Castle Rushen on the Isle of Man is one of the best preserved medieval castles anywhere in Europe.
It was started by the last of the Manx Viking Kings in the 13th century and since then it has witnessed extraordinary events and been lived in by some extraordinary people.
In this video we bring you timeless beauties from 100 years ago, portraits of beautiful women photographed in the past, restored, colorized and animated (brought to life). We're taking you on a journey through time, to an era where style and elegance were the epitome of grace and poise. Get ready to be transported to the past, as we showcase the women's beauty captured over 100+ years ago, through a series of portraits that have been carefully restored, colorized and animated using AI technology. These images not only capture the essence of their beauty but also provide us with a glimpse into the fashion of the time. As you admire the stunning portraits, allow yourself to be inspired by the grace and confidence of these women, and how they continue to radiate beauty and charm even a century later. So sit back, relax, and join us on this journey of discovery as we explore the beauty of women captured 100+ years ago.
A college student made the discovery of a lifetime on a recent paleontology dig when he unearthed a partial Triceratops skull.
Harrison Duran, a fifth-year biology student at the University of California, Merced, uncovered the 65 million-year-old skull in the badlands of North Dakota.
“I can’t quite express my excitement in that moment when we uncovered the skull,” Duran said in a news release from the school on Wednesday. “I’ve been obsessed with dinosaurs since I was a kid, so it was a pretty big deal.”
North Dakota is part of the Hell Creek Formation, and this area is a treasure trove for finding fossils. The rock bed formation spans four states – Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota and Wyoming. Fossils date to the late Cretaceous period, 65 million to 70 million years ago, and were discovered in 1902 by paleontologist Barnum Brown.
Knowing the history of the area, Duran set out on a two-week dig accompanied by Michael Kjelland, an experienced excavator and professor at Mayville State University in North Dakota. The two met previously at a conference and became fast friends as they bonded over their passion for dinos.
“I have been going out to the badlands for years off and on, but to this particular site it was the first time,” Kjelland told CNN. Last year, he found another Triceratops skull around the same area that is currently being excavated.
They started their dig on June 1 2019 chiseling away at the rock and dirt in hopes of finding some treasure. By the fourth day, Duran struck gold.
The fossil was found upside down with the base of its left horn partially exposed, surrounded by plant fossils also from the Cretaceous era.
“It is wonderful that we found fossilized wood and tree leaves right around, and even under, the skull,” said Duran. “It gives us a more complete picture of the environment at the time.”
They named the dinosaur Alice, after the landowner.
Then the painstaking work of getting Alice out of the ground began.
“It took a full week to excavate Alice, whose fragile skull was meticulously stabilized with a specialized glue to solidify the fractured, mineralized bones, before an accelerant was applied to bond the structures,” UC Merced said in a news release.
Once out of the ground, the fossil was coated in foil and plaster, put in a box and wrapped in a memory foam mattress for transportation to the lab for further research.
The duo founded a nonprofit company, Fossil Excavators, to discover, persevere and educate others about fossils. Their organization will be conducting more research on Alice and preparing the dinosaur for display. Duran and Kjelland hope to use the fossil as an educational tool for others.
“It would be amazing for UC Merced to be able to display Alice on campus,” said Duran. “It’s such a rare opportunity to showcase something like this, and I’d like to share it with the campus community.”
Meanwhile, the exact location of the dig sites will remain secret. “There have been people in the past who have stolen dinosaur bones,” Kjelland said in the news release.
Kjelland told CNN that he anticipates more bones will be uncovered at the site where Alice was discovered, as well as the site where he found a Triceratops skull last year.
Several weeks ago, construction workers digging near a Denver, Colorado, retirement home found an adult triceratops buried in the bedrock – and the fossils were 68 million years old.
In the following video we will be exploring the entire history of ancient Japan. Watch the video below to find out more!
In search of gold? Looking for the next gold rush? The oceans are a good place to look, however, it's not as easy as panning for gold.
Ocean waters around the world contain about 20 million tons of gold in them. When we say "in" that is meant literally, there is gold in ocean water. Unfortunately, the concentration lies on the order of parts per trillion, making it extremely difficult to get.
Based on today's spot price of gold at $42.51 USD per gram, that amount of gold would be worth roughly $771 trillion. Compare that with the United States gross domestic product (GDP) in 2016 of 18.57 trillion and its 41 times. Alternatively, you can compare it to the world domestic product of $78.28 trillion in 2014, almost 10 times the entire world's domestic product.
