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The capacocha was one of the most important types of Inca sacrifices. Road stations (tambos) were built for the pilgrims who travelled to mountain peaks with the sacrifices. Spatial analysis of two tambos on the slopes of the Pichu Pichu and Chachani volcanoes in Peru reveals segregation in the sacred landscape.

Historic sites of lawful execution are now largely consigned to archival records, including hand-drawn maps. Using these records to identify potential locations, this project deploys non-invasive geophysical surveys and targeted excavation to uncover execution sites and historic gallows in Silesia.

Digital technology facilitates remote access to archaeological collections and offers an accessible platform for knowledge sharing and innovative storytelling. Here, the authors present a newly developed online museum resource co-curated by archaeologists and the descendant community in Quinhagak, Alaska.

Debate surrounds the early peopling of the Arabian Peninsula. The first evidence of the Levallois lithic technology in the Huqf area of south-eastern Arabia now extends the Middle Palaeolithic record of hominin activity into central Oman and helps to diversify the picture of Arabian prehistory.

Limited research exists on preceramic sites in south-central coastal Peru. Systematic survey and excavations at Pampa Lechuza, Ica, now confirm a Late Pleistocene–Early Holocene Paiján (13 000–9000 cal BP) occupation and identify Quispisisa-sourced obsidian Paiján points, which are the only examples currently known to use this raw material.

This project employs a geoarchaeological approach to explore human occupation of the highland wetlands (bofedales) and salt flats of the Dry Puna of northern Chile (>2500m above sea level) during the Holocene. Differences in the archaeological record of each ecosystem are tentatively suggested to relate to settlement patterns and the history of the landscape.

Numerous transport stirrup jars have been found at the site of Pefkakia. Most were manufactured in Crete with some from the Greek mainland. There were also at least two Canaanite jars from the Carmel coast. These finds and the first results of petrographic analysis attest to the site's role as a major Aegean harbour.

Ancient geographers and travellers of the early nineteenth and twentieth centuries described localities on the northern coast of Egypt, including the Hellenistic-Roman town ruins known today as Darazya. Impressive Second World War structures are also scattered there. Research initiated in 2021 will broaden insights into the history of the region.

The Chengba site is the only city site dated from the late Warring States Period in eastern Sichuan Province, China. New discoveries of artefacts and structures at the site enable exploration of the regional role and management of counties that were established at this time by the central government.

The Nasrid emirate of southern Iberia emanated power through architecture; this project aims to better understand how this was made possible, via an interdisciplinary exploration of the Alhambra monument and other Al-Andalus constructions. Initial results of archaeological campaigns, structure chronologies and communication plans undertaken in 2021 and 2022 are presented.

The Central Mediterranean Penal Heritage Project (CMPHP) employs remote-sensing techniques to study and preserve archaeological remains of human confinement. Within this larger project, digital photogrammetry was used to document part of the castle prison in Noto Antica to identify and digitally preserve graffiti depicting galleys and gameboards.

Large-scale field research is providing extensive data on the prehistoric settlement history of the Bayuda Desert in Sudan. The authors briefly examine notable outputs from the project, including some of the more than 100 radiocarbon dates that permit a more nuanced understanding of the chronology of settlement pattern changes.

Collation of satellite imagery and new fieldwork in Şanlıurfa (south-east Türkiye) has revealed large numbers of stone-walled desert kites, some of which may date to the Pre-Pottery Neolithic (c. 9500–7000 BC). The authors briefly explore the potential role of these structures in the processes of early sedentism and monumentality.

This project documents the current archaeological record of the Qaraçay River Basin in western Azerbaijan. Integrating intensive pedestrian survey, satellite imagery analysis and topographic mapping, the study identified 85 kurgans, six necropolises and nine sites from the Chalcolithic or medieval periods. The authors believe this demonstrates the potential for further archaeological studies in the region.

An exceptional Late Neolithic burial discovered at Puisserguier, southern France, contains a skeleton buried with its head deposited on its torso; the disposal of the rest of the body follows a standard pattern for individual burials of this period. The authors discuss the nature of this deposit in terms of its funerary status.

The ‘Gandhāra still’ has been an influential element in the archaeology of south-central Asia for decades. This project combines archival research, material synthesis and experimental evaluation to reappraise this eminent and pervasive reconstruction, and to systematically dismiss an assumed component in the history of distillation.

The Battle of al-Qadisiyyah (c. AD 637/8) was a crucial victory by the Arab Muslims over the forces of the Sasanian Empire during the early Islamic conquests. Analysis of satellite imagery of south-west Iraq has now revealed the likely location of this important historic battle.

Post-excavation analysis of individual Ghz-1-002, an adult probable male interred in a medieval cemetery at Ghazali, Sudan, identified tattoos on the right foot. Visualisation under different spectrums of light allowed a reconstruction of the marks, which are only the second instance of tattooing identified from medieval Nubia.