He was a hypochondriac, according to History Collection; rarely expressed emotion, beyond an occasional temper tantrum; had virtually no sense of humor. With everything we know of the man taken into consideration, there are those who would posit that he was autistic -- specifically, Asperger's.
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It may appear to be obvious propaganda, but what do historians have to say regarding the truth about Cleopatra's descendants?
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We know that ancient peoples landed on the idea of dragons, and that stories of dragons have been around for centuries. They aren't merely a flight of fancy for fantasy writers.
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Saartjie Baartman, known in her time as the "Hottentot Venus," was a South African Khoekhoen woman who was taken from her home and exhibited in 19th-century European freakshows. Exploited for her buttocks and African features, Saartjie Baartman became a victim of racialized scientific study.
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As anyone who has sat through a Thanksgiving dinner with two vocal uncles from opposite ends of the political spectrum can readily attest, politics can be divisive, and party lines are not easily crossed. Still, at least it tends to be a tug-of-war between the Republicans and the Democrats.
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The War of the Currents (1880s) between inventors Thomas Edison and Nikola Tesla has become one of nerddom's most widely-discussed rivalries.
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The ancient historian Plutarch, per Ancient History Encyclopedia, wrote that the two were buried together, probably at Cleopatra's request, though Plutarch never revealed the location of their tomb.
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When the ancient Romans saw Egyptian queen Cleopatra VII immortalized in gilded bronze in the Temple of Venus Genetrix, they were puzzled as to what Julius Caesar's side piece was doing next to the mother of Aeneas, the mythical founder of Rome, as Encyclopedia Britannica explains.
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Three things are most important in Oymyakon: alcohol, meat, and fur.
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The new footbridge at Tintagel Castle is a minimalist, elegant, and quite impressive feat of engineering that has a unique feature cut across its center: a 40 mm gap between the two halves of the bridge.
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At the ripe old age of 27, Edgar Allan Poe married his first cousin, Virginia Clemm, who was herself a stately 13 years of age that year of 1836.
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Wars can last forever. After all, there's such a thing called the Hundred Years' War between France and England and their allies. You know, the war where Joan of Arc died at the stake. But some wars barely last a blip.
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A number of books, articles, and documentary films have claimed in recent years that French fashion legend Coco Chanel chose the wrong side in WWII, taking up with the Nazis when they invaded France.
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The hills dot a vast terrain and they look perfectly symmetrical. Hundreds of people marvel at them every day. They're one of the most popular tourist destinations in the province of Bohol. So how did the Chocolate Hills come about?
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Besides being the shrewd, manipulative ruler of ancient Egypt, Cleopatra was also a prank-playing boozehound. It was love at first sight when she met Roman general Mark Antony in 41 BC — and what's a girl to do when she falls for a handsome descendant of Dionysus, the Greek god of wine? Live it up!
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In 1884 Freud published a research paper, "On Cocaine," "a song of praise to this magical substance," and would give the substance to friends and colleagues as a gift -- speaking for himself, he found it aided his digestion and improved his spirits.
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Not only was Cleopatra an astute politician and savvy diplomat, she was a nightly partier who would rove the streets of Alexandria after-hours with her boyfriend, the Roman general Mark Antony, and play pranks on commoners after getting trashed at their elite "feasts and wine-binges" club.
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For centuries, keeping track of time didn't come naturally. Ancient Rome's road to the Julian calendar was especially rocky, and due to the craziness, their effort to reform the calendar ended up resulting in the longest year in human history. This is why 46 B.C. was the longest year ever.
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During the 20th century, Jesse Jackson became a prominent civil rights activist, political figure, and Baptist minister. Known for working alongside Martin Luther King Jr., Jesse Jackson went on to run for president twice and launched the social justice program Rainbow/PUSH Coalition.
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It's a bird! It's a plane! Oh, no. It's both! Such might be the reaction of a time traveler visiting Argentina some six million years ago upon first catching sight of the largest bird that ever existed: Argentavis magnificens.
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Even today, historians and archaeologists can't quite agree on who the Phoenicians were. What is clear, however, is that they were mighty. They established cities described in the Bible, created impressive artworks, and maybe even sailed as far as the British Isles.
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When John F. Kennedy returned to the White House from his trip to Europe, a project came with him, lodged in his mind along with the memories of all the estate gardens he saw in England and France. The modern Rose Garden was born.
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Edmund Hillary made history in 1953 when he scaled Everest for the first time with Nepali climber Tenzing Norgay, but that was hardly his only achievement. Here's a look inside Sir Edmund Hillary's fascinating life of adventure.
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The written word is a powerful thing. You never know when something as simple as a letter is going to spark an idea, a feeling, or a determination to do something that's going to change the world, and literally? That can happen at any time. These are letters that changed the course of history.
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Everyone loves Dolly Parton. She's an icon for a reason and everyone basically agrees she's the best. But even she has a complicated history with some people. Case in point -- Porter Wagoner.
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Yes, the Wild West was awesome, but that's not to say it was as awesome as video games, television, and film make it out to be.
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For BMW reviewer Nico DeMattia, BMW's M235i Gran Coupe introduced a much needed feature: the ability to reduce the car's "artificial engine noises.
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