Needless to say, there's a lot of money to be had just in gold within the world's oceans. However, there's the monumental task of removing the gold from vast amounts of seawater. Each liter of water would contain approximately 13 billionths of a gram of gold.
Currently, there's no cost-effective method to remove the gold from seawater and be profitable. However, that didn't stop many eager inventors and investors both legitimate and scammers. In the 1890s pastor Ford Jernegan came up with a plan for a "Gold Accumulator" in a fever dream. The plan was to extract gold from the Long Island Sound using a process involving mercury and electricity treatments.
Jernegan started the Electrolytic Marine Salts Company and convinced enough wealthy investors to raise $1 million (about $26 million in today's dollars) in cash. The company was off and running, building a large gold-extraction operation in Lubec, Maine, far away from the watchful eyes of their investors. By 1898 investors began asking questions and wanting evidence the plant worked. Shortly thereafter Jernegan disappeared with cash in hand and leaving behind a useless contraption.
Since then a number of individuals and institutions around the world have attempted to separate gold from seawater. From post-WW1 Germans attempting to refill their coffers to Dow Chemicals to Columbia professor Colin Fink.
The list goes on and on, but they all have one thing in common: none were able to economically extract gold from seawater. However, we can be assured that inventors will continue to attempt to extract this massive amount of gold from the ocean. The prize is just too big not to have interest and perhaps one day one inventor or company will have the breakthrough necessary to make extraction profitable. Until that time, it's a pipe dream for the most creative wealth seeking inventor.
Today’s video is a part of Joe Rogan’s show and we will see Graham Hancock talking on the Antikythera Mechanism. Watch the video to find out more!
Check out these top unexplained mysteries of the deep ocean. From strange sounds captured in the deep sea by hydrophones such as the bloop, the train, and julia, to gigantic whirlpools, biggest underwater falls and the milky bioluminescent sea phenomenon. Are deep sea monsters living deep in the ocean?
Here is the top list of mysterious sunken underwater cities in the world found underwater! These strange and mindblowing but also amazing forgotten ancient underwater ruins are located deep into the ocean. Check out Alexandria, City of Cuba, Yonaguni, Lake Titicaca, Pavlopetri, Lion City, Heracleion and more underwater cities!
Here is a list of the deepest and scariest sinkholes in the world! These terrifying and strange pits are absolutely mysterious and seemingly created out of nowhere. Check out the Great Blue Hole, Dragon Hole, Siberian Holes, Heavenly Pit, Agrico Gypsum stack and more!
Check out the most crazy things ancient greeks did! This top 10 list of crazy facts about ancient greece and their culture is absolutely amazing!
Check out these animals found frozen in ice! This top 10 list of amazing animals discoveries has some ancient animals that were frozen in time for eternity!
Modern-day Iran is old. It’s one of the oldest continuously inhabited civilizations in the world, with cities and settlements dating back nearly 7,000 years. The Greeks called it Persia, but it was actually home to many powerful civilizations over the years, including the mighty Achaemenid (Ahh-kee-meh-ned) Empire, one of the largest empires in history.
Ancient Persia was a land of contrasts, they had some of the most extreme, crazy and creepy laws any empire has ever had in history. So let's dive in today on Nutty History and take a look at these Persian rules, and see how true to history they actually are.
In the video below Graham Hancock will be explaining his discovery of ancient aliens in the Sahara Desert. Watch the video for more and enjoy!
In the following video we will be talking about the hunt for Genghis Khan’s tomb. Watch the video to find out more!
Get to know the secrets of the ancient world with the Emerald Tablets of Thoth! It’s written 36,000 years ago by the mysterious Atlantian priest and king, Thoth, these tablets hold the key to a mysterious civilization and a message that has been hidden for millennia. But who was Toth and why did he rule Egypt for over 16,000 years? And how did he achieve immortality? Watch further as we explore the incredible history and secrets of the Emerald Tablets and discover the message Thoth left behind for us!
Thoth, also known as Hermes Trismegistus, was a legendary figure from ancient Egyptian mythology who has captured the imagination of people for centuries. According to legend, Thoth was a powerful ruler and priest who ruled Egypt for over 16,000 years and was able to depart from life without dying.
