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Religion of the Aztecs: Keeping the Balance in an Unpredictable and Terrifying World

Religion of the Aztecs: Keeping the Balance in an Unpredictable and Terrifying World

The Aztec Empire was the largest and most successful Mesoamerican empire in terms of size and demographics. It stretched across highlands, coastal plains, valleys, and forests. It is not surprising,...
The wooden arm was found at the bottom of an ancient Roman well. Source: Oxford Archaeology

Wooden Arm Found in Roman Well in England Is a Real Oddity

Archaeologists in England have made an unusual discovery in a Roman well. They found a wooden arm at the bottom that is remarkably well-preserved and remarkably skillfully carved . This find is one...
Colored Giza Casing Stones, Menkaure's Pyramid.

Stones of Diverse Colors: Symbolic and Astronomical Significance in the Very Fabric of the Giza Casing Stones

Most casual students of ancient history know that the outer casing stones of the Giza pyramids were constructed of highly polished Tura limestone blocks that caused them to gleam like a trio of...
 A journey from London to Persepolis; including wanderings in Daghestan, Georgia, Armenia., by USSHER, John. Source:  (British Library / Public Domain)

Who Are the Yazidis and Why Have They Been Continually Persecuted?

The Yazidis (also spelled as Yezidis) are a religious minority found primarily in northern Iraq. In recent years, the Yazidis have received the attention of the international media as a result of...
St. Catherine’s Monastery, Sinai Peninsula, Egypt (Wikimedia Commons)

The Monastery of Saint Catherine: A Controversial Agreement Across Faiths

At the foot of Mount Sinai is Saint Catherine’s Monastery, described as ‘the oldest Christian monastery still in use for its initial function’. It is officially known as the Holy Monastery of the God...
Images from the manuscript ‘Seventy-Two Specimens of Castes in India.’

Dalai Lama Publicly Denounces Ancient Indian Caste System

The Dalai Lama has spoken out about the discriminating caste system in India, which can be traced back around 2,000 years and is still practiced in some regions today. The New Indian Express reports...
Portrait of Saint Nicholas. (BigStockPhoto) Relic of St Nicholas (pelvis fragment) at St. Martha of Bethany Church/Shrine of All Saints, Morton Grove Ill., USA.

Bone Analysis Takes Us One Step Further to Confirming the Santa Claus Legend

The legendary nature of Santa Claus is mostly understood. However, the existence of Saint Nicholas, often said to be the inspiration for the jolly Christmas character, has been less agreed upon. With...
‘A Player with a Hermit’ by Moritz von Schwind

Revealing the Recluse: The Sad and Secret Lives of Hermits

The word “hermit” often elicits thoughts of men with long, scraggly hair and beards, eyes lined with wrinkles and filled with wisdom, and clothes a bit torn and dirty but otherwise, no worse for wear...
 Ardhanarishvara, a composite androgynous form of the Hindu God Shiva and his consort Parvati (also known as Devi, Shakti, and Uma in this icon).

Find Out the Real Story Behind Tantra. Hint, It’s Not All About Sex

You may have heard that Tantra is full of obscenities or that it has something to do with black magic. Forget that. As a matter of fact, Tantra involves practices such as yoga, meditation, and the...
A reindeer. Credit: Wallpaperscraft

12,000-Year-Old Engraved Reindeer Antler May Be One of the Oldest Gifts in the World

Found in Central Poland but originating from northern Scandinavia or north-western Russia, an engraved reindeer antler has piqued researchers interest. The reasons behind its long journey, purpose,...
A vase-scene from about 410 BC. Nimrod/Herakles, wearing his fearsome lion skin headdress, spins Noah/Nereus around and looks him straight in the eye. Noah gets the message and grimaces, grasping his scepter, a symbol of his rule - soon to be displaced in the post-Flood world by Nimrod/Herakles, whose visage reveals a stern smirk.

Ancient Greek Vase Artists Painted Images of Biblical Figures Noah and Nimrod Over 2,000 Years Ago

The Book of Genesis describes human history. Ancient Greek religious art depicts human history. While their viewpoints are opposite, the recounted events and characters match each other in convincing...
Aerial view of circular henge remains and burials

Archaeologists Discover a Stone Age “Cult” Henge Site and 4,000 Year-old Human Remains

A team of archaeologists has discovered a Stone Age “cult” henge site and human remains that are estimated to be nearly 4,000 years old. Experts suggest that the human remains, found near Stratford,...
Orant, Catacomb of Priscilla. It has been argued that these catacombs provide evidence for women having a stronger role in early Christianity, perhaps even in the priesthood.

