15 Ancient Artifacts That Turned Out to Be Worthless Garbage

Ancient artifacts always cause a buzz in the archaeology world, or at least we think so thanks to you know which movies. Indeed, really old timey-objects hold the promise of being as awesome as the Dead Sea Scrolls, or even as scientifically fascinating as the Antikythera mechanism. Other times, they’re just sexy sex stuff, because we’re all pervs. And other times they’re just creepy, like something you’d see in the first act of a horror movie.

In this Pictofact, we’re focusing on something different: bullshit. Not, like, actually fossilized poop (ew), but ancient artifacts that turned out to be useless crap. And having treated this subject before, we know that we’ll inevitably have to deal with hoaxes. Because random stuff may be taken as priceless objects, but most of the time they’re just used by sketchy people desperate for attention. So we’re giving them attention right now, happy? Actually, wait, we are happy. After all, from finely made forgeries to truly random trash, you won't believe the stuff that almost made the history books.

I. Pilon/Shutterstock

7 Famous 'Unsolved' Mysteries (Science Solved Years Ago)

Rafał Chałgasiewicz/Wiki Commons

7 Famous 'Unsolved' Mysteries (Science Solved Years Ago)

Mark Duggan/NPR (via archive.org)

5 Outrageous Archaeological Hoaxes That Fooled the Experts

RozenskiP/Shutterstock, Ken and Nyetta/Wiki Commons

Sadly, The Hobby Lobby Dead Sea Scrolls Are All Crafty Fakes

Public Domain

5 Ridiculous Archaeological Frauds (That Fooled the World)History

Tim Post/Minnesota Public Radio

5 Ridiculous Archaeological Frauds (That Fooled the World)Wikipedia

Jonathan Chen/Wiki Commons, National Geographic

Wikipedia

via Sideprojects/YouTube

WikipediaSideprojects/YouTube

Popular Science Monthly/Wiki Commons

PBS Eons/YouTubeWikipedia

Glen J. Kuban

WikipediaGlen J. Kuban

Marcus Gheeraerts the Younger, Bancroft Library

5 Ridiculous Archaeological Frauds (That Fooled the World)

Pierre Stromberg/Wiki Commons

Wikipedia

Fchavez2000/Wiki Commons

Wikipedia

Harvard University/YouTube

WikipediaHarvard University/YouTube

Martin Lewinson/Wiki Commons,New York State Historical Association Library/Wiki Commons

5 Ridiculous Archaeological Frauds (That Fooled the World)