From using artificial intelligence (AI) to decode texts lost over time to solving the mystery of human relatives, there are some expected breakthroughs in the field of archeology this year.

In 2024, we could see a series of new discoveries and advances in archaeology. It is expected that new AI technologies can allow successful decoding of texts that have long disappeared in history. Similar methods can help track and lead to the recovery of many stolen artifacts. Meanwhile, new discoveries about relatives of Homo sapiens are also receiving much anticipation.

1. AI for war-torn areas

2024 is not a good year for world peace, with the war in Ukraine continuing for a third year, while the conflict in Gaza shows no signs of ending. Fighting continues in countries such as Sudan and Ethiopia. In this context, tracking lost or stolen relics and antiquities is more challenging than ever. This year, perhaps people will have a new approach to minimize the above situation.

Accordingly, AI programs can be used to analyze high-resolution satellite images of historical ruins, allowing people to follow the situation on the ground faster and more thoroughly if compared to long-standing observations with the naked eye. Researchers can also deploy complex robots, sending them into dangerous places to monitor the risk of ruins being destroyed or looted. Similarly, teams of experts can rely on AI programs to capture signs and identify stolen artifacts on the internet.

2. Clues about missing documents

The year 2024 may also bring new hope in efforts to understand and decode ancient texts lost to history. In 2023, the development of new AI technologies allowed researchers to read difficult-to-read texts in a state of carbonization (burned to only cinder blocks) after the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 These texts include the discovery of a missing book, discussions of history after Alexander the Great, and texts mentioning purple dyeing.

AI technology is on the rise, and in 2024, similar or newer technology may help people recover more lost documents. This approach promises to bring a wealth of new information about the ancient world.

3. 11,000 year old discoveries in Türkiye

This year, there will likely be additional discoveries dating back 11,000 years at Gobekli Tepe, considered one of the world’s oldest temples, and the nearby Karahan Tepe site in the southeast. Turkey. Gobekli Tepe has a series of T-shaped stone columns with carved details, while Karahan Tepe has a building with carved features. In 2023, archaeologists made many discoveries in these two places, including finding a statue depicting a giant. Excavation and analysis efforts are continuing, and in 2024 it is likely that the world will hear good news from Türkiye.

4. Inscriptions near Hadrian’s Wall

Magna is an ancient Roman fortress near Hadrian’s Wall in England. While archaeologists can say that the site has remained well preserved for many years, in reality little archaeological project has been carried out, until recently. Archaeologists began excavations in the summer of 2023. By 2024, there will likely be more information about new discoveries found in the area. One possibility is that researchers will find many new inscriptions during the discovery process.

The Roman fortress of Vindolanda has a total of 780 preserved inscriptions and it is likely that Magna promises the same. Britain has spent £1.625 million to support the new effort.

5. Do people’s relatives still know how to bury people?

Whether hominids other than Homo sapiens ever practiced the practice of burying their dead is a subject of debate in 2023. Unpeer-reviewed reports by a panel of experts in 2023 suggest that the practice Burying the dead was also practiced in Homo naledi , the genus of humans that lived 300,000 years ago and whose remains were found inside a cave in South Africa. However, another group rejects that hypothesis.

This year, the scientific community hopes to have new evidence to answer this question.