The WORST episodes of Ancient X-Files

Every episode of Ancient X-Files ever, ranked from worst to best by thousands of votes from fans of the show. The worst episodes of Ancient X-Files!

Ancient X Files travels around the world to solve some intriguing riddles. Each story is a piece of detective work by an expert trying to make sense of some puzzling ancient artefact, to find the truth behind some extraordinary legend, to discover the origins of a bizarre myth or to establish the authenticity of a venerated religious relic. This series explores the bits of archaeology and history which seem to defy explanation. Our experts are following chains of clues and putting theories to the test, in an effort to explain the unexplained. Ancient X Files investigates claims about the whereabouts of the lost Ark of the Covenant; attempts to establish the authenticity of a cup some believe to be the Holy Grail; tries to de-code the mysterious Phaistos disc; investigates a cloth which is believed to carry traces of the DNA of Jesus Christ; and deciphers an encrypted book of alchemy written by the great Sir Isaac Newton.

Last Updated: 9/16/2024Network: National GeographicStatus: Ended
Philosopher's Stone And The Lost Ark
star
6.14
207 votes

#1 - Philosopher's Stone And The Lost Ark

Season 1 - Episode 3 - Aired 1/24/2011

Examining the medieval myth of the Philosopher's Stone, a Holy Grail-type relic which supposedly held the key to alchemy and immortality. Many noted alchemists and adventurers searched obsessively for the artefact hoping to learn its powerful secrets, a quest which allegedly drove some to madness and others to celestial encounters. It's one of the most coveted artefacts of the Bible: a gold-encrusted chest containing the Ten Commandments. Can modern scholarship explain the awful powers of the Ark of the Covenant and tell us how it vanished and where it is today?

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Blood Of Christ And Mystery Disc
star
6.34
212 votes

#2 - Blood Of Christ And Mystery Disc

Season 1 - Episode 2 - Aired 9/27/2010

Less famous then the Shroud of Turin could the Shroud of Oviedo actually be Christ's burial cloth? NGC traces the blood-stained relic to Israel in a quest to determine whether it holds Christ's DNA, and in a most chilling discovery finds that it contains no evidence of a father's DNA. Later, a linguistic code cracker attempts to solve the riddle of one of the most mysterious ancient objects - the Phaistos Disc. The Phaistos Disc is a curious archaeological find, most likely dating from about 1700 BC. Its purpose and meaning, and even its original geographical place of manufacture, remain disputed, making it one of the most famous mysteries of archaeology. The Phaistos Disc was discovered in the basement of room XL-101 of the Minoan site of Phaistos. The site is near Hagia Triada on the south coast of Crete. Italian archaeologist Luigi Pernier recovered this remarkably intact disc about 15 cm. in diameter and uniformly just over 1 cm. thick, on July 3, 1908.

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star
6.93
110 votes

#3 - The Mona Lisa Code And The Bone Chamber

Season 2 - Episode 3 - Aired 5/1/2012

New high-resolution images of the Mona Lisa may reveal hidden numbers and letters. Could they be the key to understanding the enigmatic painting?

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Holy Grail And The Minotaur
star
6.98
194 votes

#4 - Holy Grail And The Minotaur

Season 1 - Episode 1 - Aired 9/27/2010

Hidden behind bullet proof glass, guarded by a mysterious order of knights, could this stone cup really be the legendary Holy Grail? And the horrific, mythical monster, half man, half bull that devoured its human victims trapped inside a terrifying labyrinth. But could the blood-curdling legend of the Minotaur be linked to a real place?

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star
6.99
143 votes

#5 - Sodom and Gomorrah And Voynich Manuscript

Season 2 - Episode 2 - Aired 5/22/2012

Following clues in the Old Testament, an archaeologist believes he has discovered the location of the original cities of sin, Sodom and Gomorrah.

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star
7.03
80 votes

#6 - The Mystery Of Mary Magdelene

Season 2 - Episode 7 - Aired 7/3/2012

Ancient artefacts that defy rational explanation come under the microscope, as this series explores the unsolved mysteries of the past.

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star
7.04
174 votes

#7 - Incas Decoded And Viking Sun Stone

Season 2 - Episode 4 - Aired 5/15/2012

Dr Sabine Hyland attempts to study the three dimensional language found in sacred knotted Incan relics and crack their intricate code.

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star
7.06
145 votes

#8 - Holy Shroud And Star God Temple

Season 2 - Episode 1 - Aired 5/29/2012

Investigate what recent advances in science might reveal about this mysterious religious relic since the last time it was tested in 1988.

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star
7.19
52 votes

#9 - Vampire Killers And Green Children Mystery

Season 2 - Episode 6 - Aired 6/5/2012

A mysterious burial 4,000 years ago and the recent discovery of a body with a missing heart leads to a search for the world's oldest vampire

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star
7.20
105 votes

#10 - Mayan Underworld

Season 2 - Episode 10 - Aired 6/12/2012

Join underwater archaeologist Guillermo de Anda as he travels across Mexico and Guatemala in search of the legendary Mayan underworld, Xibalba.

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star
7.42
73 votes

#11 - Great Flood And Scottish Stone Mystery

Season 2 - Episode 11 - Aired 6/19/2012

After centuries of debate, archaeological evidence unearthed in Bulgaria may reveal not only where the Great Flood happened, but what caused it.

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star
7.43
136 votes

#12 - Crown Of Thorns And The Living Dead

Season 2 - Episode 5 - Aired 5/8/2012

Father Patrick Hough visits Notre Dame Cathedral to examine a relic that's said to be the crown of thorns worn by Christ at his crucifixion.

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star
7.66
50 votes

#13 - Death Cult And Bog Bodies of Ireland

Season 2 - Episode 8 - Aired 7/24/2012

Death Cult Temple & Bog Bodies Of Ireland: Experts explore the revolutionary discovery of Gobekli Tepe, along with brutally maimed bodies unearthed in the muddy landscape of Ireland.

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star
7.80
107 votes

#14 - Crucifixion Decoded And Bosnian Pyramids

Season 2 - Episode 9 - Aired 6/26/2012

Millions of Christians retrace Christ's footsteps every year, but now an archaeologist claims that they may be worshipping at the wrong sites.

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star
7.87
72 votes

#15 - Joan Of Arc Conspiracy And London's New Jerusalem

Season 2 - Episode 12 - Aired 7/10/2012

Could Joan have survived her execution? New evidence suggests that France's national heroine may not have been burnt at the stake after all.

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star
7.91
76 votes

#16 - Sword in the Stone And Orpheus Amulet

Season 2 - Episode 13 - Aired 7/17/2012

An expert in Arthurian legend makes an unlikely journey to a remote Italian church, and a tiny pendant challenges the origins of Christianity.

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