All  

Store Banner Mobile

Store Banner Mobile

History

From the powerful civilizations of Egypt, Mesopotamia, and the Indus Valley, to the fearsome yet sophisticated society of the Vikings, the ancient world was a surprising and challenging place. Here we feature some of the most seminal and influential events and people throughout history, that have helped shape the world we know today.

The Mutilation of Uranus by Saturn: fresco by Giorgio Vasari and Cristofano Gherardi. (1560) Sala di Cosimo I, Palazzo Vecchio (Public Domain)
14 March, 2020 - 02:44 Mary Naples

The Highest Altar: Human Sacrifice in Ancient Greece

In the Greek Peloponnese, high atop the summit on Arcadia’s Mount Lykaion (Wolf Mountain) lies an altar at one of the oldest and most revered of all primordial sanctuaries. Towering at nearly 5,000...
Marble statue of Asclepius (Deriv.) (Zde/CC BY SA 4.0) Background: Glass panel of three fish found at the house of the ancient surgeon Eutyches. (Rimini Archaeological Museum)
13 March, 2020 - 17:56 Maura Andreoni

The Surgeon Eutyches: His Instruments, His Gods

Eutyches was a homo bonus - a good man - and evidently a good surgeon . His name was engraved, probably by a grateful patient, on the wall of the cubiculum where patients were kept under observation...
Heimdallr brings forth the gifts of the gods to the humans by Nils Asplund (1907) (Vogler/CC BY-SA 3.0)
12 March, 2020 - 02:26 Pierluigi Tombetti

Ancient Germanic Mythos: Hitler the Archetypal Wotan and Savior

Regressus ad Uterum refers to the spontaneous regression to a time or a situation when a person or an entire nation felt like a child in the womb of their mother; safe and with the unhindered...
Helmet of the ancient Greek warrior Miltiades the Younger
11 March, 2020 - 17:31 Natalia Klimczak

The Helmet of Miltiades, Symbol of a Famous Ancient Greek Warrior

When a magnificent helmet was recovered from the ruins of the temple of Zeus researchers couldn't believe their eyes. It is very rare to find an item which belonged to a famous warrior of the ancient...
Travel geography navigation concept background. (fotoatelie/ Adobe Stock)
10 March, 2020 - 02:21 ashley cowie

Where X Marks The Spot: Rare Ancient Treasures, Codes and Cryptic Clues

Treasure legends sometimes have a kernel of truth, but are then exaggerated, embellished and transformed, told over and over again until the facts fade and leave only fantastical tales, but look hard...
The Egyptian egg ovens are still in use by farmers still over 2,000 years later. Source: Lenny Hoferwerf / Courtesy of Food And Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2006) / Reproduced with permission
9 March, 2020 - 18:01 Aleksa Vučković

Ancient Egyptian Egg Ovens That Are Better Than Modern Tech

It is no secret that the ancient Egyptians left a lasting and impressive heritage. The relics of their time dot the world and are marveled by many - from the pyramids to the mummies, from imposing...
9 March, 2020 - 13:01 Aleksa Vučković

Sultans Raised in ‘Cages’: Overprotection Turned to Madness

In the world of nobility, aristocracy, and famous ruling dynasties, the issue of succession was always a problem. When several sons seek the prospect of a vacant throne, the greed and desire can...
Ancient Mariners: Transoceanic Voyages Before the Europeans
8 March, 2020 - 19:02 Freddie Levy

Ancient Mariners: Transoceanic Voyages Before the Europeans

The idea that humans have been completing transoceanic voyages - traveling the earth via our oceans - before Europeans set sail is, in many people's eyes, an accepted conclusion. Yet it is still...
Ghar Dalam – Malta’s Unexplained Cave of Bones
8 March, 2020 - 02:14 pjshield

Ghar Dalam – Malta’s Unexplained Cave of Bones

2000 years before the Pyramids and Stonehenge , we have evidence of man’s presence in the ‘Cave of Darkness’ – Ghar Dalam on the Mediterranean island of Malta . This remarkable cave provides evidence...
Cotzumalguapa: Evidence of Pre-Columbian Transoceanic Contact
7 March, 2020 - 02:40 Marco M. Vigato

Cotzumalguapa: Evidence of Pre-Columbian Transoceanic Contact

Thousands of years ago, an unknown culture carved and raised hundreds of stone stelas and sculptures on the Pacific coast of southern Guatemala. Together, they provide some of the strongest evidence...
Representation of Norse-Gael (Gallowglass) warriors in battle. Source: PatSM / Adobe stock
5 March, 2020 - 18:04 Aleksa Vučković

Gallowglass Mercenaries – The Notorious Norse-Gael Soldiers of Fortune

The turbulent history of medieval Europe always called for abled and skilled warriors. Wars and battles depended on the ability of the soldiers, and a man who was skilled with a sword was a sought-...
Egyptians with domesticated cattle and corn circa 1422-1411 BC ( Public Domain )
5 March, 2020 - 02:44 Martin Sweatman

Agriculture First Versus Göbekli Tepe: Prehistory Revisited

Discovering the origin of civilisation is the holy grail of anthropology and archaeology. Essentially, this means understanding how man transformed from un-civilised Palaeolithic hunter gatherers to...
The oldest board game in the world, the Royal Game of Ur. Source: Shriram Rajagopalan / CC BY 2.0
5 March, 2020 - 02:06 Niels Bjerre Jo...

