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Armenians, a population in Western Asia historically inhabiting the Armenian highlands, were long believed to be descendants of Phrygian settlers from the Balkans. This theory originated largely from the accounts of the Greek historian Herodotus, who observed that Armenians were armed in Phrygian fashion when serving in the Persian army. Linguists further supported this theory, suggesting that the Armenian language shares ties with the Thraco-Phrygian subgroup of Indo-European languages.But the first whole-genome study challenges this long-held belief, revealing no significant genetic link between Armenians and the populations in the Balkan region. The study compares newly generated modern Armenian genomes and...

When archaeologists on a dig in southern Portugal last year flipped over a heavy chunk of slate and saw writing not used for more than 2,500 years, they were elated. The enigmatic pattern of inscribed symbols curled symmetrically around the upper part of the rough-edged, yellowish stone tablet and coiled into the middle in a decorative style typical of an extinct Iberian language called Southwest Script. "We didn't break into applause, but almost," says Amilcar Guerra, a University of Lisbon lecturer overseeing the excavation. "It's an extraordinary thing."

Spaniards search for legendary Tartessos in a marsh By Sinikka Tarvainen May 11, 2007, 11:28 GMT Madrid - Where was the capital of Tartessos, the legendary pre-Roman civilization which once existed on the Iberian Peninsula? The culture which flourished from around 800 to 500 BC is believed to have been located mainly around the present-day cities of Cadiz, Seville and Huelva in southern Spain, but no traces of a major urban settlement have been found. Now, however, scientists have discovered surprising clues to where a major Tartessian city may have been, the daily El Pais reported. Its ruins could lie...

Archaeologists from the Institute of Archaeology of Mérida (IAM) have unearthed a slate plaque at the Casas del Turuñuelo site in Guareña, Badajoz, Spain. Measuring approximately 20 centimeters wide, this plaque is intricately engraved on both sides with various motifs, including geometric patterns, repeated faces, and a combat scene featuring four warriors...The plaque's detailed engravings depict four warriors with decorated clothing and weapons, suggesting its use as a reference for creating intricate designs on various materials.In addition to the slate plaque, the 2024 excavation campaign has revealed the location of the eastern gate of the palace complex. This gate provides...

Archaeologists in Spain recently discovered five life-size busts of human figures... that could be the first-known human depictions of the Tartessos, a people who formed an ancient civilization that disappeared more than 2,500 years ago.The carved stone faces, which archaeologists date to the fifth century B.C., were found hidden inside a sealed pit in an adobe temple at Casas del Turuñuelo, an ancient Tartessian site in southern Spain. The pieces were scattered amongst animal bones, mostly from horses, that likely came from a mass sacrifice, according to a translated statement published April 18."The unusual thing about the new finding is...

One of the enduring consequences of the era of Phoenician influence -- which had by around 800 BC progressed from trading outposts to full-blown colonies in southern Spain -- was the adoption of alphabetic writing by the native population, first in the south-west. The number of known Tartessian inscriptions on stone is now about 90 and steadily rising with new discoveries. Concentrated densely in southern Portugal (the Algarve and Lower Alentejo), there is a wider scatter of fifteen over south-west Spain. The best exhibition of the inscriptions is on view in the new and innovative Museu da Escrita do Sudoeste,...

...a magnificent hoard of ancient gold objects discovered by Spanish construction workers near Seville in 1958... 2,700-year-old treasure... sparked speculation and debate about Tartessos, a civilization that thrived in southern Spain between the ninth and sixth centuries B.C... That wealth, and the fact that the Tartessians seemingly 'disappear' from history about 2,500 years ago... Another side of the debate held that the jewelry came with the Phoenicians – a Semitic, seafaring culture from the Near East which first arrived in the western Mediterranean in the eighth century B.C. and established a trading port at what is now modern-day Cadiz... The...

The sonar scans of manmade structures one mile below water off the southeast coast of Cyprus were presented here Thursday by Robert Sarmast, head of the Cyprus/Atlantis Expedition project for the first time. Announcing the results of last year’s expedition to find one of humankind’s greatest mysteries, the legendary Atlantis, Sarmast presented three dimension underwater side-scan sonar pictures of structures 1.5 km below sea level, 80 km off the southeast coast of Cyprus in the Eastern Mediterranean. He said it was no coincidence that his team discovered a 3km long straight wall intersected at right angles by another wall, adding...

In 524 BC, a force of 50,000 Persian soldiers travelled across the Western Desert of Egypt. Their intended target was The Oracle of Amun, however the army would not make it. They would instead disappear in a sandstorm, in a legend that still draws curiosity today.realhistory videosFinding The Remains Of 50,000 Persian Soldiers That Vanished In A Sandstorm | The Lost Army | 49:21Real History | 213K subscribers | 472,772 views | June 12, 2024

A rare cast of a red-painted cow in a rock shelter, accompanied by a man ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ New archaeological findings from the hyper-arid Atbai Desert, in Eastern Sudan, indicate the Sahara Desert was once a lush and green environment. Dr Julien Cooper from the Department of History and Archaeology, led a team of archaeologists in 2018 and 2019 on the Atbai Survey Project, discovering 16 new rock art sites in Wadi Halfa, one of the most desolate and driest areas of the Sahara. Almost all of the newly discovered artwork, which dates back 4000 years, features the presence of cattle. “It...

