© Getty Images

Pompeii -

The site of Pompeii, which has remained buried under a layer of ash since Mount Vesuvius' catastrophic eruption in 79 CE, is now a popular tourist attraction. Researchers from the University of Florence, Harvard University, and the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology in Leipzig used ancient DNA to challenge long-held beliefs about the people of Pompeii.

© Getty Images

Pompeii -

Contrary to physical appearances, DNA evidence has revealed surprising variations in gender and kinship, rewriting the narrative that has stood since 1748. Genetic traces collected from the bones of victims showed that what was once considered to be a mother holding her son in their final moments, was an unrelated adult male who likely offered comfort to a child before they perished.

© Getty Images

Pompeii -

Another example is in the "House of the Golden Bracelet," the only site with genetic information from multiple individuals. Four people traditionally thought to be the two parents and their children actually have no genetic ties to each other. Similarly, a pair of individuals thought to be sisters, or mother and daughter, were found to include at least one genetic male.

© Shutterstock

Pompeii -

These findings challenge traditional gender and familial assumptions. The genetic data also highlights the cosmopolitan nature of the Roman Empire, showing that Pompeians were primarily descended from immigrants from the eastern Mediterranean.

© Getty Images

Vittrup Man -

A comprehensive study of tooth enamel, tartar, and bone collagen has provided new insights into the "Vittrup Man," a Stone Age traveler who met a violent end in a swamp in northwest Denmark approximately 5,200 years ago (not pictured).

© Getty Images

Vittrup Man -

His remains, recovered from a peat bog in Vittrup, Denmark, in 1915, were accompanied by a wooden club, presumably used to deliver a fatal blow to his skull. However, until recently, little else was understood about his life and death.

© Shutterstock

Vittrup Man -

Bog bodies, the uniquely preserved "accidental mummies" discovered in Northern Europe, have long intrigued researchers, however, this study is the first to map the life history of the deceased in such detail.

© Shutterstock

Vittrup Man -

Utilizing advanced analytical techniques, Anders Fischer, a project researcher in the Department of Historical Studies at the University of Gothenburg in Sweden, and his team aimed to "find the individual behind the bone" and shed light on the story of Denmark's oldest known immigrant.

© Getty Images

Vittrup Man -

Scientists analyzed Vittrup Man’s remains in a study published in the journal Nature about Denmark’s genetic prehistory that sequenced the genomes of 317 ancient skeletons. Researchers estimate that he died after being hit over the head at least eight times with the wooden club sometime between 3,100 BCE and 3,300 BCE. Pictured is Poskær Stenhus in Denmark, dating back to 3,300 BCE.

© Shutterstock

Vittrup Man -

Vittrup Man may have been killed as a sacrifice, or perhaps he was just in the wrong place at the wrong time. His DNA revealed that he was genetically distinct from the rest of the Danish Stone Age population and died between the ages of 30 and 40.

© Shutterstock

The Sverris saga -

Elsewhere, researchers were able to connect the identity of a skeleton found in a castle well to a passage from an 800-year-old Norse text.

© Shutterstock

The Sverris saga -

The Sverris saga, which told the story of the real-life King Sverre Sigurdsson, includes a description of an invading army tossing the body of a dead man down a well at Norway’s Sverresborg castle in 1197, in a likely attempt to poison the water supply.

© Shutterstock

The Sverris saga -

A team of scientists recently studied bones uncovered in the castle’s well in 1938. Using radiocarbon dating, the researchers determined that the remains were about 900 years old. Genetic sequencing of tooth samples laid bare that "Well-man" had a medium skin tone, blue eyes, and light brown or blond hair. And in a plot twist, his genetics couldn’t be traced to the local population.

© Getty Images

The lost prince -

Modern forensic techniques have debunked a nearly 200-year-old conspiracy theory about a "lost prince" of Europe. Kaspar Hauser, who appeared mysteriously in Nuremberg, Germany, in 1828, sparked speculation that he might secretly belong to German royalty.

© Getty Images

The lost prince -

Found wandering the streets without identification at the age of 16, Hauser was barely able to communicate, further deepening the mystery surrounding his origins. Claiming to have been raised in captivity by an unknown man, Hauser sparked widespread fascination and speculation about his origins. Pictured is an illustration of Hauser at the police station in Nuremberg.

