Buzz
For decades, archaeologists have understood that subsurface structures produce unique thermal patterns compared to the surrounding terrain. Yet, traditional methods like low-altitude flights with thermal imaging are not only expensive but also risky. Today, drones offer a groundbreaking solution, revealing insights once thought impossible.
Aerial innovations have reached a new level of practicality, affordability, and rapid data analysis. Recent breakthroughs demonstrate that drones are revolutionizing archaeology. The real challenge now is determining who will adopt this technology and who will miss out on its transformative potential.
10. House of the Dead
In July 2017, a 5,600-year-old 'House of the Dead' was unearthed on England’s Salisbury Plain. Situated midway between Avebury and Stonehenge, the site had been leveled by farming. Drone-captured aerial images unveiled hidden subterranean features: a long barrow burial mound in Cat’s Brain, part of Wiltshire’s Pewsey Vale. Dating back to the Neolithic era, this ancient burial ground may hold the remains of Stonehenge’s ancestral builders. The site features two ditches surrounding a central structure, with researchers suggesting the excavated soil was used to form a mound over it.
The 'House of the Dead' originates from the era when agriculture and monumental construction began in Britain. The abundance of ancient sites on Salisbury Plain puzzles researchers. Some speculate that minimal modern development has preserved these sites, while others propose that the Avon and Kent river valleys held profound importance for ancient Britons.
9. Ancient Amazonian Earthworks
In early 2017, researchers identified ancient Amazonian earthworks in Acre, Brazil. Concealed beneath soil and vegetation, these 2,000-year-old structures were revealed using drones. The design, featuring an inner wall and outer ditch, mirrors classic henge layouts, similar to early Stonehenge. Researchers theorize these earthworks functioned like their European Neolithic counterparts—as spaces for rituals and communal gatherings. To date, 450 such earthworks have been uncovered.
This finding disputes the notion of the Western Amazon being a 'pristine ecosystem.' Experts now argue that indigenous communities engaged in forest management long before Europeans introduced damaging land-use practices. With 6,000 years of reconstructed vegetation and fire history, the geoglyphs indicate that past subsistence methods did not harm the forests. Researchers emphasize the value of indigenous knowledge in developing sustainable land-use strategies.
8. Lost City of Alexander
Declassified spy satellite images from the 1960s provided the first clues about Qalataga Darband. However, the ancient city, established in 331 BC by Alexander the Great, remained out of reach in Saddam Hussein–controlled Iraqi Kurdistan until 1996. In 2017, improved conditions enabled a joint Iraqi-British team of archaeologists to confirm its location.
'Drones played a vital role in pinpointing the site,' said project leader John MacGinnis. 'We used drones in spring to map the entire area—analyzing crop marks, a technique previously unused in Mesopotamian archaeology.' Underground structures, such as walls, influence the growth of wheat and barley, creating visible color variations. Drones are ideal for detecting these changes from above. The discovery of numerous stone presses indicates the fortified settlement prospered due to the region's thriving wine trade.
7. Blue J Way
In June 2013, researchers employed a drone with thermal imaging to study a 1,000-year-old Native American settlement in New Mexico. The Blue J village, home to 60 ancestral Puebloan dwellings, was obscured by vegetation and eroded sandstone. Initially discovered in the 1970s, the site had only been partially excavated. The recent survey uncovered structures previously documented, as well as new ones.
Stones beneath the surface retain heat differently than soil, allowing thermal imaging to create heat maps revealing subterranean structures. While archaeologists have long recognized the potential of thermal cameras, their use was limited by high costs until the rise of drone technology. Within the plaza wall, a dark circular feature was detected, possibly a kiva—a ceremonial space used for rituals and community events. Great houses and underground kivas are defining features of Chaco-era Puebloan culture, though neither has yet been confirmed at Blue J.
6. Hidden in Plain Sight at Petra
Petra, the ancient Nabataean capital in Southern Jordan, was built in the mid-second century BC and largely abandoned by the Byzantine era. In 2016, drone imagery uncovered a hidden structure near the city, comparable in size to an Olympic pool but twice as wide. Located 0.8 kilometers (0.5 mi) from Petra, this sandstone construction had remained unnoticed for centuries.
