Having sunk to the bottom of the sea when the pyramids were being built, its treasures could have been lost to the sands of time.

But a wave of luck has swept over archeologists after they discovered what is believed to be the world's oldest known shipwreck off Turkey's coast - dating back an astonishing 4,700 years.

The vessel was found near Kekova Island in Antalya and is thought to have sunk between 2600 BC and 2400 BC, around the same time the Great Pyramid of Giza was being built.

Although the ship's wooden hull has long since decayed, divers uncovered a cargo of ancient storage pots and stone anchors resting nearly 100ft (30m) below the surface.

Researchers say the discovery predates the famous Dokos wreck in Greece, previously regarded as the world's oldest known shipwreck.

The archaeologists who found the ship say it was about 32ft (10m) in length and was a trade vessel carrying cargo.

‘The shipwreck is a time capsule at the bottom of the sea,’ Professor Hakan Oniz, from Akdeniz University in Turkey, who led the Mediterranean Archaeology Association expedition, said.

Although the ship's wooden hull has long since decayed, divers uncovered a cargo of ancient storage pots and stone anchors resting nearly 100ft (30m) below the surface

More than 30 ceramic pots called amphorae were identified, along with three stone anchors

The newly identified wreck lies in an area of the Mediterranean that contains several ancient shipwrecks from different periods, including Roman vessels

In total, more than 30 ceramic pots called amphorae were identified at the site, along with three stone anchors.

Experts believe the vessel was a trading ship carrying goods such as olive oil or wine across the eastern Mediterranean.

Analysis of the clay suggests the amphorae were probably produced in workshops in the Jordan Valley before being transported by sea.

Similar vessels have previously been found near the Egyptian pyramids at Giza, Saqqara and Abusir, as well as at Troy and on Crete, hinting at extensive Bronze Age trade networks.

According to the researchers, the ship may have departed from a port on the Levantine coast and been sailing west towards Troy or Crete when disaster struck.

In their study published in the Journal of Maritime Archaeology, the team wrote: ‘Current information suggests that the shipwreck is from a small vessel that sank while sailing east to west during the Early Bronze Age.’

 Analysis of the clay suggests the amphorae were probably produced in workshops in the Jordan Valley before being transported by sea

According to the researchers, the ship may have departed from a port on the Levantine coast and been sailing west towards Troy or Crete when disaster struck

Experts believe the vessel was a trading ship carrying goods such as olive oil or wine across the eastern Mediterranean

Experts described the find as a 'time capsule at the bottom of the sea'. Their discovery suggests sailors may have produced their own food during voyages

Turkey's Culture and Tourism Minister, Mehmet Nuri Ersoy, hailed the find as evidence of the world's oldest shipwreck and said it sheds new light on Anatolia's maritime past.

‘We are bringing to light the traces of the world’s oldest shipwreck,’ he said.

‘Clay analyses indicate that the amphorae were probably produced in workshops in the Jordan Valley.

A diver explores an area off Turkey's coast where archaeologists say the world's oldest shipwreck has been found.

Hakan Öniz

‘The discovery of similar examples in Egypt, Troy and Crete is of great importance for understanding the trade networks that connected different regions by sea.’

He added: ‘Among the finds, one amphora stands out, featuring nine different markings and two holes in its body.

‘Thought to have possibly been used as a churn in cheese or butter production, this vessel offers clues that sailors may have produced their own food during long voyages.’

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Mystery man-made mounds in the Deep South are older than the Great Pyramid... and leave experts baffled over their creation

• READ MORE: I'm a Harvard physicist. I believed in evolution my whole life… until I found God and uncovered something science still can't explain

By STACY LIBERATORE, US SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY EDITOR

Ancient mounds in Louisiana that predate Egypt’s Great Pyramid are still puzzling scientists roughly 5,500 years after construction began.

Native American hunter-gatherers built the eleven earthworks at Watson Brake, near Monroe, around 3500 BC, nearly 1,000 years before the pyramid.

