Archaeologists from Museum of London Archaeology report that they have discovered the remains of a playhouse where Willianm Shakespeare staged some of his earliest plays. The Curtain Theatre north of the river Thames in Shoreditch pre-dated the Globe.

"When we selected the manuscripts to go on display, we tried to pick those which were visually very strong and had a very strong art element," Kathleen Doyle, curator of illuminated manuscripts at the British Library, said about the exhibition, Royal Manuscripts: The Genius of Illumination.

The latest "hit" on British pop music charts is not a rap song, but a 450-year-old Italian Renaissance mass recorded by the British vocal group I Fagiolini.

Archaeologists have feared the worst for Libya's Roman cultural heritage during the recent unrest in the country, but so far, sites such as Leptis Magna the "jewel in the crown" of Libya's Roman legacy, are unharmed.

No trace of Henry VIII's Nonesuch Palace remains except a rare 16th century watercolor by Joris Hoefnagel, and now that is to be auctioned by Christies. The watercolor is expected to bring as much as 1.2 million UK pounds (US$1.9 million).

21-year-old metal detectorist Danny Mills delighted local archaeologists when he discovered an extremely rare 1st - 3rd century Roman lantern near Sudbury, England. The bronze lantern is believed to be the only one of its kind in Britain. (photo)

Armourers like Tomasz Samula are making last minute adjustments to the arms and armour for the Lublin Knights, who will gather Saturday on the field where the Polish-Lithuanian army defeated a force of Teutonic knights near this Polish village in 1410.

Restoration experts using ultra-violet technology have rediscovered details of 14th wall paintings by the Italian master Giotto in the Peruzzi Chapel at the Santa Croce Church in Florence, Italy. (photo)

Gaetano La Fata, Mayor of Carini, Italy, has an extremely cold case on his hands: the murder of Baroness Laura Lanzaand her lover Ludovico Vernagallo, killed in 1563 when caught in bed together.

Archaeologists studying the sites of Elizabethan playhouses in London have discovered that theatre-goers were treated to an "exotic array of foods while enjoying the latest plays of the day."

For years, experts have disputed the legitimacy of the Vinland Map, the famous 15th century map which depicted parts of North America many years before its discovery by Christopher Columbus. Now Rene Larsen, rector of the School of Conservation under the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts, has declared the map genuine.

Security was tight for the April 1, 2008 meeting of U.S. President George W. Bush and Ukraine’s President Viktor Yushchenko, as captured by Reuters photographer Grigory Dukor, who observed security's reaction to guys in armor.

The countries of Denmark and Cyprus recently banded together to honor a 12th century Danish king who died on the island during the First Crusade.

A wooden and ivory throne, dating to the times of Julius Caesar, has been discovered in Herculaneum and is considered to be "the most significant piece of wooden furniture ever discovered there."

"In the wrong hands, samurai swords are dangerous weapons," Home Office Minister Vernon Coaker said recently on the announcement by the British government that it would ban the sale of the swords.

Italian archaeologists believe they have found the cave where, according to legend, a she-wolf nursed Romulus and Remus, the twin founders of Rome.

A hobby historian has discovered the oldest known recipe for bratwurst, dating the German sausage to the fifteenth century.

An enameled medieval crucifix stolen from France by the Nazis has resurfaced in an Austrian rubbish skip. It was discovered by a china-fancier looking for old plates in the belongings of a deceased neighbor.

London's building boom has also produced a boom for archaeologists by uncovering the city's Roman past. Recent finds include a 2nd century dining room decorated with plaster murals.

Nestled at the foot of Syria's coastal mountains, an ancient citadel has been put on the tourist map by restoration and excavation that revealed mysteries of the medieval Assassins sect that was once based there.

Advertisements in newspapers throughout England, Australia, the United States and Europe are asking the question: "Can you trace your family tree back to 1066? Might your ancestors have claimed the English throne?"

27,000 people applied recently for a chance to celebrate the Winter Solstice in the Stone Age tomb in Newgrange, Ireland. Only 100 won the honor. Andrew Bushe has the story.

For the first time in its 522 year history, the Tower of London will enlist a female Beefeater. The name of the new Yeoman Warder has not been made public, but she was chosen from a group of six applicants, five men and one woman, as the "best candidate for the job."

More than 1,200 tall (1m) jars have been discovered in a Roman first century shipwreck. Scientists are hoping that any remaining sealed jars will provide them with samples of the fish sauce for analysis.

The vote to select the seven wonders of the world (constructed before 2000) continues. The list of prospective sites has now been narrowed to 21, and includes such historic landmarks as Stonehenge, the Great Wall of China and the Eiffel Tower. The public is invited to vote online.

Genghis Khan laid the foundations for the Renaissance, according to a news story recently published by China's Xinhua news agency.

Despite the Roman arena's well-deserved reputation for gladiatorial brutality, forensic examination of the remains of several dozen gladiators found in Turkey reveals that their combat was fought with well-defined rules of engagement.

BBC radio interview with Ned Kelly, head of antiquities at the National Museum of Ireland reveals that "The preserved remains of two prehistoric men discovered in an Irish bog have revealed a couple of surprises --- one used hair gel and the other stood 6 foot 6 inches high, the tallest Iron Age body discovered."

In an effort to bolster flagging tourism, the Welsh town of Caernarfon is stepping up its plans to utilize its medieval castle as the center of its marketing campaign for 2006.

Researchers at the Royal Society, a British scientific association, have discovered notes on alchemy by Sir Isaac Newton that were previously thought to have been permanently lost.