A 6th century fresco of St. Paul has been discovered in the Catacombs of San Gennaro in Naples during restoration work according to L'Osservatore, the official Vatican newspaper. (photo)

Leo Hollis sees the city of London as a “series of layered narratives that need to be explored.” This is what he does in his book The Stones of London: A History in Twelve Buildings. Philip Womack of The Telegraph has a review.

In the 14th century, poet John Barbour placed the site of King Arthur's "tabilll round" south of Stirling Castle in Scotland, a site believed to be King's Knot, a unique “cup and saucer” shaped mound. A new survey may reveal its mysterious secrets.

John Lippiett, chief executive of the Mary Rose Trust, is sending a piece of history into space: "a parrel, a three-inch wooden ball used as part of the mechanism to hoist the sails of Henry VIII's flagship." The artifact will be launched into orbit with the space shuttle Endeavour. (photos)

The mystery of Rome's "lost legion" has mystified historians for centuries. Now a new young-adult film, along with a redesigned Roman museum, may revive interest in Hadrian's Wall.

Michelanglo's statue of Marcus Aurelius, sculpted in the 1530s, features a horse with "a strong build, a broad chest, thick manes and tails, and robust legs," the same characteristics of modern Maremmano horses, believed to have descended from the emperors' mounts.

The 13th century Temple in London, the headquarters of the Knights Templar in the city, is a round church, but it has also served as a bank and document storage facility. Christopher Howse of the Telegraph looks at a new book on the Templars, The Temple Church in London.

Thirty years ago, the city of Florence, Italy converted the Sant'Orsola convent, the final resting place of Lisa Gherardini, the model of da Vinci's Mona Lisa, into barracks for the city's Guardia di Finanza. The graves and tombs from the site were dumped into 'Case le Passarini', the rubbish tip near Florence.

Kibworth, England might never be the same, thanks to BBC Four which filmed the series Story of England, presented by the historian Michael Wood, based on a massive archaeological dig involving over 200 residents of the village.

Archaeologists believe they have identified Shakespeare's cesspit on the property of New Place, his home in Stratford-upon-Avon. They now hope to find clues to the playwright's life among the rubbish from a dig.

Early European explorers in the Caribbean islands commented on the "abominable" and "frightening" figures in the locals' art, with their bared teeth and "burning" eyes. But a new analysis suggests that the artists may have intended these expressions as inviting smiles rather than demonic grimaces.

In the 1660s, Robert Boyle, chemist and Royal Society founding fellow, wrote a list of 24 future predictions about science and technology. All but a few have come true, many in the past fifty years.

State-of-the-art technology has been used to reconstruct the face of a medieval knight whose skeleton was discovered beneath Stirling Castle in Scotland. (photo)

David Cvet, Dale Gienow, and Matt Brundle were among the contenders at a recent tournament held by The Academy of European Medieval Martial Arts in Toronto. The Telegraph offers a photo gallery of the tourney.

Archaeologists working at a fort on Ilheu de Pontinha, just off the coast of Madeira, have discovered a carefully-preserved nail dating to the first or second century CE, leading to speculation that it might be a relic related to Christ.

A team of experts from Italy’s National Committee for Cultural Heritage are requesting permission to exhume the remains of Leonardo da Vinci in hopes of revealing the real identity of the Mona Lisa.

A century after the Norman Conquest, the relationship between the French and the English was anything but cordial, if you can believe a 396-line poem written by an Anglo-Norman cleric.

Diane de Poitiers, mistress of King Henry II of France, was known for her youthful looks, which kept the interest of the king, twenty years her junior, but did her vanity and desperation lead to her death? Experts believe they did.

For centuries, Englishmen have revered King Henry V as "the greatest man that ever ruled England,” but 1415: Henry V's Year of Glory, a new book by Ian Mortimer gives a new view of the king. Dominic Sandbrook of The Telegraph has a review.

In the 1640s, followers of Oliver Cromwell vandalized Canterbury Cathedral, especially stained glass windows overlooking the tomb of Edward, Prince of Wales, known as the Black Prince. The decay continues to this day, causing concern to those charged with maintaining the cathedral.

Once a jewel of the Victoria and Albert Museum, the War of Troy Tapestry was removed from exhibit twenty years ago "when it became too damaged to display." Now, after 4,000 hours of restoration, the tapestry will once again take a place of honor in the museum. (photos)

How can you tell when the economic crisis has reached epic proportions in great Britain? When the marble pillars of Canterbury Cathedral, the seat of the Anglican Church and site of the murder of St. Thomas a Becket, are being held together with duct tape.

Five 500-year-old church bells, believed to be the oldest in England, have been returned to St Lawrence Church, in Ipswich, Suffolk after a UK£100,000 restoration project. The bells had previously not been rung for 20 years due to their poor condition.

Historians seem to have a love/hate relationship with the Showtime series The Tudors, which has been recently sold to the BBC. Some say it "distorts history for dramatic effect" but has "undoubtedly stimulated interest in British history."

A project to install fountains in Peterborough, England's Cathedral Square has given archaeologists a glimpse of life in the medieval town. "We have found a whole manner of objects, from coins to really chunky old door keys," said city museum archaeologist Ben Robinson.

A group of British chaps hold a yearly -- and quite unusual -- Olympiad for the athletically-challenged and alcohol-enhanced. (video)

In mid-May, 2009, Channel 4 of the BBC premiered a two-part mini-series dramatizing the events leading up to the Battle of Hastings in 1066. The film, 1066: the Battle for Middle Earth, was directed by Justin Hardy who was interviewed for the Telegraph.

Galileo Galilei was not the first to make a telescope, nor the first to use it to observe the heavens, but his observations of the moon and stars are widely regarded as a seminal event in the history of astronomy and religion.

Engineers and architects at Cambridge University have constructed a prototype "eco-house" based on a 600-year-old design. The plan uses a domed technique developed in Spain called "timbrel vaulting" which retains the sun's heat and cools naturally in the summer. (photo)

British academic John Casson believes that he has discovered previously unrecognized works by Williams Shakespeare. Included in these are a poem, a comedy, and his first two tragedies. Casson also claims to have proof of Shakespeare's authorship of the "lost play" Cardenio.