‘It is unclear why Watson Brake and other Middle Archaic mounds were built,’ archaeologist Rebecca Saunders wrote for the Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities.

The complex was mapped in the 1980s, but scientific dating in the 1990s revealed its remarkable age. Construction continued in stages for 600 to 700 years, with the builders connecting the mounds with ridges to create an oval enclosure roughly 1,000 feet across.

Using baskets, deer antlers and their bare hands, they raised eleven mounds without draft animals, a feat that likely required large groups working across generations. 

The tallest mound rises 25 feet above the surrounding ground.

The discovery helped overturn the belief that only farming societies could build large monuments, revealing that hunter-gatherers could organize and sustain major construction projects. 

Archaeologist Vincas Steponaitis, an expert in Native American mounds, said: 'It's rare that archaeologists ever find something that so totally changes our picture of what happened in the past, as is true for this case.'

Native American hunter-gatherers built the eleven earthworks at Watson Brake, near Monroe, around 3500 BC, nearly 1,000 years before the pyramid

Although identified decades ago, Watson Brake was featured in a video published by YouTube channel The Silent Ruins on September 10.

The mounds have long been hidden in a dense forest, but local amateur archaeologist Reca Jones recognized the earthworks after timber clearing exposed parts of the site in the early 1980s. 

She worked with Harvard graduate student John Belmont to produce the first map of the complex.

Researchers initially associated the mounds with the much younger Poverty Point culture, best known for another Louisiana earthwork complex built around 1700 to 1100 BC.

Investigations in the early 1990s by archaeologist Joe Saunders, soil scientist E Thurman Allen and colleagues revealed evidence that Watson Brake was considerably older.

Strongly developed soils suggested the earthworks had been weathering for thousands of years. 

The team used radiocarbon analysis and an independent technique called luminescence dating to investigate their age.

Radiocarbon analysis dates carbon-bearing remains such as charcoal, while luminescence estimates when mineral grains in sediment were last exposed to daylight.

The findings, published in Science on September 19, 1997, placed Watson Brake roughly 1,900 years before other then-known North American mound complexes with earthen enclosures.

The mounds have long been hidden in a dense forest near, but local amateur archaeologist Reca Jones recognized the earthworks after timber clearing exposed parts of the site in the early 1980

A detailed study published in American Antiquity in 2005 reinforced the chronology using 25 radiocarbon dates and six luminescence dates.

Food remains show that the builders relied on fish, shellfish, deer, nuts and other wild plants, rather than cultivated crops.

Stone tools, beads and fired-earth objects offer clues about their daily lives, but the reason they devoted so much labor to the mounds remains uncertain.

One possibility is that construction helped bring scattered communities together.

'It could have been a way to reinforce relationships and cooperation,' Diana Greenlee, station archaeologist at Poverty Point and an adjunct professor at the University of Louisiana at Monroe, told Heart of Louisiana in an article published in 2022.

She also suggested that the earthworks could demonstrate a community's resources and ability to undertake major construction.

Archaeologists have uncovered ancient arrow heads or spear points found at Watson Brake

Small bricks made of dirt have also been found at the mound site

The 2005 study proposed that mound building may have been a communal response to droughts and flooding that made food supplies less predictable. That remains a hypothesis.

The mystery has parallels at Poverty Point, a separate Louisiana site whose main complex was built around 1700 to 1100 BC, centuries after Egypt's Great Pyramid.

Its largest mound stands 72 feet high and contains enough earth to fill roughly 31,000 modern dump trucks. A 2013 study suggested it was built in fewer than 90 days, possibly as little as 30.

In research published in 2025, Tristram 'T R' Kidder and colleagues proposed that Poverty Point was a temporary gathering place for trade, socializing and worship. 

They suggested mound building and offerings may have been a shared religious response to severe weather and flooding.

Those interpretations remain proposals, while Watson Brake's original purpose is still unresolved.

Watson Brake is not open to the public. Some of its mounds stand on privately owned land, although Louisiana has acquired part of the site for preservation.

