Explore the people, places, inventions and evidence that shape our understanding of the past and the history of knowledge.
Explore ancient cities beneath Mexico City, Rome and Istanbul—and how archaeologists read layers, date evidence and work beneath living streets.
Sep 16, 2026 • 6 min readRead the discovery →New stories, explanations and research from History & Knowledge.
Papyrus survives when its environment slows deterioration. Dry burial preserved many Egyptian texts, but excavation leaves fragile plant fibres needing careful conservation.
Sep 29, 2026 • 3 min read
Pacific wayfinding combines stars, swells and environmental signs with a continually updated estimate of the voyage. Modern voyaging organisations preserve and develop this living…
Sep 29, 2026 • 3 min read
Roman roads lasted where careful surveying, drainage, local materials and continuing maintenance worked together; there was no single universal layer recipe used across the…
Sep 28, 2026 • 2 min read
Cuneiform is a writing tradition used for several languages. Its decipherment required comparisons, sound values and independent tests, with different languages becoming readable at…
Sep 28, 2026 • 3 min read
Ancient colour survives as materials, traces and altered layers. Imaging and spectroscopy help identify it, while reconstruction must distinguish evidence from interpretation.
Sep 28, 2026 • 3 min read
Shipwreck preservation depends on materials, burial and the surrounding water. Raising a wreck changes those conditions and can create a demanding new conservation problem.
Sep 28, 2026 • 3 min read
Dendrochronology matches distinctive sequences of wide and narrow growth rings among trees and timbers, producing calendar dates and environmental records where suitable species and…
Sep 24, 2026 • 2 min read
Ancient glassmakers combined silica with fluxes and other ingredients, then controlled colour and opacity. Scientific analyses reveal recipes while leaving some workshop choices uncertain.
Sep 24, 2026 • 3 min read
Linear B became readable through sign catalogues, recurring word endings, place-name tests and the recognition of early Greek. The breakthrough was collaborative.
Sep 23, 2026 • 3 min read
Maya writing combines word signs and syllabic signs. Decipherment advanced by linking sounds, repeated spellings and historical sequences—not by treating every glyph as a…
Sep 22, 2026 • 3 min read
Microscopic grains preserved in sediment reveal changing forests, wetlands, farms, fires and human land use.
Sep 21, 2026 • 12 min read
Radiocarbon dating measures the loss of carbon-14 after carbon exchange stops. Calibration and sample context turn that measurement into a useful calendar-age estimate.
Sep 21, 2026 • 3 min read
Lime clasts, volcanic materials and water-driven mineral reactions help explain why selected Roman structures endured—and what modern engineers can learn without repeating the myths.
Sep 19, 2026 • 7 min read
Airborne lasers can map tiny differences in ground elevation through gaps in a canopy, revealing roads, terraces and monumental landscapes—but not replacing archaeology on…
Sep 14, 2026 • 4 min readOne remarkable idea at a time—nature, science, history and beyond.
