Top 10 Archaeological Discoveries in the 20th Century

#10: The World’s Earliest Figurative Art

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Located in southwest Indonesia are the caves in the Maros-Pangkep karst, which house the world’s earliest pieces of figurative art. Figurative art is that which directly represents a place or object, as opposed to the more elusive abstract art. The caves were excavated in the early ‘70s and contain handprints and various drawings of animals. One painting of a Celebes warty pig is at least 45,500 years old, and it’s believed that the handprints are up to 40,000 years old. These are similar to the handprints found in Spain’s Cave of Maltravieso, which was discovered about twenty years before the caves in the Maros-Pangkep karst. Both are fascinating pieces of archaeology that provide a sense of humanity to our distant, distant ancestors.

#9: The Serapeum of Alexandria

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Unfortunately, the Library of Alexandria has been lost to time, as it was likely destroyed during the Palmyrene invasion of Egypt in 270. But we have since found the next best thing - its “daughter” library, the Serapeum. This Greek temple was also located in Alexandria and stored various collections and documents belonging to the Library. The Serapeum closed in 325 and was destroyed in 391. The only thing remaining was Pompey's Pillar, an 88-foot-tall column that is still standing today. It was at the base of this column that excavations began in 1944, revealing the old foundations of the temple. With it, archaeologists unearthed one of the major sites of knowledge in the ancient world.

#8: Göbekli Tepe

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We know that Göbekli Tepe is a monumental archaeological discovery, proving one of humanity’s oldest pieces of architecture. We just… don’t really know what it is. Göbekli Tepe is a massive site in southeast Turkey dating back to 9,500 BCE. The area was first discovered in 1963, but it wasn’t excavated until the mid-1990s. These excavations were started by archeologist Klaus Schmidt, who believed that Göbekli Tepe was a communal sanctuary used by nearby hunter-gatherers. However, this interpretation has been challenged in recent years. Huge importance has been placed on its age, as this was around the time that humanity transitioned from hunter-gatherers to more permanent agricultural societies. Did Göbekli Tepe play a role in that transition?

Back in 1926, Colonel Frank Pretty purchased a large mansion on the eastern coast of England, near the port town of Woodbridge. The surrounding land was dotted by many large mounds. When Pretty died in 1934, his widow Edith decided to have the mounds excavated. They revealed a highly important piece of Anglo-Saxon history. Now called Sutton Hoo, the area consists of two early medieval cemeteries and an important ship burial. Found within was a wealth of rich and luxurious artifacts, including the Sutton Hoo helmet. It is believed that the recipient of the ship burial is King Rædwald, who ruled East Anglia from 599 to 624. To this day, Sutton Hoo is enormously important in studying Anglo-Saxon culture and the history of East Anglia.

This Inca citadel looks like something from a fairy tale. Situated on top of an almost 8,000-foot-tall mountain, the area is populated by dry-stone walls, small buildings, and temples. Found in southern Peru, Machu Picchu was occupied for about one hundred years between the 15th and 16th centuries. Modern study indicates that the citadel was made for Pachacuti, the ninth monarch of the Inca Empire. Unfortunately, not much is known about the site itself, as the Inca did not have a written language, and therefore did not leave behind any clues. Machu Picchu was abandoned owing to the Spanish conquest, and nature slowly reclaimed its spot. However, it was eventually rediscovered by explorer Hiram Bingham, who began excavations in 1912.

#5: The Dead Sea Scrolls

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It’s amazing to think about what’s hidden away in random caves. If it’s not the oldest art in human history, it’s old bits of parchment that completely redefine a religion. Back in the mid-1940s, three local men were walking through a cave near the Dead Sea when they came across some scrolls housed in old jars. These, among other future finds, are now known as the Dead Sea Scrolls. Dated from the 3rd century BCE to the 1st century CE, the scrolls contain important pieces of religious scripture and are largely written in Hebrew. Included are ancient manuscripts of the Hebrew Bible and various religious books that were never canonized, including the apocalyptic Book of Enoch.

This name is Sindhi for “Mound of the Dead Men,” which sounds a lot scarier than it actually is. Found in Pakistan, Mohenjo-daro was an ancient city belonging to the Indus Valley Civilisation, which was the most widespread of the early Near East societies. It was erected sometime around 2500 BCE and was home to approximately 40,000 people. The city prospered for a number of centuries but was eventually abandoned somewhere between 1900 and 1700 BCE. The city remained lost to time until 1919 when it was rediscovered by archaeologist R. D. Banerji. An ancient city lost in the desert of Pakistan sounds like something out of “Indiana Jones,” and it is undeniably one of the 20th century’s greatest archaeological discoveries.

#3: King Tut’s Tomb

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Every archaeologist dreams of making the next great discovery. British man Howard Carter made that discovery in November of 1922. After years of failure and dejection, Carter discovered the tomb after his waterboy quite literally tripped over the stairs. Tutankhamun ruled during the Eighteenth Dynasty of Ancient Egypt, his reign spanning 1332 to 1323 BCE. While his tomb is both small and modest, it contained a wealth of amazing artifacts, and these finds made it a phenomenon. Included in the tomb were many elaborate and well-preserved burial goods, Tutankhamun's mummy, and his famous gold mask. The tomb of King Tut makes for one of the greatest archaeological finds of all time, let alone the 20th century.

#2: The Terracotta Army

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Like The Dead Sea Scrolls, the Terracotta Army of China was discovered completely by accident by non-archaeologists. In 1974, a small group of farmers was digging wells in Xi'an, China when they made the startling discovery. And what an amazing discovery it turned out to be. Hundreds of terracotta soldiers, horses, and chariots stand still in time, forever protecting the first emperor of China, Qin Shi Huang. The army dates to approximately 210 BCE, which is when Qin Shi Huang died at the age of 49. The high level of detail, the work that was involved in making the clay army, the fact that it is so well preserved - it’s all astounding to consider, and it is truly a sight to behold.

The 20th century was an enormously important time for paleoanthropology. It saw the discovery of Olduvai Gorge, an area in Tanzania that has provided great insight into human evolution through its many ancient finds. And in 1974, Lucy was discovered in Ethiopia. Named after The Beatles’ “Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds,” Lucy is a collection of bones that are over three million years old. These bones comprise nearly half of a female australopith, which was an early relative of humans. Lucy has been invaluable in the study of this species and human evolution in general. For example, Lucy shows us that we walked on two feet before our brains grew larger. Finds don’t get much more important than this.