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Forget stone tools! Neanderthals were master woodworkers who crafted spears, trays and even tripods, scientists discover

By WILIAM HUNTER, SENIOR SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY REPORTER

Neanderthals might be famous for their use of sophisticated stone tools, but new evidence suggests that they were also accomplished carpenters.

Archaeologists investigating the site of Abric Romaní in Spain discovered evidence of wooden tools, structures, and woodworking dating from 40,000 to 62,000 years ago.

The researchers uncovered the imprints and charred remains of 13 objects ranging from spears and a club to trays and tripods.

It appears that Neanderthals even specifically sought out different types of wood for different applications, displaying a surprising level of technical know-how.

A collection of small trays, for example, were shaped from the flexible bark of the juniper tree – perfect for lightweight, flexible equipment.

Meanwhile, the Neanderthal carpenters sought out Scots pine for their harder-wearing tools, selecting a wood which is 'relatively compact and resistant, yet easy to work with'.

In their paper, published in Science Advances, the researchers say that this small collection of artefacts shows 'a remarkable technological versatility and the diversified exploitation of wood as a raw material'.

Archaeologists have uncovered wooden tools created by Neanderthals, including a club that could have been used as a weapon in war or hunting. Pictured: The preserved impression of a club in the ground and a model of what it would have looked like

The remains of wooden tools were found in the Abric Romaní, an enormous sheltered area covering more than 300 metres squared, where our ancient relatives once took shelter

Researchers also discovered trays, expertly shaped from the light, flexible bark of mulbury trees

(pictured) 

The Abric Romaní is an important archaeological site tucked beneath a dense limestone cliff known as Cinglera del Capelló.

It comprises an enormous sheltered area covering more than 300m squared, where our ancient relatives once took refuge.

In the Middle Palaeolithic period, 300,000 to 30,000 years ago, the site was a vital corridor connecting inland Catalonia with the coast, attracting both Neanderthals and early Homo sapiens.

Excavations began in 1983, but what makes this site so important is the fact that it is one of the few places to preserve evidence of ancient woodwork.

Scientists have observed that even our distant primate relatives, such as chimpanzees, are capable of using simple wooden tools to crack nuts or catch ants.

This means that the evolution of wooden technology likely plays an extremely important role in the development of human society.

However, unlike stone tools which can survive for millennia, wood rapidly breaks down and decays, making evidence extremely rare.

Luckily, at Abric Romaní, researchers have found charred remains preserved by carbonisation and imprints preserved by a process called travertine incrustation.

The wooden works were mainly found as impressions in the surrounding ground, preserved through a process called travertine incrustation

Archaeologists say that Neanderthals could have used the club and wooden spear to hunt down animals such as deer and horses

(artist's impression) 

This is a process by which calcium carbonate from the surrounding rock builds up in a layer around the wooden artefact as it slowly decays.

This leaves an impression on the rock which can preserve fine details, even down to the cellular level.

Using these remains, archaeologists have found extensive evidence of Neanderthal woodwork at the site, spanning a period of 22,000 years.

Some of the simplest are a collection of wooden trays crafted from bark that have been preserved in a carbonised state.

The researcher suggests that these may have 'functioned as containers for transporting food or as scoops or ladles, perhaps for collecting embers or ashes'.

The excavations have also revealed a collection of pointed sticks that appear to bear the marks of deliberate shaping.

These sticks could have been used as spears for hunting, fishing and warfare, or as simple tools for digging holes.

However, the archaeologists also uncovered evidence of more elaborate woodwork, including structural features.

In one part of the site, researchers found fragments of three sticks, each over a metre in length, that likely came together to form an elevated structure or tripod that could have been used in food processing.

In another, the team found a 16.7-feet-long (5.1m) tree that had been stripped of its branches, apparently intended to function as a 'structural element and as part of a resting area'.

Neanderthals also appear to have carved large pieces of wood to create structures, either for shelter or to help with processing food 

But the most advanced object of all is a unique wooden club carved from a single piece of wood.

