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Cecilia Bogaard

Cecilia Bogaard is one of the editors, researchers and writers on Ancient Origins. With an MA in Social Anthropology, and degree in Visual Communication (Photography), Cecilia has a passion for research, content creation and editing, especially as related to the ability for art to provoke social change, and the dynamics of power in public space throughout history. This has taken her around the world to far-flung places such as Cuba, Spain, Scotland, India, the United States and now southern Ecuador, where she lives with her family.

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Saint Bernard and the Virgin by Alonso Cano. Source: Public domain

28 January, 2023 - 21:54 Cecilia Bogaard

The Virgin Mary Squirted Saint Bernard with Breast Milk

Mythology is filled with an array of outlandish and far-fetched stories. Christianity is no exception. One of the most surprising, at least for me, is the story of the 12th century monk, Saint...

Jonathan the tortoise at Plantation House on Saint Helena Island in the South Atlantic. Source: Darrin Henry / Adobe Stock

28 January, 2023 - 01:00 Cecilia Bogaard

190-Year-Old Jonathan the Tortoise is the Oldest Living Land Animal in the World

It’s incredible to envision all the changes which have taken place over the last two hundred years. But imagine actually living through them. Like a living time capsule , there is one land-based...

Representational image of Saint Theodora of Vasta. Source: Francis Valadj / Adobe Stock

22 January, 2023 - 22:00 Cecilia Bogaard

Saint Theodora of Vasta Spawned a Miraculous Church of Sprouting Trees

When discussing Saint Theodora , most people are referring to the rags-to-riches story of the prostitute-come-empress, and wife of Justinian I , who worked to promote women rights in the 6th century...

Women have been banned from the paradisiacal Mount Athos for over 1,000 years. Source: Alexey Achepovsky / Adobe Stock

21 January, 2023 - 21:57 Cecilia Bogaard

For 1,000 Years, Monks of Mt Athos Have Banned Women and Female Animals!

Believe it or not, but beside men’s toilets, gentlemen’s clubs and certain temples, there is actually an entire peninsula in northern Greece, now a semiautonomous republic of Eastern Orthodox monks,...

Lithography of Saint Helena by Fridolin Leiber. Source: Public domain

21 January, 2023 - 00:55 Cecilia Bogaard

St Helena, Discoverer of the True Cross, Was the First Archaeologist

In 326 AD the mother of the Roman Emperor Constantine set out on a legendary pilgrimage to the Holy Land. Dubbed the world’s “first archaeologist,” Saint Helena was posthumously credited with...

Pedro González and his wife Catherine (c. 1575) by Joris Hoefnagel. Source: Public domain

19 January, 2023 - 01:00 Cecilia Bogaard

Beauty and the Beast Was Inspired by a Tragic True Story

While the fairytale Beauty and the Beast has a happy ending, the tragic true story on which it was based most certainly did not. Published in France as La Belle et la Bête , it seems that the 1740...

Allegorical portrait of an elderly Elizabeth I, who is said to have suffered the effects of poor dental hygiene and black teeth. Source: Public domain

8 January, 2023 - 21:59 Cecilia Bogaard

Queen Elizabeth I Had Beggarly Black Teeth

Queen Elizabeth I of England was particularly fond of sugar. This was a time of great conquests and explorations to the New World for the royal houses of Europe, accompanied by expanding trade and...

The saying “to cut off your nose to spite your face” is said to have its origins in the actions of Saint Aebbe and the marauding Vikings. Source: LIGHTFIELD STUDIOS / Adobe Stock

5 January, 2023 - 00:52 Cecilia Bogaard

Saint Aebbe Cut Off Her Nose to Spite Her Face

If you’ve ever heard the saying “cut off your nose to spite your face,” have you ever wondered where it came from? Legend has it that Saint Aebbe, also known as Saint Ebba or Æbbe the Younger, was a...

Cleopatra by John William Waterhouse. Source: Public domain

29 December, 2022 - 00:55 Cecilia Bogaard

There Was More Than One Cleopatra in Ancient Egypt

Very few people have failed to hear of Cleopatra, one of the most well known women in history. Remembered as a seductive temptress, not only the lover of Julius Caesar but also the wife of Mark...

Mary, Queen of Scots was said to bathe in white wine. Source master1305 / Adobe Stock

25 December, 2022 - 21:50 Cecilia Bogaard

Mary Queen of Scots Washed with White Wine

While Cleopatra is fabled to have bathed in sour donkey milk , Mary Queen of Scots is said to have washed with white wine to ensure a smooth complexion. A devout Catholic, throughout her life Mary...

King Ludd, the leader of the Luddites. Source: Public domain

21 December, 2022 - 23:44 Cecilia Bogaard

Calling Someone a Luddite Isn't Actually an Insult

Historically Luddites have gotten a bad wrap since the use of the word exploded as a belittling term for clumsy “Neanderthal technophobes” in the 1960s. Unfortunately for the Luddites, the way its...

Top image: Ancient Greek athlete. Source: Fxquadro / Adobe Stock

18 December, 2022 - 21:55 Cecilia Bogaard

The Sweaty Body Grime of Greek and Roman Athletes was a Hot Commodity

The ancient Greeks and Romans had very different ideas on how to stay clean. For despite the Roman (deserved?) reputation for hygiene due to their elaborate plumbing systems, heated public baths and...

In this 1941 painting by Mexican artist Jesús de la Helguera, la Malinche is portrayed as a sultry character with European features, nestled in the arms of Hernán Cortés. Source: Joseaqc / CC BY-SA 4.0

17 December, 2022 - 21:59 Cecilia Bogaard

Mexican Native Princess, la Malinche, Inspired a Popular Mexican Slur

For Mexicans, being called a malinchista is an insult. The word comes from la Malinche, remembered as the indigenous interpreter who helped Hernán Cortés during the Spanish conquest of the Aztec...

The modern-day presentation of ketchup on Chinese food. Source: RomixImage /Adobe Stock

16 December, 2022 - 22:03 Cecilia Bogaard

Ketchup Actually Originated in… Ancient China?

If asked, the first all-American meal to come to mind will probably be a hamburger, fries and a healthy dollop of ketchup. Unfortunately, none of these items actually originated in the United States...

Detail from miniature depicting Richard II, King of England from 1377 to 1399, receiving his child bride Isabella of Valois from her father Charles VI, the King of France. Source: Public domain

14 December, 2022 - 00:56 Cecilia Bogaard

Isabella of Valois Was Just Six When She Married King Richard II

In what may be one of the creepiest images on record, Isabella of Valois was just six years old when she was married off to Richard II , the widowed 29-year-old king of England, in 1396. Daughter of...

Segment from a political cartoon depicting the practice of scalp bounties for Native American scalps in North America. Source: Public domain

13 December, 2022 - 01:00 Cecilia Bogaard

European Governments Offered Rewards for Native American Scalps

If watching The English , the Prime Video series, you may have been surprised at the depiction of a chilling character named Black-Eyed Mog. An English settler who decorated her wall with Native...

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