Accepted historical accounts claim that Cleopatra, the last active pharaoh of ancient Egypt, committed suicide. Cleopatra assumed the throne of Egypt after the demise of Alexander the Great during...
In the shadow of Japan’s Mount Fuji, lies the sprawling Aokigahara Forest, also known as Jukai , or the Sea of Trees, because its rustling branches reportedly resemble the sound of the sea. The...
Hannibal Barca was a Carthaginian general who lived between the 3rd and 2nd centuries BC. He is perhaps best remembered for his military campaign against the Romans in the Second Punic War. Thanks to...
The cycle of life and death is an eternal and unchanging truth of human history. Yet, the attitudes around both are influenced and shaped by a number of factors. Today, dying of old age is seen as a...
While Caesar and Cleopatra have been remembered as the ultimate power couple, Cleopatra and Octavian are among the most famous enemies of ancient history. Both inextricably linked to Caesar,...
Royal courts were always a hotspot for intrigues, secrets, schemes, and love affairs. Where prestige and power reign, true love is often nowhere to be found. But in those cases when royal passions...
Death , to most of us, is a distant nightmare lurking somewhere on an unfathomable horizon, a future concern. But there have always been people who see beauty in death, like we see beauty in a rose...
The Aokigahara forest is situated on the north-western side of Japan’s famous Mount Fuji. It was born 1,100 years ago, when Mount Fuji erupted, spewing out lava for miles which later transformed into...
While martial suicide is a practice found in a lot of cultures, the act of seppuku , or ritual self-disembowelment, is peculiar to Japan. The earliest known acts of seppuku were the deaths of samurai...
Of all the Latin American folktales and legends , none are more prolific and well-known as that of La Llorona. Long before its latest movie incarnation, “The Curse of La Llorona” was released the...
A quaint Bavarian hotel has become the scene of a murder mystery with medieval links. When hotel employees found the dead bodies of three people the scene was described as something akin to a scene...
A rare discovery at an ancient Harappan site shows that death doesn’t even mean the end for some relationships. The couple’s burial stands out from others in a sprawling cemetery. Even in the grave,...
Mark Antony and Cleopatra are among the most famous pairs of lovers from the ancient world. Following their defeat at the Battle of Actium in 31 BC, their final refuge from the victorious Octavian...
The Chinese Ming Dynasty lasted for 276 years (1368 – 1644 AD), and has been described as “one of the greatest eras of orderly government and social stability in human history.” This dynasty became a...
Cases of suicide are known to have occurred in ancient Rome, as they have been recorded by ancient writers. But there are many questions surrounding this subject that have yet to be fully answered. A...
A group of elite forensic scientists from the University of Dundee, has reconstructed digitally the face of one of Scotland's most notorious “witches”, Lilias Adie. The only documents that helped...
In 2015, work began on Castelinho da Rua Apa, or Little Castle of Apa Street, to restore it to its original grandeur. This house originally resembled a medieval French castle, but due to years of...
The Sicarii - which may be translated as ‘daggermen’ from the Latin - were a group of Jewish zealots who lived during the 1 st century AD. The Sicarii intended to expel the Romans and their...
I uncovered a curious tale about a scrubby patch of land while writing a book on the folklore and history of East Anglia. Marked on modern maps as Lushbush, you pass it heading eastwards out of the...
Deianira became a famous heroine after the release of the TV show ''Hercules,'' with Kevin Sorbo, and the Disney movie about the mythical hero. Her real story, although still juicy, isn't the same...
A team of archaeologists from Tel Aviv University have returned to Masada in Israel, after a 11-year hiatus, in order to excavate previously unexplored areas of the desert mountain fortress,...
Sextus Tarquinius was the son of Lucius Tarquinius Superbus, the last king of Rome who was engaged in the siege of Ardea at the time. One day, Sextus invited his friends for supper and drinks at his...
Ludwig II of Bavaria was the favorite cousin of the famous Empress Elizabeth ''Sisi'', the wife of Emperor Franz Joseph II. His name became immortal due to the impressive castles he built during his...
According to accepted historical accounts, Cleopatra, the last active pharaoh of ancient Egypt, committed suicide by holding a snake to her breast and allowing it to bite her, killing her with its...