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Ancient Origins Tour IRAQ

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Famous People

In this section, we shed light on some of the most famous and infamous people known throughout history, from powerful pharaohs, to emperors and empresses, acclaimed military leaders, or just regular civilians who’ve been thrown into the spotlight for great crimes or for heroic actions, leaving an indelible mark on the world.

Illustration representing an ancient explorer.
2 May, 2017 - 19:04 Mark Oliver

Did This Ancient Explorer Make It to The Arctic In 325 BC?

The first arctic explorer isn’t who you think. More than 2,300 years ago, Pytheas of Massalia traveled to the Arctic Circle and back – and, when he came home, nobody believed him. In a time when most...
The so-called “Brutus” Marble.
1 May, 2017 - 02:02 dhwty

Marcus Junius Brutus the Younger: Ultimate Betrayer or a Hero of the Roman Empire?

Marcus Junius Brutus the Younger, commonly referred to as just ‘Brutus’, was a politician who lived towards the end of the Roman Republic. Brutus is best known for being one of the main conspirators...
Examples of Olmec art.
30 April, 2017 - 14:09 JJ Ainsworth

What Makes the Olmec Culture So Unique and Alluring?

The Olmecs were the first true Mesoamerican civilization. There were small villages and groups of people in the area in which the Olmec developed but these societies are referred to as Pre-Olmec. The...
Saint Margaret and Olybrius. Margaret herds sheep when Olybrius arrives by Fouquet 15th Century.
24 April, 2017 - 14:00 dhwty

She Met the Devil, Escaped a Dragon, and Survived Several Attempts on Her Life: The Remarkable Story of St. Margaret of Antioch

St. Margaret of Antioch is a Christian saint venerated in both the Churches of the West and of the East. In the latter, she is known as Saint Marina the Great Martyr. Little is known for certain...
‘Die Amazonenschlacht’ by Anselm Feuerbach, 1873.
23 April, 2017 - 14:06 Natalia Klimczak

Who was the Powerful Amazon Queen Orithyia and What Drove Her to Launch a Fated Attack on Athens?

Orithyia was one of those dangerous women whose beauty was so often described by terrified and excited men that it became legendary. For centuries, the Amazons were believed to be nothing more than a...
Kepler and part of his heliocentric Solar System,
21 April, 2017 - 23:03 Kerry Sullivan

How Did the Skeptical Astrology of Johannes Kepler Contribute to Our View of the Cosmos?

Johannes Kepler, a key figure in the scientific revolution and keen astrologer, paid the bills by writing horoscopes for the rich and famous. The namesake of NASA’s space observatory was a German...
Amerigo Vespucci meeting fair skinned and blond natives upon his arrival on his first voyage to the New World, 1497.
18 April, 2017 - 18:55 Caleb Strom

Did a Welsh Prince Reach the New World Before Columbus?

The Italian explorer Christopher Columbus (1451-1506 AD) has already been dethroned as the European discoverer of the Americas. Most historians now agree that the first known Europeans in the New...
The Saccara Pyramid of Djoser, Egypt.
11 April, 2017 - 14:01 Natalia Klimczak

The Real Reason Tutankhamun, Akhenaten, and Cleopatra are the Superstars of Ancient Egypt

Archaeology, like every discipline on Earth, cannot be free from the rules of marketing and public relations. The impact of promotion in media and other places affects the lives of millions of people...
Silver reliquary with skull purportedly Saint Agnes' - Santa Agnese in Agone Church at Piazza Navona in Rome.
8 April, 2017 - 22:32 Natalia Klimczak

The Fascinating Catacomb of Saint Agnes, a Young Christian Martyr Who Died for her Beliefs

Beneath the city of Rome, among its ancient remains, lie many complexes of catacombs. One of the oldest of these is the one dedicated to Saint Agnes. Agnes (or Agatha) was a beautiful young woman who...
Cloaked man; Deriv
7 April, 2017 - 13:58 Graham Phillips

Merlin: Warrior & Poet. Two Historical Figures that Inspired the Legend

It’s only a few weeks now until the movie King Arthur: Legend of the Sword hits the big screen. It will be particularly interesting to see how it portrays Merlin, the royal puppet master in the...
Margaret Murray Unwrapping the Khnum-Nakht Mummy
2 April, 2017 - 22:56 Natalia Klimczak

Margaret Murray - Mother of Egyptology, Grandmother of Wicca, or Fairy Godmother?