Shaped almost like a kitchen knife, the club features a clear handle and head section that show a 'deliberate and technically controlled shaping process'.

The handle is wider towards the bottom end, making it more secure in the hand during a swing, and there is a sharp transition between handle and head which would have stopped the hand from slipping on impact.

Likewise, the 'blade' section is carefully tapered to a point to form a working point.

Wooden Neanderthal clubs like this are astonishingly rare, with only one other possible example dating from around 400,000 years ago, making it hard to determine what it was used for.

However, the researchers say that its shape suggests it might have been used as a weapon against other Neanderthals or for 'dispatching' animals like deer and horses.

So, although they might have lived in the Stone Age, the researchers say Neanderthals' craftwork may have been a lot more diverse than you would expect.

The researchers conclude: 'Beyond their deftness with stone, Neanderthals had a remarkable ability to work with organic materials such as bone, shell, fiber, and wood.'

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EXCLUSIVE - Scholars hail 2,000-year-old burial chest as first 'direct connection' to Jesus: Extraordinary etching clues after owner acquitted of forgery... as DNA tests begin on ancient bones

By STACY LIBERATORE, US SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY EDITOR

Some deem it 'the most significant item ever found' from the time of Christ.

The 2,000-year-old limestone chest, known as the James ossuary, measures roughly one foot nine inches long and ten inches wide and bears the inscription 'James, son of Joseph, brother of Jesus,' written in ancient Aramaic. Bone fragments have been recovered from inside the box.

But the inscription has been at the center of a decades-long forgery controversy. In 2003, the Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA) declared it a modern forgery carved into a genuine ancient burial box.

Its owner, Israeli collector Oded Golan, who says he acquired the box in the 1970s, was accused of adding the words 'brother of Jesus.' He was acquitted of forgery in 2012, although the judge stressed that the verdict did not establish the inscription's authenticity or its connection to the biblical Jesus.

Biblical scholar Dr Jeremiah Johnston, however, points to the acquittal and the support of leading experts in ancient inscriptions as evidence of its authenticity. 

Johnston also rejects the suggestion that a Christian added the words centuries later, arguing that the practice of collecting bones in burial boxes had disappeared from Jerusalem after AD 70. 

He and a team of experts plan to conduct a DNA analysis on the bone fragments in 2027.

'If it is truly his, we are looking at the only known archaeological artifact directly connected to the family of Jesus of Nazareth,' Johnston told the Daily Mail. 

A stunning 2,000-year-old ossuary could be the first link to Jesus' family

The limestone burial chest is engraved with 'James, son of Joseph, brother of Jesus'

Golan reportedly found the ossuary in an antiquities shop in Silwan, just outside Jerusalem's Old City, near the Siloam Spring.

He paid $200 for it, and years later had one of the world's leading experts on ancient Hebrew and Aramaic script, André Lemaire, analyze the limestone box.

'Its inscription read Ya'akov bar Yosef, akhui di Yeshua: "James, son of Joseph, brother of Jesus,"' Johnston wrote in his book The Jesus Discoveries. 

'Oded had always assumed it named three generations of one family. Lemaire reminded him that Jesus of Nazareth had a brother named James.'

Johnston, who has a PhD from Middlesex University in the UK and studied the James ossuary extensively, explained that the box fits a burial custom practiced in first-century Jerusalem: Families placed the deceased in a tomb, then returned about a year later to collect the bones and transfer them into a limestone ossuary.

James, Joseph and Jesus were all common names at the time. But Johnston argued that naming a brother makes this inscription particularly significant.

Of roughly 900 ossuaries in the catalog he cites, only about a quarter carry inscriptions, and Johnston said just one other names a brother. He believes the unusual addition suggests that the brother was a prominent figure.

Johnston also pointed to the first-century Jewish historian Josephus, who recorded the stoning of James, identified as 'the brother of Jesus who was called the Christ,' in AD 62.

