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In January 2021, students at a high school across the street from the Colosseum came up with a bold plan. Angered by plans to extend remote learning to prevent the spread of Covid-19, the teenagers occupied their school, spending several nights camped out in the building in protest.When the demonstration ended, participants told Claudia Marino, a history and Latin teacher at the school, that they'd stumbled upon something significant. Marino and her colleagues investigated the tip, following the students' directions to a locked door in the basement."We found the key, entered, and we were in an old, disused boiler room,"...

This ancient house, with large elaborate gardens, pools and fountains, was located not far from the ancient amphitheater on the eastern side of Pompeii. Its walls were heavily decorated with depictions of various mythological scenes including a double frieze, the likes of which have not been found anywhere else in Roman wall painting. It shows scenes of Hercules and Kings of Troy, as well as a series of familiar of Achilles in the trojan war, but they are not in the order that we would expect. We will go in depth on its various mythological scenes including and the only...

Archaeologists from the Israel Antiquities Authority and Cologne University have made an unexpected discovery in Israel's Negev Desert: carved figurines with apparent African origins.The figurines were uncovered during excavations at Tel Malhata, an elliptical-shaped mound located in the eastern sector of the Arad -- Beer-sheba Valley.The site is often identified as Moladah, the biblical town of Simeon, and one of the cities of Judah (although other identifications have been suggested). Previous excavations at the Tel have found occupational layers dating from the Middle Bronze Age to the Byzantine period.According to a study published in 'Atiqot -- Publications of the Israel...

A mysterious discovery beneath a Swiss lake uncovered over 1,000 perfectly preserved Roman artifacts. From swords to cargo crates, this ancient shipwreck is rewriting what we know about Rome’s frontier. Archaeologists Just Found 1,000 Roman Artefacts in a Swiss Lake | 21:13 Sideprojects | 1.3M subscribers | 109,704 views | May 28, 2026

Archaeologists are puzzled over the discovery of a Roman-era earthenware pot filled with oil lamps and bronze coins in the commune of Windisch, in the northern Swiss canton of Aargau.

Archaeologists have recently uncovered fragments of a life-size mural depicting the Greek Trojan War hero Achilles in the remains of a Roman home near Reims, France. The discovery, dating to the 2nd century CE, sheds new light on the cultural reach and artistic sophistication of ancient Roman Gaul. The mural, depicting the mythological tale of Achilles and Deidamia, was found on the western outskirts of what was once the Roman city of Durocortorum, now modern-day Reims. The discovery offers a rare glimpse into the tastes and traditions of the Roman elite who lived far from the empire’s major urban centers....

In Norway’s highest mountains, experts are scouring perilous terrain for pieces of the past, long stored in mint condition in ice patches. As temperatures rise across the world, glacial archaeologists must find the emerging artifacts before they degrade forever This arrow with a pressure-flaked arrowhead made from gray quartzite dates to the Late Stone Age or Bronze Age and was found on Norway’s ice. The pitch and the animal sinew used to fasten the arrowhead are still preserved, which is exceptionally rare. Espen Finstad, Innlandet County Municipality ============================================================================================ A brown leather loafer came into view on a patch of ice...

According to a statement released by the University of York, researchers have identified rare traces of dyed purple textiles in two Roman infant burials. Known as Tyrian purple, the extremely costly colorant was manufactured by crushing thousands of murex marine sea snails and was typically reserved for use by emperors, royalty, and members of the aristocracy. However, experts were able to detect its presence on garments wrapped around two small children who died and were buried around 1,700 years ago. Their remains are held in the collections of the York Museums Trust. The dye was identifiable through chemical analysis because...

Researchers led by Elena Klenina and Andrzej B. Biernacki of Adam Mickiewicz University and their colleagues identified intestinal parasites in residues taken from four chamber pots recovered from two archaeological sites in the Roman province of Moesia Inferior, which is located in what is now Bulgaria, according to a La Brújula Verde report. Three of the pots in the study were found in a villa located near the Legio I Italica army camp, where high-ranking officials likely stayed when they visited the region. Cryptosporidium, a protozoan that can cause severe diarrhea, was one of the parasites detected in the second-century...

During the 4th-century, a remarkable artifact was produced by Roman artisans that exhibits optical qualities so unique they have baffled scholars for centuries. Known as the Lycurgus Cup, it is one of the most unusual examples of glassworking ever produced by the Roman Empire, as it is made from dichroic glass—a material that appears to exhibit an entirely different coloration when light passes through it—causing it to look green when illuminated from the front but appearing a striking amber-red when illuminated from behind. The artifact’s unique name refers to its depiction of King Lycurgus, who, according to mythology, attempted to...

