July 23, 2025

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Medieval Knight’s Skeleton Found Under Gdańsk Ice Cream Parlor

GDAŃSK, POLAND — In a remarkable urban excavation, archaeologists have uncovered the complete remains of a medieval knight beneath a shuttered ice cream parlor in the historic Śródmieście district. A richly carved Gotland limestone tombstone, measuring 150 cm in length, was lifted in July to reveal the adult male skeleton below, dated to the 13th–14th centuries.

Key details:

The tombstone’s relief shows a knight in chainmail, sword raised in a posture of authority.

The skeleton, standing 170–180 cm tall, was found in its original burial position.

The grave belonged to a high-status individual, likely a commander, amid nearly 300 burials attached to Gdańsk’s oldest church.

Ancient DNA Reveals Sardine-Based Roman Fish Sauce

A new biomolecular study published in Antiquity on July 2 confirms that Ancient Romans fermented sardines to produce garum, the empire’s ubiquitous fish sauce. Biologist Gonçalo Themudo extracted and sequenced DNA from 1,800-year-old fish vertebrae found at a garum-making vat in Adro Vello, Galicia, Spain, offering the first genetic proof of the condiment’s main ingredient.

The unexpected survival of fish DNA in heavily processed, fermented remains not only settles long-standing questions about garum’s composition but also demonstrates the potential of ancient DNA research in reconstructing culinary practices and tracing fish population dynamics across the Roman Mediterranean.

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13-Million-Year-Old Terror Bird Fossil Reveals Fatal Caiman Attack

COLOMBIA (July 2025) — Fossil hunters in the Tatacoa Desert have unearthed a 13-million-year-old leg bone from a giant, flightless “terror bird,” Phorusrhacidae, bearing four deep, rounded tooth pits. Detailed 3D scans published in Biology Letters reveal the spacing and shape of the marks match those of the giant caiman Purussaurus neivensis, not a mammal.

Key facts:

No signs of healing imply the bird died during the attack.

The find provides rare direct evidence of Miocene trophic interactions, showing even apex avian predators could fall prey at water’s edge.

This discovery reshapes our view of predator-prey dynamics in South America’s Middle Miocene ecosystems.

Ornithopod Vertebra Unearthed Beneath Denver Museum Parking Lot

In January 2025, a routine geothermal drilling project beneath the Denver Museum of Nature & Science’s parking lot uncovered a fossilized dinosaur vertebra—an ornamental 2.5-inch fragment from over 700 feet below the surface.

The bone belongs to an ornithopod, a bipedal herbivore from the Late Cretaceous, and represents the oldest and deepest dinosaur fossil found within Denver city limits. Visitors can now view the vertebra in the museum’s permanent collection, even as the rest of the specimen remains entombed under asphalt.

3,000-Year-Old Peruvian Mural Reveals Ancient Sky and Sea Motifs

HUACA YOLANDA, PERU (August 2025) — Archaeologists from the National University of San Marcos have unearthed a 3,000-year-old mural on the walls of an ancient temple 580 km south of Lima. The vividly painted fresco features stylized fish, star-like symbols, fishing nets and botanical motifs, making it one of the earliest known examples of Andean sea-sky iconography.

Key details:

Location: Huaca Yolanda site in southern coastal Peru

Date: Radiocarbon analysis places the mural at circa 1100 BCE

Imagery: Aquatic life, celestial bodies and cultivated plants

The discovery, announced by Peru’s Ministry of Culture, suggests pre-Chavín communities on the south coast already held complex cosmological beliefs linking the ocean and the heavens.

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Medieval Knight’s Skeleton Unearthed Beneath Gdańsk Ice Cream Parlor