No Girls Allowed? Debate for Women in the Christian Priesthood Rages On

In many countries, laws prohibit employers from discriminating based on sex. However, exemptions to this law are often made for religious orders. The Roman Catholic Church is adamant that women...
Cro Magnon diorama showing a mammoth bone shelter.

Did Man and Mammoth Ever Live in Harmony? Not Quite…

Humans and mammoths coexisted in Europe for about 30,000 years. As a result, it makes sense that humans would have used mammoths and their remains for food and possibly for making clothing and even...
Mythbusting Ancient Rome – Throwing Christians to the Lions

Mythbusting Ancient Rome – Throwing Christians to the Lions

CHRISTIANS TO THE LIONS! rang without end through all quarters of the city. So writes Henryk Sienkiewicz in his novel Quo Vadis (1895). By the end of the 19th century, the image of cowering...
The rediscovered leather manuscript has been compared to the Egyptian Book of the Dead (pictured). Book of the Dead papyrus of Pinedjem II, 21st dynasty, circa 990-969 BC. Originally from the Deir el-Bahri royal cache.

4,000-year-old Ancient Egyptian manuscript measuring more than 8ft has been rediscovered in Cairo

The oldest known Egyptian leather manuscript, dating back some 4,000 years, has been rediscovered at the Egyptian Museum in Cairo after it was pulled from a dusty, old storage box, where it had been...
Small grave at the Children’s Fort in Tullycrine, Ireland

The Graveyard of the Lost: Why Hundreds of Children were Buried in an Old Irish Ring Fort

Inside the ring fort at Tullycrine in West Clare, Ireland, visitors can see the graves of hundreds of children dating from a period in Irish history when those who had not been baptized were banned...
Paro Taktsang Monastery, Bhutan

Paro Taktsang: The Breathtaking Himalayan Cloud Monastery

Bhutan is a small country in South Asia and the home of many sacred sites and monasteries associated with Buddhism. One of these sacred monasteries is called Paro Taktsang or Taktsang Palphug...
Team of eight unbridled donkeys walk past a mud mosque laden with a load of gravel.

Tombs and Shrines in the City of 333 Saints Restored after Violent Destruction in Timbuktu

Efforts to restore the ancient monuments of historic Timbuktu have been successful after several years of violent strife in the region. The reconstruction of the city’s monuments is both a practical...
Rediscovery of the Relics of St Mark, a 14th century painting by Paolo Veneziano

Religious Artifacts found alongside Bones in Attic may be Relics of a Saint

A resident of St. John, New Brunswick, Canada, has found what may be religious relics hundreds of years old in his attic. The man's daughter contacted a museum, an archaeologist, some nuns, a jeweler...
A sex-themed vessel found in Peru. Museo Arqueologico, Lima, Peru.

Sex Pottery of Peru: Moche Ceramics Shed Light on Ancient Sexuality

The Moche were a mysterious civilization who ruled the northern coast of Peru beginning two thousand years ago. They built huge pyramids made of millions of mud bricks and created an extensive...
Nazca Lines

New Study suggests Nazca Lines formed Ancient Pilgrimage Route to Cahuachi Temple

New research suggests that the mysterious Nazca line geoglyphs in Peru were used by two separate groups of people along a pilgrimage route to the ancient temple complex of Cahuachi, a ceremonial...
A masked woman leads a procession as part of the ceremony of Pawkar Raymi.

Andean Village comes alive with Pawkar Raymi, Equinox Celebration to honor Mother Earth

On March 21, residents of three indigenous communities in Saraguro, a remote Andean municipality in Ecuador, celebrated the Pawkar Raymi (ceremony of blossoming) to honor the Pachamama (Mother Earth...
HUNDREDS more megalithic monuments, chapels, and shrines around Stonehenge

Radar finds HUNDREDS more megalithic monuments, chapels, and shrines around Stonehenge

In a groundbreaking news release, archaeologists have revealed the results of a four-year-long project to map the hidden landscape beneath the surface of the Stonehenge environs, and what they found...

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