philippines

1 October, 2018 - 23:04 Caleb Strom

The Rarely Told Story of Pre-Colonial Philippines

The Philippines were ruled by Western powers - first the Spanish and later the United States, for some 350 years. Except for a few religious minorities, the Philippines has also become thoroughly...

‘The Divorce of the Empress Josephine’ (1843) by Henri Frédéric Schopin

28 December, 2017 - 13:43 dhwty

Breaking Up is Hard to Do: Divorce Laws Have Evolved, But One Country Is Holding Back

Divorce can be traced all the way back to ancient Greek and Roman societies. But the idea of marriage in these cultures was different from what is found in modern Western society, so it makes sense...

Dragon, Broncefigur, Golden Dragon, Thailand

19 July, 2017 - 19:00 aprilholloway

Bermuda Triangle of the Pacific: Devil’s Sea Connected with Missing Ships and Other Strange Phenomena

The Devil’s Sea, otherwise known as the Dragon’s Triangle, is a region in the Pacific Ocean that has come to be associated with numerous accounts of disappearing ships and planes, sightings of ghost...

25 February, 2017 - 01:54 Natalia Klimczak

Trading Treasures and Curiosity: The Fascinating History of Manila Galleons

Every remarkable story starts with curiosity. That is the primary reason why people travel and want to discover new lands. It applies to every period in history, from antiquity to our times. The...

26 December, 2016 - 14:48 dhwty

Yamashita's Gold: Enormous War Treasure Hoard Remains Elusive

Yamashita’s Gold (known also as Yamashita’s Treasure) is the name given to the alleged war loot accumulated by the Japanese armed forces in Southeast Asia during the Second World War. This alleged...

25 October, 2016 - 17:21 MartiniF

The Marriage of the Sky and the Sea: Visayan Creation Myths

Although there are different versions of the Visayan creation myth, they are similar in characters, conflicts and resolutions. The way the story was narrated and its different subsequent retellings...

20 November, 2015 - 21:53 dhwty

The Laguna Copperplate Inscription: An Ancient Text That Changed the Perception of the History of the Philippines

The Laguna Copperplate Inscription is the name of an inscription written on an artifact that has great significance for the understanding of the history of the Philippines during the 10th century AD...

8 August, 2015 - 21:34 Bryan Hill

Teleportation Man: Transport in the Blink of an Eye of a Spanish Soldier

Teleportation is the transportation of a person or object from one place to another instantaneously. There are many accounts where people have supposedly disappeared suddenly and the phenomenon is...

20 March, 2015 - 02:25 dhwty

Chief Lapu-Lapu - Warrior and Hero of the Philippines

In the early 16 th century, Spain was becoming a global superpower due to innovations in navigation and seafaring. At the end of the previous century, Christopher Columbus, whose voyage had been...

3 March, 2015 - 12:35 mrreese

Fire Mummies - The Smoked Human Remains of the Kabayan Caves

Mummification of the deceased is a fairly well-known practice from ancient times. Most notably, the Egyptians utilized a mummification process that led to today’s cliché image of a deceased body...

Old Map of the Philippines in year 1628 showing the Reed Bank (an area just East of the Spratly islands) as part of the Philippines.

25 January, 2015 - 22:22 Mark Miller

Ancient Maps spark debate between China and Philippines over South China Sea islands

The Chinese government claims ninety percent of the South China Sea, including the Spratly Islands, an archipelago of 750 islands and reefs nearer the Philippines. However, a series of ancient maps...

The Hanging Coffins of Sagada, Philippines

29 April, 2014 - 23:31 dhwty

The Unique Hanging Coffins of Sagada, Philippines

The Igorots are an indigenous tribe living in Sagada, Luzon Island, Philippines. The Igorots practise unique funerary customs, in which the dead are buried in coffins which are tied or nailed to the...

20 March, 2014 - 01:13 aprilholloway

New study suggests that the Philippines is the ancestral homeland of Polynesians

Research into the origins and dispersal of Polynesian chickens has helped scientists reconstruct the early migrations of the Polynesians and the animals they carried with them. The results revealed...

