Articles tagged with Bronze Age
A new study challenges long-held ideas about what drove major changes in ancient Greek society on the island of Crete. Researchers found that the population remained local, with significant continuity in daily practices despite Mycenaean influence.
Scientists uncover ancient herpes DNA, revealing the virus's prehistoric origins around 5,000 years ago. The discovery suggests a link between the emergence of facial herpes and cultural practices like romantic and sexual kissing in Europe during the Bronze Age.
Researchers uncover unique cremation site in Adige Valley, Italy, suggesting complex funerary rituals. Cremated remains were intentionally left in situ for multiple generations.
The introduction of livestock and dairying to Bronze Age Mongolia may have driven social complexity, fostering the rise of complex societies. The spread of herds and horses into the Altai region had a significant impact on the development of these societies.
Researchers have found that Bronze Age daggers were used to process animal carcasses, including slaughtering livestock and butchering carcasses. The discovery was made using a new method that extracted organic residues from the daggers, revealing micro-residues of collagen and associated bone, muscle, and tendon fibres.
Researchers investigated habitat conditions at Blick Mead site, finding partially open woodland conditions that would have supported large grazing herbivores. The study suggests hunter-gatherers used this space for 4,000 years before early farmers and monument-builders arrived in the region.
A new ancient DNA study has uncovered the 5,000-year population history of Xinjiang, China, revealing a complex mix of local northern Asian and western Steppe ancestry in Bronze Age populations. The study found that these early populations were broadly mixed with unique ancestral components from southern Siberia and Central Asia.
Scientists analyzed ancient vessels from India and discovered that prehistoric people used a variety of ingredients, including foraged plants, cultivated crops, and traded goods. The study found no evidence of cultural change impacting food processing during the Copper Age to Indus Valley Civilization transition.
The discovery of Hanyusuchus sinensis, an extinct crocodilian species, sheds light on the evolution of modern crocodilians and their role in ancient ecosystems. Human migration and hunting led to its extinction, which may have influenced ancient Chinese myths and characters.
Ancient artworks from Minoan civilization of ancient Greece depict domesticated saffron, suggesting cultivation around 1600 BCE. Genetic studies support this origin, placing the modern saffron crocus with its three genomes as a result of natural selection in Bronze Age Greece.
Ancient DNA study reveals Bronze Age women replaced local population in Orkney, contrary to historical assumptions about European expansion trends. Genetic analysis suggests a complex and varied process of negotiation between indigenous males and newcomers from the south over many generations.
Bronze Age women led a massive wave of immigration in Orkney, replacing most of the local population and leaving behind their male lineages for over a thousand years. The study's findings suggest that Orkney was more integrated with the outside world than previously thought.
A major new study of ancient DNA has traced the movement of people into southern Britain during the Bronze Age, showing sustained contacts between mainland Britain and Europe over several centuries. The study suggests that Celtic languages arrived in Britain in the Bronze Age, contradicting previous theories.
A new study analyzing ancient Iberian genomes uncovers genetic shifts and social transformations during the Copper Age to Bronze Age transition. The data suggests that incoming steppe-related ancestry mixed with local Iberian Chalcolithic ancestry, but the paternally inherited Y chromosome lineages show a complete turnover.
A new study analyzing 136 ancient Iberian genomes uncovers a genetic mix of local Chalcolithic ancestry and incoming steppe-related ancestry, with additional signals from the Mediterranean and Asia. The data suggests a structured social organization and early state-like formations during the Copper Age to Bronze Age transition.
A genomic study of the Tarim Basin mummies in western China found that they were direct descendants of a once widespread Pleistocene population known as Ancient North Eurasians. The mummies show no evidence of admixture with other Holocene groups, forming a previously unknown genetic isolate.
Researchers have established that the Pontic-Caspian steppes and northern Caucasus are the center of horse domestication in Eurasia. The study reveals that domesticated horses spread throughout Asia at the same time as spoke-wheeled chariots and Indo-Iranian languages.
A Middle Bronze Age city in the Jordan Valley was destroyed by a high-temperature fire, likely caused by a meteorite impact. The site contains evidence of shocked quartz, melted pottery, and diamond-like carbon, supporting a cosmic airburst hypothesis.
Researchers have found conclusive evidence that a massive cosmic airburst destroyed the biblical city of Tall el-Hammam in the Jordan Valley around 3600 years ago. The impact, which is believed to be equivalent to a 12-megaton explosion, was characterized by temperatures exceeding 2,000°C and the formation of melted metals and glass.
A new study identifies at least three migratory events that shaped central European prehistory, revealing a more dynamic period than previously thought. Genetic profiles show evidence of recent migrations and novel insights into social processes, such as the expansion of Corded Ware culture and the assimilation of women.