According to the Bible, Jesus' brother, James, did not believe he was the Messiah throughout their lives

Some experts believe 'brother of Jesus' was added later as a forgery

Dr Jeremiah Johnston and a team of experts plan to conduct a DNA analysis on the bone fragments recovered from the ossuary

'If James died in AD 62, custom says his bones were gathered about a year later, around AD 63,' Johnston said. 'That is precisely the window the ossuary’s style and epigraphy point to.'

Early examinations by two Geological Survey of Israel researchers supported the case for authenticity. 

However, the agency later endorsed findings that the mineral coating inside the inscription could not have formed under the region's natural conditions, highlighting the scientific disagreement.

The ossuary went on public display in 2002, attracting international attention and scrutiny from the IAA.

Golan was subsequently accused of adding 'brother of Jesus' to an ancient inscription reading 'James, son of Joseph,' and applying a coating to make the new lettering appear old.

'What followed was one of the most unusual trials in the history of archaeology,' Johnston said.

Experts challenged the forgery allegations, including the respected scholar of ancient handwriting Ada Yardeni, whom Johnston said defended the inscription’s authenticity in court.

A 1976 family photograph showing the box and its disputed inscription also became part of Golan’s defense. A photographic expert testified that the paper and fading were consistent with its age and found no evidence of tampering.

When Golan was acquitted of forgery the judge said that the verdict did not establish the inscription's authenticity.

Johnston nevertheless believes the evidence makes a compelling case.

'So where do I land? Exactly where honest history always lands: not absolute certainty, but historical probability,' he said.

The Daily Mail has contacted IAA for comment. 

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The Sphinx’s secret: Egyptian monument was built from rocks filled with the hidden fossils of ancient crocodiles, scientists discover

By WILIAM HUNTER, SENIOR SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY REPORTER

The Sphinx is one of ancient Egypt's most enigmatic monuments, and now scientists have found that it could be hiding a very unusual secret.

According to new research, the legendary half-human-half-lion was built from rocks filled with the hidden fossils of ancient crocodiles.

Scientists discovered a new species of extinct crocodile in the rocks of the Mokattam Formation in northern Egypt, which are 54million years old.

This ancient predator has been dubbed Herugavialis cairensis, after the ancient Egyptian god Heru, which the Sphinx is believed to depict.

The fossil crocodile was found in the very same limestone rocks that had been quarried over 4,000 years ago to construct the legendary Great Sphinx of Giza.

And the scientists even think that the Sphinx itself might now contain fossils of these long-extinct crocs.

Lead author Dr Paul Burke, of the Swedish Museum of Natural History, told the Daily Mail: 'It could! It was built from the same rocks where Herugavialis was found, so who knows.

'What I don’t recommend is tearing apart the Sphinx to see if there is!'

According to new research, the Great Sphinx of Giza was built using rocks filled with the fossilised remains of ancient crocodiles 

Scientists discovered a new species of extinct crocodile in the 54-million-year-old rocks of the Mokattam Formation in Egypt that were used to make the Sphinx, naming it Herugavialis cairensis (artist's impression)

Co-author Professor Philip Mannion, of University College London, says: 'Given this coincidence with the famously missing nose of the Great Sphinx, we decided to name the new crocodile after the Egyptian god Heru, who was possibly the inspiration for this iconic monument.'

Herugavialis is a member of the gavial family, a group of crocodiles characterised by their long, thin snouts.

Today, there are only two living species, which are found in freshwater environments across the Indian subcontinent and Southeast Asia.

The fossilised skull of Herugavialis was actually discovered all the way back in the 1920s, during excavations on the Mokattam Formation.

However, scientists initially thought that the skull belonged to the 'false gharial', or Tomistoma schlegelii, one of the living species of gavials.

But today, analytical advances in palaeontology, including the use of CT scanning to look inside the skull, have allowed researchers to find key differences between the false gharial and the ancient fossil.

That meant the skull was from an entirely new, previously undiscovered species of extinct crocodile, described in a paper published in Royal Society Open Science. 

And, just like the Sphinx is famously missing its nose, the fossilised skull is missing the tip of its snout.

