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Stained Glass of King Harald (Colin Smith/CC BY-SA 2.0) and Battle of Stamford Bridge by Peter Nicolai Arbo

Clever King Harald: Swift Doom Targets the Viking Who Wants the English Throne – Part II

Harald Hardrada of Norway used cunning and surprising tactics to bring down foes. Although he was wounded in the face during one of his campaigns, he continued to see victory after victory. [Read...
Detail of a bronze statuette of Pazuzu, circa 800 BC - circa 700 BC. Pazuzu was an Assyrian evil spirit believed to frighten away other evil spirits - protecting humans against plagues and misfortunes.

Mesopotamian Ghostbusters: The Evil Acts of Assyrian Ghosts and How They Were Vanquished

Assyria, like Mesopotamia in general, has always excited the Western imagination. Assyrian beliefs about the spiritual world are no exception. The Assyrians believed that ghosts could return from the...
Some of the artifacts recovered from smugglers in Turkey.

Operation Zeus Stops Smuggling Ring from Stealing Over 26,000 Artifacts from Turkey

With over 26,000 relics seized from smugglers, Turkish authorities have made he largest haul of recovered artifacts in the country’s history. The precious pieces were created by the Anatolian, Greek...
Rock art in central Northumberland, northern England. (Author provided)

What Neolithic Rock Art Can Tell Us About the Way Our Ancestors Lived 6,000 Years Ago

The British and Irish countryside is often celebrated for its wealth of unique places of heritage, significance and interest. But not many people know that this heritage includes thousands of ancient...
Gladiators fighting.

The Gladiators Priscus and Verus: Equal they Fought, Equal they Yielded

“As Priscus and Verus each drew out the contest and the struggle between the pair long stood equal, shouts loud and often sought discharge for the combatants. But Titus obeyed his own law (the law...
Acollection of ancient signs and symbols: Buddha’s hands forming a mudra. (CC BY SA 3.0) A heart. (Public Domain) Devil’s horns hand sign. (Ra Boe/CC BY SA 3.0) Thumbs up and down. (CC0) A barber’s pole. (Dave Barr/CC BY SA 2.0) A pentagram. (Sam Kelly/CC BY 2.0)

10 Ancient Symbols You Think You Know the Meaning Of (But You Probably Don’t)

From pigments to printing presses, symbols have been part of human communication from the very first day of mankind’s existence. The imperfection of speech, which undoubtedly allowed the sharing of...
A D-shaped structure built by the Wari culture, found near Cusco in Peru.

Peruvian Archaeologists Unearth Silver Artifacts, a Massive Temple and an Astronomical Observatory Near Cusco

An astronomical observatory, massive Inca stone walls, ruins of a huge temple, and artifacts left by elite members of the Wari culture are some of the fascinating elements found at a Pre-Hispanic...
Painting ‘The Stone Age.’

Why are Humans Threatened by the Achievements of Our Hominid Ancestors?

The ancestors of modern humans (Homo sapiens) were not the grunting, drooling, primitive, brutes that you see depicted in cartoons or movies. Decades of research and countless studies have shown that...
The stones can fit in the palm of a hand or pocket. Pictured isone from a 2014 excavation

New Symbolism Noticed on Denmark’s “Sun Stones”

A total of 300 small stones believed to have been engraved with designs almost 5,000 years ago, have been discovered during an archaeological excavation on the Danish island of Bornholm in the Baltic...
Window with a portrait of Harald in Lerwick Town Hall, Shetland

A Military Life for Clever King Harald: Serving the Empire and Stopping the Pirates – Part I

In 1015, Harald Sigurdsson was born. He was the youngest of three sons born to Sigurd Syr, who ruled over a petty kingdom in Ringerike, located in the region of Buskerud. Harald’s upbringing is not...
Drone aerial shot of the ancient Turkish ruins on Dongoin shiree. (North at the top.) Segments of the inscriptions and sarcophagus excavated from the hole at the center of the ruins can be seen.

Monumental Mongolian Burial Discovered Includes 14 Giant Inscribed Pillars

A joint excavation team from Osaka University and the Institute of History and Archaeology of the Mongolian Academy of Sciences discovered the ruins of a unique monument surrounded by 14 large stone...
Left, A stone piece bearing the painting of a human face and found in Kikonai, Hokkaido (Yoshinori Toyomane) Right. A Sketch of the impression.