Researchers reconstructed genetic histories and social organization in two ancient Croatian sites, uncovering a diverse population with little biological kinship. The study found that individuals from different burial rites had similar genetic ancestry, but also identified endogamous mating practices and patrilocal social organization.
A high-status Bronze Age woman and her twins were found in a Szigetszentmiklós urnfield cemetery, with remains indicating she was 25-35 years old at death. Strontium analysis suggested she was born elsewhere and moved to Hungary between ages 8-13.
Researchers found that Bronze Age weight systems emerged gradually in a westward spread from Mesopotamia to Europe, with similar units of weight used across the region. The study suggests that free entrepreneurship drove the emergence of accurate weight systems, enabling merchants to interact freely and establish profitable partnerships.
A study reveals that Bronze Age weight systems diffused through trade networks in Western Eurasia, with a single origin in Mesopotamia. The Indus Valley developed an independent system, while new units of weight emerged gradually west of Mesopotamia.
Researchers analyzed over 300 bronze objects to map trade networks for copper in Bronze Age Scandinavia. The study found that metal supplying networks and trade routes changed several times during the Nordic Bronze Age.
Ancient DNA analysis reveals that Bronze Age migrations changed burial practices and kinship structures in Italy. The study found that Steppe-related ancestry arrived in Central Italy around 3,600 years ago, while Northern Italy received it around 4,000 years ago.
Researchers found evidence of bronze scrap being used as cash in Europe during the late Bronze Age (1350-800 BC), challenging traditional notions of money's emergence. This practice spread across Western Eurasia, paving the way for a global market.
The study found that ancient civilizations in Greece were genetically homogenous, suggesting critical innovations like urban centres and metal use came from local Neolithic groups. Migration waves from the Pontic-Caspian steppe also shaped present-day Greece, supporting theories on Indo-European languages.
Cereal plant remains from Prigglitz-Gasteil show signs of processing off-site, suggesting specialized communities relied on external food sources. This discovery adds to the discussion on Bronze Age mining sites' dietary patterns and highlights the importance of processed foods in sustaining these communities.
Researchers from Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona found evidence suggesting that elite women played a crucial role in the governance of El Argar, a Bronze Age society. The study of a princely tomb discovered in La Almoloya revealed valuable items and diadems made with silver, indicating the women's symbolic power.
Researchers analyzed human, animal skeletons and plant remains to study the evolution of the Swiss diet during the Bronze Age. They found no differences in diet between men, women, or children, but a shift towards more intense agriculture and the introduction of new cereals like millet.
A team of researchers has found evidence that people in the Levant were eating turmeric, bananas, and soy in the Bronze and Early Iron Ages, tracing back to South and East Asia. Long-distance trade in culinary goods connected distant societies since at least the Bronze Age.
Researchers from the University of Sydney have reconstructed ancient seasonal migration routes of Bronze Age herders in Xinjiang using satellite imagery and archaeological evidence. This innovative methodology provides new insights into how Bronze Age people adapted to life in the region and capitalised on available resources.
Research on Bronze Age pastoral societies in southern Russia reveals low levels of mobility, contradicting previous assumptions about their migration patterns. The study analyzed skeletal remains to conclude that these communities remained within their ecological areas and relied on word-of-mouth transmission of technical innovations.
The study sequenced the genome of 442 bone fragments from the Viking Age and found that Vikings had a lot more genes from Southern and Eastern Europe than anticipated. This suggests that the Vikings frequently interbred with people from other parts of the world, contradicting traditional images of them as Nordic blonds.
Researchers used radiocarbon dating and CT scans to study ancient bones, revealing a Bronze Age tradition of retaining and curating human remains. The findings suggest that Bronze Age people valued the dead in tangible ways, often keeping remains in their homes or displaying them as grave goods.
Researchers analyzed 73 ancient genomes and found that the Canaanites descended from a mixture of local Neolithic populations and Iranian/Caucasus-related ancestry. This study sheds light on the cultural and genetic similarity among city-states, and how migration from the northeast may have influenced the region's culture.
The study reveals strong genetic resemblance among Bronze Age Southern Levant populations, including a significant Caucasus/Zagros component and Chalcolithic Zagros ancestry. The movement of people from the northeast into the region started as early as 4,500 years ago and continued throughout the Bronze Age.
New study reveals deep connection between Upper Paleolithic Siberians and First Americans, dating back to the Upper Paleolithic period. The discovery sheds light on future studies about Native American population history and suggests that the ancestry of Native Americans was more widely distributed than previously assumed.
A new study reveals that human activity led to Europe's forests being replaced with agricultural landscapes during the Bronze Age, contrary to previous assumptions about the Neolithic period. The research suggests that the Yamnaya steppe peoples' rapid expansion had a greater impact on vegetation than the earlier Neolithic farmer migra...