Scientists say that the Sphinx itself might contain more fossils of Herugavialis cairensis (artist's impression), but don't recommend taking it apart to find them

Just as the Great Sphinx is famously missing its nose, the fossilised skull of this ancient predator is missing the tip of its snout 

Even though that part of the fossil is slightly damaged, this distinctive skull shape gives palaeontologists a clue as to how the animal might have once lived.

Dr Burke says: 'Herugavialis has a long, thin snout with razor-sharp, pointed teeth, similar to the extant Indian gharial, Gavialis.

'The Indian gharial feeds primarily on fish, so we think that Herugavialis did the same. In addition, the Mokattam Formation where Herugavialis was recovered from, also preserves plenty of fish fossils, so we assume they fed on these species.'

While the gavials have now vanished from the Mediterranean, the fossil records show that these aquatic hunters once spanned nearly the entire globe for more than 100million years, with many living in shallow marine habitats.

In fact, scientists think that Herugavialis would have once shared its home with at least two other species of long-snouted gavials.

Dr Paul Burke, of the Swedish Museum of Natural History, says: 'Throughout much of the last 50million years, the Mediterranean region hosted a high diversity of crocodiles, including gavials.

'However, this diversity fluctuated over time, seemingly corresponding to changes in global temperature and sea level, before the loss of all crocodiles in this region as a result of the drying of the Mediterranean approximately six million years ago.'

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How did the ancient Egyptians create objects of such extraordinary precision — thousands of years before modern machinery, power tools, and computer-controlled manufacturing? 

Across Egypt, archaeologists have discovered hard-stone vessels with remarkably thin walls, perfectly polished surfaces, circular grooves, and astonishingly symmetrical forms. Massive granite sarcophagi appear to have been shaped and finished with a level of precision that seems, at first glance, almost impossible for their time. 

Then there are the drill cores, mysterious machining-like marks, and complex stone forms that raise an even deeper question: What tools were the ancient Egyptians actually using? 

Were these objects created entirely with the tools and techniques known from the archaeological record, using copper, stone abrasives, sand, pounding, grinding, and enormous amounts of time and skilled labor? Or do some of these artifacts preserve evidence of techniques that we have yet to fully understand? 

Modern experiments have demonstrated that surprisingly sophisticated stoneworking can be achieved using relatively simple tools when combined with abrasive materials, patience, skill, and careful technique. Yet some examples continue to provoke debate because of their extraordinary precision and the difficulty of reproducing certain features. 

In this documentary, we go beyond the mystery and examine the physical evidence. 

We will look closely at the sarcophagi, hard-stone vessels, Schist Disk, drill cores, circular grooves, thin walls, and geometric surfaces, comparing them with both ancient-tool experiments and modern manufacturing techniques. 

The question is not simply whether the ancient Egyptians were capable of remarkable craftsmanship but how such precision could have been achieved without modern machinery, were these techniques uniquely Egyptian or could ancient civilizations have received knowledge, guidance, or even direct assistance from an unknown intelligence, perhaps an advanced extraterrestrial civilization?

 

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The dark secret of Egypt’s ancient kings: 5,000-year-old skulls suggest royal servants were bludgeoned to death so they could follow their ruler into the afterlife

By XANTHA LEATHAM, EXECUTIVE SCIENCE EDITOR

When Egypt's earliest kings died, they may not have gone to the afterlife alone.

Archaeologists examining the remains of people buried around royal tombs have discovered many had suffered devastating blows to the head.

This suggests trusted servants were killed and entombed alongside their rulers in a brutal ritual dating back 5,000 years.

And these sacrifices would have been made to ensure kings had attendants in the afterlife, experts said.

‘Retainer sacrifice is a type of human sacrifice where those close to a ruler are killed when the ruler dies,’ lead author Dr Roselyn Campbell, from Purdue University, said.

‘In many cultures, retainer sacrifice is practised because of beliefs that the sacrificed individuals will continue to serve the ruler in some kind of afterlife, but retainer sacrifice can also be a visceral display of the ruler's power.

