Giza is one of the most celebrated archaeological sites in the world. Although it is revered for its spectacular pyramids, research over the last few decades has shed light on a living community that grew up to service the dead. In our cover feature we examine their role in dispatching the deceased on a voyage […]
Back issue
CWA 85
Hello, everyone! It is wonderful to be here, and I am looking forward to exploring sites and discoveries around the world with you. First, we travel down the spectacular long and winding Siq that leads to Petra. There, the Nabataeans founded one of the most beautiful, and perhaps also unlikely, cities in the ancient world. What persuaded these […]
CWA 84
The first anyone knew of the Scythians was when exquisite gold ornaments started to turn up around the Black Sea region in the 18th century. Our knowledge of these forgotten nomads has grown significantly in the last few decades, and here, ahead of a major exhibition at the British Museum, we reveal the latest on […]
CWA 83
Though recorded in historical sources, the indigenous people in the south-west corner of the Iberian Peninsula have largely eluded archaeologists. We know they traded their silver and gold with the Phoenicians, and we know they had a coastal city called Tartessos, because the Greek historian Herodotus wrote of it in the 5th century BC. But […]
CWA 82
At Pylos in Greece, archaeologists have uncovered that increasingly rare phenomenon: an untouched Bronze Age burial, replete with rich grave goods. But this Mycenaean princely tomb, discovered next to the Palace of Nestor, is causing a stir for another reason: many of the beautiful high-status burial gifts reflect the Minoan culture of the island of […]
CWA 81
At their peak in the 4th century AD, the people who built Teotihuacan in Mexico ruled an empire every bit as impressive as that of Rome on the other side of the world. Yet we don’t even know their name, nor why they mysteriously abandoned their colossal capital city in the 7th century AD, some […]
CWA 80
Crossing the Caucasus, Europe’s highest mountain range, is not for the faint-hearted, and nowhere is so bleak and so inhospitable as Dariali Gorge. It is here, legend tells, that Prometheus endured his cyclical punishment for stealing fire from the gods. And through here the Huns forced their way south to plunder the riches of the […]
CWA 79
Ice Age art is as awe-inspiring as it is perplexing, an astonishing and unprecedented explosion of human creativity. Much of what we thought we knew has been radically revised in the light of new findings and scientific advances. Palaeolithic specialist Paul Pettitt adroitly explores the latest discoveries, as outlined in the new edition of Paul Bahn’s classic book, Images […]
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In February 1221, the Mongols unleashed one of the most devastating attacks on the medieval world. Led by Genghis Khan’s son, Tolui, they sacked the great Silk Route city of Merv, in modern-day Turkmenistan, laying waste to anything they could not carry away, and slaughtering tens of thousands. As one contemporary author put it, this was a ‘great disaster, the […]
CWA 77
Cambodia’s stupendous temple of Angkor Wat, and the dense forest in which it sits, are currently the focus of a major cutting-edge project, led by an international team of researchers. In addition to traditional archaeological methods, the team has used high-tech LiDAR aerial laser-scanning to ‘see’ what lies beneath the temple grounds, and through the surrounding jungle. This revolutionary work […]
CWA 76
The 6th century BC temple on the Greek island Despotiko is not what you might expect: the shrine boasts an enormous dining facility, and is surrounded by a large number of statues. Excavation on this idyllic little uninhabited island has also revealed evidence of an earlier temple – and a rather unnerving statuette of a […]
CWA 75
The exotic Lady of Pacopampa and the recently discovered Serpent-Jaguar Priests were high ranking members of the Pacopampa ceremonial complex in the northern highlands of Peru. They were buried with luxury grave goods during highly ritualistic ceremonies, in prominent locations that ensured they would be remembered and revered long after death. These amazing finds, however, […]