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skulls

Podcast: Dmanisi

An archaeological site in Georgia challenges what we think we know about the deep human past.
The Podcast Team August 2, 2023
One of this cat’s distinctive sabers was broken off before it died.
skulls

This Stunning Sabertooth Cat Skull Belonged to a Big Male That Died Young

Found in southwestern Iowa, the well-preserved fossil is about 13,500 years old.
Matthew Hill July 17, 2023
Tokyo, Japan

Takao Inari Shrine

A unique shrine dedicated to the deified skull of a 17th-century Tokyo courtesan.
Bruges, Belgium

Grave of Antoine Michel Wemaer

The spectacular and eerie moss-covered grave site of 19th-century Belgian merchant.
Researchers found the remains of the frontal skulls of 35 large game animals in Des-Cubierta cave near Madrid, Spain.
skulls

Did Neanderthals Collect Impressive Animal Skulls?

Researchers found something "very strange" in a Spanish cave.
Alyssa McMurtry March 16, 2023
Museo Ritos Andinos
Andahuaylillas, Peru

Museo Ritos Andinos (Andean Rites Museum)

In this tiny museum, an unusually-shaped skull that some claim as evidence of extraterrestrials.
Cesare Lombroso, a prominent 19th-century Italian scientist, based his life's work on the skull of a man he called "brigand Villella"—but little was known about Giuseppe Villella until recently.
skulls

Why is Everyone Fighting Over the Skull of 'Brigand Villella'?

The answer involves pseudoscience, politics, and a burglary at a windmill.
Dania Rodrigues November 4, 2022
All illustrations: John Mata for Atlas Obscura
skulls

Puzzle Monday: Heads Up Crossword

AO Puzzles October 17, 2022
In the Mütter Museum's renovated exhibit, each skull is now labeled first with the name of the individual (if known). Previously, such information was considered secondary to ailments and cause of death.
medical museums

Darwin’s Squeaky Beans and 139 Victorian Skulls: Our Favorite 2021 ‘Secret Lives of Museums’ Stories

Let’s sneak into where museum visitors can’t.
Sarah Durn December 28, 2021
Toluca, Mexico

Museo del Alfeñique

This museum tells the history of Day of the Dead sugar sculptures.
According to the Musée de l'Homme in Paris and many historians and forensic experts, this is the skull of French philosopher René Descartes. Swedish researchers disagree.
wunderkammers

Was René Descartes a Victim of Skull Blasting?

Centuries after the philosopher’s death, lingering controversy over his remains highlights a macabre practice of profiting from the dead.
Gemma Tarlach October 25, 2021
The gruesome concoctions definitely caused more harm than good.
skulls

Europeans Once Drank Distilled Human Skulls as Medicine

"Corpse medicine" created a booming market for craniums, especially mossy ones.
Diana Hubbell October 22, 2021
The Hyrtl Skull Collection isn't just medical history. Scientists continue to study the bones today.
anatomy museums

The Eventful Afterlife of a Crowd of 19th-Century Skulls

Philadelphia’s famed anatomy showplace, the Mütter Museum, gets a facelift.
April White October 18, 2021
Saint-Pol-de-Léon, France

Les Étagères de la Nuit (Shelves of the Night)

Each of these hand-painted wooden boxes, which date to between the 16th and 19th centuries, contains a genuine human skull.
Viewed from overhead, the promontory of Dmanisi includes medieval and Bronze Age ruins, a working monastery, and a small but rich fossil site.
skulls

The Carnivore Paradise That Keeps Changing the Story of Human Evolution

New research at Dmanisi continues to challenge what we think we know about our deep past.
Gemma Tarlach April 9, 2021
The top of a Strickland spoon.
skulls

The Macabre Mystery of a British Family's Skull-Topped Spoons

The 17th-century artifacts were likely christening gifts.
Sam O'Brien March 8, 2021
The partial skull found in Marcel Loubens Cave is more than 5,000 years old
skulls

Solved: The Mystery of a Lonely Human Skull in an Italian Cave

Scientists found answers in a single piece of evidence.
Gemma Tarlach March 5, 2021
St. Aloysius Gonzaga Skull
Castiglione delle Stiviere, Italy

St. Aloysius Gonzaga Skull

The skull of this patron saint is kept in a shrine located in his hometown.