Archaeological digs can shed some light on long-held theories, even ancient ones. So when archaeologists discovered human bones in the Sahara desert, they thought they had finally found a Persian army lost to the sands centuries ago, ultimately solving an ancient mystery.
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Story after story is told of the Amazons (a word which isn't Greek; it's probably from a Persian word for "warrior"), in many different cultures and societies. The stories are good. The history is better.
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Reconstruction after the Civil War was an attempt to reconstruct everything about Southern life and politics. But after an auspicious start, Reconstruction slowly collapsed under the weight of political reality and short-sighted decisions. Here's the messed-up truth about the Reconstruction era.
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As Union forces captured Confederate territory, the slaves they encountered would be freed. Which raised the next question: If slavery is finally abolished everywhere, what happens to all of these thousands of people, formerly enslaved, but now free?
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Like all wars, the Iraq War was filled with heroes, villains, and mistakes both harrying and hilarious. These are some messed up things that happened during the Iraq War.
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There are two kinds of people in this world: those who divide everyone into two groups, and those who don't. Another two kinds: Those who love Shakespeare, and those who would rather binge watch Friends -- again. But Shakespeare may have been even less real than friends.
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Colonel Tom Parker was a doughy human rabbit hole of shadowy weirdness. And he may even have been a murderer.
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Ah, zombies. The archetype of the shambling undead minion has left a meaty trail across the length and breadth of pop culture worldwide. But is zombification actually a thing? And if so, how does it happen?
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Human beings have been inhabiting Easter Island since somewhere around 400-700 CE. But something led to a collapse in its once balanced civilization.
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The thing about ancient Egypt? If you're trying to figure out who the meanest ruler was, there's a lot of stiff competition.
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Dillinger is one of those names that's become an archetype. Depression-era American criminal -- a gangster, a bank robber. Here's how he died.
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Life in ancient China was not easy for women.
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The original series gave everyone the opportunity to be a detective/forensic psychologist/UFOlogist. Even if you weren't alive for the original, the reboot gives you the chance to rewrite a bit of history. Are you up to the challenge?
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Owning a guitar used by a famous rock musician is a way of owning a piece of history. Here are the most expensive guitars in rock history.
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Vikings, being just like us, really, though usually carrying more cutlery than we do, also delighted in codes. And we have proof.
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When the sun rose on August 3rd, 216 BCE, the future of the Roman Empire seemed in mortal peril.
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The Aztec Empire was relatively short-lived. What was like for its women?
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Had things gone as planned, we wouldn't have heard of the Donner Party, a pioneer group who attempted to migrate to California in 1846-1847. Out of the 87 members of the original wagon train, only 48 survived by resorting to survival cannibalism. And one of them was almost Abraham Lincoln.
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If you were to believe some of the more unusual things aired by the History Channel, the only explanation for the architectural abilities of ancient, usually non-European civilizations is... aliens. The historical record disagrees.
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The Ottoman Empire was one of the most longstanding and powerful empires in history. What was life like for its women?
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One of the most famous jewels in the world is the Hope Diamond. While most people think the Hope Diamond is the same one in Titanic, it's not — it's actually famous in its own right, primarily because of a supposed curse that befalls those who dare own it.
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Vikings, hailing from what's now Norway, Sweden, Denmark, and Finland, had developed the one thing that made them not only a military power, but a commercial power. And that thing was sea power. Their go to vessel? The longship.
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It's tough to get an entire society's beliefs nailed down. Even now, saying "modern-day Americans believe that the Earth is round" isn't an accurate blanket statement. Somehow. So it gets even trickier, as you might imagine, putting your finger on the pulse of an ancient culture's worldview.
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Good old werewolves. They don't usually top the list of anyone's biggest fears -- but what if we told you they may, just possibly, have existed?
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Here's what you need to know before the second half of Vikings season 6.
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Centered in the heart of present-day Guatemala, the Mayan Empire flourished for close to two and a half millennia, only to abruptly disappear around 900 CE. What happened?
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Here's a working definition: a robot is pure machine. A cyborg is a human with machine parts (or, perhaps, a machine with human parts. It depends on where you're standing). An android is a machine built to look and function like a human being.
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