In 1629, the Batavia, a ship of the Dutch East India Company, met disaster off the coast of Australia. A new analysis of the shipwreck’s tree rings uncovers how such vessels were built to advance European colonialism.
The SAPIENS editorial team looks back at the year through an anthropological lens—and closes with a roundup of some of our favorite pieces published in the magazine in 2021.
A team of anthropologists argues that shoddy research linking biblical Sodom to an archaeological site created media hype that harms science and leads to looting.
A restitution effort in South Africa illustrates the challenges to scientists, policymakers, and living descendants as they navigate the complex repercussions of genetic analysis for unethically obtained human remains.
One anthropologist contends that far too many species have been lumped into one category: Our story is more complicated, he argues.
Museum curators have occasionally embellished archaeological finds with compelling but questionable stories. Consider the Field Museum's "Magdalenian Girl."