‘Some retainers might have volunteered to die to achieve eternal life or honour; others may have been chosen or even forced.’

Researchers re-examined 46 skulls belonging to servants and officials buried around the funerary enclosures of three First Dynasty rulers at Abydos in southern Egypt

A fresco depicting a funeral procession in ancient Egypt. The study suggests trusted servants were killed and entombed alongside their rulers in a brutal ritual dating back 5,000 years

Plan of the royal tombs (left) and funerary enclosures (right) at Umm el-Qaab in Abydos, southern Egypt. The diagrams show the tombs of First Dynasty rulers surrounded by rows of subsidiary burials, where researchers believe some royal retainers may have been sacrificed to accompany their rulers into the afterlife

For their investigation, researchers re-examined 46 skulls belonging to servants and officials buried around the funerary enclosures of three First Dynasty rulers at Abydos in southern Egypt.

The remains, originally excavated in the 1920s by British archaeologist Sir Flinders Petrie, are now housed in the University of Cambridge's Duckworth Collections.

When they were first discovered, experts believed they may have been an example of human sacrifice – but the remains showed no signs of trauma.

Now, using modern forensic techniques unavailable to earlier archaeologists, the team looked for hints of injuries that occurred around the time of death.

They found evidence of potentially fatal cranial trauma in 18 of the skulls, including fractures and, in one case, a chopping wound near the eye.

The researchers concluded that at least 39 per cent of the individuals examined may have been deliberately killed by blows to the head, providing fresh evidence that some royal retainers were sacrificed when their ruler died.

These linear fractures may have initially been mistaken for naturally caused damage, the team said.

A detail from a wooden label discovered in the tomb of an official at the Saqqara cemetery, which appears to depict a bound individual being stabbed in the chest while another figure collects the blood in a vessel... the findings add to previous evidence that ancient Egyptians carried out sacrificial practices

An ancient Egyptian tomb painting showing a funerary or offering scene. The new study showed 39 per cent of servants and officials buried near the funerary enclosures of kings had potentially fatal head wounds

‘The injuries on the preserved crania are generally linear fractures, which would likely cause rapid unconsciousness, internal bleeding and death,’ Dr Campbell said.

The research, published in the journal Frontiers in Environmental Archaeology, states it remains unclear exactly how the individuals were killed.

Ancient Egyptian rulers are frequently depicted striking enemies with maces, but the injuries seen on the retainers' skulls do not match the type of damage such weapons would typically cause.

Instead, the fractures suggest they were struck with a broad, flat object, although the possibility of accidental falls cannot be ruled out entirely.

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The discoveries were made during research the international collaboration was undertaking within Peru’s Machu Picchu National Archaeological Park, and required the use of drones equipped with light detection and ranging, or LiDAR technologies, which rely on laser pulses to generate remarkably detailed maps of terrain, even when it is obscured by vegetation or other features when seen from above.

The recent surveys, which were undertaken in July and August of this year, have helped uncover a system of roads that once led toward platforms and terraces located near the so-called Mandor Wall, a feature located across the Urubamba Valley from the Machu Picchu complex.

The recent drone-based LiDAR survey was led by Bartłomiej Ćmielewski, and Peruvian archaeologist Jeff Rocky Contreras Soto participated in the fieldwork, along with other specialists.

The recently discovered roadways near Machu Picchu, as revealed by LiDAR surveys

(Image edited by Bartłomiej Ćmielewski)

New Insights into an Ancient Inca Enigma

The research team says its discoveries add new insights into the extensive network of roads and settlements that surround the area known as Llaqta de Machu Picchu.

In the past, more than 60 archaeological sites have already been documented in the park, many of which were connected by a complex system of roads at the height of their use centuries ago. Each of the individual sites served different purposes and functions related to the primary settlement.

Most of the sites uncovered in the area were located on the left bank of the Urubamba River, which is a headwater of the Amazon River and served as a major waterway for the Inca many centuries ago.

