

Top 10 Greatest and shocking Archaeological Discoveries of All Time
While we’re all locked at home, there’s no better way to escape to another time and place than to learn about amazing archeological sites and discoveries from around the world. Here are the 10 greatest and shocking archaeological discoveries —and don’t be shocked if they inspire future trip plans whenever it’s safe to do so again.
1. Pompeii

Pompeii, an ancient Roman city, was buried in ash and pumice during a cataclysmic volcanic eruption of Mt. Vesuvius in 79 AD. The explosion ruined the city and murdered its inhabitants, leaving behind a massive archaeological site and a treasure of Roman riches.
Because there is no air or moisture while buried under ash, structures, items, and cadavers have remained well-preserved for thousands of years. The simple existence of Pompeii is responsible for a considerable deal of our knowledge of everyday life in a Roman city.
Featured in 10 world’s most destructive and dangerous volcanic eruptions in history
2. Rosetta Stone

The Rosetta Stone, which dates from 196 BC, bears a writing from Ptolemaic King Ptolemy V in three languages: Ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs, Demotic script, and Ancient Greek.
It was the first Ancient Egyptian bilingual text discovered in contemporary times when it was discovered in 1799. The language had previously been impossible to read, and a multilingual find like this allowed us to start deciphering hieroglyphs. Thanks to the discovery of the Rosetta Stone, we can now translate practically any item using Ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs.
3. Terracotta Army

The Terracotta Army is a fascinating collection of terracotta figurines depicting the armies of Qin Shi Huang, China’s first emperor. It’s a piece of funerary art created with the symbolic goal of guarding the emperor in the afterlife.
The army, which dates back to the third century BC, has about 8,000 troops, 130 chariots, and 520 horses. It reveals a lot about how Chinese soldiers were outfitted at the period, including their weaponry and clothing.
4. Cave of Altamira

The Altamira Cave is a fascinating example of how archaeology and anthropology come together to portray a beautiful story. The cave in Spain features prehistoric drawings of creatures and human hands, and it was the first of its kind when it was found in 1880.
The revelation revolutionized our understanding of prehistoric humans, who were previously thought to be incapable of artistic expression due to their lack of intellectual capability. The items range from 14,000 to 20,000 years ago, offering us a peek into the lifestyles of our distant forefathers and mothers.
5. Dead Sea Scrolls

The Dead Sea Scrolls are an 800-manuscript collection discovered in 11 caves about 2 kilometers inland from the Dead Sea, at Khirbet Qumran, an ancient West Bank village.
The texts originate from 700 years before the birth of Jesus Christ and are among the earliest known Hebrew biblical literature. They’ve given biblical translators invaluable insight into what the Bible was like 2,000 years ago and how it was put together throughout time by various persons.
6. Easter Island Moai

Easter Island, a Chilean Polynesian island in the Pacific Ocean, has 887 enormous statues, according to archaeologists. The Moai statues, which date from between 1250 and 1500, are magnificent monuments to the Rapa Nui people.
What fascinates me about the Moai is the wonder of transportation they must have to get across the island. The Rapa Nui people tell stories of how they harnessed heavenly power to make the sculptures walk.
7. Angkor Wat

According to the BBC, the works of French naturalist Henri Mouhot in the mid-nineteenth century inspired a slew of archeologists to travel to Cambodia to study more about the once-sprawling city of Angkor Wat. The huge Buddhist temple complex is a source of Cambodian national pride and is regarded one of the world’s largest religious monuments.
8. The Acropolis of Athens

While Greece is full of amazing archeological sites, none is more famous than Athens’ Acropolis. The site dates back to the Bronze Age and was built over thousands of years. Around the turn of the century, researchers began rehabilitating and protecting the site. According to UNESCO, the Acropolis of Athens is now regarded as a world symbol “of the classical spirit and civilization.”
9. Nazca Lines