4 November, 2013 - 11:14 aprilholloway

The mystery of the empty honeycomb tombs of Bohol

In the municipality of Dimiao in the province of Bohol, Philippines, lies an eerie and perplexing image – rows and rows of honeycomb-like tombs . The site would not be so strange if it were not for...

3 October, 2013 - 06:35 aprilholloway

Ancient human remains in Philippines reveal rare ritual burial

A team of scientists have discovered the 9,000-year-old remains of a woman buried in a cave in El Nido, Palawan in the Philippines, which reveal evidence of an elaborate and bizarre ritual burial...

Myths & Legends

Who Pulled the Sword from the Stone? The Truth of the Swords of King Arthur

This spring a new movie, King Arthur: Legend of the Sword, is to hit the big screens. Staring Charlie Hunnam as the fabled warrior, the film title suggests that the central theme is Arthur’s legendary sword. It will be interesting to see just how the sword is depicted, considering that previous Arthurian epics have been far from true to the original tales.

Tuatha Dé Dannan, the Enchanting Predecessors of Irish Fairies and Elves

The Amazons: Ancient Warrior Women Dismissed as Myth and Legend Were Real Fearsome Fighters

Legendary Black Knights: Mysterious Medieval Entities of Neutrality

Thoth’s Storm: New Evidence for Ancient Egyptians in Ireland?

Batman Existed in Mesoamerican Mythology and His Name Was Camazotz

Human Origins

Matsya protecting Svayambhuva Manu and the seven sages at the time of Deluge

In 1872, the amateur Assyriologist, George Smith, made a discovery that would shock the world. Whilst studying a particular tablet from the ancient Mesopotamian city of Nineveh, he comes across a...

Thoth’s Storm: New Evidence for Ancient Egyptians in Ireland?

Rh-Negative Blood: An Exotic Bloodline or Random Mutation?

The awesome, terrible, and unknowable creator gods through history

The Maya myth of creation

Are The Nephilim Really The Offspring Of Sons of God And The Daughters Of Man?

Ancient Technology

Secrets Behind the Creepy Plague Doctor Mask and Costume

The plague doctor mask is one of the most recognizable symbols of the Black Death. Though the image is iconic the relationship may be a little anachronistic. While plague doctors have been plying their trade since the Middle Ages, it was only after this period, during the 17th century, that they acquired their creepy trademark costume. But what does it mean?

6 Advanced Ancient Inventions Beyond Modern Understanding

Norimitsu Odachi: Who Could Have Possibly Wielded This Enormous 15th Century Japanese Sword?

Philip’s Fountain: The Oldest Still-In-Use Hydraulic Work in the World

The Lost Knowledge of the Ancients: Were Humans the First? Part 3: Science in Antiquity

The Ancient Invention of the Water Clock

Ancient Places

Why Isn’t This Map in the History Books?

By the age of 10, most children in the United States have been taught all 50 states that make up the country. But centuries ago, the land that is now the United States was a very different place...

Mysterious Labyrinth of Buda: Enigmatic Ancient Caves beneath Castle Suddenly and Inexplicably Evacuated by Police

A Millennium of Glory: The Rise and Fall of the Byzantine Empire

Xanten Archaeological Park – Step Back and Experience the Romans

It Looks Like a Laser Cut But What Really Split the Ancient Al Naslaa Rock?

Norte Chico: The First Civilization in the Americas?

Opinion

Mount Shasta: Spirits and Danger on a Sacred California Mountain

Mount Shasta, located near the Oregon border in northern California, holds the distinction of being one of the world’s preeminent sacred mountains. It is recognized as an eligible Native American...

Mysterious Worlds: Travels to the Faerie and Shamanic Realms

Pharaoh Akhenaten: An Alternative View of the Heretic King

Changing Colors and Scampering Across the Night Sky: What Did the Ancients Say about Sirius?

Cracking the Code to Discover Ancient Tarot Symbolism and Forgotten Universal Knowledge

The Secret Strategic Plans of Darius the Great

Our Mission

At Ancient Origins, we believe that one of the most important fields of knowledge we can pursue as human beings is our beginnings. And while some people may seem content with the story as it stands, our view is that there exists countless mysteries, scientific anomalies and surprising artifacts that have yet to be discovered and explained.

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