184/aqy... 🏺 #Archaeology

Can #archaeology help combat food insecurity? #WorldHungerDay Analysing past farming methods and responses to food shortages offers insights into sustainable practices, crop diversity and resilience to climate change, helping inform food futures. 🆓 doi.org/10.15184/aqy...

#archaeobirds #zooarchaeology. Very cool research. 🏺🪶

Made up of thousands of aligned holes, the Andean monument Monte Sierpe (Band of Holes) is iconic, but its purpose is unknown. New research proposes this mysterious monument was part of an Indigenous system of accounting and exchange. 🆓 doi.org/10.15184/aqy... 🏺 #Archaeology

Depictions of snakes from across Early Neolithic south-west Asia, in bas-relief and incised 🐍 The consistency in these depictions, distributed from Syria to Anatolia, suggests that they were central to ideology in the region. 🆓 doi.org/10.15184/aqy... #ReliefWednesday 🏺 #Archaeology

📰 Ancient pigeons were already living alongside humans 3,400 years ago, pushing back evidence for domestication almost 1000 years! 🏺 #AntiquityResearch #ArchaeologyNews via @archaeologynews.bsky.social archaeologymag.com/2026/05/pige...

#Roman wines were likely skin-contact wines, meaning the grape skins were left in during fermentation #NationalGrapeDay The yeasts on the grape skins were carefully controlled and imparted aromas of toasted bread, apples, roasted walnuts and curry (£) doi.org/10.15184/aqy... 🏺 #Archaeology

#OnThisDay in AD 1644, Manchu regent Dorgon defeated rebel leader Li Zicheng of the Shun Dynasty at the Battle of Shanhai Pass, allowing the Manchus to enter and conquer the capital city of Beijing. The decisive battle led to the beginning of Qing Dynasty rule in China 🏺 1/2

The Paper of the Month from @antiquity.ac.uk is "Inequality declined in the Bronze Age city of Mohenjo-daro" by Adam S. Green, Iqtedar Alam and Cameron Petrie, available #openaccess! 📚 https://cup.org/4dJoWqi #archaeology #PaperOfTheMonth

NEW Archaeologists uncover over 1000km of water-management features, including a potential 134.6km of ancient canals, at the Iron Age fortress of Argishtikhinili, Armenia, uncovering the advanced irrigation technology of the Kingdom of Urartu. 🆓 doi.org/10.15184/aqy... 🏺 #Archaeology

English politician Samuel Pepys died #OnThisDay in AD 1703. He is best-known for his diary, which recorded first-hand accounts of many major events from 1660-69, such as the Great Plague and Great Fire of London 1/2 📷 Wellcome Images / CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Got a bone to pick? Antiquity publishes debate pieces addressing contentious matters that are of broad significance, with the aim of stimulating discussion. Find out more (and how to submit yours) 👇 antiquity.ac.uk/submit 🏺 #Archaeology

Mica is a silicate-based mineral, widely utilised today for electrical and thermal insulation. We think Neolithic Nubians had a much better use for it though: making this model of a fish! 🔗 from 2025 🆓 doi.org/10.15184/aqy... 🏺 #Archaeology

NEW Microscopic analysis of 14th century CE Chinese surgical instruments reveals traces of a highly toxic chemical used as anaesthetic, highlighting the sophisticated medicine of Ming China. 🆓 doi.org/10.15184/aqy... 🏺 #Archaeology

Interior of a metal helmet, found underwater off the coast of Spain, its fabric lining preserved underneath marine sediment #TextileTuesday Radiocarbon dating of the textiles found the helmet dates to an elusive period of medieval armour technology. 🆓 doi.org/10.15184/aqy... 🏺 #Archaeology

Can we spot vampires in the archaeological record? #WorldDraculaDay Burials from Early Modern Drawsko, Poland, were inhumed with sickles on their necks. Was this a practice to prevent the deceased coming back as a revenant? (£) doi.org/10.15184/aqy... 🏺 #Archaeology

Are you an early career researcher from South America? Do you want to become an internationally recognised archaeologist and archaeological heritage scholar? The #RewritingWorldArchaeology programme will help you do just that! Learn more and sign up: www.durham.ac.uk/departments/... 🏺#Archaeology

Underground section of the Roman aqueduct of Nicopolis, Greece. Whilst the impressive bridge sections of aqueducts are iconic, the majority were in fact underground channels such as this. They played an essential role in Roman urban infrastructure. 🆓 doi.org/10.15184/aqy... 🏺 #Archaeology

Happy #GlobalAfricaDay! Learn about the diverse #archaeology of the African continent, with research on everything from pre-colonial urbanism in West Africa to the devastating impact of the Sudan war on cultural heritage, in our African collection: www.cambridge.org/core/journal... 🏺