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From 3 million years ago to the dawn of our era: archaeological discoveries, palaeogenetics, cave art and the great transformations of human societies.

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prehistoire · 04/08/2026

A Homo sapiens Was Stabbed in the Face 100,000 Years Ago: A Wound That Changes Everything

A Levantine skull dating to approximately 100,000 years ago displays a penetrating lesion on the facial bones interpreted as intentional interpersonal violence, pushing far back in time the earliest direct evidence of conflict in our species.

Africa · 04/08/2026

Nigeria's Nok Terracottas: The Oldest Known Sculptural Tradition in Sub-Saharan Africa

Discovered by chance in the tin mines of the Jos Plateau in Nigeria, Nok sculptures dated between the 9th century BC and the 2nd century AD constitute the oldest known sculptural tradition in sub-Saharan Africa. Their discovery, initiated by archaeologist Bernard Fagg in 1943, profoundly transformed our understanding of ancient African societies.

prehistoire · 04/08/2026

Neanderthals and Homo sapiens Coexisted in Turkey 59,000 Years Ago

Excavations at Karain Cave reveal that two human species shared the same Anatolian territories for millennia, redrawing the map of their coexistence at the crossroads of Europe and the Near East.

Europe

Europe · 03/08/2026

Ancient DNA Proves Light Skin in Europe Is a Recent Neolithic Acquisition

Mesolithic European hunter-gatherers had dark skin despite tens of thousands of years on the continent. Ancient DNA from specimens such as La Brana (Spain) and Loschbour (Luxembourg) confirms it: light skin spread through Europe …

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Near East · 31/07/2026

Jerusalem: wooden beams from the First Temple resurface after 2,600 years

Carbonised wooden beams dating to the Babylonian conquest of 586 BCE have been discovered in the City of David. Paradoxically preserved by the very fire that destroyed them, they could transform the dating of the end of the First Temple period.

· 31/07/2026

Colombia's Ghost Lineage: A Prehistoric Population That Vanished Without a Trace

A genomic study published in Science Advances reveals the existence, 6,000 years ago on the Bogota altiplano, of an unknown prehistoric population -- genetically unrelated to any known Native American group -- that disappeared from the genetic record 2,000 years ago.

· 30/07/2026

San Juan ante Portam Latinam: ancient DNA reveals a 338-person Neolithic massacre

The San Juan ante Portam Latinam (SJAPL) site in Laguardia, Spain, contained the remains of 338 individuals, 23% of whom show perimortem trauma. A study published in Scientific Reports combining palaeogenomics and physical anthropology reveals the dynamics of this Neolithic massacre that occurred around 3,200 BCE in the Ebro valley.

Europe

Europe · 30/07/2026

Neanderthal Ochre Fingerprint Discovered at San Lazaro Rock Shelter in Spain

A granite pebble bearing a red ochre stain and a complete fingerprint, attributed to a Neanderthal individual, has been unearthed at the San Lazaro rock shelter near Segovia, Spain. Dated to 43,000 years ago, the find renews deba…

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· 29/07/2026

Camino del Molino: 92% of Neolithic children suffered infectious diseases 5,000 years ago

The collective ossuary of Camino del Molino in Murcia, Spain, reveals that nearly 92% of children buried there 5,000 years ago showed bone lesions characteristic of infectious diseases and malnutrition. A study in the Internation…

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