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A team of Greek researchers has confirmed that bones found in a two-chambered royal tomb at Vergina, a town some 100 miles away from Amphipolis's mysterious burial mound, indeed belong to the Macedonian King Philip II, Alexander the Great's father. The anthropological investigation examined 350 bones and fragments found in two larnakes, or caskets, of the tomb. It uncovered pathologies, activity markers and trauma that helped identify the tomb's occupants. Along with the cremated remains of Philip II, the burial, commonly known as Tomb II, also contained the bones of a woman warrior, possibly the daughter of the Skythian King...

Charlier, for his part, has made a name for himself as a forensic scientist who has debunked several myths. Among them: that bone fragments in the Vatican's possession were those of Joan of Arc. He determined they were actually from a cat and Egyptian mummy.

ORIGINAL TITLE IN CHINESE: 关注性别失衡：艺术家创作女兵马俑(双语) When Emperor Qin Shi Huang, the first emperor of China, anticipated his death more than 2,000 years ago, he wanted an army of warriors to guard his mausoleum forever and protect him in the afterlife。 　　So he ordered the creation of some 8,000 terra-cotta soldiers, along with hundreds of terra-cotta horses and chariots, to be buried with him in his tomb. Historians speculate the soldiers were modeled after eight individuals. When the statues were discovered by workers digging a well in Xi'an, Shaanxi Province, in 1974, the world was stunned by the spectacular funerary art...

Bone chemistry sheds light on the monarch's shifting diet throughout his brief life Richard III was only 32 years old when he was struck down at the Battle of Bosworth Field in 1485. But according to new research, the King of England at least enjoyed some good eating throughout his life—especially in the few years leading up to his death. Scientists from the British Geological Survey and the University of Leicester analyzed Richard III's teeth, his femur and his ribs to see what they could reveal about the monarch's diet, Phys.org reports. They used isotope analysis to identify chemical signatures...

Richard III's last moments were likely quick but terrifying, according to a new study of the death wounds of the last king of England to die in battle. The last king of the Plantagenet dynasty faced his death at the Battle of Bosworth Field on Aug. 22, 1485, only two years after ascending the throne. The battle was the deciding clash in the long-running Wars of the Roses, and ended with the establishment of Henry Tudor as the new English monarch. But Richard III's last moments were the stuff of legend alone, as the king's body was lost until September...

Instapundit: "The Army Corps of Engineers sure didnÂ’t want this researched, and continues to interfere today. Why? " Why? It blows the native "indians" narrative of 'we were here first' out of the water. Land claims and free money is g-o-n-e gone: As work progressed, a portrait of Kennewick Man emerged. He does not belong to any living human population. Who, then, are his closest living relatives? Judging from the shape of his skull and bones, his closest living relatives appear to be the Moriori people of the Chatham Islands, a remote archipelago 420 miles southeast of New Zealand, as...

Researchers spent 16 days poring over Kennewick Man — the skeleton found on the bank of the Columbia River in 1996 — in two visits to Seattle’s Burke Museum in 2005 and 2006, after a court ruling permitting the study. Since then, they’ve said little about what they’ve learned. A new, 688-page, peer-reviewed book, “Kennewick Man: The Scientific Investigation of an Ancient American Skeleton,” changes that. Texas A&M University Press is scheduled to publish the book in September.

A team of archaeologists working on a site at Saint-Aubin-des-Champs in France have discovered the remains of a Merovingian necropolis dating to the 5th -7th centuries AD... The graves were found at a variety of depths with some up to 1.50 m deep. Each burial contained the deceased once contained within a wooden coffin, now completely rotted away. An examination of the contents of these burials allowed them to be split into three main groups or periods of inhumation. Fewer grave goods are in evidence after 5th century AD as the population has become Christian. 7th century AD burials are...

Buried secrets of life in medieval Leith have been uncovered after the results of a five-year project to analyse bodies discovered during an archaeological dig were unveiled... the remains of almost 400 men, women and children were discovered on the Constitution Street site – previously a section of the South Leith Parish Church’s graveyard – during preparation work for the trams in 2009... bones which have been dated between the 14th and 17th centuries. One skeleton, of a woman aged between 25 and 35 who died anywhere between 1360 and 1435, was found to be 4ft 11in, 1.5 inches shorter...

The bones of dozens of Iron Age warriors found in Denmark were collected and ritually mutilated after spending months on the battlefield, archaeologists say. At least six months after the soldiers died, their bones were collected, scraped of remaining flesh, sorted and dumped in a lake. Some were handled in a truly bizarre manner; for instance, four pelvises were found strung on a stick. ... The site of the boneyard is in East Jutland, in a wetland area known as Alken Enge. Drainage work and peat digging have been turning up ancient human remains in this bog for decades, Holst...

Scientists tantalize with 'iceman' findings Darah Hansen, Vancouver Sun Published: Friday, April 04, 2008 Scientists from around the world who have been studying the centuries-old human remains that melted out of a glacier in northwestern British Columbia in 1999 will gather for the first time in Victoria later this month to talk about what they've learned from the unnamed "iceman." The Kwäday Dän Ts'ìnchi Symposium will be held April 24-27 at the University of Victoria. It is being held in conjunction with the Northwest Anthropology Conference. The conference brings together more than 30 researchers from fields as diverse as archeology,...

