DNA tests have confirmed that bone shards uncovered in Yekaterinburg last year belong to Russian Crown Prince Alexei and his sister, Grand Duchess Maria. Russia’s imperial family was executed in 1918 during the Bolshevik Revolution.

Fossils of marine creatures are randomly distributed through the limestone used in the monuments of ancient Egypt, suggesting that their building stones were carved out of natural stone, and not cast in molds, according to a new study by a team of scientists from the University of the Aegean and the University of Athens.  

A new survey of a 4,000-year-old stone ax-making site will begin in Wales. “We’re not sure if the axes were used to split logs or split heads or just used for ceremonial duties,” said Chris Martin of Clwyd-Powys Archaeological Trust.  

Analysis of the more than 70,000 artifacts from Honey Bee Village, a Hohokam site in Arizona’s Oro Valley, continues. Archaeologists think that between 100 and 200 people lived there between 500 and 1200 A.D.  

This blog has photographs of some of the antiquities recently returned to Iraq from Syria.  

Here’s an update on the discovery of a treasure-laden ship off the coast of Namibia. This version suggests that the vessel belonged to Portuguese explorer Bartolomeu Dias.

Paranthropus boisei may be nicknamed “Nutcracker Man” for its huge jaws, massive chewing muscles, and flat teeth with thick enamel, but a new examination of its tooth wear suggests that the creature preferred soft fruits. “This study and other recent studies are suggesting that perhaps we didn’t know nearly as much about the diets of early hominids as we thought we did,” said Matt Sponheimer of the University of Colorado at Boulder.

The 90 Romans uncovered in southwestern England may have died of smallpox in the second century A.D. “The skeletons of adult males, females, and children were lying in a very haphazard fashion, their bones completely entangled, reflecting the fact that they had been dumped, unceremoniously, in a hurried manner,” said Louise Loe of Oxford Archaeology.  

A ship dating to the late fifteenth or early sixteenth century was discovered in Namibia’s “Forbidden Zone,” behind a sea wall. The ship was carrying six bronze cannons, Spanish and Portuguese gold coins, tons of copper, weapons, tableware, and more than 50 elephant tusks. The ship was found by geologists working for De Beers, the diamond mining company.  

German police seized Maya, Aztec, and Inca artifacts in a Munich warehouse. They had been brought from Spain by an art collector who was not able to produce an export permit upon request.  

Here’s an article on taking a “citizen science” vacation on an archaeological or paleontological dig.   Several students tell of their experiences at field school in this article, in case you’re wondering if a dig vacation is for you.