Overshadowed by the rise of the Roman Empire, the Etruscan civilization -- and their exquisite art, progressive society, and advanced engineering -- was largely forgotten by history. This film reclaims their story, revealing how Etruscan innovations and customs were the foundation upon which the entire Roman world was built, and how their legacy continues today. The Etruscans, the ancient world's greatest untold story | 11:12 Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco | 36.1K subscribers | 58,106 views | May 1, 2026

In a coordinated effort spanning multiple agencies and borders, U.S. authorities have repatriated 26 ancient artifacts to Greece, marking another step in the ongoing fight against the illicit trade in cultural heritage. The operation was led by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), a division of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), with support from U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), the FBI, and the State Department. The items were recovered following months of investigation, underscoring the growing international cooperation aimed at protecting and restoring looted antiquities to their countries of origin. “These invaluable objects, illegally removed from their homeland, have now...

According to a statement released by the University of South Florida, a mass grave containing the remains of victims of the Plague of Justinian (A.D. 541–750) has been identified at the site of Jerash in northern Jordan by a team of researchers led by Rays H.Y. Jiang of the University of South Florida. Hundreds of people were buried within several days in this mass grave dug in the city's hippodrome. "By linking biological evidence from the bodies to the archaeological setting, we can see how disease affected real people within their social and environmental context," Jiang said. Examination of the...

Live Science reports that Joachim Burger of Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz and his colleagues examined more than 250 sets of human remains of people who lived in what is now southern Germany, on what was the frontier of the Roman Empire, between A.D. 400 and 700. The researchers analyzed DNA samples from the bones, performed strontium isotope analysis to look for chemical signatures in the bones, and compared the results of the tests with 2,500 ancient and 379 modern genomes. The study suggests that many people engaged in monogamy, and nearly one-quarter of the children lost at least one parent...

A Roman ship that sank about 2,200 years ago off the Adriatic coast... known as Ilovik–Paržine 1, was found in 2016 near the Croatian island of Ilovik. Archaeologists have examined the hull and cargo before, but recent work has focused on the material used to seal the ship's exterior -- substances meant to keep water out and protect the wood from damage...Most of the coating was made from pine-based pitch, produced by heating resin from conifer trees. In one case, the material included beeswax mixed with pitch. This combination would have made the coating more workable and slightly more flexible...

Archaeologists from the University of Warsaw have discovered a concentration of shipwrecks near the ancient port of Ptolemais in northern Libya... one of the five cities that formed the Pentapolis of Cyrenaica, established by the Ptolemaic dynasty between the late 4th and 3rd centuries BC. The city emerged as a major hub for maritime trade until the Arab conquest in the 7th century AD.Covering a stretch of over 100 metres, the large concentration of submerged material suggests that multiple shipwrecks accumulated over time as a navigational danger for ships approaching the harbour.After a 13-year hiatus due to the Libyan civil...

Archeologists in Italy's Pompeii have for the first time used artificial intelligence to reconstruct the appearance of one of the victims of the volcanic eruption that destroyed the ancient Roman city nearly 2,000 years ago. Archaeologists use AI to generate image of Pompeii victim | 0:59 Reuters | 4.18M subscribers | 12,415 views | April 27, 2026

Between the 10th and 13th centuries, the monks at the Great Lavra Monastery on Mount Athos, Greece, sporadically broke down a 6th century manuscript and reused its pages as binding material and flyleaves for other texts. In time, Codex H effectively disappeared. These new volumes were spread across Europe and it was only through the enterprise of a sharp-eyed 18th century French monk that researchers today have been able to locate the lost folios among libraries in Italy, Greece, Russia, Ukraine, and France. All the same, while the general content of Codex H, which contains a copy of the Letters...

Well into Scotland this week and looking at Roman occupation, including one of the last physical signs of it, the truly remarkable Eagle Rock near Cramond. Now it normally raises some controversy in the comments whenever we acknowledge Roman control north of the wall, so we try to take a balanced view in this film: yes, parts of Scotland did fall for some periods - it's bonkers to deny that - but this site investigation shows how transitory it was. As well as the fantastic Eagle Rock, we explore the exposed remains of the Roman fort in Cramond - a...

The discovery of the lost Roman city of Briga in the forests of Normandy is a masterclass in persistence. For decades, experts doubted a significant city could exist in such a remote location, dismissing early finds as exaggerated. This video explores how archaeologists unearthed a massive 160-acre urban center, including a monumental sanctuary, a 5,000-seat theater, and a luxury basilica -- all hidden beneath the soil. Briga: The Most Significant Archaeological Discovery Of The 21st Century | 52:19 Unearthed History - Archaeology Documentaries | 282K subscribers | 17,885 views | April 26, 2026