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Child's left-foot sock (British Museum)

Egyptian Tot's Sock Reveals Ancient Clothes Production Secrets

An ancient ‘stripy sock’ discovered in Egypt is informing scientists about how clothes were dyed and made. Evidence of ‘feet coverings’ have been found in the Stone Age when crude animal pelts or...
Depiction of an ancient human smile

Ancient Human Smile Used as an Effective ‘Get-Sex’ Tool

A study on the history of facial expressions has discovered humans developed friendly facial expressions to attract less-aggressive, selected breeding partners, as a result of ‘self-domestication’...
Mythological, demonic Rakshasa (V.R.Murralinath / Adobe Stock)

Genetic Study Suggests Denisovans Were the Mythological Rakshasas

A new genetic study of 1739 Asian individuals from 219 populations has found that on the Indian sub-continent today Denisovan DNA exists mostly among isolated, tribal communities. It also found that...
‘The Slave Market’ (1882) by Gustave Boulanger. From her childhood as a slave, Neaera was trained for the life of a Classical Greek courtesan. Source: Public Domain

Neaera: Tragic Life of an Athenian Child Slave Raised in a Brothel

Marguerite Johnson / The Conversation The ancient worlds of Greece and Rome have perhaps never been as popular as they presently are. There are numerous television series and one-off documentaries...
The lucky man found the buried treasure on a plot of land he bought with lottery winnings. Source: Yahoo

Twice Lucky! Lottery Winner Finds Buried Treasure in India

Some people are so lucky. In India, one fortunate man has made an amazing discovery. He recently won a large sum in a local lottery and decided to buy some land from his windfall – and on this plot...
An artistic representation of the Yamanasaurus lojaensis. (Jorge González) Some of the fossils of the titanosaur that were found in Loja province, Ecuador. (Federico Kukso/Twitter)

A Titanosaur in Ecuador? New Dinosaur Discovered!

The fossils of a previously unknown titanosaur have been found in Ecuador. The medium to small-sized dinosaur lived 85 million years ago, during the Upper Cretaceous period. Its remains were...
The Battle of the Boyne (Ireland) between James II and William III, July 12, 1690. Source: Scolaire / Public Domain.

The Battle of the Boyne – A Jacobite Flame Turned to Embers

In the near modern history of Ireland and Scotland , the Jacobite risings played a very important role. In a never-ending struggle for wealth and power, noble monarchs pitted the poor folk of these...
The Meiji Shrine, Tokyo.       Source: beeboys / Adobe Stock

The Meiji Shrine: An Oasis of Zen in the Center of Bustling Tokyo

Japan is a unique country, one that is both very modern and also very traditional. In the heart of Tokyo, there is a shrine dedicated to one of the most important Japanese Emperors and his wife. This...
Battle of the Amazons by Anselm Feuerbach (1873) (Public Domain)

Amazons in the Family of Alexander the Great: Who Was the Mystery Woman Warrior?

November 8 is remembered as Archangels’ Day in Greece, but on that November day in 1977, Professor Manolis Andronikos, head of excavations, was roped down into the gloom of an unlooted Macedonian-...
Forse Wag drone photograph showing extent of the ancient site Wag of Forse.          Source: Iain Maclean, Caithness Broch Project

Britain’s “Best Preserved Pictish Homes” Studied in Caithness

Ancient dwellings in the far north of Scotland, called “wags”, are thought to be the best preserved Pictish homes in Britain. While to many the term ‘Wags’ refers to footballers’ “wives and...
Zoroastrians have used Towers of Silence in their funerary practices

Zoroastrian Towers of Silence: Leaving the Dead for the Vultures

A tower of silence (known also as a ‘dakhma’) is a type of structure used for funerary purposes by adherents of the Zoroastrian faith. This Zoroastrian practice for the disposal of the dead involves...
St. Benedict of the Benedictines receiving Totila, king of the Ostrogoths. Source: Paklao / Public Domain.