2,500 years ago, the writing of history as we know it didn’t exist. The past was recorded as a list of events, with little explanation for their causes beyond accepting things as the will of the gods. Herodotus wanted a deeper understanding, so he took a new approach: looking at events from both sides to understand the reasons for them. Mark Robinson explains how "history" came into being.Lesson by Mark Robinson, directed by Remus and KikiWhy is Herodotus called "The Father of History"? - Mark Robinson | 5:02TED-Ed | 19M subscribers | 2,285,551 views | December 11, 2017

Continuing excavations in Türkiye's central Kirikkale province have revealed new findings indicating that Büklükale village was the first settlement of the Cimmerians, an ancient equestrian nomadic people, in Anatolia...Büklükale is thought to be the first settlement of the Cimmerians in Anatolia. The artifacts shed light on the Cimmerians and reveal evidence of warfare within the constructed fortress. Notably, an image of a person on horseback, an animal motif from the Scythian period, and arrowheads believed to date back to the Cimmerian era, which was used in battles, draw attention...During an interview with Ihlas News Agency (IHA), Kimiyoshi Matsumura said they...

So how far did the Phoenicians really go in the region?In one of the early adventures of Asterix and Obelix, a Phoenician trade ship takes the world’s funniest Celtic warriors from the Gaul’s last village free from Roman rule to Queen Cleopatra in the land of the Nile. Now, of course this is but an image in a comic book, but still, is it possible that the Phoenicians, generally known as the greatest seafarers of antiquity, actually reached Brittany, or even further? There’s no doubt that Phoenicians were well established all over the Mediterranean. Archeological remains prove they lived in...

The Greeks and Romans were fascinated by the ancient monuments of Egypt. But they weren't sure just how ancient they were.Did the Romans Know How Old the Pyramids Were? | August 12, 2022 | toldinstoneChapters:0:00 Introduction0:56 Ancient history's ancient history2:41 Greeks and Romans in Egypt3:23 Wealthfront4:42 Egyptomania5:15 The Pyramids7:00 Why the Romans were wrong

The replica of a Phoenician ship from 600BC has arrived home in western Syria after a two-year voyage circumnavigating the coast of Africa.

In describing a volcanic eruption from a high mountain towering over the sea Hanno mentions such details as sulphuric fumes and streams of lava. The only volcanic area in West Africa is represented by Mount Cameroon, which is still active today. It is located at the deepest point of the Gulf of Guinea, where it rises suddenly from the seashore, reaching a height of over 4000 meters... Those who have seen it from the sea consider it one of the most impressive sights in the world. The natives call it Mongana-Loba, "Mountain of the Gods," which well agrees with the...

The Periplus Maris Erythraei (or "Voyage around the Erythraean Sea") is an anonymous work from around the middle of the first century CE written by a Greek speaking Egyptian merchant.  The first part of the work (sections 1-18) describes the maritime trade-routes following the north-south axis from Egypt down the coast of East Africa as far as modern day Tanzania.  The remainder describes the routes of the East-West axis running from Egypt, around the Arabian Peninsula and past the Persian Gulf on to the west coast of India.  From the vivid descriptions of the places mentioned it is generally...

Whatever study has been made so far of the Tamil texts side by side with comparable data available in Strabo, Pliny, the Periplus Maris Erythraei and Ptolomey, and with the archaeological and numismatic finds in Southern India, has shown that the Tamil texts contain illuminating corroborative evidence. Discussions of Roman Tamil trade made by Jean Filliozat, Mortimer Wheeler, Pierre Meile, E.H. Warmington and M.P. Charlesworth have taken into consideration the tests interpreted by V. Kangasabai Pillai in his book the "Tamils one thousand eight hundred years Ago". 1904.

It was the greatest puzzle in the world. For three thousand years the ancient Egyptians covered the walls and ceilings of their temples and tombs with a form of writing known as hieroglyphs. More, the bone-dry climate of Egypt had preserved vast quantities of this hieroglyphic text written on papyrus. And in 1800, no one on earth could read a word of it. When Egypt became Christian in the fourth century A.D., the use of these hieroglyphs, associated with paganism, died out. The last known hieroglyphic inscription was chiseled into stone in the year 394. Within a generation, the last...

Archaeologists excavating a warrior’s grave have discovered Scythian treasures in the Ostrogozhsky District of Voronezh region, Russia.The Scythians were an ancient nomadic people living primarily in the region known as Scythia, which today comprises the Eurasian steppes of Kazakhstan, the Russian steppes of the Siberian, Ural, Volga and Southern regions, and eastern Ukraine.Excavations were conducted by the Don Expedition from the Institute of Archaeology at the Russian Academy of Science, where the researchers have been excavating the Devitsa V necropolis that consists of 19 burial mounds.A study of mound 7 in the centre of the cemetery revealed a wooden tomb...