archaeology
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This Recently Discovered Fifth-Century Massacre In Sweden Is So Game Of Thrones We Can’t Even Handle It
Scientists in Sweden have completed a preliminary investigation of one of the most disturbing archaeological sites to be uncovered in recent memory. Over 1500 years ago, scores of villagers were mercilessly killed in their homes by an unknown band of marauders, who left the bodies where they fell. And inexplicably, the killers refrained from collecting…
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Why In The World Did Ancient Humans Perform Brain Surgery On This Cow?
Humans have been drilling holes into each others’ heads for thousands of years, and, surprisingly, we’ve actually been pretty good at it, even way back when. A re-analysis of a 5,000-year-old cow’s skull suggests humans were performing cranial surgery on animals as well – but why would they even bother? The answer could yield new…
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Medieval Cheater’s Dice With Double Fours And Fives Found In Norway
Six-sided dice date back nearly 5000 years to ancient Persia, so finding 600-year-old dice in Norway isn’t anything special. But this recently-discovered dice – with its conspicuously absent one-side and two-side – is unique, pointing to some Medieval-era shenanigans.
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Did Ancient Romans Use These Shafts As Summertime Refrigerators?
Archaeologists working in a shaft at Augusta Raurica.Photo: Peter-Andrew Schwarz/University of Basel Archaeologists in Switzerland are conducting an experiment to figure out how ancient Romans used a series of deep shafts to keep food cool well into the summer months.