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History

From the powerful civilizations of Egypt, Mesopotamia, and the Indus Valley, to the fearsome yet sophisticated society of the Vikings, the ancient world was a surprising and challenging place. Here we feature some of the most seminal and influential events and people throughout history, that have helped shape the world we know today.

Heraclius is depicted beheading Choroses, the Persian king as Cherubim angels look on.
21 November, 2018 - 13:57 Mark Miller

Wild Success and Deplorable Failure: The Cursed Reign of Heraclius, Byzantine Emperor

The reign of Heraclius, the Byzantine emperor from 610 to 641, reads like a series of disasters that continued to be visited on his heirs. In between the disasters he had some successes, but he and...
Statue representative of courtship rituals.
20 November, 2018 - 18:50 dhwty

Romantic Love: The Evolution of Courtship Rituals

Courtship rituals have existed as long as the concept of romantic love. Such rituals exist to allow couples to get to know each other, and to allow an intimate relationship to develop. In modern,...
A man in Liqian, China. There is debate whether his village was inhabited by Roman soldiers from the lost legion of Carrhae.
19 November, 2018 - 18:55 Caleb Strom

The Lost Legion of Carrhae: Did a Roman Legion End Up in China?

Rome and China are two major civilizations that shaped the cultures within their sphere of influence. They are also cultures that appear to have been mostly isolated from each other. For this reason...
The Mongol heavy cavalry in a battle (13th–14th century)
19 November, 2018 - 16:16 Cam Rea

Call in the Cavalry: Famous Cavalries of the Ancient World

‘Call in the Cavalry’ has become a proverb for reverting to damage-control expert assistance when things get out of hand. Yet the quote is embedded in the history of a noble and often elite unit...
Indus priest/king statue found at Mohenjo–Daro, Pakistan. Some ancient Indus Valley technology could solve practical problems in today’s world.
19 November, 2018 - 02:09 ancient origins

The Helpful Harappan Explains How Ancient Indus Valley Technology Could Solve Many of Today’s Problems

What was life like in the Indus Valley Civilization? How could someone who lived so long ago teach us anything about how we should manage our lives today? The following is a historical fiction...
Mosaic - Empress Theodora and Retinue, San Vitale in Ravenna.
17 November, 2018 - 01:56 dhwty

Theodora: How a Poverty Stricken Prostitute Became an Empress

The history of Theodora is a classic rags to riches tale, as she is thought to have started life in the lowest class of Byzantine society but became one of the most powerful women in civilization’s...
A row of turf houses in Iceland.
16 November, 2018 - 22:59 dhwty

Hidden in the Landscape: The Unique Architectural Heritage of Icelandic Turf Houses

Turf houses are a distinctive type of dwelling found in Iceland with origins dating back to the 9 th century AD, which are attributed to the country’s Nordic settlers. The development of turf houses...
Knossos, Crete: View of the North Gate Fresco
16 November, 2018 - 16:22 ashley cowie

Forsaken by their Gods, Four Ruins of the Oldest Temples in the World

On Orkney, the archipelago of the north coast of Scotland, ancient temple sites such as the Ness of Brodgar and Barnhouse Settlement, stone circles like Ring of Brodgar and Standing Stones of Stennes...
Samson and Delilah by Jose Etxenagusia (1887)
14 November, 2018 - 16:36 Willem Daffue

The Last Lions of Asia Almost Lost to Mankind

According to legend, about 3160 years ago, in the Levant, there was an enormously strong man, who tore the jaws of an adult male lion with his bare hands. Samson’ name was derived from the word semes...
The Dome of the Rock glistens in Jerusalem’s cityscape.
13 November, 2018 - 18:57 dhwty

The Dome of the Rock: A Magnet Attracting Multiple Religions to a Single Sacred Spot

The Dome of the Rock (known also as Qubbat al-Sakhrah in Arabic) is an Islamic shrine located on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem. This shrine dates to the 7th century, and is the oldest extant Islamic...
The Pancake Bakery
13 November, 2018 - 13:58 dhwty

Why Were The Shrove Tuesday Riots So Brutal?

