Scientists discovered the “fingerprints” of mysterious viruses hidden in an ancient group of microbes that may have helped fuel the rise of all complex life on Earth: from fungi to plants to humans. These microbes — known as Asgard archaea after the abode of the gods in Norse mythology — lurk in the frigid sediments […]
Archaeologists always hope for a mosaic. Roman-British sites have yielded some remarkable treasures, from writing tablets at Vindolanda near Hadrian’s Wall to curse tablets at Bath, but there is something magical about seeing tesserae – the little coloured tiles of a mosaic – emerge from beneath the soil. And few have been more remarkable than […]
A perfectly intact room that was lived in by slaves has been discovered in a suburb of the ancient Roman city of Pompeii. Three wooden beds, a chamber pot and a wooden chest containing metal and fabric items were among the objects found in the cramped living quarters of what was a sprawling villa in […]