The Rule of the Benedictines, the Black Monks of Europe

The Order of St. Benedict ( Ordo Sancti Benedicti in Latin, abbreviated as OSB), known also as the Benedictines (sometimes referred to as Black Monks, due to the color of their religious habits), is...
Some of the oak planks unearthed in the foundations of the portico. These planks are an example of those used for building Rome.      Source: Soprintendenza Speciale Archeologia, Belle Arti e Paesaggio di Roma, Italy

Imported Timber is the Newly Discovered Secret to Building Rome

An analysis of some 2000-year-old planks of wood has provided amazing insights into the Roman Empire . Experts have been able to establish that timber found in the heart of Ancient Rome was imported...
The stunning conserved warrior shield found at the site in Pocklington.

Iron Age Warrior Shield Hailed as Most Important Find This Millennium

Conservation experts have been able to restore a stunning shield that is 2,200 years old. The artifact belonged to a Celtic warrior who was buried in a chariot burial in the north of England. The...
Viking migrants in Ireland. Source: Jürgen Hamann / Adobe Stock.

Viking Migrants May Have Saved the Irish From Extinction

A new study could re-write the history of Ireland in the Middle Ages . It shows that the Irish population was in serious decline until the coming of the Vikings . This could change historians’ views...
Artist's representation of a scene during the Justinianic plague.

The Justinianic Plague Wasn’t as Bad as Many Scholars Think

Researchers say that claims of the Justinianic plague as a “mass killer” are wrong. It certainly had some impact, but they assert that plague outbreak, which began in the 6th century, didn’t bring...
Evidence of a secret society lodge found in Pompeii. Here Apollo temple.        Source: Boris Stroujko / Adobe Stock

Roman Secret Society Lodge Discovered in Pompeii

Stone and tile diagrams in an ancient Pompeii building have been linked to Roman surveyors and their sophisticated measuring tools and highly guarded secret craft. Ancient Roman measuring specialists...
The rape of Persephone. Source: Mattes / Public Domain

Explainer: The Story of Demeter and Persephone

Chris Mackie / The Conversation The student of Greek mythology is often struck by the fact that some gods and goddesses have extensive roles in the mythical narratives, and others have very limited...
The Fall of Hera: Demoted from Autonomous Goddess to Wife of Zeus

The Fall of Hera: Demoted from Autonomous Goddess to Wife of Zeus

Constantly battling with Zeus’ infidelity, Hera the ancient Greek goddess of family and marriage, often took swift and cruel revenge - not on her philandering husband, but on his conquests and the...
he Earth endured a cataclysm that caused a mass extinction of many large mammals. Source: James Thew / Adobe Stock.

Cataclysm, Mass Extinctions, and the Consequent Myths

According to geologists, in the interval from 10,000 to 8,000 BC, some 35 to 45 species of large mammals became extinct. This is called a mass extinction . Mass extinctions can be defined as species...
England’s Medieval law and order in the. Source: Anneke / Adobe Stock.

Caught Red-Handed! Law and Order in Medieval England

In medieval societies , it was always quite important to preserve law and order, and to rightfully dispense justice. A just ruler secured himself an obedient populace, and often enough, justice was...
Roman wine was sweetened with toxic 'sugar of lead'

Savoring the Danger: Romans Loved Toxic 'Sugar of Lead' Wine

How far did ancient people go to enhance the flavor of their food and drinks? Would they consume toxic substances if it made things a little more appetizing? The Romans did, by adding a sweet version...
Mesopotamian seals and cuneiform tablets found in Marad, Iraq.      Source: Universita di Pisa

Cuneiform Tablets and ‘Envelopes’ Tell of Mesopotamian Sophistication

A team of Italian and Iraqi archaeologists has unearthed hundreds of cuneiform tablets in central Iraq. They also uncovered some clay coverings and seals with the tablets. The collection of cuneiform...
The Kinderdijk Windmills and surrounding waterways during spring, The Netherlands Source:  Nikolay N. Antonov / Adobe Stock

Defenders of the Dutch Polders: The Kinderdijk Windmills

The Netherlands is a remarkable society in many ways. Much of the country was once underwater and still remains at risk of being inundated by the sea. The country has developed an ingenious system...

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