Flying above Peru’s Nazca Desert, you’ll notice massive geoglyphs that seem like animals and plants. The archeological discoveries, known as the Nazca Lines, dates back between 1,500 and 2,500 years. The first researcher to perform an in-depth investigation of the Nazca Lines, whose function is still unknown, is American historian Paul Kosok.
10 Machu Picchu

In 1911, the “lost” Inca citadel of Machu Picchu was rediscovered in Peru by explorer Hiram Bingham. The well-preserved archeological complex, which was built in the mid-1400s, provides historians with a glimpse of the Inca Empire’s technological capabilities at its peak. The cave graves and terraced platforms also provide insight into how people lived in this area on a daily basis.
I hope you enjoy Top 10 Greatest and shocking Archaeological Discoveries of All Time. If so, share this with your friend for them to be amazed and subscribe to our newsletter, and receive our weekly digest. 🙂

Sylvan Goldman: The Visionary Who Revolutionized Shopping with the Cart
The inventor of shopping carts, Sylvan Goldman, had to hire several male and female models to push carts around in his store, demonstrate their utility, and explain their use to other customers, due to not catching on initially.

What Was the Beast of Gévaudan?
Between 1764 and 1767, a mysterious animal called the Beast of Gévaudan terrorized the French village called Gévaudan. It attacked and killed about 100 adults and children. While most believe it was a wolf, some say it may have been a wolf-dog hybrid, hyena or even a lion, but without any genetic evidence, the beast will remain a mystery forever.

Albert Einstein’s brain after it was stolen from his body
Albert Einstein's brain was taken by the opportunistic pathologist who performed his autopsy hours after he died and kept in two jars for 30 years. The stolen brain of Albert Einstein was preserved in a cookie jar for 30 years until being discovered by a journalist.

The 1976 April Fools' Pranks, Planetary Alignment
On April fool's Day, 1976, the BBC convinced many listeners that a special alignment of the planets would temporarily decrease gravity on Earth. Phone lines were flooded with callers who claimed they felt the effects.

How Greek prime minister in 1830’s tried to spread the potato in Greece
A Greek prime minister in 1830’s tried to spread the potato in Greece but people weren’t interested so he put armed guards in front of shipments of potatoes so people would think they were important. People later started stealing these potatoes a lot which spread the crop to all of Greece.

The Day an Israeli F-15 Landed with One Wing: Zivi Nedivi’s Unbelievable Mid-Air Survival
Discover the astonishing true story of Israeli pilot Zivi Nedivi, who safely landed an F-15 after a mid-air collision tore off its entire right wing. Learn how skill, quick thinking, and the F-15’s unique design turned a disaster into a legendary feat in aviation history

Why This Belgian Bar Makes You Trade Your Shoe for a Beer
To prevent tourists from stealing their beer glasses, some bars in Belgium require people to hand over one of their shoes as a deposit which is then put in a basket and hung from the ceiling. These shoe baskets have also become an attraction.

Henry Ford, The man popularizing the concept of the weekend off
Henry Ford was the first Industrial Giant to give his employees both Saturday and Sunday off in the hope of encouraging more leisurely use of automobiles and thus popularizing the concept of the "weekend."

Max Headroom Incident: America’s Creepiest TV Hack
In 1987 a man hijacked a television station during an episode of Dr. Who and wore a Max Headroom mask and uttered nonsense, and he still hasn’t been caught

Martin Couney, Saved Thousands of Premature Babies Wasn’t a Doctor at All
Martin Couney never qualified as a medical doctor. However, in the 1900s, he saved thousands of premature babies by exhibiting them in incubators at his Coney Island sideshow. Over the course of his career, he is said to have saved about 6,500 babies that had previously been written off by mainstream medicine.

Quaker Oats Fed Children with Radioactive Oatmeal
In the 1940s and 1950s, Quaker Oats and MIT conducted experiments on radioactive iron and calcium-containing cereal. The diet was part of a study to see if the nutrients in Quaker oatmeal traveled throughout the body. In January 1998, a $1.85 million settlement was reached for 30 victims who came forward.

