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The world’s oldest brewery is located in Bavaria, Germany, established by Benedictine monks. Cellar scene with happy monks by Simony Jenson, 1904. Source: Public Domain

Weihenstephan: The Oldest Brewery in the World?

Humans have been making beer for thousands of years, but the oldest brewery still in existence wasn’t built until the 11th century. The Weihenstephan Brewery was founded in Freising, Germany in 1040...
Taking ‘brain food’ literally – baked brains with roasted roses, another disgusting ancient food           Source: Dubnytskaya Photo / Adobe Stock

Nine Absolutely Disgusting Ancient Foods Our Ancestors Enjoyed

Cuisine is an essential aspect of one’s culture. The meals enjoyed by various communities in ancient times have evolved throughout history to become the foods we know and love today. However, these...
Ancient warfare tactics were no less brutal than today’s and some were quite innovative. Source: Arhun / Adobe Stock

6 Shockingly Successful Ancient Warfare Tactics

As long as humans have walked the Earth, they’ve been finding reasons to kill each other. Over time, we’ve gotten pretty good at it. It should come as no surprise then that over the years armies have...
One of two mirrored temples at Ek’ Balam called Los Gemelos (The Twins)	 Source: Jose Ignacio Soto / Adobe Stock

Ek' Balam: Haunting Ruins of an Abandoned Maya Kingdom

One of the most fascinating archaeological sites in Central America is Ek’ Balam. Ek’ Balam is found in Temozón, Yucatán, Mexico in the Northern Maya lowlands, several miles northeast of Chichen Itza...
Stone Giant Unearthed Among God Heads At Aizanoi

Stone Giant Unearthed Among God Heads At Aizanoi

Researchers digging in the ancient city of Aizanoi have announced the discovery of many new artifacts and works. But the discovery of an “almost intact” statue of a giant man with one foot takes the...
Metatarsal bones of a cave bear discovered to bear cut marks. Source: ©Volker Minkus/ University of Tübingen

Fur Coats from 300,000 Years Ago: Earliest Evidence of Bear Skin Use

Fur coats aren’t just a product of the modern industrial period, but now are seen to have a tradition stretching back some 300,000 years ago, albeit in a different setting altogether. People have...
Montage of images of the finds throughout the article          Source: As cited in the article.

Ancient Origins Top 10 Archaeological Finds of 2022

Archaeology may be the discovery of and research of things that happened long ago, but it is an ever-changing field. Every year new discoveries are made that either teach us something new or show us...
Viking landing at Dublin, 841, by James Ward (1851-1924) (Public Domain)

Traces Of Viking Ivar the Boneless’ Dynasty At Waterford, Ireland

The first Viking raids recorded in Ireland date to 795 AD, and then they rapidly appear in the historic record. Traditionally the early Viking activity in Ireland falls into three phases, the first...
Cleopatra by John William Waterhouse. Source: Public domain

There Was More Than One Cleopatra in Ancient Egypt

Very few people have failed to hear of Cleopatra, one of the most well known women in history. Remembered as a seductive temptress, not only the lover of Julius Caesar but also the wife of Mark...
The Roman earring found by Nick Bateman. Source: Nick Bateman

Detectorist Strikes Roman Gold in England

When this English metal detectorist realized that he hadn’t dug up a metal top, but an ancient Roman gold earring, he “sank to his knees in disbelief”. After many unfruitful searches, 53 -year-old...
Scenes of the evacuation and flood of Petra historic site. Source: Twitter Screenshot

Petra Historic World Heritage Site Blasted By Flash Floods

In another case of nature’s wrath rearing its head, flash floods have struck the iconic world heritage site at Petra, Jordan, forcing the evacuation of 1,700 tourists . A whopping 66 millimeters of...
Aerial view of Uşaklı Höyük excavations. At the bottom center, the circular structure, a further clue as to whether this is the holy city of Zippalanda, found during the 2022 excavation campaign is visible.	Source: Emanuele Taccola/University of Pisa

Closer Still To Identifying The Lost City Of Zippalanda

4,000-year-old Hittite texts speak of the lost cultic centre of Zippalanda, somewhere in modern Turkey. Now, new discoveries at the Uşaklı Höyüy site further suggest this was the ancient holy city...
What is a Wendigo? A depiction of the mythical creature of Native American legend. Source: GARETH / Adobe Stock

