All  

Ancient Origins Tour IRAQ

Ancient Origins Tour IRAQ Mobile

alchemy

Left, ancient alchemy painting. Right, The artifact known as the ‘Nanjing Belt’ seems to be proof of the existence of aluminum in early China. Source: Left; primopiano/Adobe Stock Right; Soul-guidance

The Enigma of the Nanjing Belt: How Could this Out of Place Artifact Exist?

Some important archaeological discoveries simply don’t fit the mold. Seeing the light of day after many centuries, they bring us so much confusion and redefine the modern narratives, leaving us...

Medieval Maverick: Roger Bacon's Quest for Knowledge and Truth

In the Middle Ages, knowledge was largely limited to what could be gleaned from ancient texts and the teachings of the church. However, there were those who refused to accept the limitations of their...
Medieval alchemists believed they could create a mini artificial human. Source: lidiia / Adobe Stock

Medieval Scientists Tried to Make Little People with Semen, Blood, and an Animal Womb

The question of how to create life does not just go back to Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, when the eponymous character used forbidden science to create life. Medieval scientists tried for centuries to...
The First Emperor of China was Killed by an Elixir of Immortality. Source:  ЮРИЙ ПОЗДНИКОВ / Adobe Stock

The First Emperor of China Took an ‘Elixir of Immortality’ Made of Mercury and it Killed Him

The First Emperor of China, Qin Shi Huang, was terrified of death and much of his reign was focused on the search for immortality and the Elixir of Life. Ironically, Qin Shi Huang died from the toxic...
Left; 1660 chart illustrating Tycho Brahe’s model of the universe Right; Portrait of Tycho Braha, Skokloster Castle, Source: Left; Public Domain, Right; Public Domain

Tycho the Psycho? Meet One of History’s Maddest Scientific Minds Ever!

Tycho Brahe, the 16th century Danish astronomer, alchemist, astrologist, and scientist (1546-1601) was a force to be reckoned with – the true epitome of the brilliant, mad scientist. In the backdrop...
Artist’s interpretation of the holy grail.

The Truth About the Holy Grail: Magical Chalices Around the World

Most people identify one special chalice as the only Holy Grail. Others point out that the Holy Grail legends composed in Europe during the 12th to 15th centuries enumerate more than ten different...
The great scientist Isaac Newton dabbled in alchemy during the Great Plague of London. He “thought” toad vomit pills might be the cure and his notes on this have survived. Source: Maria Sbytova / Adobe Stock

Isaac Newton, Alchemy and His Toad Vomit Plague Cure

Sir Isaac Newton was one of the most influential scientists in world history. He is best-known for his three laws of motion, and his law of universal gravitation. Additionally, he made contributions...
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...
The Enigmatic Pilgrim at the Alchemical Palace of Palombara

The Enigmatic Pilgrim at the Alchemical Palace of Palombara

In the heart of the Esquiline Hill in Rome, third century AD Emperor Licinius Gallienus enjoyed the tranquility of the Horti Liciniani , a luxurious complex of ancient Roman villas with large gardens...
Carving of the ancient Egyptian god Thoth

Thoth Hermes Trismegistus and his Ancient School of Mysteries

Thoth Hermes Trismegistus is portrayed by the Egyptians as the moon god with the body of a man, head of an ibis, and a crescent moon over his head. His symbol was the winged serpent staff. He was the...
Isaac Newton And His Alchemical Interest In The Lost Pyramid Code

Isaac Newton And His Alchemical Interest In The Lost Pyramid Code

Unpublished 17th-century AD alchemical documents reveal Sir Isaac Newton’s private Egyptian pyramid studies, in his quest to calculate a date for the End of Days. In July 1936 AD, a metal chest...
Rivodutri’s Alchemical Door To Enlightenment In 17th Century AD Italy

Rivodutri’s Alchemical Door To Enlightenment In 17th Century Italy

Add magic to natural philosophy and early chemistry knowledge and you have the ancient art of alchemy . Alchemists tried to change various substances into gold and looked hard for the elixir of...
Chahak child and the crucible slag and a smithing slag layer. 	Source: 	Rahil Alipour, UCL

