The production of copper-alloy coins in the kingdom of Northumbria during the ninth century AD represents a unique move away from silver coinage in early medieval western Europe. While differing explanations for this debasement have been proposed, few consider non-numismatic evidence. The compilation and analysis of available ninth-century gold and silver objects found in Northumbria, presented here, sheds new light on the change in coinage. Evidencing an apparently ready supply of silver and gold for coin production, the author argues that ninth-century Northumbria was an economically vibrant kingdom and that debasement was an active move with economic and social benefits.
Individuals selected for the Inca capacocha ritual, sacrificed at high-altitude sites to act as messengers to the mountain deities, are occasionally found preserved as frozen mummies, providing key insights into Inca life and religious practices. Here, the authors present results of toxicological analyses of hair and nail samples from eight human sacrifices interred near volcanic peaks in Peru and Argentina. Identification of cocaine and benzoylecgonine in all hair samples, cocaethylene in two (Chuscha and Llullaillaco) and harmine in the nails of one individual (Ampato #1) indicates commonalities and differences in the ritual use of psychoactive substances across the Inca Empire.
Mediterranean uplands often appear archaeologically poor, yet their surface record is shaped by geomorphic and post-depositional processes that vary over short distances. The 2025 Archaeological Landscape Survey at Rascino Plateau (ALSRaP) in Italy combines non-site survey and geoarchaeology to reconstruct the formation, preservation and visibility of the archaeological record in mountain landscapes.
Until recently, Palaeolithic parietal art was scarce in the north-eastern Iberian Peninsula. An assemblage of engravings found within Cova de la Font Major in 2019, and described here, now calls this apparent artistic lacuna into question. Comprising 280 motifs, encompassing 55 zoomorphic figures and a range of non-figurative representations, the Font Major assemblage is positioned as one of the largest Palaeolithic cave art ensembles in the Iberian Mediterranean. Its recent discovery calls for a reconsideration of regional preconceptions, while the attribution of numerous representations to pre-Magdalenian phases establishes the site as a key reference for studying Palaeolithic symbolic expressions.