From Flapper to Fashion Week: How 1920s Style Still Shapes Modern Trends
The roaring 1920s revolutionized fashion, introducing bold styles, daring cuts, and a spirit of freedom that still inspires today’s wardrobes. From flapper dresses to statement accessories, here’s how the Jazz Age lives on in modern fashion.

The story of Bill Haast, who lived to be 100 despite his extensive snake venom injections
Bill Haast immunized himself by injecting snake venom into his blood for several years. He holds the Guinness World Record for surviving the most lethal snake bites, having been bitten over 172 times. Bill became known as "Snake Man" around the world and lived for over 100 years.

The Bizarre (And Magical) Duel Between Chung Ling Soo And Ching Ling Foo
Ching Ling Foo and Chung Ling Soo were two magicians from the early 20th century who were bitter rivals. While Ching Ling Foo was genuinely Chinese, Chung Ling Soo was actually a New Yorker named William Robinson.

The Arabia Steamboat: Unearthing a 19th Century Time Capsule from the Missouri River
The Arabia was a steamboat that sank in the Missouri River in 1856. Over time, the river shifted 800 meters to the east, eventually turning the site of the sinking into a field. The steamboat remained under 45 feet of slit and topsoil until 1988, when it was excavated. The mud, as it turned out, was such a great preserver that most of the artifacts on board were found to be intact. They even found jars of preserved apples that were still edible!

Mother who spent entire life savings for daughter’s cancer treatment won the lottery
A mother won $2 million from a $10 scratch-off lottery ticket after she spent all of her entire life savings to pay her daughter’s cancer treatment. She bought the winning ticket after her daughter’s last cancer treatment.

The unbroken seal on King Tutankhamun's tomb until 1922
The unbroken seal of Tutankhamun's tomb before it was opened in 1923, it was unbroken for over 3000 years.

What exactly was the US's 'Ghost Army' during WWII?
During WW2, there was a special unit of men dubbed the ‘Ghost Army’. The unit was made of artists, creative and engineers and their job was to create deception about the enemy. From inflatable tanks to phony convoys to scripted conversations in bars intended to spread disinformation, they used all possible tricks to fool the enemy.

A Brief History of the PlayStation Gaming Console
Sony's PlayStation was never meant to be an actual product. Instead, it was intended to be a CD-ROM console that would support Nintendo games. However, when Nintendo backed out of the deal at the last minute, Sony went ahead and launched what soon became one of the most successful gaming consoles of all time.

The incredible story of a plane that lost its roof in mid-flight and the light signal that saved 94 lives.
On April 28, 1988, Aloha Airlines flight 243 was on the way to Honolulu from Hilo when a huge portion of the upper part of the fuselage blew off the airplane.

Tunnels Dug by ancient giant sloths, A South American Megafauna
For years, scientists didn’t know what caused mysterious cave networks in South America. In 2010, they learned that the caves were actually tunnels dug by ancient giant sloths

The history of Flour sack clothing fashion
After Kansas mill owners found women reused flour sack materials into apparel in the 1920s and 1930s, they started applying patterned designs to give families with more fashionable patterns and material.

Knockers-up: waking up the Industrial Britain's Workers in 1900-1941
Before alarm clocks were invented, there was a profession called a knocker-up, which involved going from client to client and tapping on their windows (or banging on their doors) with long sticks until they were awake. It lasted into the 1920s.

Story of Kathrine Switzer: the first woman to run in Boston Marathon
Before women were allowed to run in the Boston Marathon, Kathrine Switzer participated. A race official attempted to forcefully remove her from the race in 1967, but her boyfriend pushed him down. She was the first female finisher who had a numbered entry in the race.

Louis Le Prince Invented the motion picture camera, and then he mysteriously disappeared
Louis Le Prince, the inventor of motion pictures, vanished without a trace in 1890. Thomas Edison quickly claimed the title of "first and sole inventor of cinema," even taking Le Prince's son to court to dispute it. A few years later, the son also dies under mysterious circumstances.