The Shrove Tuesday Riots (known also as the Bawdy House Riots of 1668, or the Messenger Riots) were a series of brutal riots that took place in London in 1668. During the 17 th century, it was...
Gaius Aurelius Valerius Diocletianus (ca.245-313), Roman Emperor Diocletian. Marble bust, XVIIth century, Florence, Italy. On display at Château de Vaux-le-Vicomte, France.
13 November, 2018 - 01:50 dhwty

Emperor Diocletian: The Stabilizer of Rome Had a Green Thumb

Diocletian was a Roman emperor who lived between the 3rd and 4th centuries AD. Prior to his ascension to the throne, the Roman Empire was going through the Crisis of the Third Century, a period...
Ary Scheffer (French, 1795-1858): ‘The Souliot Women’, 1827, Oil on canvas, Paris, Musée du Louvre. Around the world, ancient laws tended to favor men over women, often with dire consequences. Unfortunately, many would argue the problem still exists
12 November, 2018 - 18:58 ashley cowie

Ancient Laws and Women’s Rights: The 6000-Year-Old World War Continues

The term ‘legal rights of women’ refers to the social and human rights of women. There has never been a time in history where this subject has been more at the fore of politics. Social justice...
The seven trumpets of Jericho, by James Tissot.
12 November, 2018 - 15:57 Prof Willem Boshoff

How a Woman Toppled the Legend of the Walls of Jericho: The Legacy of Kathleen Kenyon

According to the Bible, in the Book of Joshua , the Israelites encountered the city of Jericho as the first Canaanite stronghold they had to conquer in order to settle in their promised new land. In...
Ganesha (Niks Ads / Fotolia)
12 November, 2018 - 13:59 ashley cowie

Deep Mining the Mythology of Ganesha and the Ancient Temple Well

According to Joseph Campbell (1904 – 1987), the famed U.S. American Professor of Literature who wrote extensively about comparative mythology and religion: “Myths express characters and stories that...
Smudging with white sage
11 November, 2018 - 14:35 dhwty

The Ancient Art of Smudging: From Banishing Evil to Curing Ailments

The burning of plant materials to produce smoke with positive effects has been practiced since ancient times. One of the best-known examples is the use of incense in the ancient Near East. Another...
‘Hercules Fighting Death to Save Alcestis’ (1869-1871) by Frederic Leighton, 1st Baron Leighton. Many ancient death rituals seem very odd or macabre to modern minds.
10 November, 2018 - 19:01 ashley cowie

Bizarre, Brutal, Macabre And Downright Weird Ancient Death Rituals

Any parent must agree that one of the greatest hardships experienced around the death of a family member is having to explain to children what happened and what happens next? Should you tell them the...
A 16th century fresco depicting the Council of Nicaea.
9 November, 2018 - 22:54 dhwty

The Council of Nicaea: Pagan Emperor Constantine Used Christianity to Unify Church and State

The Council of Nicaea (also known as the First Council of Nicaea) was the first ecumenical council of the Christian Church. This council, which was convened in 325 AD, was assembled by the Roman...
‘Children’s Crusader’, 1905
9 November, 2018 - 17:23 dhwty

The Children's Crusade: Thousands of Children March to Holy Land but Never Return

The Children’s Crusade is one of the more unusual events that occurred in Medieval England. In the year 1212, tens of thousands of self-proclaimed, unarmed crusading children set out from northern...
Mammoth Cave National Park
9 November, 2018 - 16:34 ashley cowie

Ancient Expressions: The World’s Oldest Works of Prehistoric Art

Creating abstractions of reality, art has been a part of human expression for hundreds of thousands of years. Prehistoric stone and bone sculptures, and cave art are ideas and emotions expressed...
A foreboding comet crossing the sky. Ancient comet sightings were often linked to important, and sometimes frightening, events in the minds of those who witnessed them.
9 November, 2018 - 14:01 ashley cowie

Ancient Comet Sightings Inspired, Frightened, Dazzled, and Baffled Past Astronomers and Star Gazers

Since the earliest days of humankind, our ancestors looked into the night sky and watched bright celestial spectacles we know today as comets. While modern astronomers have a rich understanding of...
Detail of ‘Walpurgisnacht’ (Walpurgis Night) by Fritz Roeber.
9 November, 2018 - 01:54 dhwty

Walpurgis Night: A Saint, Witches, and Pagan Beliefs in a Springtime Halloween for Scandinavia

Walpurgis Night is the eve of the feast day of Saint Walpurgis, a saint of the Roman Catholic Church. Walpurgis Night falls on April 30th and is a traditional holiday celebrated in northern Europe...
Allesandro Magnasco: Theodosius I Repulsed from the Church by Saint Ambrose.
8 November, 2018 - 21:58 dhwty

Emperor Theodosius I: Religious Intolerance in Ancient Rome and The End of the Olympics

Theodosius I (also known as Theodosius the Great) lived during the 4th century AD. He was the last Roman emperor to rule over both the eastern and western halves of the Roman Empire. It was during...
‘Club Night (1907) by George Bellows. The history of boxing dates back thousands of years.
7 November, 2018 - 18:41 ashley cowie

The History of Boxing: Gory Gladiatorial Origins, Back Street Venues, and Big Money

Boxing is the most popular spectator combat sport in the modern world and its champions earn more than most other professional sportsmen. The defining fight of this big money era was the 2015...

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