Margaret Murray is one of the most mysterious Egyptologists. Although many researchers criticize her research, the story behind her writings scares anyone who is wary of the powers of witchcraft...
Terra Cotta Soldiers (CC BY 2.0), and Qin Shi Huang in a 19th century portrait (Public Domain);Deriv.
2 April, 2017 - 14:06 Shibumi

The King Who Made War Illegal! Challenging the Official History of The Art of War and the Terra Cotta Army–Part II

Qin Shi Huang was the first emperor of a unified China. His remarkable success in ending 200 years of war and founding the empire through peaceful means had followed a methodology fully articulated...
Penglai, depiction of one of the mythical islands (Public Domain), and Qin Shi Huang in a 19th century portrait (Public Domain);Deriv.
31 March, 2017 - 23:05 Shibumi

The King Who Made War Illegal! Challenging the Official History of The Art of War and the First Emperor –Part I

There are two great mysteries about the life of Qin Shi Huang, First Emperor of China—and a grand conspiracy. And these tightly related events are of profound significance extending way beyond the...
Roman soldier
28 March, 2017 - 02:00 ancient-origins

How a third-century Roman soldier named Carausius was behind the first ‘Brexit’

From the first to the fifth centuries AD, Britain – though not officially Scotland, which lay beyond the frontier at Hadrian’s Wall – was part of the Roman Empire. It was situated at the empire’s...
Urraca I of Leon by Jose Maria Rodrigues de Losada (deriv.)
26 March, 2017 - 23:01 Natalia Klimczak

Urraca the Reckless: How Did a Child Bride Unify a Kingdom?

Feminine, inspiring, and powerful – these three words could be sufficient to describe the queen whose rule transformed the position of women in medieval courts. Her original stamp on society is felt...
No Average Artists: Who Was Deemed Good Enough to Create Sculptures of Alexander the Great?
24 March, 2017 - 00:51 Natalia Klimczak

No Average Artists: Who Was Deemed Good Enough to Create Sculptures of Alexander the Great?

If Alexander the Great was alive now, he would probably be the most often photographed leader in the world. However, in his time, photography didn't exist. During the 4th century BC, a remarkable...
Shennong: The God-King of Chinese Medicine and Agriculture
22 March, 2017 - 01:00 Caleb Strom

Shennong: The God-King of Chinese Medicine and Agriculture

Shennong, which means “God farmer” or “God peasant”, is a deity in Chinese religion. He is a mythical sage healer and ruler of prehistoric China. Shennong is also known as Wugushen “five grains,” or...
The Chariot race. Cynisca was a Spartan princess and the first women to win the chariot race in the ancient Olympic Games.
19 March, 2017 - 00:50 Natalia Klimczak

How Did She Do It? Cynisca, a Spartan Princess Who Won the Ancient Olympic Games

Since the beginning of time, women have liked to surprise men with their extraordinary power, strength, and skills. Few are shocked by female success in these areas nowadays, but in ancient times...
Alfred the Great. (19th century).
18 March, 2017 - 22:13 ancient-origins

Was Alfred the Great Just a King that was Great at Propaganda?

Stuart Brookes / The Conversation The Last Kingdom – BBC’s historical drama set in the time of Alfred the Great’s war with the Vikings – has returned to our screens for a second series. While most...
France and England Didn’t Own Chivalry: Have You Heard of the Polish Knight Zawisza Czarny?
18 March, 2017 - 00:54 Kerry Sullivan

France and England Didn’t Own Chivalry: Have You Heard of the Polish Knight Zawisza Czarny?

Due to the popularity of the King Arthur legends, knights and chivalry are often associated with England and France. Yet one of the knights that best embodied knightly virtue is a Polish man named...
Huns in battle with the Alans, 1870s engraving after a drawing by Johann Nepomuk Geiger (1805-1880)
14 March, 2017 - 17:54 Kerry Sullivan

Merciless Marauders or Fearsome Fighters? The Terror Tactics of the Huns

Ruthless and unpredictable, few armies have been as terrifying as the Huns. Descending on a town like a whirlwind from hell, the savage horsemen killed indiscriminately – combatants and civilians,...
A Mother-Daughter Power Team: How Did Two Faustinas Transform Roman Society?
13 March, 2017 - 02:57 Natalia Klimczak

A Mother-Daughter Power Team: How Did Two Faustinas Transform Roman Society?

If you think that girl power is a modern idea from songs created in the 90s, you should read the story of a mother and daughter whose bright minds and dose of independence had a remarkable impact on...
Osterby Man Still Has a Great Hairdo Nearly 2,000 Years On!
9 March, 2017 - 23:01 Caleb Strom

Osterby Man Still Has a Great Hairdo Nearly 2,000 Years On!

Since at least the 18th century AD, there have been discoveries in northwestern continental Europe and Britain of “bog bodies” - human remains which have been preserved in the anoxic environment of...
A 700-Year-Old Murder Mystery: Who Bludgeoned the Bocksten Man to Death and Why?
7 March, 2017 - 13:59 dhwty

A 700-Year-Old Murder Mystery: Who Bludgeoned the Bocksten Man to Death and Why?

Around 700 years ago, a young man, who has come to be known as ‘Bocksten Man’, was struck three times on the head, then tossed into a peat bog and impaled with three wooden poles to prevent his body...

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