4,300-Year-Old First Face Offers a Glimpse of Ancient Japanese Culture

Archaeologists in Japan have discovered what appears to be the first piece of stone painted that depicts a human face dating from the mid-Jomon Pottery Culture (2500–1500 BC). Experts describe the...
Mór Than's painting The Feast of Attila, based on a fragment of Priscus.

Did the Roughly-Hewn Stone Throne at Torcello Really Belong to Attila the Hun?

On the island of Torcello there exists an ancient white chair that local legend names as the throne of Attila the Hun. The chair is large, of solid stone and certainly has the air of unyielding...
Aristotle's School, a painting from the 1880s by Gustav Adolph Spangenberg.

The Nicomachean Ethics: How to Approach the Ethical Musings of Aristotle

Aristotle spoke thoughtfully as he strolled along the natural pathways of the Lyceum and his companions were entranced by their teacher’s words. His philosophical musings seemed to intertwine...
Mural from a Pompeii brothel.

The Grim Reality of the Brothels of Pompeii

Like the anxious men who began excavations at Pompeii in the 18th century and discovered more about the ancient Italians than they had bargained for – such as phallic-shaped lamps – historians of sex...
Cuneiform tablet known as Letter ZTT 22. (Credit: Ziyaret Tepe Archaeological Project)

Archaeologists Uncovered an Archive that Narrates Ancient Assyria’s Fall

A group of archaeologists digging at the site of Ziyaret Tepe in southeastern Turkey, has uncovered a unique cuneiform tablet that narrates a tale of exasperation and disappointment reported by an...
The Pylos Combat Agate, an ancient object found in Pylos, Greece and created around 1450 BC.

Is this Minoan Artistic Marvel a Miniaturization of the Heavens?

The discovery of the Pylos Combat Agate in a Mycenaean shaft-grave tomb dating to 1500 BC may be one of the most significant archaeological and artistic finds in decades, perhaps in centuries. The...
Rice goddesses are found across cultures

Rice Goddesses - Earth Mothers who Influenced Heaven, Earth, and the Underworld

For centuries, rice has been a staple diet and plays an important role in Asian culture. Although rice farmers have found their lives becoming more difficult due to climate change, Bloomberg states...
Latest Bronze Age grave found near Loch Ness, left with soil, right after excavation.

“Special Site” for Bronze Age Burials Discovered Near Loch Ness

Archaeologists claim that they have found a 'special site' – as they described it – for Bronze Age burials near Loch Ness, after the discovery of a second 4,000-year-old peculiar grave containing a...
2nd century AD copy of a 4th cent. BC sculpture of Aristotle, which Alexander the Great commissioned from the sculptor Lysippus.

Aristotle: The Man Who Needs No Introduction

Before embarking on our journey to character and (self) leadership, we should briefly discuss the life and work of Aristotle, the man and the philosopher - he who needs no introduction. Aristotle’s...
A satellite image shows a 17th century caravanserai (outpost) which served people traveling the Silk Road.

Going Where Archaeologists Cannot, Spy Satellites Reveal Thousands of Forgotten Ancient Sites in Afghanistan

Ancient sites may come into in the line of fire when war breaks or a building project begins. Destruction and looting could be prevalent at such times, but archaeologists often believe there is...
The skeleton of a child between the age of 6 and 9 found with various grave goods.

3,500-Year-Old Child Burials Unearthed at Ancient Egyptian Work Site

A team of archaeologists in Egypt have unearthed four ancient child graves at Gebel el-Silsila, the site of a former Egyptian quarry that dates back 3,500 years. The finding provides new insights on...
The Sayhuite Monolith

Sayhuite Monolith: Can You Solve the Mystery of the 200 Designs Carved by a Forgotten Creator?

Long ago, forgotten artists put their blood, sweat, and possibly even tears into creating more than 200 designs on a monolith in what is now Peru. They carefully engraved the forms of reptiles,...
A Byzantine depiction of the Three Wise Men (526 AD), Basilica of Sant' Apollinare Nuovo, Ravenna, Italy.

What the Magi Had in Common with Scientists

Picturesque and exotic, with their crowns and camels, the three kings regularly appear on Christmas cards and in nativity scenes. But how much is original, and how much is later addition for the sake...

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