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Moses’ Horns.

4 Completely Different Versions of the Story of Moses

The story of Moses doesn’t just show up in the Bible. In the ancient world, nearly every culture had their own version of what happened. The Egyptians, the Greeks, and the Romans all had their own...
Image from ‘Vikings’, a medieval drama series airing on The History Channel.

Vikings Beheaded English King and Patron Saint Edmund, but What Happened to his Body?

It’s a 9th century tale involving Vikings, their beheading of a famous English king, and upheaval that led to the burial and reburial of the king’s remains in an unknown spot. And the story is still...
This monster-like creature was found on the vaulted ceiling of the tomb's corridor.

1,400-Year-Old Tomb with Bizarre Images of a Blue Monster Found in China

Scientists have discovered a 1,400-year-old tomb in China which includes some of the most fascinating images ever found. Among others, a blue monster, a winged horse and a nude deity known as the...
Illustration representing an ancient explorer.

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...
Reconstruction of Chinese paper armor, on the right

Ancient Chinese Paper Armor Put to the Test – You Won’t Believe How Strong It Is!

While Greco-Roman civilization was developing in the West, an equally advanced and complex civilization was emerging in the land along the Yellow and Yangtze Rivers on the western coast of the...
Professor Kasimir Popkonstantinov and the marble reliquary that potentially held John the Baptist’s bones.

Can We Ever Find Jesus’s DNA?

It was the first stop on an extraordinary journey. On a bright but bitterly cold January afternoon earlier this year, I found myself on a small island in the Black Sea, just off Sozopol on the east...
One of the scenes created by the research team, depicting a small temple in the surrounds of Angkor Wat. Tom Chandler and Brent McKee (Monash University)

Amazing Reconstruction Shows Daily Life Around Angkor Wat in Remarkable and Beautiful Detail

A new project called Digital Angkor has reconstructed Angkor Wat and its surrounding environment in exceptional detail, shedding light on what daily life would have been like centuries ago at the...
Napoleon’s gold-encrusted sword.

The 10 Most Expensive Antiques Ever Sold at Auction

How do you know what the greatest treasure of human history is? You ascribe a monetary value to it of course. Some artifacts may appear priceless but at an antique auction house, everything has a...
Relief of a seated poet (Menander) with masks of New Comedy, 1st century B.C. – early 1st century AD.

Decapitation? No Problem. The Magic of Restoration: Ancient Myths and Practices of Plastic Surgery

Plastic surgery, not just a modern practice, has always existed and was shrouded in mystery, magic, and eroticism. An Indian physician named Sushruta, who was widely regarded in India as the “father...
An Indiana Jones scene from a Disney ride

From Nazis to the Ark: Five Surprising Truths from the Indiana Jones Films

Sadly, the much-loved Indiana Jones movies don’t represent the average day at work for most archaeologists, but there is more truth to Indy’s swashbuckling adventures than you may think. Crystal...
The so-called “Brutus” Marble.

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...
Vindija Cave in Croatia where Neanderthal DNA was found in cave sediment

DNA Can Now be Extracted from Dirt! New Tech May Solve Many Mysteries of Human Origins

An amazing technological innovation in the study of DNA has been called a ‘game changer’ in the research into ancient humans and hominids. It may solve many of the mysteries that exist in relation to...
Examples of Olmec art.

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...
Statue and ruins at Empúries (Ampurias), Spain.

A Greek Town in Catalonia: What Fantastic Secrets are Still Hidden in Empúries?

The history of ancient Spain is usually presented as dominated by Celtic and Roman cultures. However, among many other influences, even the “brave sons of Zeus” appeared and created colonies on...
‘Battle of Gaixia.’

The Impressive Battle of Gaixia: Chinese Reunification Emerges from Chaos

The Battle of Gaixia was an important battle that occurred in 202 BC. It was the last battle in the Chu-Han Contention, which lasted between 206 BC and 202 BC. This was the period between the end of...
Traditional architecture and modern shops in Pingyao, Shanxi Province, China.

Pingyao: What Gems of Architecture are Housed in this Traditional Imperial Chinese City?

The ancient city of Pingyao is a county-level city located in the center of China’s Shanxi Province. This ancient city has been described as an exceptionally well-preserved example of a traditional...
Collection of Egyptian Art, design by Anand Balaji

Unraveling Tutankhamun’s Final Secret: Enigmatic Sarcophagus the Key to Proof of a Double Burial? – Part II

The sarcophagus in which Tutankhamun was interred upon his untimely demise in the confines of his tomb has for long puzzled Egyptologists. The existence of anomalies on its surface is perplexing...
Heracles wrestling the Mares of Diomedes.

Heracles and the Mares of Diomedes: Greek Hero VS Man-Eating Beasts

By now, you’re probably aware that the Greek hero Heracles (a.k.a. Hercules) had to complete twelve arduous labors as retribution for killing his wife and kids in a divinely-induced rage. The eighth...
Payava's tomb from Xanthos, now in the British Museum.

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...
‘Woman With Brown Hair Near White Painted Wall’ and division of the face according to Mian Xiang

Can Traditional Chinese Face Reading Provide Insight on Your Future, Health, and Character?

面相 (‘miàn xiàng’, or less accurately as ‘mien shiang’) is a type of Chinese divination that relies on the observation of a person’s facial features. Apart from divining an individual’s future,...
Naturalistic reconstruction of Ötzi - South Tyrol Museum of Archaeology.

Did Ötzi the Iceman Actually Freeze to Death?

A new study suggests that Ötzi the Tyrolean Iceman died of exposure to freezing temperatures in the Italian Alps. Researchers claim that his body and head injuries were most likely made during some...
The unbroken mastodon ribs and vertebrae, including one vertebra with a large well preserved neural spine.

History Rewritten! Early Humans were in North America 130,000 Years Ago

An amazing find at an Ice Age site in San Diego, California may dramatically alter the accepted timeline for when early humans first reached North America. 130,000-year-old bones and teeth of a...
The Bull by Stuart Yeates.

Brazen Bull: Gruesome Ancient Greek Torture Device Turned Screams into ‘Music’

The Brazen Bull (known also as the ‘Bull of Phalaris’, the ‘Bronze Bull’ or the ‘Sicilian Bull’) was a type of ancient torture and execution device from ancient Greece. The story of the Brazen Bull...
Collection of Egyptian Art, design by Anand Balaji

Unraveling Tutankhamun’s Final Secret: Cloak of Mysteries Reside in a Sepulchral Masterpiece–Part I

Are we poised to discover an Amarna royal in a hitherto unimagined location that will rewrite history — or will this be the final nail in the coffin for the ‘double burial’ theory? It is quite...

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