Episodes

The discovery of gold and silver artifacts in Laos, dating to the early days of the Khmer Empire, leads scientists to investigate how the priceless objects were made and where they might have originated. On their journey, they retrace the steps of the ancient kings and explore the sacred landscape around Vat Phou to learn more about this ancient civilization.

Angkor was the capital of the Khmer empire, which controlled much of the region between the 9th and 15th centuries. The stunning accomplishments of Angkor’s great kings are clear to see –but the period preceding the foundation of their great city is shrouded in mystery. Now, the discovery of an incredible hoard of stunning artifacts is providing surprising new clues about this early Khmer society.

In 2022, a terrifying discovery: a female skeleton dating from 1650, buried with a sickle across her neck and giant padlock on her toe — double protection to keep her from rising from the dead. All the evidence points to her being buried as a vampire... and she’s not alone, with more than 50 deviant burials around her. Who was she and what did these burial rituals mean?

The search for remains of formerly enslaved Black Union soldiers brutally murdered by angry Southerners as the Civil War was ending. Learn about Camp Nelson, KY, the military base where these soldiers and thousands got their freedom papers.

Making headlines around the world, Brent Seales and his team of computer scientists set out on a mission to read the 2,000-year-old carbonized scrolls found in the remains of a villa in Herculaneum. Mt. Vesuvius’s eruption in 79 AD transformed the papyri, fusing together the layers of the scrolls and making them impossible to read. Can particle physics and AI finally reveal what the scrolls say?

Maria Anna Mozart was a musical prodigy just like her younger brother Wolfgang. Although the children toured Europe together, once Maria Anna came of age, she was left behind while her brother became a star. But controversial new evidence suggests she may have contributed to her brother’s earliest works while a global search for her compositions continues.

A moving story of a people reclaiming their cultural heritage after an occupying force tried to erase it. Priceless artifacts from the Assyrian Empire were destroyed during the Isis occupation of Mosul. Now, a team of archaeologists is dedicated to finding pieces that survived. One possible discovery: the location of the Hanging Gardens of Babylon.

Uncover new evidence tracing many of Leonardo da Vinci’s ideas and inventions to other scientists.

Follow a team of forensic experts as they investigate the preserved remains of a young African American woman from 19th century New York and reveal the little-known story of early America’s free Black communities.

A mining operation in Cerrejon, Northern Colombia, opened a window onto a previously unknown period of the earth’s history and a world teeming with giant creatures emerged. The biggest of all was Titanoboa a 43-foot snake, the largest that ever lived. But new discoveries in Cerrejon suggest that Titanoboa’s rule was challenged by a giant crocodilian. Follow scientists as they try to comprehend the size of this animal and uncover what made it so successful. Close analysis of fossils and scientific experiments reveal unmatched hunting prowess. So which one was the apex predator in Cerrejon 58 million years ago?

Jamestown, Virginia. The site of the first permanent English colony the Americas settled in 1607 and the home of the archaeological site “Historic Jamestowne” today. It has long been speculated that the harsh conditions faced by the colonists during the winter of 1609, often referred to as the “starving time,” might have made them desperate enough to participate in the unthinkable, and perhaps even commit murder to do so.

Follow a team of experts as they solve the enduring mystery of exactly where Hannibal and his troops crossed the Alps to launch a surprise attack on Rome.

In November 1997, when the skeletal remains of at least 28 bodies were unearthed in the basement of an elegant townhouse, police feared it was the work of a serial killer. But when research indicated the bones actually dated to the mid-1700s, the implications became even more dramatic. This was no ordinary house: 36 Craven Street was the former residence of Benjamin Franklin.

The moment when Vincent van Gogh looked into a mirror, held up a blade and cut into his own ear defines his turbulent life and art. But what did he really do on the night of December 23, 1888, in the town of Arles? What was his state of mind? No one has been clear on the details … until now. Bernadette Murphy, a researcher living in Provence, has spent five years piecing together a meticulous picture of his life in Arles, person by person, house by house. She has uncovered definitive evidence, never before published, and pieced together a detailed timeline of the events leading up to the night of the event, explaining the driving force behind the story that dominates art history.

Baiae... An escape for ancient Rome’s powerful elite, the Las Vegas of its day. Now, archaeologists are mapping underwater ruins and piecing together what life was like in this playground for the rich.