Researchers uncovered a collection of 31 unusual objects, believed to be the personal belongings of a Bronze Age warrior who died on the battlefield 3,300 years ago. The discovery provides insights into the equipment and origins of the warriors, with evidence suggesting at least some were from southern Central Europe.
Archaeological analysis of Bronze Age cemeteries in southern Germany reveals that nuclear families lived with foreign women and individuals from lower social classes. The study, published in Science, suggests a complex social structure where wealth was correlated with biological kinship or foreign origin.
A recent study published in Open Archaeology reveals that Tholos A at Apesokari, a Bronze Age circular tomb on Crete, was deliberately placed to control parcels of land and increase visibility from a specific path. The article's use of GIS analysis sheds new light on the role of burial sites and mortuary practices in Prepalatial Crete.
Researchers use natural sciences methods to determine geographic origin of Bronze Age tin artifacts from Israel, Turkey, and Greece, disproving Central Asian source and confirming Europe as the origin of ingots. The study highlights complex trade networks between Europe and Eastern Mediterranean during the Bronze Age.
Researchers found evidence of precise units of measurement, enabling comparison and calculation of material values, profits, and currencies during the Bronze Age. The discovery suggests widespread knowledge of standard weights and measures across prehistoric Europe.
The study analyzed skeletal remains from 37 localities across present-day Denmark, revealing a shift in human mobility at the beginning of the Nordic Bronze Age. Migrants came from diverse regions, including southern Scandinavia, the Italian Alps, and Cornwall in south England.
Researchers found ancient parasite eggs in human coprolites at the Must Farm settlement, indicating that inhabitants were infected by eating raw aquatic animals. The discovery provides new insights into the intestinal diseases of prehistoric Britain and their possible connections to modern food trends.
The study reveals a crucial dependency on British and continental European trading sources for Scandinavian mixed-metal artifacts during the Nordic Bronze Age. Metal recycling was common, with smiths reusing imported and local metal objects to create new products.
Archaeologists from the Cambridge Archaeological Unit present a definitive timeframe for Must Farm's occupation and destruction in Antiquity. The site, located in Cambridgeshire, England, features remarkably preserved Late Bronze Age structures, including stilted houses and logboats, which provide insight into daily life 3,000 years ago.
Archaeologists discovered unusual ring-shaped objects made from barley and wheat dough in a Late Bronze Age hillfort site. The finds suggest that these cereal rings were not intended for eating and may have been created for ritual purposes, expanding our understanding of ancient food diversity.
Researchers found that agricultural lime alters the strontium isotopic composition of surface waters and plants in non-calcareous soils. This can result in incorrect interpretations of prehistoric people's origins and movement, affecting studies on provenance and mobility.
Researchers found that dogs and foxes shared similar diets with their owners, indicating domestication. The study analyzed stable carbon and nitrogen isotopes in bone collagen, revealing a varied diet among the foxes, but one species showed signs of being a domestic animal.
Researchers are studying Bronze Age activity in the Urals to understand demographic processes and settlement structures. They are analyzing palaeogenetic techniques, archaeological excavations, geophysical surveys, material culture, and archaeobotany to find answers about population genetics, cultural transformation, and demography.
Researchers discovered dairy pastoralism in Mongolia as early as 1300 BC through cultural transmission rather than population replacement or migration. Milk proteins were found in tooth tartar and dental calculus of ancient Mongolians, indicating the livestock were cattle, sheep, and goats introduced by Western Steppe herders.
Researchers found evidence of sheep, cow, and goat milk consumption in late Bronze Age human remains from Mongolia. Genetic analysis revealed limited gene flow between western and eastern steppe populations, but cultural transmission led to the adoption of dairy herding in Bronze Age Mongolia.
Researchers identified splicing as the earliest plant fibre technology for making thread in Early Bronze Age Britain and across Europe. This technology is fundamentally different from draft spinning and was previously unknown in Britain.
A team of researchers analyzed two 3,800-year-old genomes, identifying the oldest sequenced strain with virulence factors characteristic of bubonic plague. The study suggests a Bronze Age origin for the disease, dating it back around 4,000 years.
Researchers from University of South Florida have identified oleic and linoleic acids in ancient pottery from Sicily, dating back to the Early Bronze Age. The discovery confirms olive oil existed in Italy hundreds of years earlier than previously recorded.
Researchers uncovered a continuous record of past anthropogenic lead pollution in the Balkans, dating back to the Bronze Age. The study suggests that the region played a key role in European mining and metallurgy, with lead pollution levels increasing steadily from the Iron Age to the 17th century
Dr. Catherine Frieman's excavation uncovers intact 4,000-year-old cremation and evidence of unaccountable medieval activity on the same site. The team found a large mound over the burial that existed from prehistory to the middle ages, protecting the center of the barrow.