Cool Finds

The world’s quietest room registers a background sound of -24.9 dBA.

In the Earth’s Quietest Room, You Can Hear Yourself Blink

Background noise in the custom-built chamber is actually measured in negative decibels, which means it’s below the threshold of human hearing

The Maya played games like pok-a-tok, in which players hit a rubber ball through a stone circle such as this one in the ancient city of Chichen Itza.

Hallucinogenic Plant Unearthed Beneath an Ancient Maya Ball Court

Researchers have found evidence of a nearly 2,000-year-old ceremonial offering at the site in present-day Mexico

The helmet could date to as far back as the sixth century B.C.E.

Why Did the Ancient Illyrians Place Helmets in Their Burial Mounds?

A 2,500-year-old helmet found in Croatia may have been a funerary offering. It offers insights into the rituals of a lesser-known culture that once occupied the Balkan Peninsula

Researchers found the building's remains at Tel Habwa, an archaeological site northeast of Cairo.

This Ancient Building May Have Served as a Rest Stop for an Egyptian Pharaoh's Army

Found in the northern Sinai Peninsula, the multi-room structure may have housed Thutmose III's troops over three and a half millennia ago

Researchers discovered broken pottery in a medieval ditch beneath a bridge in the city's center.

Archaeologists Discover Medieval Artifacts Ahead of Bridge Demolition in England

Found during a construction project near the railway station in York, the trove includes pottery and bones

John Lennon plays the rediscovered 12-string Framus Hootenanny guitar.

Man Finds John Lennon's Forgotten Guitar in His Father's Attic

The 12-string instrument, which is going to auction in late May, spent 50 years hidden away in the British countryside

This photograph may depict the iceberg that caused the Titanic to sink

This Historic Photograph May Depict the Iceberg That Sank the Titanic

The image, which sold for $22,000 at auction this week, was taken aboard a recovery vessel days after the famous ocean liner went down

An aerial view of the structure, which resembles a wonky, incomplete bow tie.

This Neolithic Monument Found in France Has No Equal

A trio of interlocking enclosures, the structure may date to the time of the Bell Beaker culture, but experts are unsure of its exact age and purpose

The glass bottles buried in the graves were unearthed in good condition.

In This Ancient Cemetery, Romans Left Fine Glass Vessels, Platforms for Feasting and Phallic Pendants

Archaeologists in Narbonne, France, have been studying the necropolis since 2017

The weapon is the only Islamic-era sword ever discovered in Valencia.

Spain's 'Excalibur' Sword, a 1,000-Year-Old Weapon Found Buried Upright, Reflects the Region's Rich Islamic History

Discovered in Valencia in 1994, the iron blade was recently dated to the tenth century, when the Umayyad Caliphate controlled the Iberian Peninsula

The newly discovered bronze disc depicts Alexander the Great with wavy hair and ram horns.

Metal Detectorists Unearth Tiny Bronze Portrait of Alexander the Great in Denmark

Researchers think the 1,800-year-old artifact could be linked to a Roman emperor who was "obsessed" with the Macedonian conqueror

Researchers found several amphorae, ancient vases that stored wine, in one of the old villa's rooms.

Archaeologists May Have Found the Villa Where the Roman Emperor Augustus Died

Excavations north of Mount Vesuvius revealed Roman ruins buried by the eruption in 79 C.E.

The two intact bottles were found in Mount Vernon's cellar.

Bottles of 250-Year-Old Cherries Discovered Beneath George Washington's Home

Researchers at Mount Vernon say that the stash still "bore the characteristic scent of cherry blossoms"

An anonymous dentist recognized the jawbone, because it looked similar to the CT scans he reviews every day at work.

Dentist Discovers Human-Like Jawbone and Teeth in a Floor Tile at His Parents' Home

Scientists are planning to study the specimen, embedded in travertine from western Turkey, in hopes of dating and identifying it

Researchers Johan Rönnby and Rolf Warming examine the stern of the ship that sunk over 500 years ago off the coast of Sweden.

Weapon Chest With Tools for Making Ammunition Found in 500-Year-Old Shipwreck in Sweden

The mercenaries on board the "Griffin" lived during a time of great change in naval warfare

The 1.8- by 2.6-inch sketch by Michelangelo and an accompanying letter from his descendant, Cosimo Buonarroti

This Tiny Scribble by Michelangelo Just Sold for Over $200,000

The sketch was found attached to the back of a work by one of the Renaissance artist's associates

Clara Bow in a still from The Pill Pounder, which premiered 101 years ago

Lost Silent Film Featuring Clara Bow Discovered in a $20 Box of Old Reels

Bow, who also serves as inspiration for a new Taylor Swift song, was one of Hollywood's first starlets

An artist's rendering of two massive Ichthyotitan severnensis—a newly discovered species—swimming in the open ocean some 200 million years ago.

11-Year-Old Uncovers Fossils of Giant Ichthyosaur in England, the Largest Marine Reptile Ever Found, Scientists Say

The jawbone fragments belonged to an 82-foot-long creature that represents a new species, according to a new study

After its century-long disappearance, the book was returned in good condition earlier this year.

Overdue Book Returned to Colorado Library After 105 Years

The Fort Collins library waived the fine, which totaled over $14,000 when adjusted for inflation

Researchers found the train car during excavations in northern Antwerp.

Rare 100-Year-Old Train Carriage Found Buried in Belgium

The wooden LNER train wagon was a "removals truck" used to move people's belongings between residences

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