Alexander the Great

25 January, 2019 - 13:50 ancient-origins

Alexander the Great Didn’t Decay Because He Wasn’t Dead Says Clinician

By Dr. Katherine Hall / Science Daily It may have happened more than 2,300 years ago, but the mystery of Alexander the Great's death could finally be solved, thanks to a University of Otago, New...

19 January, 2019 - 13:38 dhwty

Ancient Gandhara Kingdom Was A Melting Pot That Left Its Legacy in Art

Gandhara was an ancient kingdom located in what is the region that is today northwestern Pakistan and northeastern Afghanistan. The history Gandhara can be traced all the way back to the Vedic period...

16 November, 2018 - 19:29 dhwty

The Mausoleum of Halicarnassus: A Wonder of the Ancient World

The word mausoleum is nowadays defined as “a special building made to hold the dead body of an important person or the deceased bodies of a family”. This word is derived from the name Mausolus, for...

The Borneo elephants are about 70% smaller than the Asian elephant, with a long tail hanging down to the ground and a relative short trunk. Their faces are baby-like with a cute appearance. (Image © Willem Daffue)

15 October, 2018 - 16:19 Willem Daffue

The Enigma of the Origins of the Borneo Elephants

Through history, at least 32 elephant species have existed on planet earth, some became extinct as early as the Miocene epoch (23.03 to 5.333 million years ago), but most species were exterminated by...

Nestled and sheltered by the mountain ranges, lies the hidden Hunza Valley, inspiration to the Shangri-La legend.

28 September, 2018 - 16:10 Willem Daffue

Was Alexander the Great Responsible for Creating Shangri-La in the Hunza Valley in Pakistan?

In his book Lost Horizon (1933) James Hilton created the legend of Shangri-La, a peaceful Himalayan valley of long-lived people. Where the northern border of the Gilgit-Baltistan region of Pakistan...

The black sarcophagus was found to contain three skeletons and lots of sewage.

21 August, 2018 - 22:55 ashley cowie

Rotten Mummies of the Black Sarcophagus Begin the Identification Process

Dr. Mostafa Waziri, Secretary-General of the Supreme Council of Antiquities in Egypt announced on Sunday that a team of researchers headed by Dr. Zeinab Hashish, Director of the Department of Studies...

1893 Reconstruction of the Alexander Mosaic.

26 June, 2018 - 18:59 Mark Oliver

Remorseless Chronicles of Slaughter: Fatal First Contact Between Ancient Greece and the Tribes of India

Colonialism hasn’t changed much. More than 2000 years ago, when Alexander the Great conquered the Persia, he sent an ancient explorer named Nearchus to sail down the Indus River and map the lands...

26 May, 2018 - 00:36 aprilholloway

Bones found in Magnificent Amphipolis Tomb belong to Five People, Ministry Announced

In 2015, the Greek Ministry of Culture announced the long-awaited results of the analysis on the bones found inside the 4th century BC tomb uncovered in Amphipolis in northern Greece. The news was...

Famous Alexander Mosaic, showing Battle of Issus. Alexander is depicted mounted, on the left.

28 April, 2018 - 01:59 Cam Rea

Why did Alexander the Great Really Invade the Persian Empire?

By Cam Rea/ Classical Wisdom Alexander of Macedon, more widely known as Alexander the Great, is one of history’s most famous conquerors. Many historians, poets, and writers have been mesmerized by...

Alexander the Great trust to physician Phillip by Henryk Siemiradzky (1870)

13 April, 2018 - 15:17 David Grant

Alexander the Great: Bleeding Asia Dry – Part II

A famous Roman aphorism was used well by Tacitus: “They plunder, they slaughter, and they steal; this they falsely name Empire, and when they create a desert, then they call it peace”. It is a...

A painting by Charles Le Brun (1673) depicting Alexander and Porus (Puru) during the Battle of the Hydaspes

9 April, 2018 - 15:23 David Grant

Alexander the Great: The Economics of Upheaval – Part I

Alexander the Great has been termed a maverick whose 13-year meteoric reign was an aberration in the history of the age. He was a mythopoeic conqueror who simultaneously lived by the tenets of the...

Photo released by the Egyptian Ministry of Antiquities shows an ancient gymnasium dating back about 2,300

8 November, 2017 - 22:59 Theodoros Karasavvas

First Ever Greek-Style Gymnasium Unearthed in Egypt

A team of German and Egyptian archaeologists has unearthed the first Hellenistic gymnasium ever found in Egypt. Experts suggest that the gymnasium was used during the Ptolemaic period for training...