What is a Wendigo? The Beast with an insatiable Hunger for Human Flesh

The Wendigo is a horrifying creature of Algonquian Native American legends said to devour human flesh to survive a harsh winter. But are they only part of Native American mythology or are there...
Representative image shows the reconstruction of a Viking Hall at Lofotr Viking museum, Borg, Norway. Source: Jon Olav Eikenes/CC BY 2.0

Harald Bluetooth Era Viking Hall Discovered in Denmark

When archaeologists in Denmark identified the foundations of a huge Viking hall they knew they’d hit archaeological paydirt. But they didn’t expect that this building would be the largest Viking hall...
Relief inscription fragment, God statue and cloak pin found at the extensive Herwen-Hemeling Roman sanctuary site. Source: RAAP

Roman Temples and Sacred Stones Unearthed in the Netherlands

The discovery of this ancient sacred site was described as “special” no less than seven times in the Dutch archaeologist’s press release. Inside one of the intact Roman temples the excavators...
Stone projectile points discovered buried inside and outside of pit features at the Cooper’s Ferry site, Area B. Source:Oregon State University

Cooper’s Ferry Site Yields Oldest Stone Weaponry Found in the Americas

Examination of stone tools excavated at the Cooper Ferry’s site in Idaho has revealed the presence of humans in North America 16,000 years ago. Having left behind distinctive Clovis points, their...
Men an Tol small formation of standing stones in Cornwall, UK. Source: Sacredsites.com

Stunning Sacred Megalithic Sites of Britain

More than nine hundred stone circles exist in the British Isles and twice that number may originally have been built. These megalithic structures are more accurately called rings rather than circles...

Gender Interpretation Of Achilles And Amazon Penthesilea’s Fatal Love In Greek Art

Amazon queen Penthesilea was breathtakingly beautiful. “ Aphrodite, the noble bride of the potent War-god, made her beautiful indeed in death, so that the son of Peleus (Achilles), could be pierced...
There are many Christian martyrs, whose deaths were often evilly innovative. Shown: The central panel of the altarpiece of St. Sebastian. Source: Public Domain

Six Supremely Sadistic Deaths of Christian Martyrs

Standing up for what you believe in isn’t always easy. The early Christians are a prime example of this. They faced centuries of persecution at the hands of various Roman rulers. These early...
Firewood was a gift brough to housewarming parties, literally to warm the house. Source: Adobe Stock Free

9 Crazy Things Ancient People Gave as Gifts

The holiday season is upon us, and gifts have been given to loved ones and friends. After a time of wracking your brains for the perfect gift, you may have wondered what types of items ancient people...
Mictlantecuhtli, the Aztec god of the dead, was quite busy in 15th century. The cocoliztli epidemic may have killed up to 15 million people! Source: Ivan / Adobe Stock

What was the Deadly Cocoliztli Disease that Decimated Aztec Society?

When the Spanish crossed the Atlantic and started arriving in hordes to begin their conquest and plunder of the Americas, they had a weapon in their arsenal that they had not anticipated: disease...
Mary, Queen of Scots was said to bathe in white wine. Source master1305 / Adobe Stock

Mary Queen of Scots Washed with White Wine

While Cleopatra is fabled to have bathed in sour donkey milk , Mary Queen of Scots is said to have washed with white wine to ensure a smooth complexion. A devout Catholic, throughout her life Mary...
Coin sword made of an iron rod with Chinese cash coins of the 19th century tied to it with red and green string in the shape of a sword, with hanging ornaments. Source: British Museum / CC BY NC SA 4.0

Ancient Chinese Coin Swords: Demon Fighting Weapons of the East

One of the most fascinating discoveries from ancient China are coin swords. Coin swords, also known as cash swords, are an ancient type of feng shui talisman that has been around since the Qing...
The Legend of the Christmas Spider is a folktale that dates back hundreds of years from German and Ukrainian origin. Source: VideoCorpus / Adobe Stock

Silver and Gold: The Legend of the Christmas Spider and Tinsel

If you celebrate Christmas, you likely have annual traditions when it comes to decorating your Christmas tree. There are many accessories we like to decorate our trees with, but one of the most...

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