However, the newly documented roadways, platforms, and terraces offer additional evidence that supports past discoveries suggesting there had been significant Inca construction and activity that also occurred on the opposite side of the valley.

More work remains for the international collaboration, and a future field campaign planned for the 2027 field season is expected to complete the team’s remote-sensing surveys of the area. After that, partial excavations of some of the newly uncovered roadways and other features will also be undertaken.

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Egyptologists uncover 4,000-year-old tomb of the 'keeper of the king's secrets' – with a mysterious 'portal to the afterlife'

By XANTHA LEATHAM, EXECUTIVE SCIENCE EDITOR

Archaeologists have uncovered a 4,000–year–old tomb that belonged to one of ancient Egypt's most powerful officials – with a mysterious 'portal to the afterlife'.

The discovery was made at the Bubasteion Necropolis in Saqqara, one of Egypt's most important archaeological sites.

Hieroglyphs reveal the tomb belonged to a senior official named Sakhnetio-Btah, who lived during the time of the Old Kingdom.

Inscriptions identified him as the 'keeper of the king's secrets', highlighting his privileged access to the pharaoh's inner circle.

Despite the mysterious name, the title probably did not mean guarding hidden treasures or religious mysteries.

Experts believe it referred to a high-ranking official who handled confidential royal documents and decrees on behalf of an Old Kingdom pharaoh.

He also served as a royal chamberlain, a priest of the goddess Maat and supervisor of the royal library.

'The hieroglyphic inscriptions… helped to determine the name of the owner of the cemetery and the number of his titles, including the keeper of royal secrets, which reflect the high status he held in the administrative system of the ancient state,' Egypt's Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities said.

The tomb also includes the remains of a funerary chapel and a false door, which ancient Egyptians believed was a portal to the afterlife

Inscriptions reveal the tomb belonged to the 'keeper of the king's secrets', highlighting his privileged access to the pharaoh's inner circle

The tomb includes the remains of a funerary chapel and a false door – a symbolic niche which the ancient Egyptians believed was a magical threshold between the world of the living and the realm of the dead. 

Archaeologists also discovered a funerary ritual objects including an offering table, an offering slab and a purification basin.

Experts say finding the objects exactly where they were originally placed provides a rare glimpse into Old Kingdom funerary practices.

The dig also uncovered an interconnected network of burial shafts surrounding the tomb.

Inside were numerous human burials and large quantities of painted funerary cartonnage – a colourful papier-mache-like covering placed over a mummy, often decorated with images of Egyptian gods, hieroglyphics and scenes intended to protect the dead on their journey to the afterlife.

More than 100 ushabti figurines, which were intended to serve the dead in the afterlife, were also recovered.

Among the most spectacular finds were three stone sarcophagi discovered sealed and intact in their original positions.

Archaeologists also found a wooden falcon statue and a wide range of pottery vessels and other artefacts.

   

Archaeologists also discovered funerary ritual objects including an offering table, an offering slab and a purification basin (left) and an interconnected network of burial shafts surrounding the tomb (right)

Preliminary investigations suggest that some parts of the burial complex were looted by tomb robbers in ancient times.

Despite this, many of the surviving finds remain in remarkably good condition.

Researchers believe the discoveries will help them better understand how the site was reused over different periods of Egyptian history.

Excavations are continuing, with experts convinced that the vast necropolis still has many more secrets waiting to be uncovered.

Saqqara, where the tomb was found, is one of Egypt's most significant archaeological sites.

It is the home of Egypt's oldest pyramid – the step pyramid of Djoser – which was built around 4,700 years ago.

The site also contains thousands of tombs belonging to pharaohs, nobles, priests and high-ranking officials from multiple dynasties.

In recent years archaeologists at Saqqara have uncovered dozens of sealed coffins, extensive animal cemeteries, workshops used for mummification, and richly decorated burial shafts packed with statues and artefacts. 

These discoveries have transformed understanding of everyday religious life in ancient Egypt.

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