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Many questions about the famous moai statues on Easter Island, Chile, have long eluded scholars—from their cultural significance to how they were made and transported. A recent study in the Journal of Archaeological Science by archaeologists Carl Lipo of Binghamton University and Terry Hunt of the University of Arizona poses the theory that the 92-ton statues were transported in a vertical position, with movers using ropes to “walk” the moai across the island and onto their ahu, or platforms. This theory is supported by the oral traditions of the island’s Indigenous Rapa Nui people, which reference the moai “walking” from...

A well-preserved Roman mausoleum, modeled after the famous Mausoleum of Augustus in Rome, was discovered by archaeologists in Saint-Romain-en-Gal, near Lyon, France. Constructed around 50 CE, the interior of the structure measures more than 50 feet in diameter and is thought to have had 20-foot-tall ceilings. It would have been visible to those in the Roman colony Vienna and can be seen along the Rhône River. “This was a person who, even in death, remained present in the world of the living,” Giulia Ciucci, archaeologist and scientific director of the Saint-Romain-en-Gal museum site, told Arkeonews. “The resemblance to the emperor’s...

An entrance to what may have once been a sanctuary was found by researchers among the cliffs of Athribis in a small Egyptian village near present-day Sohag, roughly 124 miles north of Luxor. Arthribis was once a hub for the worship of the god Min-Re; his wife, lioness goddess Repyt; and their son, the child-god Kolanthes. It spans more than 74 acres and includes a temple complex, a settlement, a necropolis, and ancient quarries. Researchers from Germany’s University of Tübingen, with support from the Egyptian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities, identified a pylon or two towers flanking the main entrance...

An ancient artifact was damaged when a visitor tripped at the Minneapolis Institute of Art last month, according to the StarTribune. The Pillsbury Owl, a 12th- or 13th-century BCE bronze owl-shaped wine vessel, was at the entrance of the museum’s exhibition “Eternal Offerings: Chinese Ritual Bronzes” when the damage occurred on April 9. Shang-dynasty (ca. 1600–1046 BCE) aristocrats would have used the vessel in rituals offerings to honor their ancestors. A museum spokesperson confirmed that the vessel has since been removed from the show for further assessment and conservation. The extent of the damage, as well as how long conservation...