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Ancient Origins Tour IRAQ

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Artifacts

There are undoubtedly millions of ancient artifacts from the past that have served to shed light on the lives of our ancestors from many millennia ago. But some ancient mystical artifacts stand out for their uniqueness, their intrigue, or their ability to expand our knowledge about previously unknown aspects of our history. Here we feature many such ancient history artifacts, from amazing examples of ancient technology, to artistic masterpieces, unexplained objects, ancient texts, and mysterious artifacts that shed light on the daily lives of our ancestors.

Replica Roman slave collars, after Zoninus. Source: nikhg / Adobe Stock.

“Hold Me Or I Will Run!” Roman Slave Collars Came With A Warning

Slavery was a large part of the Roman Empire. Military expansion brought captives, to compliment the material wealth taken back to Rome. And there is strong evidence that these slaves were not always...
Detail from one of the fragments showing the name Merlin.  Source: University of Bristol

13th Century Magical Merlin Manuscript Shares Original Legend

After two years of hard work, scholars have now finished an Old-French-to-English translation of a centuries-old manuscript that tells of the adventures of Merlin the Magician , King Arthur, and...
Hanging out in the margin of an illuminated manuscript

Beautiful, Decorative, and Sometimes Crude: Illuminated Manuscripts and Marginalia

Illuminated manuscripts are manuscripts that are covered with painted ornaments presented under several forms. These documents are perhaps most commonly associated with the European Middle Ages...
Landowning houses used charters to confirm their ownings. Source: Thomas Mucha / Adobe Stock.

Forged Medieval Charters: How To Rewrite History In The Middle Ages

At first glance, charters seem to be nothing more than obscure and boring legal documents, as dull in the Middle Ages as they are today. On closer examination however, there is much more to charters...
Pictogram in the Aztec Codex Telleriano Remensi representing an earthquake that took place in 1507. Source: Gerardo Suárez and Virginia García-Acosta

Aztec Codex is Oldest Written Account of Earthquakes in the Americas

Between the 1300s and the devastating arrival of the Spanish conquistadors in the early 1500s, the Aztecs were a flourishing Mesoamerican culture in the Valley of Mexico in Central Mexico, building...
The Roman Army employed whistling stones as an effective terror weapon. Source: James Steidl / Adobe Stock.

Whistling Sling Stones: Psychological Warfare and the Roman Army

1800 years ago, Roman troops carried a very unusual kind of missile weapon for defeating their enemies. Those weapons were “whistling” sling bullets, and new research suggests these were employed as...
The Great Pyramid at Giza and Noah’s Ark:  Are we coming closer to an understanding of the Ancient Mind? Part I

The Great Pyramid at Giza and Noah’s Ark: Are we coming closer to an understanding of the Ancient Mind? Part I

Two phenomena that have been haunting humanity for a long time are Noah’s Ark and the Great Pyramid of Giza. It has however rarely been suggested that these two are connected. One, the Ark, is part...
The Prophet Nathan’, depicted in the stained-glass of Canterbury Cathedral. Source: Canterbury Cathedral / UCL

Blood Stained Glass Panels At Canterbury Cathedral Saw Becket Die

The oldest known stained-glass windows in the world are traditionally associated with the late 11th century Augsburg Cathedral in Bavaria, Germany. Now, researchers from University College London (...
Latter Day Forgeries: The Hoax of the Kinderhook Plates

Latter Day Forgeries: The Hoax of the Kinderhook Plates

In the 19th century, golden plates were discovered in Kinderhook in the United States. They were meant to reveal an ancient pharaoh’s lineage, but all was not as it seemed. The first week in May 1843...
The Disc of Sabu: Ancient Egyptian Water Pump or Alien Hyperdrive?

The Disc of Sabu: Ancient Egyptian Water Pump or Alien Hyperdrive?

