Costumes, dancing, and food: Malanka is Ukraine’s biggest party
In Ukraine, Malanka is much more than a party: it’s one of the oldest, happiest, most vibrant days of the year in local culture. It is a folk holiday celebrated […]
The remarkable story of Eyam’s self-quarantine in the 17th century
November 1st 1666, All Saints Day. The plague takes away its latest victim in the remote village of Eyam, England. One of the many deaths from the Great Plague of […]
The Terracotta Army: history of a legendary army
On 29 March 1974, a group of farmers who were digging a water well just outside the city of Xi’an found about two meters deep a terracotta soldier the size […]
Don’t touch the Royals: the absurd death of the Queen of Siam in the 19th Century
Life is known to have a common destiny for everyone: death. There have been, throughout history, really lot of famous people who died in the most absurd ways, and there […]
Ramesses II: the first (and probably the last) mummy to receive a passport!
Ramesses II is often considered the greatest pharaohs of ancient Egypt: he reigned for over 60 years and his achievements were not matched by the pharaohs who preceded or succeeded […]
Today is 02/02/2020: the first palindrome day after 909 years
Today is a very special day: it is not only the day on which Christians celebrate Candlemas, or Super Bowl Sunday and Groundhog Day, but the date is also a […]
The “anomalous” burial of a child in a 5th century Umbrian cemetery
Lugnano in Teverina is a small village, located in the region of central Italy Umbria, surrounded by green hills that descend towards the valley of the Tiber river. At the […]
122 and not feeling it: the (unhealthy) Lifestyle of the longest-lived person in history!
Ms. Jeanne Louise Calment was born in Arles (France) on February 21, 1875, a year before the battle of Little Big Horn, and a year before Alexander Bell patented the […]
“The Ugly Duchess”: the Enigma of the portrait of a woman deformed by a rare disease (or not?)
Probably, before devoting himself to painting, Quentin Matsys (1466-1530) was a blacksmith. However, perhaps to conquer his future wife, who was seeing a painter more romantic than a blacksmith, or […]
Vyborg: Once Finland’s 2nd most influential city, now only a small provincial town somewhere in Russia
In Vyborg, Russia, time seems to have stopped. The city has a long history behind it that the ruins of its past never cease to pass down. Once Finland’s second […]
536 AD: the never-ending winter of the worst year in history
If you ask medieval historian Michael McCormick of the University of Harvard what year was the worst to be alive, and he’s got an answer. Not 1349, when the Black […]
12 rare Color Photographs show the First Nazi Concentration Camps in 1933
Nazi Germany maintained concentration camps throughout the territories it controlled before and during the Second World War. Killed in gas chambers, starved to death, killed during experiments or shot by […]
Joan of Leeds: the nun who faked her own death to escape convent
Being a nun and living in a convent is one that requires extreme commitment, particularly in the 14th century. For Joan of Leeds, a rather rebellious English nun at St. […]
Onions in the Middle Ages were so precious that they were used also as money!
How many tears are shed by peeling an onion? Despite this little drawback, the use of the onion is normal, both for the taste that ensures in countless recipes, and […]
Prague: the magnificent European capital cobbled with Jewish gravestones
Prague is one of the most touristic cities in Europe. It is a large UNESCO World Heritage site, full of fairytale towers, ornate statues and art nouveau façades. The beauties […]
Pheasant Island: the only territory in the world that changes sovereignty every six months
You are not allowed to visit Pheasant Island, which lies near the Atlantic Ocean terminus of the French-Spanish border. But “it can easily be seen from the Joncaux bank, on […]
Mount Roraima: a floating island shrouded in clouds
Deep in the rainforests of Venezuela, mysterious highlands rise to more than 2,700 meters above sea level, but seen from above they look like islands floating on a sea of […]
