Archaeology

Human hand outline may be oldest rock art in the world, researchers say

The 67,800-year-old reddish-colored stenciled image has become faded over time and is barely visible on a cave wall, but nonetheless embodies an early achievement of human creativity.

THE FAINT image of a hand stencil, a negative outline of a human hand created by placing a hand against a rock wall surface and spraying pigment paint around it, that has been dated to 67,800 years ago, in a limestone cave called Liang Metanduno on Muna.
The mandible of an archaic human who lived about 773 000 years ago is pictured after being excavated at a cave called Grotte a Hominides at a site known as Thomas Quarry I in the southwest part of the Moroccan city of Casablanca in this undated photograph released on January 7, 2026.

Fossils found in Moroccan cave may be a close Homo sapiens ancestor

US ambassador Mike Huckabee's family after finding coins in a Mateh Binyamin Regional Council cave, January 5, 2026.

'Grandpa, look what we found': Huckabee family uncovers ancient coins in West Bank caves

Archaeologists have uncovered a complex of ancient industrial workshops and part of a Roman-era necropolis in Egypt’s western Nile Delta.

Roman-era necropolis, ancient workshops unearthed in Egypt’s western Nile Delta


Israeli AI, drone imagery revolutionizing mapping of archaeological sites

“Sites that appear on the surface as scattered stones suddenly become coherent, organized spaces, and it saves a lot of research time,” Dr. Yitzchak Jaffe said.

Drone imagery of an archaeological site.

Jewish antiquities dealer arrested in Damascus on charges of illegal trafficking in artifacts

Private sources told The Media Line that a patrol from the Syrian security services raided Hamdani’s shop, confiscated several archaeological pieces on display, and then arrested him.

A man sells woolly hats and scarves with the colours of the independence-era Syrian flag at the Hamidiyah market in the old city of the capital Damascus on January 2, 2025.

Hanukkah discovery: Rare Hasmonean lamp, Second Temple stylus found near Jerusalem

The Civil Administration said the artifacts add to a growing corpus of Second Temple–era material recovered in recent years across the West Bank.

An archaeologist of Israel Antiquities Authority displays an oil lamp and coins dating back to the Sanhedrin era which have been uncovered at the Tel Yavne excavation site in central Israel, on November 29, 2021.

Ancient lead menorah pendant sheds light on Jewish presence in Byzantine Jerusalem

Cast almost entirely of lead, the pendant is decorated on both sides with an identical image of a menorah framed within a circular border.

AN ANCIENT menorah pendant from the Byzantine period, found in Jerusalem.

Libya's Red Castle museum opens for first time since fall of Gaddafi

The museum, Libya's largest, was closed in 2011 during a NATO-backed uprising against longtime ruler Gaddafi, who appeared on the castle's ramparts to deliver a fiery speech.

A newly discovered artifacts are seen at Libya's Red Castle Museum, Libya, February 28, 2019. Picture taken February 28, 2019.

In first-ever discovery, archaeologists find ancient Egyptian pleasure boat off Alexandria coast

Archaeologists uncovered the first known thalamegos near Alexandria’s ancient port, a 35-meter pleasure boat matching Strabo’s account and preserved with Greek graffiti and timberwork.

The Nile Mosaic of Palestrina, depicting several ancient Egyptian pleasure boats; illustrative.

Hasmonean era 'first wall' section revealed at Tower of David museum excavation - interview

Israel’s Heritage Minister, Rabbi Amichai Eliyahu, called the discovery: “tangible and moving evidence of Jerusalem’s might and stature during the Hasmonean period.”

Archaeologist Amit Re'em and Eilat Lieber, director of the Tower of David Jerusalem Museum stand atop the recently uncovered section of the Hasmonean wall.

Massive 4,000-year-old pits near Stonehenge were carved by neolithic humans, archaeologists say

Research published in the Internet Archaeology Journal found that the pits are man-made and were constructed during the late Neolithic period, making them over 4,000 years old.

Sheep grazing near Stonehenge.

Slaves in Pompeii may have been better fed than many free Romans

The slaves lived on the ground floor, in rat-infested 16-square-meter cells that contained up to three people, but archaeologists think their nutrition was enhanced to keep up their productivity.

Was it autumn or spring? Pompeii excavations.

Civil Administration recovers dozens of looted artifacts from West Bank site

A targeted operation at "Burj Lasana," in Area B, near Wadi Haramiya, recovered Crusader- and Byzantine-era items from a villa built inside the site.

The Civil Administration seizes dozens of archaeological artifacts from the Burj Lasana site north of Ramallah in the West Bank, December 4, 2025.