Cast Iron Evidence Of Ancient Persian Chromium Steel Production

Scientists discover evidence of chromium production in ancient Persia, but historians at Sheffield in England defend the cities claim to having ‘invented’ the super-steel. To many younger readers “...
Transcript of The Silvery Water by Ibn Umayl at-Tamîmî by An Islamic artist 739H/1339, probably in Baghdad. Topkapi Library (Public Domain)

Grandfathers of Alchemy, Forefathers Of Chemistry

Alchemy is a word almost everyone has heard of, but few have ever committed more than a handful of hours trying to grasp what this heavily loaded symbolic word actually means, in its entirely. So...
Photo and drawing of Gammel Estrup by the author.             Source: Niels Bjerre

Gammel Estrup Manor: Alchemy, Astronomy, and Secret Symbolism Revealed

Usually we notice architecture when it is a visible expression of beautiful forms. But architecture can be symbolic too. The Danish 16th century manor house called Gammel Estrup reveals a symbolism...
Sumerian Artifact with the Tree of Life. (swisshippo  / Adobe Stock)

In Rome, I Saw Written On Top Of A Door

In Rome "I saw written on top of a door." ( Inferno , III, v. 11, Dante) In Rome, hidden a corner of Piazza Vittorio Emanuele II, one will find the last remnant of the Academia dell’ Arcadia , an...
Cleopatra Testing Poisons on Condemned Prisoners by Alexandre Cabanel (1887) (Public Domain)

Poison Paranoia: Mythical Antidotes of Ancient Alchemists

Of all the ways to murder someone poisoning must be the most underhanded and downright evil way to proceed. The whole art of poisoning, as it is often referred too, was developed as a stealth way to...
Representation of Nicolas Flamel. Source: Maya Kruchancova / Adobe Stock.

Nicolas Flamel – Learned Scribe or Mysterious Alchemist?

Nicolas Flamel was a Frenchman who lived between the 14th and 15th centuries. According to contemporary sources, he was a scribe and manuscript seller. Later sources, i.e. those from the 17th century...
Representation of the Emerald Tablet

The Legendary Emerald Tablet and its Secrets of the Universe

The origins of Western alchemy can be traced back to Hellenistic Egypt, in particular to the city of Alexandria. One of the most important characters in the mythology of alchemy is Hermes...
Immortal man

Could Humans Become Immortal by 2045?

Immortality has been a dream of human beings since the dawn of time. Mankind´s fascination with cheating death is reflected in scientific records, mythology and folklore dating back at least to...
Alchemist Sendivogius (1566–1636) by Jan Matejko, (1867)

The Strange and Sudden Death of Ancient Alchemy

The quest for the Philosopher’s Stone, alchemy, the search for the Elixir of Life and turning base elements into gold, which occupied the minds of many famous ancient scientists such as Isaac Newton...
Clay homunculus model placed on a lawn

Homunculus: The Alchemical Creation of Little People with Great Powers

Although science has made much progress in the last century, there are still numerous ethical issues that need to be addressed by the scientific community. One such issue is that of the creation of...
A pair of bronze pots, one containing the first real example of an ancient Chinese elixir of life, were unearthed from a Western Han Dynasty tomb in Luoyang, Henan Province.

Elixir of Life Found: 2,000-Year-Old Bottles Contain First Known Chinese ‘Immortality Medicine’

Who wants to live forever? This has been a dream for many people all around the world for a very long time. It was written about in several ancient texts, and legends and myths suggest some people...
Inside the alchemy laboratory of the Speculum Alchemiae museum.

Speculum Alchemiae: Secret Underground Alchemy Lab Discovered in Prague During Flood

The city of Prague, the capital of the Czech Republic, is known for many things. But one aspect of its history is often overlooked – it was a major center of the occult and the dark arts in the 16th...

Pages