A skeleton found under the Newport Ship could have belonged to a man who was decapitated in a sacrificial killing, a leading archaeologist working on the project says. But there is also the possibility that he met his end in the waters of the River Usk by drowning.

Experts examining an Iron Age skeleton found discovered buried beneath a medieval ship in Newport, South Wales, say it is "remarkably well preserved." Tests on the bones by forensic archaeologists at Lampeter University, Mid Wales, have shown that they date back to 170 B.C.

A grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund will help pay for a project to examine the medieval ship buried in the banks of the River Usk, in Newport.

Researchers have long questioned Captain John Smith's claim that he explored much of the Nanticoke River in Virginia in a brief, three-day period during the summer of 1608. Now a new expedition may give them answers.

After the failure of Jamie and Adam to reconstruct a working model of Archimedes' death ray for Mythbusters, scientists from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology have taken up the challenge.

As work on the wreck of Henry VIII's flagship the Mary Rose continues, archaeologists announced that the anchor has been recovered.

You, too, can go a-Viking! DirectBoats.com is selling replica Viking longboats. "Great for theme parks and rental operations." And, they're on sale!

On October 18, 2005, the Dubner Institute for the History of Science & Technology will present "Conceptualization and Construction of Old Boats: Pre-Renaissance Methods of Ship Design".

Come join the Good Gentles of Gleann Abhann as We make History! A Celebration for the Ages of the Known World! Unbelted Champions Tourney with Ladies Gallery, Queen's Rapier Champion Tournament, Children's Activities, Arts and Sciences Display to show the skills of Gleann Abhann and much more as We celebrate the Coronation of Radu and Broinnfinn, First Crown of Gleann Abhann.

Alex Hildred, Excavation Director for the Mary Rose project, believes that they may have discovered the tudor rose figurehead for the ship. The paddle-shaped, decorative piece of oak was uncovered recently in a planned attempt to raise one of the ship's main beams.

Maritime archaeologists have announced plans to raise an 11-meter timber from the bow of the warship Mary Rose.

1550s Spain: Christopher Columbus may have been the first to journey to the New World, but these days it seems every explorer worth his salt is either looking for or holding letters of marque to carry them to a place called the Americas. They have high hopes of bringing back riches and glory. Ponte Alto wishes to commend Spain for its vision to sponsor the first voyage to this wondrous new land. Therefore, we have planned a day of Feasting and Celebration in honor of Spain and the intrepid explorers who followed Columbus' lead.

Want to be like Jack Sparrow? Wear an eyepatch? Go around saying "Arrrrr" a lot? Then today is YOUR day! Happy National Talk Like a Pirate Day!

Chinese archaeologists are excited about the discovery of an ancient war ship from the Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368). The 20-meter-long ship was found in Dengzhou Harbor in Penglai in China's Shandong Province.

Ship builder Robert McDonald has entered the record books by constructing a 15-meter Viking longboat of 15 million ice cream sticks. The ship, which took two years to build, was launched in Amsterdam harbor.

The wreck of a 17th century ship off the coast of Dorset, England, will now be protected from treasure hunters and unlicenced divers by the British government.

Robert McDonald, former Hollywood stuntman, has built a replica of a Viking longship from 15 million ice cream sticks.

Editors of Heroic Age: A Journal of Early Medieval Northwestern Europe have announced the publication of Issue 8: Traders, Saints, and Pirates: The Sea in Early Medieval Northwestern Europe.

This museum is a celebration of fascinating devices that don't work. It houses diverse examples of the perverse genius of inventors who refused to let their thinking be intimidated by the laws of nature, remaining optimistic in the face of repeated failures. Watch and be amazed as we bring to life eccentric and even intricate perpetual motion machines that have remained steadfastly unmoving since their inception.

The Skidbladner, a 26 meter replica of a Viking longship, abandoned after a failed attempt to sail to North America, will find a new home on Unst, the most nothernly of Scotland's Shetland Islands.

Baron Pietari Uv, Clerk of the Crowns Ships, has announced that Drachenwald's Royal Navy now has a website.

A well-preserved Roman barge has been discovered at the bottom of the Rhine River in the Netherlands. The vessel is the oldest of its type ever discovered in the country.

Last February several longboats full of intrepid Vikings sailed up the River Ouse to claim the City of York.

As the summer comes to a close, the harvesting is close to done, the merchant vessels are heavily laden with grains, foods, jewelry, cloth, weapons and iron destined for their Majesties and traders in far away lands. Though some have made an uneventful journey, others have been detained, boarded, and had their holds emptied by pirates. Upon hearing of this, Their Excellencies declared the warriors of these lands must arm themselves and put an end to the piracy that hinders trade and is stopping the taxes from reaching the King and Queen.

Research on lenses discovered at a Viking archaeological dig on the island of Gotland provides evidence that the Norse may have had sophisticated navigational instruments as early as the 11th century.

Plans to continue the preservation of a medieval ship owned by the Earl of Warwick have hit another snag. Newport Council members need to raise UK£300,000 a year to keep the ship from being destroyed.

In Heritage & Culture reporter Brendan O'Brien looks at the history and influence of the remnants of the Spanish Armada shipwrecked by a storm in the Irish Sea.

Researchers are hoping that DNA tests will confirm the identity of Capt. Bartholomew Gosnold, privateer, explorer and namer of Cape Cod.

A 1,000-year-old Viking boat, constructed from an oak log, has been given a place of prominence in the Yorkshire Museum's Jorvik Viking Festival holiday showcase.

"Boating on a River" will be on display at the Freer Gallery of Art in Washington, DC, through August 14, 2005.