© Getty Images

The lost prince -

One popular theory suggested that Hauser was the rightful heir to the House of Baden, the biological son of Grand Duke Carl, who was thought to have died as an infant in 1812. According to this hypothesis, Hauser was kidnapped and replaced with a dying baby to alter the line of succession, potentially benefiting other members of the Baden nobility.

© Getty Images

The lost prince -

Hauser's life ended abruptly when he was fatally stabbed in 1833 under suspicious circumstances, adding to the mystique surrounding his story. There have been multiple studies of genetic data taken from items that belonged to Hauser, but the conflicting results led to a stalemate with no answers.

© Shutterstock

The lost prince -

That is, until last year 2024. Researchers analyzed Kaspar Hauser's hair samples and confirmed that his mitochondrial DNA—genetic material inherited from the maternal side—did not match that of the Baden family.

© Shutterstock

The lost prince -

While this discovery debunks the theory of his royal lineage, it leaves a deeper question unanswered: who was Kaspar Hauser? As his tombstone poignantly states, he remains "the riddle of his time." Pictured is the house where Kaspar Hauser was a prisoner.

© Getty Images

Ludwig van Beethoven -

Classical composer Ludwig van Beethoven, who died in 1827 at age 56, endured numerous health issues, including deafness, liver disease, and chronic stomach problems. Before his death, Beethoven expressed a wish for his ailments to be studied and the findings shared, hoping the world would better understand him after he was gone.

© Getty Images

Ludwig van Beethoven -

In May 2024, researchers published a study showing high levels of lead detected in authenticated locks of Beethoven's hair and suggested the composer may have suffered from lead poisoning, which could explain some of his persistent health problems. However, the levels weren't high enough to kill him, as some medical biographers had previously theorized.

© Getty Images

Ludwig van Beethoven -

The diagnosis comes from lab medicine experts led by Harvard Medical School biochemist Nader Rifai. "While the concentrations determined are not supportive of the notion that lead exposure caused Beethoven's death, it may have contributed to the documented ailments that plagued him most of his life," Rifai said in a statement.

© Getty Images 

Ludwig van Beethoven -

Lead levels like those observed in Beethoven are commonly linked to gastrointestinal distress, kidney and liver disease, and decreased hearing—all of which afflicted the influential composer. High levels of this toxic metal are also associated with other traits Beethoven is notoriously known for: a short temper, memory lapses, and chronic clumsiness.

© Getty Images

Ludwig van Beethoven -

Additionally, traces of arsenic and mercury were found. The substances were likely from an accumulation of a lifetime diet of fish from the polluted Danube River and plumbed wine, which was sweetened and preserved with lead.

© Getty Images

Ludwig van Beethoven -

William Meredith, Beethoven scholar and study coauthor, commented: "People say, 'The music is the music, why do we need to know about any of this stuff?' But in Beethoven's life, there is a connection between his suffering and the music."

© Getty Images

George Washington -

A study of skeletal remains using new DNA analysis techniques has revealed fresh information about the fate of George Washington's family members. The first US president's younger brother, Samuel, who died in 1781, and 19 other relatives were buried in a cemetery at Samuel's estate near Charles Town, West Virginia.

© Getty Images

George Washington -

However, some of the graves were unmarked, likely to prevent grave robbing, according to Courtney L. Cavagnino, a research scientist with the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System's Armed Forces DNA Identification Laboratory.

© Getty Images

George Washington -

Cavagnino told CNN in March that she led a team studying remains excavated from the cemetery in 1999. They identified two of Samuel's grandsons and their mother. The team had also hoped to find Samuel's grave, but its location remains unknown.

© Getty Images

Thomas West -

Meanwhile, a separate investigation of unmarked graves found at the British settlement of Jamestown, Virginia, revealed a long-hidden scandal within the family of the colony’s first governor, Thomas West.

© Getty Images

Thomas West -

Researchers analyzed DNA from two male skeletons in the graves, revealing they were both related to West through a shared maternal lineage. One of the men, Capt. William West, was born to West's spinster aunt, Elizabeth, and was illegitimate.

© Shutterstock

Thomas West -

The researchers discovered that the details of West’s birth had been deliberately omitted from the family’s genealogical records. This secrecy about his true parentage likely motivated him to sail across the Atlantic and join the colony.

Sources: (CNN) (Forbes) (Fox 17) (NBC News) (Science Alert)

See also: What DNA tells us about Europe's first settlers

© Getty Images