Buddhas of Bamyan: History Destroyed by the Taliban
In 2001, the Taliban destroyed two large statues of Buddha that had stood since Buddhists populated Afghanistan between the 2nd to 9th Centuries.
The...
How the Ancient Egyptians Understood the Role of the Pharaoh
In a world where the whispers of a democratic state have infiltrated nearly every nation, the concept of a successful centralized government with a...
The First Paper: The Papyrus of Ancient Egypt
Though the manufacturing of paper has changed considerably over the years, the papyrus invented by the Egyptians was not altogether dissimilar from modern paper.
With...
Pliny, Tacitus, Josephus and Jesus: Why These Writers Don’t Prove Jesus Existed
Christian scholars will point to passages that occur in the writings of Tacitus, Pliny and Josephus to prove that Jesus existed. This requires a...
Sneferu, King in 4th Dynasty Egypt: The Benevolent Pyramid Builder
Sneferu was so amiable he offered to replace a turquoise charm lost in the river by a palace lady. But he took prisoners and...
Early Egyptian Soldiers
The army of the Middle Kingdom (2055 - 1650 BC) was an infantry force - horses had not yet been introduced to Egypt.
Troop types
There...
The Gifts of the Magi
Why God wanted gold, frankincense and myrrh; the original Christmas wish list was given to Moses by God.
The Three Magi mentioned in the...
The Ancient History of Chocolate: Cacao in Early Mesoamerica
By 1585, when Europeans got their first taste of chocolate, cacao had been a major part of Mayan, Aztec and other Mesoamerican societies for...
Etruscan Crisis and Conflict: Predecessors of the Romans
At the beginning of the 6th century B.C. large, wealthy population centers were sprinkled throughout Etruria, particularly in southern Italy. Some of these city-states,...
Ancient Greece, part 8 – Art and Architecture
The Origins of Greek Art
In the nineteenth century, it was generally believed that Greek art had developed by itself with little or no outside...