Ten Astonishing New Discoveries About the Ancient World

Since the dawn of humanity, people have lived in all kinds of peculiar ways. Some carved ornate images into rocks and threw them in ditches. Others made treasure out of metal from meteorites. Scientists keep unearthing secrets about the past that challenge how we see our ancestors. Time and time again, evidence shows that bygone societies were more sophisticated, more creative, and often more bizarre than we give them credit for. From primitive handcarts to Barbarian drug takers, here are ten startling new revelations about the ancient world.

Related: 10 Unusual Ancient Rituals That You Might Not Know About

10 World’s Oldest 3D Map Found Along with Explicit Artwork

The world’s oldest 3D map is believed to lie in a small cave near Paris. The French nook contains distinctive markings that geoscientists claim form a model of the nearby area. Dr. Médard Thiry and Dr. Anthony Milnes believe that Palaeolithic cave dwellers made cuts and changes to the cave floor to mirror the surrounding wetland. The map alone is extraordinary enough, but scientists were shocked by what else they found in the cave.

Caves in southern France are famous for their unique historical artworks. Many contain paintings of hunts and animals, as well as thousands of engravings. But on the floor of the cave La Ségognole 3, along with the 3D map and two horse engravings, lies what Thiry and Milnes reckon is a nude female pelvis and thighs. They reckon ancient peoples shaped the rocks so rainwater collects in the artwork’s vulva.^[1]

9 Giant Sloths and Humans Lived Together a Few Thousand Years Ago

New evidence suggests humans and giant mammals lived together more recently than scientists thought. Scientists used to believe that species like giant sloths, mammoths, and saber-toothed tigers were wiped out 11,700 years ago at the end of the last ice age.

However, a 2025 study from Brazil revealed that some of these creatures were still alive 3,500 years ago. It now seems that giant sloths and ancient llamas lived side-by-side with humans more recently than once thought. The team discovered teeth fragments at fossil sites in Itapipoca and the Rio Miranda Valley. Carbon dating showed the pieces to be much younger than the geologists expected. This startling discovery challenges the existing ideas about how these creatures became extinct.^[2]

8 Markings in New Mexico Point to 22,000-Year-Old Handcarts

In 2025, researchers announced that they had fossil traces that they believe point to the use of ancient handcarts. The trolley markings date back 22,000 years and stretch on for a few dozen meters. They were uncovered at the White Sands in New Mexico alongside early human footprints.

Archeologists reckon the ancient handcarts were most likely made of wood. They had no wheels; those wouldn’t be invented for another 17,000 years. Instead, the early people of New Mexico fashioned a few poles into a device known as a travois. Researchers have recreated what they think the carts might have looked like, dragging simple wooden travois across mud flats in Britain and the U.S.

Much of the evidence found at the White Sands site suggests humans arrived in the Americas some 8,000 years earlier than previously thought. These discoveries offer scientists a glimpse at life on the wetland fringes as the last ice age ended.^[3]

7 Meteorite Iron Discovered in Iberian Treasures

The Treasure of Villena is a wonder to behold: 66 bowls, bracelets, and trinkets made mostly from gold. The prized hoard is a remarkable feat of Bronze Age metalwork. Uncovered in 1963 in Alicante, it suggests our Iberian ancestors were far more advanced than we give them credit for.

But in recent years, scientists have turned their attention to two of the treasures in particular. An iron hemisphere covered in gold and a rusted bracelet are, it turns out, made from metal that fell to Earth in a meteorite. When iron drops from the sky, it contains much more nickel than from the ground. Using mass spectrometry to probe the nickel content, the team concluded that the iron in both trinkets was probably from a meteorite.

Sadly, due to the level of corrosion, it is impossible to know the metal’s origins for sure. But these are not the first artifacts found to contain metal from space. An iron dagger in the tomb of Tutankhamun was also forged from meteorite iron, as were several precious Bronze Age weapons.^[4]

6 Scientists Uncover World’s Oldest Poisoned Arrow

A 7,000-year-old antelope bone has been found to contain remnants of poisoned arrows. Scientists say the ancient spikes contain the earliest evidence of humans mixing compounds to apply to arrows. Archeologists unearthed the femur in 1983 at Kruger Cave in South Africa. X-ray imaging showed three arrowheads, also made of bone, lodged inside.

