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Ancient Origins Tour IRAQ

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Famous People

In this section, we shed light on some of the most famous and infamous people known throughout history, from powerful pharaohs, to emperors and empresses, acclaimed military leaders, or just regular civilians who’ve been thrown into the spotlight for great crimes or for heroic actions, leaving an indelible mark on the world.

Sybil Ludington rode through the night to warn Patriots that the British were coming. Source: Cattallina / Adobe Stock

Sybil Ludington: Unsung Heroine of the American Revolutionary War

Sometimes we fail to notice the greatest heroes . Courage and daring can hide even in the smallest of characters, springing up unexpectedly and just in the nick of time. Sybil Ludington was just...
La Voisin is believed to have poisoned thousands of people. Source: Igor Igorevich / Adobe Stock.

Who Was La Voisin? France’s Socialite Poisoner For Hire

In a darkened room stands a 40-year-old woman named Catherine Monvoisin. Her figure is lit only by torches held by the faceless men standing in front of her, men who are sentencing her to death by...
Two images of Aghori.

The Aghori and Their Unorthodox Path to Enlightenment

The Aghori are followers of a Hindu sect believed to be 1000 years old. These ascetics are often regarded as sadhus (Sanskrit for ‘good/holy man’), and have devoted their entire lives to the...
Statue of King Arthur at Tintagel. Source: Ian Capper / Gallos / CC-BY-SA-2.0.

King Arthur: A Very British Messiah?

King Arthur is undoubtedly one of the most enduringly popular heroes to come out of the medieval era, and he has meant many things to many people for hundreds of years. Over time, the mythology of...
Chandragupta Maurya (founder of the Mauryan Empire) and his spiritual leader Bhadrabahu moved to Shravanabelagola, where they continued their spiritual practices related to Jainism. Chandragupta’s footsteps have been engraved in this spectacular viewpoint rock hilltop.

Chandragupta Maurya: Storied Founder of the All-India Mauryan Empire

Chandragupta Maurya was an ancient Indian ruler who lived during the 4th century BC. He was the founder of the Mauryan Empire and was the first person to have brought the majority of the Indian...
Hannibal: The Carthaginian General Who Took on the Romans

Hannibal: The Carthaginian General Who Took on the Romans

Hannibal Barca was a Carthaginian general who lived between the 3rd and 2nd centuries BC. He is perhaps best remembered for his military campaign against the Romans in the Second Punic War. Thanks to...
How did the Greeks Measure the Earth’s Circumference?

How did the Greeks Measure the Earth’s Circumference?

It is considered obvious today that Earth is roughly a sphere and that it can be measured like any spherical object. Scientists technically call it an oblate spheroid, but it is still sphere-like in...
Nostradamus and Hitler: Could a 16th Century Physician See the Future?

Nostradamus and Hitler: Could a 16th Century Physician See the Future?

Michel Nostradamus has been credited with many future prophecies, from the death of King Henry II of France to the Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombs. For most of his life he was a credible scientist who...
How Queen Artemisia I Won the Admiration of the King of Persia

How Queen Artemisia I Won the Admiration of the King of Persia

Few women’s names have survived within the annals of ancient history with the mythic resonance of Queen Artemisia I, the warrior queen of Caria. She lived during an era that often, at best, made mere...
Spiritual Marriage and Holy Virginity: The Medieval Practice of Sexless Marriage

Spiritual Marriage and Holy Virginity: The Medieval Practice of Sexless Marriage

The institution of marriage dates back to almost the beginning of written history, with countless variations on how it has been practiced throughout the ages in different cultures and religions. The...
Roman executions at the Colosseum were a gruesome affair, as depicted in The Christian Marturs' Last Prayer by Jean-Léon Gérôme. Source: Public domain

Roman Executions in the Colosseum: The Stories of Laureolus and Androcles

Public order in ancient Rome was a priority for the elite, who contrived a range of gruesome punishments for purportedly serious crimes deserving the death penalty. As a result, a day of fun and...
Livia Drusilla: Imperial Wife of Rome and Emperor Maker