The site features a large platform, 56 by 49 meters (184 x 161 ft), enclosing a smaller flagstone-paved platform. A grand staircase with columns marks the eastern edge, leading to an 8.5-meter-square (28 x 28 ft) structure on the interior platform. Unique in Petra, its purpose remains a mystery. Pottery fragments from the mid-second century BC hint at its origins during Petra's early development.
5. Ancient Apennine Alpiners
For years, archaeologists have been aware of the ancient Samnites, who once inhabited Italy’s Apennine Mountains. However, the challenging landscape made excavations and aerial surveys difficult, leaving much of their culture shrouded in mystery—until recently. In September 2016, researchers identified remnants of a Samnite settlement using drones.
The aerial survey concentrated on Le Pianelle in the Tappino Valley of Southern Italy. Tesse Stek from Leiden University noted, 'We now have a comprehensive understanding of the settlement’s layout, including its alignment with roads, storage areas, living spaces, and more.' The findings revealed the Samnites’ surprisingly dense and well-organized community.
Samnite 'temples,' unearthed during construction projects, continue to puzzle researchers. Some believe these sites served as rest stops and trading hubs, while others argue they marked the borders of Samnite territory.
4. Mapping the Moche
Luis Jaime Castillo, Peru’s vice minister of cultural heritage, considers drones a transformative tool in archaeology, marking a 'before and after moment.' Castillo is leading the way in aerial excavations, using drones to map remnants of the 1,300-year-old Moche civilization along Peru’s Pacific coast, from San Idelfonso to San Jose del Moro. The high-resolution 2D images captured by drones enable the creation of intricate 3D models. Castillo explains, 'We can identify walls, courtyards, and the overall urban layout.'
Drones are essential for documenting these endangered sites, which face threats from all sides. Castillo employs drones not only for mapping but also for monitoring and protecting his sites. They help detect new looting pits and other intrusions. Land traffickers and squatters pose ongoing risks, while rising real estate prices around Lima and Cuzco exacerbate issues of fraud and political corruption.
3. Idumean Idolators
In November 2017, researchers uncovered a mysterious structure in the Negev desert of Southern Israel using drones. Situated in a former military training area, the 2,200-year-old structure dates to the Hellenistic period. Excavations revealed walls, enclosed rooms, and underground baths. Many artifacts found inside feature bull imagery, a sacred symbol to the Idumean people.
'If this structure was an Idumean palace or temple, it would be an extraordinary and rare discovery. Few such buildings have been found in this region,' stated the excavation codirectors. The Idumeans, a Semitic group from Southern Jordan, inhabited the Shephelah foothills. After the Hasmoneans conquered the area in 112 BC, the Idumeans integrated into Judean society. Evidence of fire and deliberate destruction suggests the site may have been targeted during the Hasmonean takeover.
2. Castle of the Sealand Kings
In March 2017, a British-Iraqi archaeological team used drones to locate the ancient city of Tell Khaiber. The Sealand Kings, who governed parts of Bronze Age Iraq from 1730 to 1460 BC, were previously known only through brief accounts by other rulers. Despite their control over the Persian Gulf’s marshy regions, no physical evidence of their presence had been found—until this discovery.
Tell Khaiber is nearly invisible from ground level, appearing as a slight rise in the flat, muddy terrain due to centuries of sediment. Drone imagery, however, revealed the city’s layout and a large, mysterious central structure. Surrounded by a defensive wall with closely spaced watchtowers, the 4,400-square-meter (47,000 ft) building defies classification as a temple, barracks, or palace, leaving its purpose unknown.
1. Secrets of the Shakers
'It almost feels like taking a shortcut,' said Jesse Casana of Dartmouth. The archaeology professor has been using drones to uncover hidden details of a Shaker village in Enfield, New Hampshire. The Shakers, an austere Protestant sect, lived celibate, communal lives, and their name originated from the ecstatic 'shaking' experienced during religious fervor.
Casana began using drones in 2012, but recent advancements have made the technology 'far superior, more dependable, affordable, and user-friendly.' Despite extensive study by Dartmouth students, the Enfield Shaker village still holds many mysteries. The precise locations of the settlement’s structures were unknown—until drones revealed building foundations, historic pathways, roadways, and even underground water pipes.
