15 Amazing Castles from Around the Globe Although designed and built for the prominent purpose of defense, today the castles seem like somewhat unrealistic constructions straight from the fairytale world. From solid strongholds to oriental fortresses and highly decorative palaces, the castles are our connection to the past, where legends mix with history and reality blends with a fairyland. This fairytale castle is the historical seat of the Prussian Kings and German Emperors. Its origin dates back to the Middle Ages - it was built in the 11th century, then completely destroyed in 1423 and reconstructed in 1461. Although it looks like a castle, Howard is actually a stately home - a private residence of the Howard family that has resided in the complex for more than 300 years. Segovia Castle, located in an ancient town of Segovia in central Spain, started off as an Arab fort in the 12th century. Prague Castle, an iconic site of the capital of the Czech Republic, is one of the largest and oldest castles in the world.
Perseus Digital Library 28 of history's most fascinating photos The Statue of Liberty surrounded by scaffolding as workers complete the final stages in Paris. Circa 1885. An Royal Air Force pilot getting a haircut during a break between missions, Britain, 1942 Bob Marley on the beach with Miss World 1976 Cindy Breakspeare, mother of Damien Marley. Ethnomusicologist Frances Densmore recording the music of a Blackfoot chief onto a phonograph, 1916. A napalm attack near U.S. troops on patrol in South Vietnam, circa 1966. Fritz, a television celebrity bulldog, is shaved by a Californian barber. A female Lebanese fighter, 1982. Woodstock – The Opening Ceremony. Chester E. Beautiful color image of the German Focke-Wulf Fw 190A-5 fighters, of Fighter Squadron JG54, during flight, 1943. Attorney at law, Mohandas Gandhi, 1893. In the aftermath of the D-Day invasion, two boys watch from a hilltop as American soldiers drive through the town of St. Benjamin, the last Tasmanian Tiger, at Beaumaris Zoo, 1933. Corporal Luther E. Charlie Chaplin without makeup.
Family tree of the Greek gods Ancient skeletons discovered in Georgia threaten to overturn the theory of human evolution By David Derbyshire Updated: 12:26 GMT, 9 September 2009 For generations, scientists have believed Africa was the cradle of mankind. Now a stunning archaeological discovery suggests our primitive ancestors left Africa to explore the world around 800,000 years earlier than was previously thought before returning to their home continent. It was there - hundreds of thousands of years later - that they evolved into modern humans and embarked on a second mass migration, researchers say. Astonishing discovery: Archaeologists have unearthed six ancient skeletons dating back 1.8 million years in the hills of Georgia Archaeologists have unearthed six ancient skeletons dating back 1.8 million years in the hills of Georgia which threaten to overturn the theory of human evolution. The Georgian bones - which include incredibly well preserved skulls and teeth - are the earliest humans ever found outside Africa. Professor David Lordkipanidze with one of the skulls from the Georgia site
Unexplained Mysteries of LOST LANDS Many western cultures have myths of lost lands, where once lived our great ancestors. Typical is Lyonesse, a fabled land once said to exist between Land’s End and the Scilly Isles, off the British coast. On this land stood the city of Lions and some 140 churches. Folk tales, and later poets such as Tennyson, kept the fable alive by associating it with King Arthur. Thought to be the place of his birth, his death has also been associated with the lost land. Another such fable concerns Atland. Some lost lands are more modern, and said to be rationally theorised to have existed. In the 1870s, the idea was taken up by the likes of Huxley and Wallace, leading scientists of their day. A further lost land is Mu, which, according to former Bengal Lancer, Col James Churchward, existed in the Pacific Ocean. As we can see, most of these lost lands are quite fanciful, but share a similar psychology to other forms of lost worlds. Why is this the case? © Anthony North, December 2007 Liked it ?