Iceman's DNA linked to coastal aboriginals Judith Lavoie, Canwest News Service; Victoria Times Colonist Published: Saturday, April 26, 2008 VICTORIA -- Sisters Sheila Clark and Pearl Callaghan held hands and blinked back tears Friday as they talked about their ancestor Kwaday Dan Ts'inchi, better known as Long Ago Person Found, a young aboriginal man whose frozen body was discovered nine years ago at the foot of a melting glacier in Northern B.C. Three hunters found the body in 1999 in Tatshenshini-Alsek Park, part of the traditional territory of the Champagne and Aishihik First Nations. And earlier this month, 17 aboriginal...

<p>The 5,300-year-old "Iceman" discovered in 1991 in the Italian Alps was killed by one or more assailants in a fight that lasted at least two days, shows evidence obtained by sophisticated DNA testing and old-fashioned detective work.</p> <p>Scientists initially presumed that the Stone Age Iceman, nicknamed Otzi, was caught in a storm and froze to death. But a new team said Monday that Otzi's case instead has become the world's oldest, and coldest, murder case.</p>

Italy's prehistoric Iceman was murdered by an arrow in the back, despite the efforts of a companion to save him. But although he apparently died fleeing from a skirmish, he did not give up without a fight. He bore traces of the blood of four other men on his weapons and clothes, three of whom he had killed or wounded. These are among the startling findings of Dr Tom Loy of Queensland University in Brisbane, Australia, published this week after analysis of blood traces found on the 5,300-year- old mummy, which was dug out of the Alpine ice 12 years...

ROME (Reuters) - A prehistoric Italian iceman nicknamed "Otzi" may have been shot in the back with an arrow, but he only died after prolonged combat with his foes, new DNA evidence has shown. Reuters Photo Missed Tech Tuesday? Check out the powerful new PDA crop, plus the best buys for any budget The 5,000-year-old corpse, dug out of a glacier in northern Italy more than a decade ago, had traces of blood from four different people on his clothes and weapons, molecular archeologist Tom Loy said Wednesday. He also had "defensive cut wounds" on his hands, wrists and rib...

WASHINGTON - The mysterious 5,200-year-old iceman found in an Alpine glacier was born in a valley in what is now northern Italy and didn't travel far from home, an international team of researchers has concluded. Indeed, the iceman, known as Oetzi, probably spent his whole life within about 37 miles of the spot near the Italy-Austria border where he was found frozen, according to the team led by Wolfgang Mueller of the Australian National University in Canberra. Their findings are being reported Friday in the journal Science. A group of hikers discovered Oetzi's well-preserved body in 1991; since then, he...

Iceman's bones lead scientists to his home turf By Lucy Beaumont November 1, 2003 Printer friendly version Print this article Email to a friend Email to a friend The Iceman lived and died in a small area of northern Italy, scientists have deduced from analysis of his tooth enamel and bone samples. The home turf of a man who died 5200 years ago has been located by a team of scientists, including Australians, who analysed his teeth, bones and intestines. Examination of the famed "Iceman", whose frozen remains were found in a glacier on the Italian-Austrian border in 1991, has...

Was Ancient Alpine "Iceman" Killed in Battle? Sarah Ives for National Geographic News October 30, 2003 In 1991, two Germans hiking in the Alps of northern Italy discovered the 5,200-year-old remains of a Copper Age man frozen in a glacier. The well-preserved corpse, dubbed "Ötzi the Iceman," was found with tools, arrows, and a knife. Since then, scientists have speculated about how the 46-year-old male died, offering scenarios from hypothermia to ritual sacrifice. Now a team of researchers has added another theory to the mix, suggesting that the Iceman died in battle. The "Iceman" made a valiant effort to fight...

Death renews iceman 'curse' claim Should working with Oetzi carry a health warning? The death of a molecular biologist has fuelled renewed speculation about a "curse" connected to an ancient corpse. Tom Loy, 63, had analysed DNA found on "Oetzi", the Stone Age hunter whose remains were discovered in 1991. Dr Loy died in unclear circumstances in Australia two weeks ago, it has been announced, making him the seventh person connected with Oetzi to die. Colleagues and family of Dr Loy have rejected the notion that he was the victim of a "curse". It is not known how many people...

For 13 years, mountaineer Helmut Simon had basked in the glory of his unique encounter with history. In 1991, the 67-year-old German discovered Otzi the Iceman, the perfectly preserved body of a Neolithic hunter, emerging from the Similaun glacier, 3,200m (10,500ft) up the Austrian Alps. Wherever he went in his beloved Alps, Simon wore a badge identifying himself as 'Discoverer of Otzi'. But yesterday, Simon's body was found in a stream in these same mountains. On 15 October, the pensioner departed alone from the village of Bad Hofgastein, near Salzburg, up the 2,134m (7,000ft) Gamskarkogel peak. His wife, Erika, who...