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Ancient Origins Tour IRAQ

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herodotus

Detail of a relief of Herodotus by Jean-Guillaume Moitte, 1806. Cour Carrée in the Louvre Palace, Paris, France.

Picking Apart the Words of Herodotus: Was He a Father of Histories or Lies?

“I owe it to tell what is being told, but I by no means owe it to believe it”. Herodotus, [Book 7.153-2] Herodotus was an ancient Greek writer who lived during the 5th century BC. He was born in what...
Madyes: Master of Asia, Historical Enigma

Madyes: Master of Asia, Historical Enigma

Madyes, the mysterious Scythian stepped onto the world stage. There is not a great deal of information about him, nor has his name turned up in any of the Assyrian tablets. Herodotus and Strabo are...
Herodotus, by Jean-Guillaume Moitte, relief 1806.

Herodotus, Cato the Censor and Josephus: Understanding the Life and Times of Historians of the Ancient World

For thousands of years, we turned to history to explain the what, why and how an event happened. Although “historian” did not become a professional occupation until the late nineteenth century, the...
Cyrus the Great’s Last Campaign: Who Killed Cyrus? - Part II

Cyrus the Great’s Last Campaign: Who Killed Cyrus? - Part II

According to the popular Greek historian Herodotus, Cyrus went on his last campaign to subdue the Massagetae, a tribe located in the southernmost portion of the steppe regions of modern-day...
Deriv; Relief of Darius in Persepolis and roaring lion frieze found in the Apadana (Darius the Great's palace) in Susa.

Did Darius Hijack the Persian Throne? Ancient Coup and the Rise of Darius the Great – Part I

Cambyses II began his rule around 530 BCE, maybe 529 BCE, and his reign ended in 522 BCE. Not much is known about Cambyses since he left no inscriptions of his own. Only Herodotus and the Egyptians...
Pleasure, Procreation, and Punishment: Shocking Facts about Sex and Marriage in the Ancient World

Pleasure, Procreation, and Punishment: Shocking Facts about Sex and Marriage in the Ancient World

Much of what is considered normal in the present day might have been seen as shocking in the past and vice versa. This idea applies to many of the aspects of daily life, including customs related to...
Mummified feet on display at museum.

Walk Like An Egyptian… Scientists Preserve Modern Human Leg using Ancient Egyptian Methods

Scientists have unwrapped ancient knowledge and used it to mummify a modern human. Inspired by the preservation techniques as perfected by ancient Egyptians, a team of researchers have mummified...
The dramatic scenes of an older man slaying a young man depicted on the Scythian art might reference the ancient “Bastard Wars” as recorded by Herodotus.

Secret Chamber Found at Scythian Burial Mound Reveals Golden Treasure of Drug-Fueled Rituals

Elaborate golden treasures with traces of cannabis and opium have been discovered in a secret chamber hidden in an ancient Scythian burial mound near Strovopol, Russia. Described as a once-in-a-...
Relief, circa 728 B.C., depicting an Assyrian warrior holding a large shield to protect two archers taking aim, from the Central Palace in Nimrud and now in the British Museum, London.

Weapons and tactics change, but PTSD goes back millennia

The weapons, tactics and strategies of warfare have changed enormously through the centuries, but the hellish aspects of war and the deep psychological scars it leaves on warriors were apparently...
The pyramid of Amenemhat III in Hawara - Lost Labyrinth

The Lost Labyrinth of Ancient Egypt – Part 3: Uncovering its Location

(Read Part 1 / Read Part 2 ) More than 2,000 years ago, ancient Greek historians, Herodotus and Strabo, recorded their visits to the legendary labyrinth of Egypt, before it disappeared into the pages...
Sobek, the Crocodile God - Egypt

The Lost Labyrinth of Ancient Egypt – Part 2

(Read Part 1 ) The lost labyrinth of ancient Egypt is a colossal temple said to contain 3,000 beautifully adorned rooms connected by a confusing array of passages, chambers, porticoes, and stairs. It...
The Lost Persian Army

Has the mystery of the Lost Persian Army finally been solved?

The final resting place of a 50,000-strong Persian army which was swallowed up in a cataclysmic sandstorm in the Sahara Desert around 524 BC is one of the greatest mysteries in ancient history. Many...
Amazons

Female Warriors of the Amazon: A Literary Approach

Whilst reflecting on how to go about writing this article, I realised that there are a variety of ways to approach this interesting topic. As the title has indicated, I have opted for a literary...
Scythian Warriors

Tattooed Scythian Warriors, Descendants of the Amazons? - Part Four

( Part 1 , Part 2 , Part 3 ) Just as the Pazyryk culture greatly resembled the Scythian culture to their west, I think we can also see cultural similarities in the Norse and Celtic peoples to the...
Scythian Warriors

Tattooed Scythian Warriors, Descendants of the Amazons? Part Three

( Part 1 and Part 2 ). The origin of the word Amazon may have come from the Iranian language. The work ha-mazan (phonetic pronunciation) meant warrior and the nomadic Scythians that migrated into the...
Scythian Warriors

Tattooed Scythian Warriors, Descendants of the Amazons? Part Two

(Go to Part One) . The ancient Scythians, the ones who predate the nomads, worshiped as their main deity not a god but a goddess, the half snake half woman deity known as Tabiti, who coincidentally...
Scythian Warriors

Tattooed Scythian Warriors, Descendants of the Amazons? Part One

Herodotus describes the Scythians living in the area north of the Black Sea about three thousand years ago. According to him they traced their ancestry directly from Zeus and the river nymph...

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