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Ashley Cowie

Ashley is a Scottish historian, author, and documentary filmmaker presenting original perspectives on historical problems in accessible and exciting ways.

He was raised in Wick, a small fishing village in the county of Caithness on the north east coast of Scotland, and he went on to study filmmaking in Glasgow. In his early-20s he began exploring ancient landscapes in the remote North Highlands and presented his archaeological findings to the Orkney International Science Festival and has since written four non-fiction books about his discoveries. Ashley became an elected member of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland, incorporated by Royal Charter in 1783, and became the Resident Historian on Scottish television’s The Hour Show. He presented 46 episodes of The People’s History Show while teaching filmmaking and television presenting at the University of the West of Scotland. He also markets his family restaurant, Captain’s Galley, which for almost two decades has been one of the most highly-awarded sustainable and ethical restaurants in the world. In North America Ashley wrote, presented and produced NBC's hit-adventure series Legend Quest following his global hunt for lost historical treasures and featured on PBS’s documentary series Great Estates; listed on Amazon’s 2016 top-ten most downloaded documentaries. In 2018 Ashley filmed an extreme-cyclist racing from South America to Alaska on the Pan American Highway Challenge; filmed a treasure hunt in Scotland with Discovery Channel’s Josh Gates for Expedition Unknown; searched for Inca mummies in Argentinian mountain caves with Travel Channel’s Ramy Romany on Mummies Unwrapped and he filmed a team of 12 explorers in Colombia searching for petroglyphs on sacred hills. Today, Ashley writes news and research features for various history and archaeology platforms and produces weekly short films exploring the archetypes of myths, folklore and fairytales on his Clan Mythology platform. And 2020 brings new documentaries such as Ancient Botanics exploring the lost eco-traditions of Pre-Colombian cultures and Highlander’s Gold searching for lost Jacobite war-chest in Scotland.

Website: https://historyfuzz.com/

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The two-faced Moche man figure painted on the lower part of the pillar. Two images of two-faced men have been discovered at the Moche site of Pañamarca, Peru. Source: Lisa Trever/Panamarca

Peruvian Archaeologists Uncover Two-faced Moche Men with Cosmic Connections

Painted on a pillar within a ceremonial hall, archaeologists have found a 1,400-year-old “two faced man”, with cosmic associations. The Moche culture was a pre-Columbian civilization that thrived...
Aerial view of the Saudi Arabian mustatil excavated for the study. Source: Kennedy et al. - PLOS ONE / CC-BY 4.0

The Cult, Pilgrimage – and Herding Past of a Saudi Arabian Mustatil

Within the desolate landscape of Saudi Arabia lie massive rectangular structures known as the mustatil . Dating back to the Late Neolithic era, researchers believe they were once used for ritualistic...
Peruvian mummy bundles, representational. Source: Bayamin / Adobe Stock.

Burial Bundles with Painted Bodies in Fabric Found in Peru Pyramid

Archaeologists in Peru have uncovered a monumental temple site where they discovered unique human burials wrapped in fabrics printed with bizarre zoomorphic designs. These bundles contain the remains...
The Baby Buddha statue found in Shark Bay Australia.	Source: Finn Films

Ming Dynasty Baby Buddha Statue Questions Australian History

Two filmmakers detected a rare Ming Dynasty Buddha in Australia, which could “rewrite history.” Some thought it an elaborate hoax, but experts have now verified the honesty of the finders. Back in...
The medallion bearing the earliest known mention of the Norse god Odin.     Source: Arnold Mikkelsen/ Denmark National Museum

Oldest Inscription of ‘Odin’ Resets Beliefs About Norse Mythology

Archaeologists in Denmark are celebrating the discovery of the oldest inscription mentioning the god Odin. This story begins with the 2021 discovery of a 5th century collection of Norse treasures at...
Discovered in Malomirovo, Bulgaria, the skeleton of a horse rider displays the typical burial custom of the Yamnaya  Source: Michał Podsiadło/Science Advances

Earliest Evidence Of Horse Riding Found in 5,000-year-old Skeletons

Unique skeletal signatures identified on 5,000 years old bodies from modern Hungary, Romania and Bulgaria, provide the earliest evidence of horse riding ever discovered. A team of researchers has...
Environment around the La Brea Tar Pits, with Columbian mammoth herd in the background, by Charles Knight (1921) (Public Domain)

Tracking The Old Ways Of Ice Age Megafauna Hunters

While mammoths were hunted by early human populations in North America , Europe, Asia, and Africa, the primary cause of their extinction was changing climate, and disease. During the last Ice Age, in...
Leech therapy. Source: Natalia Terenteva / Adobe Stock

Ancient Maggot and Leech Therapy Sees Revival to Fight Antibiotic Resistance

A sharp increase in global antibiotic resistance has caused scientists to search for viable alternatives. But while innovative ancient treatments using maggots, leeches and honey are being...
The Eleusinian Mysteries. Source: AI Generated

From Ancient Mystery School to Culture Capital: Eleusis’ Secret Past is Recognized

The ancient city of Eleusis in Greece was the site of one of the most mysterious and revered religious rites of ancient Greece, the Eleusinian Mysteries . The exact nature of the rituals performed...
East-West cut view of the Great Pyramid and front view of the North face Chevron area. Source: Scan Pyramids/ Nature

Egyptologists Reveal a Lost Chamber in the Great Pyramid With Cosmic Rays

Egyptologists have announced the discovery of a secret chamber located right above the main entrance to the Great Pyramid of Egypt. However, what it was created for is still a mystery. On Thursday,...
Various photos of the statue of a man holding a large phallus. Source: Noonans

For Sale In Britain: A Small Ancient Man With A Colossal Penis

While metal detecting in a field, a British couple thought they found an ancient cart wheel piece, but it turned out to be a small human figure with a large bronze, hinged penis. Noonans auction...
Roman defensive spikes found at Bad Ems.	Source: Frederic Auth/Aktuelles Uni

Caesar’s Savage Human Skewers Unearthed In German Fort

Was this German silver mine really defended by two Roman forts and a line of "spike defenses”? Or, were the Romans protecting something even more valuable than silver? Having spent several months in...
The mummy of Anna Catharina Bischoff (CC). Inset: Boris Johnson (Open Government License)

Boris Johnson’s Mummified Ancestor Died from Pathogen, Not the STD Syphilis

New research reveals Boris Johnson’s mummified Swiss ancestor did not die of syphilis , as has long been believed, but of an unknown pathogen. In 1787, at 68 years old, a woman called Anna Catharina...
Utagawa Hiroshige's Sailing Boats at Arai (Public Domain)

Did Ancient Japanese Fishermen Reach South America 5,000-Years-Ago?

The notion that pre-Columbian cultures from Europe, Africa, or Asia sailed across the Atlantic and Pacific oceans to discover America, is a popular theory backed by numerous books and television...
Representational image of a fake Egyptian tomb interior. Source: Amith / Adobe Stock

Fake Egyptian Tomb Fraudsters Almost Pull Off Legendary Hoax

Egypt’s Public Prosecution office just issued an arrest warrant for a group of crafty criminals who cooked up an ingenious scheme to swindle antiquities traffickers. These daring fraudsters went all...
The mussel shell arrowheads have been found together with shafts and lashings. The scale in the lower edge of the image is millimeters.	Source: Cultural History Museum

Curious Mussel Shell Arrowheads in Norway’s Mountains Confound Archaeologists

It’s not the first time archaeologists in Norway have discovered ancient arrows melting out of mountainsides. But it is the first time arrows made from mussel shells have been found. Another Treasure...

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