Alexander on his deathbed, surrounded by mourners, and dictating his will to his notary, Unknown Flemish artist

21 July, 2017 - 01:58 aprilholloway

The Cold Case of Alexander the Great: Have Toxicologists Finally Explained His Untimely Death?

It might be a surprise to learn that Alexander the Great was only 32 when he died in Babylon in June 323 BC. In a short period of 12 years as ruler he managed to create an empire stretching from...

13 June, 2017 - 18:59 Riley Winters

What Role Did Skepticism Play in the Conquests of Alexander the Great?

Anaxarchus and Pyrrho. These are two names which are not as well known to the general public as those of Socrates, Plato and Aristotle. Yet these men are no less important. While the latter three...

Payava's tomb from Xanthos, now in the British Museum.

28 April, 2017 - 02:01 Natalia Klimczak

Culturally Mixed Messages in the Tomb of Payava: Is it Greek or Persian?

The Tomb of Payava is a decorative rectangular tomb that was transported in the 19th century from a site in Turkey to England is one of the most remarkable artifacts related to Lycian culture...

Remains of the Apadana, the Audience Palace

24 April, 2017 - 22:58 dhwty

Alexander the Great’s Capital Punishment? The Building of Persepolis and its Flaming Demise

Persepolis is an ancient city that once served as the capital of the mighty Achaemenid Empire. Persepolis is the Greek name for ‘Parsa’, and both these names mean ‘Persian City’ or ‘City of the...

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Myths & Legends

The Epic of Gilgamesh. Source: Luca Oleastri / Adobe.

The Epic of Gilgamesh Unveiled: Searching For a Way to the Home Planet

In contrast to many theorists, this unconventional retelling of key parts of the Epic explores the idea that Gilgamesh was not searching for life eternal on Earth, as has been suggested as the theme of the Epic, but was instead searching for the means of transport to return to his goddess mother Ninsun’s home planet in the heavens.

Say the Magic Word: The Origins of Abracadabra

The Real Story of Medusa: Protective Powers from a Snake-Haired Gorgon

The Epic of Gilgamesh Unveiled: Enlightenment and Source of Religions

The Nature and Dangers of the Legendary Kobold

The Menhune of Hawaii – Ancient Race or Fictional Fairytale?

Human Origins

The Pagan Wheel of the Year: What Elaborate Rituals and Events Mark this Sacred Cycle?

Although it may be a long time (if ever) before pagans reclaim their Yule from Christmas or their Samhain from Halloween, it is worthwhile to explore these ancient religious traditions. The Wheel of the Year follows the cycle of pagan festivals.

The Epic of Gilgamesh Unveiled: Enlightenment and Source of Religions

The origins of human beings according to ancient Sumerian texts

Rh-Negative Blood: An Exotic Bloodline or Random Mutation?

Pharaoh Akhenaten: An Alternative View of the Heretic King

Are the Distinctive Kalash People of Pakistan Really Descendants of Alexander the Great’s Army?

Ancient Technology

An ancient Roman road at Leptis Magna, Libya

Ancient Journeys: What was Travel Like for the Romans?

It was not uncommon for the ancient Romans to travel long distances all across Europe. Actually during the Roman Empire, Rome had an incredible road network which extended from northern England all...

The incredible earthquake detector invented nearly 2,000 years ago

Secrets Behind the Creepy Plague Doctor Mask and Costume

Mummy Brown – the 16th century paint made from ground up mummies

Romans in Pompeii Repaired the Roads with Molten Iron

Why Are There 365 Days in a Year? Organizing Dates with an Ancient Egyptian Calendar

Ancient Places

Royal Palace at Ebla. Source: CC BY-SA 3.0

First Kingdoms: The Forgotten Mesopotamian Kingdom of Ebla

Spectacular things were happening in Mesopotamia in the period we call the Early Bronze Age, particularly in the southern part of it, commonly called Babylonia.

Sumer: Where Written Language, Arithmetic and Civilization Were Born

Explaining the Fall of the Great Akkadian Empire

Homer’s Iliad Casts Doubt on the Aegean Location of Troy

The Great Ziggurat of Ur

The Incredible Subterranean City of Kish

Opinion

Mysterious Worlds: Travels to the Faerie and Shamanic Realms

There are many accounts of a land of immortality and eternal youth in world myths and legends, as well as shamanic and indigenous spiritual traditions. Mysterious Worlds Writing in his recent work,...

Pharaoh Akhenaten: An Alternative View of the Heretic King

Changing Colors and Scampering Across the Night Sky: What Did the Ancients Say about Sirius?

Cracking the Code to Discover Ancient Tarot Symbolism and Forgotten Universal Knowledge

The Secret Strategic Plans of Darius the Great

The Secrets of the Kabbalists Garden

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