Six open investigations · spanning 11,000 years

The past still has secrets.

Support the research bringing forgotten stories, lost places and hidden discoveries back to light.

Explore Research How It Works
Nineteenth-century photograph of the Great Sphinx of Giza, buried in sand up to its chest, with a pyramid in the distance.
Pl. I The Great Sphinx of Giza, still half-buried in sand. Photograph by Félix Bonfils, 19th century. Museo Egizio, Turin.
Black-and-white photograph of Howard Carter kneeling at the open doors of a burial shrine inside Tutankhamun’s tomb, beside two colleagues.
Pl. II Howard Carter, an Egyptian workman and Arthur Callender at the doors of the burial shrines, January 1924. Photograph by Harry Burton.

Featured discovery · Tomb KV62

November 1922Valley of the Kings, Egypt

In 1922, the discovery of Tutankhamun’s tomb revealed an almost untouched royal burial chamber — transforming our understanding of ancient Egyptian culture.

Objects recorded
5,398
Years to document
10
Royal burial
c. 1323 BCE
Egypt’s next chapter: Thonis-Heracleion

Research · 6 projects seeking support

Open investigations, awaiting their next discovery.

Every project is reviewed by specialists, publishes its full budget and labels what is confirmed, what is a hypothesis and what is still being tested.

Discoveries · 1799–1974

Discoveries That Changed History

Each began as an unanswered question — and someone willing to look.

    About Pastquest

    You are not simply funding a project. You are helping uncover a piece of human history.

    Pastquest connects people with the researchers recovering what time has hidden. We present every project the way a museum presents an object: with evidence, context and honesty about what is still unknown.

    • Evidence, clearly labeled

      Every statement on a research page is marked, so you always know what is established and what is still being tested.

      Confirmed Hypothesis Ongoing research

    • Reviewed before listing

      Independent specialists assess each project’s research question, team, permits and budget before it opens for support.

    • Findings shared openly

      Supporters follow the work as it happens, and results are published for everyone — not kept behind a paywall.

    How it works

    Three steps from curiosity to discovery.

    1. Discover

      Explore historical research projects currently seeking funding.

    2. Support

      Choose a project and contribute to its research.

    3. Participate

      Receive a 2% participation reward funded by creator fees, while helping researchers uncover new knowledge.

    Transparency · Support

    Where every contribution goes.

    Each project publishes its budget before it opens. This is how a typical $100 contribution is divided, drawn layer by layer like an excavation section.

    Each layer’s depth is its share of a $100 contribution. The thin gold seam at the base is your 2% participation reward, paid from the creator fee.

    90%

    of every contribution goes directly to research. The remaining 10% is the creator fee — and 2% of your contribution comes back to you as a participation reward.

    Budgets before launch

    Every project publishes a line-by-line budget before it accepts a single contribution.

    Funds released by milestone

    Money reaches research teams in stages, as each funded milestone is completed.

    Spending reported openly

    Teams report expenses and progress to supporters at every milestone, with documents attached.

    FAQ

    Plain questions, plain answers.

    Is supporting a project an investment?

    No. Your contribution funds research directly. It does not buy a share in a project or its findings, and the 2% participation reward is a fixed amount that does not depend on what the research uncovers.

    Where does the 2% participation reward come from?

    From the 10% creator fee. Of every $100 contributed, $90 goes to the research budget, $8 covers platform operations and $2 comes back to you. Research budgets are never reduced to pay it.

    How are projects selected?

    Independent specialists review each project before it is listed. We look for a clear research question, qualified researchers, the permits the work requires and a realistic, published budget.

    How do I know how my contribution is used?

    Every research page shows its budget, funding milestones, field updates and supporting documents. Teams report spending as each milestone is completed.

    How do you separate facts from hypotheses?

    Each statement about the evidence is labeled as confirmed, hypothesis or ongoing research, so the story never outruns what is actually known.