1000-year-old coins found in Northern Territory may rewrite Australian history | Space, Military and Medicine A find of 1000-year-old coins (not pictured) had led archaeologists to launch an expedition that may rewrite Australian history. Source: news.com.au REMEMBER when you were taught that Australia was discovered by James Cook in 1770 who promptly declared it "terra nullius" and claimed it for the British throne? Turns out that could be completely and utterly wrong. Five copper coins and a nearly 70-year-old map with an "X" might lead to a discovery that could rewrite Australia's history. Australian scientist Ian McIntosh, currently Professor of Anthropology at Indiana University in the US, is planning an expedition in July that has stirred up the archaeological community. The scientist wants to revisit the location where five coins were found in the Northern Territory in 1944 that have proven to be 1000 years old, opening up the possibility that seafarers from distant countries might have landed in Australia much earlier than what is currently believed. The coins proved to be 1000 years old.
Ancient Builders Created Monumental Structures that Altered Sound and Mind, Say Researchers Hal Saflieni Hypogeum on the island of Malta By Popular Archaeology The results of recent research suggests that ancient, or prehistoric, builders of the monumental structures found in such diverse places as Ireland, Malta, southern Turkey and Peru all have a peculiarly common characteristic — they may have been specially designed to conduct and manipulate sound to produce certain sensory effects. Beginning in 2008, a recent and ongoing study of the massive 6,000-year-old stone structure complex known as the Hal Saflieni Hypogeum on the island of Malta, for example, is producing some revelatory results. Researchers at the University of Malta are confirming the findings in an ongoing study. Inside Malta’s Hal-Saflieni Hypogeum. But the Hypogeum is not alone in its peculiar sound effects. The site of Göbekli Tepe. The Lanzon is a sacred statue or stela depicting the central deity of the ancient Chavín culture. So what does all of this mean? Article Sources
Sumerian Myths Sumerian civilization originated in what is now southern Iraq, just upriver from the mouths of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers. "Civilization" in this context means a settled town or city-dwelling people who possess a stable agricultural technology (including domesticated animals) and have developed a hierarchical system of social classes (peasants, laborers, slaves, craftsmen [smiths, masons, carpenters, potters, etc.], farmers, fishermen, merchants, doctors, architects, priests and temple attendants, bureaucrats, scribes, advisers, priest-kings). Since the climate of southern Iraq is hot and dry, agriculture requires an extensive irrigation system of canals and dikes. Often, the Sumerians wrote as if their civilization (agricultural techniques, cities, classes of people) came first, and people later. (Why do you think they thought this way?) Map of Mesopotamian Archeological Sites (Oriental Institute, University of Chicago) The Creation of Humans Sumerian Creation Questions1. 2. 3. 4.
Polish archaeologists in Sudan claim 'unique' human settlement discovery PR dla Zagranicy Nick Hodge 20.02.2013 14:32 Polish archaeologists working in Sudan have found remains of human settlements that appear to date back as far as 70,000 years. Photo: archeosudan.org If confirmed, the discovery in the Affad Basin of northern Sudan will challenge existing theories that our distant ancestors only began building permanent residences on leaving Africa and settling in Europe and Asia. “The Middle Palaeolithic discoveries in Affad are absolutely unique,” enthused Dr Marta Osypinska, one of the members of the team, in an interview with the Polish Press Agency (PAP). “Last season, we came across a few traces of a light wooden construction. The team will be cooperating at the site in the Nile Valley with academics from Oxford University, in a bid to further unravel the geological history of the area. More information on the project, which is funded by Poland's National Science Centre, can be found at web site archeosudan.org.
Top 25 Most Ancient Historical Photographs For times immemorial, people have tried to reproduce their surroundings into pictures of their own. They have used techniques of paintings, carving and sculpturing and for years images have been projected onto surfaces. Photography is the result of combining several technical discoveries. Long before the first photographs were made, Chinese and Greek philosophers described a pinole camera. But it was until Ibn – al – Haytham (965 – 1040) a Muslim scientist made significant contributions to the principles of optics and invented the camera obscura which is a prototype of today’s modern camera. While this early prototype may have had modest usage in its time, it was an important step in the evolution of the invention. 1. Source: (Link) Earliest known, surviving heliographic engraving in existence, made by Nicéphore Niépce in 1825 by the heliography process. 2. Source: (Link) 3. Source: (Link) 4. Source: (Link) 5. Source: (Link) 6. Source: (Link) 7. Source: Unknown 8. 9. Source: (Link) 10. 11. 12.