Play the Oldest Board Game in the World: Royal Game of Ur - Part 2

In the first part of this article, we attempted to unravel the mystery symbolism on the oldest board game in the world - the Royal Game of Ur. The Heliopolitan creation myth was used to explain how...
The Royal Game of Ur board (or Game of Twenty Squares), found in the Royal Tombs of Ur in Mesopotamia, dating c. 2600-2400 B.C. Source: The Trustees of British Museum / Provided by the author
4 March, 2020 - 19:01 Niels Bjerre Jo...

Deciphering the Patterns of the Royal Game of Ur Board - Part 1

The world’s first known board game was found in Mesopotamia (c. 2600 BC). Despite this, Egyptian beliefs help us best to understand the Royal Game of Ur’s board design, rules and all. Especially the...
Çatalhöyük after the first excavations. (Omar hoftun/ CC BY-SA 3.0)
2 March, 2020 - 23:40 jim willis

Turkey’s Catalhöyük: A Victim of Climate Change

These days, the dusty, sunbaked ruins of Çatalhöyük in central Turkey do not receive a lot of attention, except from tourists and archaeologists, but around 9,000 to 7,000 years ago it was a busy,...
'Battle of Alexander versus Darius’ (1644-1650) by Pietro da Cortona. Darius III was Alexander the Great’s adversary at the Battle of Gaugamela. Source: Public Domain
2 March, 2020 - 14:01 Aleksa Vučković

Battle of Gaugamela: Alexander the Great Thrashes the Achaemenids

No name in world history rings more familiar than that of Alexander the Great. A man that managed extraordinary feats, conquering huge swaths of the world and placing his banner in many a kingdom and...
Stained glass depicting Saint David. Source: Hchc2009 / CC BY-SA 4.0.
1 March, 2020 - 14:00 dhwty

Miracle from the Womb: Saint David, Patron Saint of Wales

Saint David (known in Welsh as Dewi Sant) was a Welsh bishop who is recorded to have lived during the 6th century AD. Not much is known about Saint David and the main source of information about the...
Samson and Delilah by Domenico Fiazella (1650) Louvre (Public Domain)
28 February, 2020 - 19:58 MartiniF

Hair-Raising Status of Ancient Gods and Men

Human hair has always played an important role in culture and in society. For men and women alike, styling one's hair seems to be an innate human desire to emphasize their beauty and power. Thus,...
Big Bang and the hands of God representation. Source: rolffimages / Adobe Stock
28 February, 2020 - 19:00 Gary Driver

The Bible’s Big Bang, Creation of the Universe

The most profound mystery of mankind is the origin of the universe. In juxtaposition, its origin is also the most profound event known to man. Since about 1200 BC the Bible has declared in its first...
From the royal tombs of Ur, the Standard of Ur mosaic, made of lapis lazuli and shell, shows peacetime. (Public Domain)
27 February, 2020 - 01:06 jim willis

Changing History: The Ferris Wheel of Lost Civilizations

Although history textbooks often present information as if it is set in stone and firmly established, recent research into ancient civilization reveals one embarrassing fact that continuously seems...
Caroline Herschel’s interest in astronomy led her to be the co-discoverer of the universe. Source: Raisondtre / Adobe Stock.
24 February, 2020 - 22:59 Caleb Strom

Caroline Herschel, Co-Discoverer of the Universe

Caroline Herschel is famous for being one of the first women to make significant contributions to astronomy . She discovered eight comets and many nebulae and star clusters, both on her own and in...
This fresco is commonly known as The Tarot Players. It is from the Casa Borromeo, in Milan, and was probably painted in the 1440s. (Public Domain)
24 February, 2020 - 20:24 Alessandra Filiaci

The Literary Panorama of the Tarot Cards: Historical Reality and Myths

Although the Tarot is the most widely used ‘book of images’ in the world for the purpose of fortune-telling , many people are oblivious to its origins. A popular belief exists that the Tarot...
Statue of ancient Athens statesman Pericles
22 February, 2020 - 23:01 B. B. Wagner

Pericles: The Charismatic and Powerful Politician of Ancient Greece

On the eve of his conception sometime in 495 BC, Pericles’ mother Agariste dreamed of giving birth to a lion. It was then, months later, Pericles was born. Pericles (495 BC – 429 BC) was a legend...
Tahitian warrior dugouts, by Giulio Ferrario. (1827) (Public Domain)
21 February, 2020 - 02:42 jim willis

Pre-Historic Island Hopping ‘Hobbits’ in the South Pacific

Although New Zealand and the Philippines are separated by more than 5,000 miles (8,000 km), the stories of how people first migrated to them, and how those stories were treated by scholars, show...

Pages