Archeology

October 11, 2023

Archeologists Discover 1,500-Year-Old Mayan Palace in Mexico

Would you live in a magnificent palace topped with palm leaves? Approximately 1,500 years ago, a Maya ruler likely did live in this kingly manner. Excavations at the archaeological zone of Kabah, located in the Puuc region of Yucatán, Mexico, has unveiled newly discovered ruins. Known as Petenero Palace, this site is large and imposing, with intricate decoration.

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September 14, 2023

Fossilized Footprints Present Evidence of Earliest Known Shoes

When were the first shoes created and worn? While archeologists are not able to pinpoint an exact moment of invention, there are good reasons to believe that walking on artificial soles dates back about 148,000 years. Three sites in South Africa featuring prints from early human ancestors bear some striking signs of footwear. As described in a paper in Ichnos, researchers are working towards developing techniques to recognize shod-hominin tracks.

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August 6, 2023

Oldest Neanderthal Engravings Have Been Preserved in a Cave for 57,000 Years

Cave art is a fascinating window into the lives of past humans, including our ancient relatives, like the Neanderthals. About 40,000 to 400,000 years ago, this subspecies of archaic humans roamed Europe and Asia. They died out as modern homo sapiens rose to prominence; but before that, the two groups came into contact and even interbred. In fact, most people today have some small percentage of Neanderthal DNA.

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My Modern Met

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