Anthropology

Humans

DNA highlights Native American die-off

A genetic analysis points to widespread New World deaths after Europeans arrived.

Humans

Humans’ entry into Europe pushed earlier

Homo sapiens fossils from Italy and England point to an early arrival and a longer time living alongside Neandertals.

Humans

Early farmers’ fishy menu

Northern Europeans retained a taste for aquatic foods after farmers arrived 6,000 years ago.

Humans

Stone Age paint shop unearthed

The discovery of tools for making a substance possibly used in body decoration suggests humans could invent and plan by 100,000 years ago.

Humans

Inca takeovers not usually hostile

Skeletal evidence suggests that war was not the answer for Inca imperialists.

Humans

Humans reached Asia in two waves

New genetic data show that some early migrants interbred with a mysterious Neandertal sister group.

Humans

Fossil finds offer close look at a contested ancestor

Nearly 2 million-year-old fossils offer glimpses of a species that may, or may not, have been crucial for human evolution.

Humans

Oldest hand axes found

Homo erectus may have made both advanced and simple tools 1.76 million years ago.

Anthropology

The Iceman’s last meal: goat

Two decades after he was discovered sticking out of an Alpine glacier, a famous 5,300-year-old mummy’s diet details and hiking habits are revealed.

Humans

Ancient Saharan head cases

Skulls from a North African civilization provide glimpses of what may be early cranial surgery.

Humans

Bone may display oldest art in Americas

A mammoth engraved on a fossil may date from at least 13,000 year ago.

Humans

Site hints at Asian roots for human genus

An early Homo species inhabited the Caucasus region 1.85 million years ago, casting doubt on its proposed African origin.