Livia Drusilla: Imperial Wife of Rome and Emperor Maker

Livia Drusilla was the third wife of Augustus, the first Roman emperor. Prior to her marriage to Augustus, she was married to a Roman politician by the name of Tiberius Claudius Nero. Through this...
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...
The Venerable Bede and the Origins of the English ‘Nation’

The Venerable Bede and the Origins of the English ‘Nation’

How do you define a nation? Most people would probably think of a nation as being a defined geographical area governed by a political body of some sort which acts on behalf of its citizens, who are...
Prophecy has had a strong influence since ancient times

Prophecy Through the Ages: Society, Power and Legend

“Prophecy is an emanation sent forth by the Divine Being through the medium of the Active Intellect, in the first instance to man's rational faculty, and then to his imaginative faculty.” -...
Hernan Cortes: The Conquistador Who Beat the Aztecs

Hernan Cortes: The Conquistador Who Beat the Aztecs

Hernan Cortes was a Spanish conquistador who lived between the 15th and 16th centuries AD. He is best remembered for his expedition against the Aztec Empire centered in Mexico. This was part of the...
Representation of a historical femme fatale

Femme Fatale: The Ancient Sex Crafts of History’s Most Alluring Women

The seductress, or femme fatale (French for “Deadly Woman”), is one of the oldest female archetypes and although there has been great diversity in "how" she has been portrayed, she has some core...
The Blind Bohemian General: Czech Hero Jan Zizka and the Hussite Wars

The Blind Bohemian General: Czech Hero Jan Zizka and the Hussite Wars

Jan Zizka is best remembered for his involvement in the Hussite Wars, during which he became the leader of the Taborites. A Bohemian general, who lived between the 14 th and 15 th centuries, Zizka...
The Statue of Socrates at the Academy of Athens. Work of Leonidas Drosis (d. 1880). (C messier/CC BY SA 4.0) Background: This NASA image shows Earth from space. The image is a combination of data from two satellites.

Was Socrates in Space? A Question of Ancient Spaceflight

The ancient Greeks are credited with having made many early advancements in science and mathematics which influenced later western civilization. Aristarchus of Samos proposed an essentially...
Isabel Moctezuma: The Last Aztec Princess

Isabel Moctezuma: The Last Aztec Princess

Isabel Moctezuma was an Aztec princess who lived during the time of the Spanish Conquest of Mexico. Isabel was the daughter of Moctezuma II, and by the time she was 11 or 12 years old, she had been...
Pseudo-History or Famed Fiction? Geoffrey of Monmouth’s Historia

Pseudo-History or Famed Fiction? Geoffrey of Monmouth’s Historia

Geoffrey of Monmouth has gone down in history for his classic epic, the Historia Regum Britanniae , known in English as The History of the Kings of Britain . This masterpiece of medieval literature...
Replica of Fet Mats Israelsson, Falu Grava Visitors Center, Falun, Sweden. (Tidsspegeln) Inside Falun copper mine. (bluecoomassie/CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)

The Mummified Miner: Fet Mats Israelsson and His Unfortunate Demise

Mining is an industry that really doesn’t sound all that entertaining or enigmatic. Rocks, drills, and pickaxes - not much happens in the world of a miner. But when it does - it tends to be...
Saxo Grammaticus: Warrior Historian of the Danes and a Medieval Influencer

Saxo Grammaticus: Warrior Historian of the Danes and a Medieval Influencer

Saxo Grammaticus was a Danish historian whose writings were instrumental for the preservation of the ancient history of the Danes and their nations. Considered to be one of the major historical...
Richard II: The Tragic Life, Love and Death of the King of England

Richard II: The Tragic Life, Love and Death of the King of England

Taking the throne at the early age of ten, Richard II was a 14 th century King of England, whose life was shaped and manipulated by those surrounding him in their constant quest for power. Even his...

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