For decades, the artifact sat in storage. But in 2022, researchers decided to take a closer look at the barbs inside. The team found traces of poison lingering on the arrowheads. Chemical analysis revealed this to be an intricate mix of plant toxins. The finding suggests early humans had a deep understanding of nature to combine compounds to enhance their weapons.^[5]

5 Danish Islanders and Their Mysterious Stone Rituals

The ancient inhabitants of the Danish island of Bornholm used to “sacrifice” stones. Thousands of years ago, people etched ornate images onto rocks and buried them in ditches. Scientists have known about this odd tradition for years, but until recently, no one has been able to explain why they did it.

Now, researchers believe they have the answer. In a 2025 study, a team from Denmark explained that the carved rocks were thrown into the ground as a ritual to the sun. Around 5,000 years ago, a colossal volcanic eruption blocked out the sun. Archeologists claim the people of Bornholm buried thousands of sun stones in an attempt to bring back the sun. The ancient islanders relied heavily on farming for food. Without sunlight, the danger of famine loomed.

“It is reasonable to believe that the Neolithic people on Bornholm wanted to protect themselves from further deterioration of the climate by sacrificing sun stones,” explained Rune Iversen from the University of Copenhagen. “Or perhaps they wanted to show their gratitude that the Sun had returned again.”^[6]

4 DNA Evidence Reveals Women Dominated in Celtic Britain

Around 2,000 years ago, Iron Age Britain based its society around women. Evidence suggests that families were structured around female relatives, while men would move to join their partners. Scientists from Trinity College London studied the DNA of 50 ancient Brits buried together near the coast in Dorset. They found that for the largest family, over two-thirds shared a single female ancestor. But of those that were not blood relatives, 80% of them were male.

As geneticist Lara Cassidy told reporters, “This tells us that husbands moved to join their wives’ communities upon marriage, with land potentially passed down through the female line. This is the first time this type of system has been documented in European prehistory, and it predicts female social and political empowerment.”

When the Romans arrived in AD 93, they stamped out this matrilocal society. However, women played a key role in resisting the empire. Warrior queen Boudica led a fearsome army against the Romans, capturing two cities and killing around 80,000 invaders.

“It’s been suggested that the Romans exaggerated the liberties of British women to paint a picture of an untamed society,” explained Bournemouth University’s Miles Russell, who led the excavation. “But archaeology, and now genetics, implies women were influential in many spheres of Iron Age life. Indeed, it is possible that maternal ancestry was the primary shaper of group identities.”^[7]

3 Neolithic Rice Beer Uncovered in Eastern China

Around 10,000 years ago, the people of Eastern China enjoyed rice beer, according to evidence found at a site in Zhejiang Province. Archeologists dug up twelve pottery fragments, thought to come from various vessels. The team believes ancient brewers used these items to ferment, serve, store, and cook the rice beer, among other tasks. Scientists examined residue from the sherds, which they found contained rice, starch, Job’s tears, barnyard grass, Triticeae, acorns, and lilies.

All this points to a rise in brewing and fermentation at the Shangshan site during the Stone Age. Historians believe this took place around the same time farmers learned to domesticate rice, as well as a stretch of warm, favorable climate.^[8]

2 Barbarian Drug Spoons Found at European Archeology Sites

Barbarian warriors used ancient drugs to gear up before heading into battle against the Romans. So says a 2024 paper by researchers in Poland. The team points to hundreds of tiny spoons found by archeologists across northern Europe, which they believe were used to take stimulants.

Scientists think that Germanic people collected plants that they knew had narcotic properties. These may have been dissolved in alcohol or taken as powder. Among the possible mind-bending fauna are poppy, hemp, henbane, or species of fungi. Evidence suggests these drugs helped the soldiers lower their stress and made them feistier as they prepared to enter the fray.^[9]

1 Bronze Age Brits and the Cannibal Massacre Site

Historians used to think that Britain was fairly peaceful during the Bronze Age. But in 2024, evidence emerged of an act of savage brutality. Scientists found at least 37 remains of people who they believe were slaughtered and eaten.

Cavers first dredged up the bones in the 1970s in the rural county of Somerset. However, it took nearly five decades before scientists at Oxford University began to study them in detail. They were shocked by what they discovered. Evidence suggests that the attackers killed their victims, chopped them up with stone tools, and ate their remains. The researchers believe this feral act was meant to send a message, possibly carried out by one village against another.

Professor Rick Schulting believes there must have been a catastrophic dispute between two settlements that spun out of control. “This was something exceptional,” he told reporters. “This level of almost erasing the person, literally chopping them into pieces, seems like something you would only do if fuelled by anger, fear, and resentment.”^[10]