World Neolithic

A new method of sourcing the origins of artefacts in high definition is set to improve our understanding of the past.

AMATEUR historians have uncovered 5,000-year-old artwork on stones hidden under thick gorse. 

The find in north Donegal is the largest collection of prehistoric rock art in Ireland.

Adam Porter and his wife Angela MacLochlainn are now hoping the discovery can be preserved and marketed to tourists.

Most of the rocks were documented in the 1970s by a Dutch archaeologist. They feature circular markings carved into the rock 3,000 years before Christ. But 40 years of growing gorse had hidden them away.

Stonehenge’s first building work in many years is nearly complete. All it’s taken is 20 years, several design competitions and nearly £40m in planning costs

Archaeologists have made a discovery in southern subtropical China which could revolutionise thinking about how ancient humans lived in the region. They have uncovered evidence for the first time that people living in Xincun 5,000 years ago may have practised agriculture -- before the arrival of domesticated rice in the region.

Pottery offers a bonanza of information for archaeologists. It represents a revolution in container technology, and the clay from which it is made provides a canvas with many possibilities for self-expression.

Il tratto disegnato dall'uomo del neolitico nella Grotta dei cervi a Porto Badisco ha straordinarie corrispondenze con l'arte moderna

Diffusion de l'agriculture en Chine. Au néolithique une étude montre qu'avant le développement du riz, les habitants utilisaient, et cultivaient (?), d'autres végétaux comme le palmier, la banane...

New archaeological discoveries in Yuyao city, in eastern China's Zhejiang province, provide a clearer picture of life in China's Neolithic age and confirm that the nation originated the practice of paddy cultivation.

An excavation of a Neolithic settlement site in St Ola is approaching the end of its first week. The site, at Smerquoy, was reported to archaeologist Christopher Gee several years ago by the landow...

Eine übliche Anfrage beim Landesamt hätte die Mockernsche Irritation verhindern können. Nun verzögert sich der Bau der Kreisstraßenmeisterei um bis zu acht Wochen. Doch er bringt auch Erhellendes zur Siedlungsgeschichte.

WITH his trusty wooden staff, flowing white robes and bushy, chest-length grey beard there is a definite whiff of Gandalf about Terry Dobney as he contemplates from this magnificent vantage point the surrounding Wiltshire countryside in all its...

AN ancient log-boat – which could be thousands of years old – has been discovered in the banks of the river Boyne.

Saint-Just (35). Rencontres préhistoriques en Bretagne samedi - Le CPIE Val de Vilaine (Centre permanent d’initiatives pour l’environnement) fêtera ses 10 ans et organisera une Fête de la préhistoire samedi, à partir de 11 h, à Saint-Just (35).

An analysis of ancient dog burials finds that the typical prehistoric dog owner ate a lot of seafood, had spiritual beliefs, and wore jewelry that sometimes wound up on the dog.

Des chercheurs de l'Université de Göteborg ont passé de nombreuses années à étudier les vestiges d'une communauté de l'âge de pierre sur le site de Karleby près de la ville de Falköping, en Suède.

Actuellement, ils cherchent à montrer que les engrais étaient déjà utilisées au cours de l'âge de pierre scandinave. Les résultats de leurs premières analyses semblent apporter cette confirmation.

New archaeological discoveries in Yuyao city, in eastern China's Zhejiang province, provide a clearer picture of life in China's Neolithic age and confirm that the nation originated the practice of paddy cultivation.

The possibility that various European, African, or Asian cultures might have “discovered” the Americas centuries or even millennia before Columbus is a wildly popular idea. Numerousbooks, magazines, and television programs have been devoted to the topic. Most of these claims are complete nonsense, but at least one has the distinction of having been championed by a respected archaeologist who works for the normally reputable Smithsonian Institution.

Poor preservation of plant macroremains in the acid soils of southern subtropical China has hampered understanding of prehistoric diets in the region and of the spread of domesticated rice southwards from the Yangtze River region. According to records in ancient books and archaeological discoveries from historical sites, it is presumed that roots and tubers were the staple plant foods in this region before rice agriculture was widely practiced. But no direct evidences provided to test the hypothesis. Here we present evidence from starch and phytolith analyses of samples obtained during systematic excavations at the site of Xincun on the southern coast of China, demonstrating that during 3,350–2,470 aBC humans exploited sago palms, bananas, freshwater roots and tubers, fern roots, acorns, Job's-tears as well as wild rice. A dominance of starches and phytoliths from palms suggest that the sago-type palms were an important plant food prior to the rice in south subtropical China. We also believe that because of their reliance on a wide range of starch-rich plant foods, the transition towards labour intensive rice agriculture was a slow process.

The eastern “panhandle” of the kingdom of Jordan is partly covered by a vast and rugged lava desert, the Harrat, covering about 11.400 km2 (Fig. 1). Scoured by wind in winter and scorched dry by the sun in summer, the surface is covered by black basalt stones, making this area seem as uninviting, hostile and inaccessible as is imaginable.

DNA sequenced from nearly 40 ancient skeletons has shed light on the complex prehistoric events that created the present day European population.

À la mode préhistorique

Cette fête-là est tout aussi ludique mais non moins physique. Elle se déroule samedi, à Saint-Just, épicentre de la terre des mégalithes, où l’on célèbre, en même temps, les 10 ans du CPIE Val de Vilaine. Toute la journée, les activités seront préhistoriques. Tracter et soulever des menhirs, fabriquer des bijoux, des instruments de musique, ou une pirogue à la manière des ancêtres. C’est drôle, parfois sportif, mais aussi très instructif. Au CPIE on assure même que les hommes du néolithique ont beaucoup à nous apprendre sur nous et sur notre futur… Gratuit.

Heavy equipment belonging to a construction firm that is working on the long-expected Marmaray project -- an undersea commuter train connecting İstanbul's Asian and European sides -- invaded an excavation site in Yenikapı and has damaged remnants dating back to the Neolithic Age.

On n’a pas tous les jours 20 ans. Regard aiguisé sur ces deux décennies, avec Elaine Lacroix, conservateur du site.