- January 16, 2025
What Counts as a Planet?
When, in 1816, John Keats began reading an Elizabethan translation of Homer, he became so enthralled that he stayed up all night. By morning, he
The Rebecca Riots: Why Did Wales Rise Up?
A sustained campaign of attacks blazed across the Welsh counties of Carmarthenshire, Cardiganshire, and Pembrokeshire from 1839. Tenant-farmers and labourers, infuriated by increased charges on
Hopes, Fears, and Early Modern Astrology
Appearing in 1482, the Libro de la ventura – or Book of Fortune – became a staple of Renaissance parties. A bestseller across Europe, this
Fossils Found in China Come from a Huge Human Ancestor, Scientists Say
A pair of scientists who study hominin fossils and human evolution in China and East Asia claim to have discovered a new human ancestor that
Educating Claudius: Transforming the Family Outcast into the Emperor of Rome
When the mad Roman Emperor Caligula was assassinated in 41 AD, his uncle Claudius ran to one of the palace’s apartments and hid behind a
Facebook Censorship: Penalizing the Innocent and Still Missing the Harmful?
Once again Ancient Origins has been blocked by Facebook for posting content deemed not fit for general consumption. This is becoming an almost monthly occurrence,
Legendary Nebra Sky Disc Creation Method Has Been Discovered
A circle of corroded bronze, measuring 12 inches (30cm) across, adorned with golden shapes, was unwittingly discovered in 1999 in Nebra, Germany, now famously coined
Romans Are Said to Have Ingested Fish Brains That Caused Hallucinations
Ancient Romans reportedly ingested the brains of a bream called the dreamfish to get high, and modern scholarly studies have confirmed the toxicity and hallucination-inducing
The Megalithic Gate of Ha-amonga a Maui
Scattered over 700,000 square kilometers (270, 271 sq mi) in the southern Pacific Ocean are the Tonga islands. On one of the 176 islands that
The Libellous Letters of the Chevalier d’Eon
On 27 November 1776 a case came before Lord Mansfield, Chief Justice of the Court of King’s Bench, in which, the Morning Chronicle reported, proceedings