There is no doubt that the Ancient Egyptian civilization is filled with wonders and mysteries beyond our comprehension. An exceptionally old culture that reaches far back to the early dawn of man’s...
800-Year-Old Kakatiya Dynasty Statues Found Abandoned Near Indian Temple

800-Year-Old Kakatiya Dynasty Statues Found Abandoned Near Indian Temple

In the village of Duddeda in the southern Indian province of Telangana, amateur historians stumbled upon an astounding collection of ancient statues dating from the Kakatiya Dynasty, the Deccan...
The Vergilius Vaticanus and How It Survived 1,500 Years

The Vergilius Vaticanus and How It Survived 1,500 Years

The Vergilius Vaticanus is an illuminated manuscript from the Late Antique period, said to have been created in the 400’s. Containing one of the few surviving fragments of Virgil’s Aeneid , as well...
What Really Lies Hidden in the Vatican Secret Archives?

What Really Lies Hidden in the Vatican Secret Archives?

Mystery and intrigue are inherent to the Holy See. People will always wonder what religious authorities are conspiring to behind closed doors, what treasures lie within the vaults of the Vatican...
An Egyptian Mummy

Did Egyptian Mummification Descend from a More Ancient and, Perhaps, Reversible Preservation Technique?

A central concept in the novel The Sphinx Scrolls is whether a mummification technology has ever existed that could preserve someone for long periods and retain the potential to bring them back to...
Deriv; Step Pyramid of Djoser, Egypt., El Castillo (pyramid of Kukulcán) in Chichén Itzá, Mexico, Candi Sukuh in eastern Central Java

Mysterious GodSelf Icon Found Worldwide: Lost Symbol of an Ancient Global Religion?

Significant evidence now exists that ancient cultures worldwide were all connected by a powerful religious symbol which I call the “GodSelf Icon,” that is especially conspicuous among the pyramid...
King Akhenaten Offers Clues to Finding the Lost Ark of the Covenant

King Akhenaten Offers Clues to Finding the Lost Ark of the Covenant

The Ark of the Covenant is perhaps history’s most famous archeological relic. I have been fascinated with it ever since watching Raiders of the Lost Ark , the movie that kick-started so many...
Deriv; Bust of Plato, map of Santorini, 1703, underwater ruin.

Atlantis: Examining the Legendary Tale of Plato

Around 360 BC, in his dialogues of Timaeus and Critias , the Greek philosopher Plato introduced an incredible story, a tale of an enigmatic island civilization which has since captivated the...
Security: The Long History of the Lock and Key

Security: The Long History of the Lock and Key

The modern-era definition states that a lock is a mechanical device or innovation that is used for fastening any physical entity. This lock is triggered and released with the use of an object called...
The Triumphs of Tonyukuk the Wise, Supreme Commander and Kingmaker

The Triumphs of Tonyukuk the Wise, Supreme Commander and Kingmaker

Today the steles of Tonyukuk the Wise are situated at an immensely popular and historical 1300-year-old memorial site. It is located northwest of Bayantsogt Mountain in Erdene Soum, Mongolia...
Ordered universe and cuneiform (Public Domain) and Akkadian cylinder featuring Anunnaki.

Anunnaki Revealed: Who Were These Beings of Ancient Astronaut Theory? – Part I

The modern era has witnessed an incredible surge in the popularity of all forms of media concerning the mythology of the ancient Mesopotamians. Fueling this ever-growing trend are the writings of a...
The Tripitaka Koreana: A Vast Trove of Buddhist Woodblock Wisdom

The Tripitaka Koreana: A Vast Trove of Buddhist Woodblock Wisdom

The Tripitaka Koreana is a collection of Buddhist texts, laws, and treaties originally created during the 11 th century by the Korean kingdom of Goryeo. The Tripitaka Koreana was carved onto...
The Curious Case of the Rocky Valley Labyrinths

The Curious Case of the Rocky Valley Labyrinths

Located between Boscastle and Tintagel , Rocky Valley is a small valley in northern Cornwall , England, carved by the Trevillet River. A site of mystic and historical fascination, it is home to two...
A young priest listens to confession.

Penitentials - Medieval Priests Had Handbooks to Deal with Sexual Deviance

Penance has played a prominent role in religions all over the world. And the interesting thing is there are documents spanning the globe which discuss penance and provide clear opportunities to find...
A view of the marble head of Augustus Caesar discovered last week in Isernia, a town in south-central Italy.

Marble Head of Augustus Caesar Discovered Outside the Realm of Rome

A construction crew performing restoration work on historic walls in the Central Italian city of Isernia discovered something ancient and remarkable. It was a buried, sculpted marble head that had...

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