George Parrot: the bandit who was transformed into a pair of shoes
When we talk about “Wild West”, referring, of course, to the conquest of the western territories of the United States, perhaps we do not have the real perception of how […]
The almost forgotten charm of the Marsh Arabs of Mesopotamia
The two great rivers of ancient Mesopotamia, Tigris and Euphrates, rises in the Taurus mountains in southern Turkey, and after flowing through Turkey and then Syria, enters the vast desert […]
“Scold’s bridle”: Renaissance torture that punished the gossip.
Corporal punishment has always been considered a deterrent for anyone who wanted to do something wrong. From antiquity to the present day, torture has never ceased to be used as […]
Brno Astronomical Clock: a peculiar clock that commemorates a historic victory
In 1645, near the last stage of the Thirty Years’ War, the city of Brno became popular across Europe because it managed to thwart a siege by the previously undefeated […]
Little Ease, the torture cell in the London Tower.
In 1534, a man and a woman were stopped a step away from the exit door of Tower Hill in London by a group of night guards. The man was […]
War Pigs: the defense weapon against Elephant attacks
It’s known that in ancient times man used animals in warfare: horses, elephants, monkeys and even Rhinos were used in the battlefields. As well as beeing turned into weapons, they […]
Yongma Land, The Abandoned theme park in South Korea
There is a small abandoned theme park in Seoul, South Korea, with a frozen carousel, fading images of ’80s pop icons, and dodgems that that no longer collide. But unlike […]
Eleanor Cobham: the Duchess who wanted to become Queen guilty of Sorcery
It was November 13th, 1441: the curious people of London lined the streets to observe an act of public penance. The criminal was a woman, perhaps 40 years of age, […]
France: Les Grottes Pétrifiantes which turn everyday objects into stone.
These limestone grottoes, located in Savonnières, France, in the heart of Touraine, turns everyday objects into stone and were used as former quarries of limestone in the Middle Ages. Objects […]
The bone church – Sedlec Ossuary in Czech Republic.
The 40,000 to 70,000 skeletons within Sedlec Ossuary (known also as Kostnice Ossuary Beinhaus) in Czech Republic welcome you, literally, with open arms: the ossuary, located close to Kutná Hora […]
Mallow Bay: the largest fleet of sunken ships in the United States
If there were ever a place that could be described as a ship graveyard, it is the murky waters of Mallows Bay. The history of these maritime vessels in the […]
Pirates and gallows at Execution Dock: nautical “justice” in modern London.
The city of London was once the largest port in the world, and as such attracted its fair share of pirates and smugglers. Try to imagine. Still in the first […]
The Golem of Prague and the origins of the myth of the clay giants
In Jewish folklore, a golem is an animated anthropomorphic being that is magically created entirely from inanimate matter (usually clay or mud). The word was used to mean an amorphous, […]
The forgotten story of the Radium Girls and the Toxic Radioactive Products marketed in the 1920s
In 1917, lot of patriotic young girls counted themselves lucky to have landed war work at a large warehouse complex in Orange, New Jersey. The pay was fantastic, roughly three […]
The “Bazooka Vespa”: the scooter that could destroy a tank.
Its technical name was “Piaggio Vespa 150 TAP”, but it remained known among the experts and military history enthusiasts as “Bazooka Vespa”, for the imposing M20 cannon that crossed it […]
The Belgrade Phantom: the thief who for 10 nights mocked the Yugoslav police.
In August 1979, a stranger then nicknamed the Phantom of Belgrade drove the city police forces mad, which probably thanked heaven for the absence of President Josef Broz Tito, who […]
Konstanz: the German city that avoided WWII bombing by pretending to be Switzerland
Europe, the old continent so rich in artistic, historical and architectural treasures, suffered incurable wounds especially during the World War II, in which centuries of history were swept away by […]