The ocean is without doubt the most fascinating place on this planet. This quote pretty much sums it up.... "Earth Should be Named Planet Ocean, Not Planet Earth". That couldn't be more true. We are surrounded by ocean, yet for the most part, we have no idea what creatures are sharing the planet with us. In this video you will see five truly awesome underwater creatures that prove the ocean has far more to offer than what we think. So, from an enormous deep sea shark, to a mysterious alien like creature that was washed up on a beach. Sit back & enjoy this video!
The Giza Plateau is arguably the most famous historic site in the world, with the astonishing pyramid complexes of Khufu, Khafre and Menkaure, and of course the magnificent Great Sphinx.
Of course, today, Giza is nothing compared to how it would have looked in the 4th dynasty, in the golden era of Egyptian history when these monuments were first constructed, but it’s amazing that these monuments have stood the test of time.
Although the pyramid casing stones have all but disappeared, although many of the limestone has been sandblasted by the desert winds, although these ancient structures have been explored, sometimes dynamited, looted and excavated, it’s incredible that so much has survived on the Giza Plateau, preserved so tourists can get up close and personal with these seemingly impossible achievements of our ancestors.
But although many of the 4th dynasty monuments remain, one of them is certainly missing: pyramid G2-A.
Pyramid G2-A, or GII-A, was completely robbed of its stone. It had two descending passageways, one of which wasn’t found until 1960. Three plug blocks were still in place and on their removal, inside was found a large, sealed wooden box. What was inside? Watch this video to find out!
In this video, we delve into the incredible life and legacy of Spartacus, the legendary gladiator who defied the Roman Empire and led one of the greatest slave revolts in history. From his humble beginnings as a slave in the Roman Empire, to his rise as a legendary gladiator and revolutionary leader, Spartacus' life was full of triumphs, tragedies, and unforgettable moments.
We'll also explore the political and social context of ancient Rome, and how it shaped Spartacus' life and legacy. From the power struggles within the Roman Senate, to the brutal realities of life as a slave, we'll paint a vivid picture of the world in which Spartacus lived and fought.
From how he defeated some of Romes up and coming generals, to his showdown with Crassus.
Discover the shocking truths behind his struggle against the Roman army, the secrets behind his guerrilla tactics, and the betrayal that ultimately led to his downfall.
Throughout the video, we'll use a mix of historical accounts, analysis, and cinematic recreations to bring Spartacus' story to life.
We should all have a deep appreciation for the life and times of Spartacus, and why his story is still relevant today. Join us on this journey to discover the fascinating story of one of history's greatest heroes.
Just like our livestock, the animals we choose to bring into our homes and families all have stories of their own, reaching back thousands of years and spanning almost every continent. Join us as we explore the origins of all of our best friends!
When Eric Lawes set off for a field in Hoxne village, Suffolk on November 16, 1992, it wasn’t on a treasure hunt. The metal detector he’d received as a retirement gift was meant to find a hammer lost on the farmland. But the detector picked up a strong signal in the earth, leading Lawes to start digging, and it quickly became apparent that he had indeed found treasure.
After bringing up only a few shovelfuls of silver spoons and gold coins, Lawes quickly retreated and called the police and the local archaeological society. The very next day, as covertly as possible, the archaeologists excavated a chunk of earth with the treasure still contained within. This way, they could remove the objects under laboratory conditions, which would help determine the age and storage method of the cache. By the time everything had been removed from the dirt, the archaeologists had nearly 60 pounds of gold and silver objects, including 15,234 Roman coins, dozens of silver spoons and 200 gold objects.
Lawes received £1.75 million from the British government for finding the gold and leaving it intact, which he split with the farmer on whose land the hoard was uncovered (he also eventually found the hammer, which later went on exhibit). As for archaeologists, they had their own reward: of the 40 treasure hoards discovered in Britain, the Hoxne Hoard was “the largest and latest ever found in Britain,” says Rachel Wilkinson. The project curator for Romano-British collections at the British Museum, where the artifacts reside, Wilkinson says the unique way this hoard was excavated, compared to how most are retrieved by farmers plowing their field, makes it invaluable.
In the 25 years since the unearthing of the Hoxne hoard, researchers have used the objects to learn more about one of Britain’s most turbulent periods: the island’s separation from the Roman Empire in 410 A.D.
The end of the fourth century A.D. was an unsettled time for the Roman Empire. The territory stretched across the entirety of the Mediterranean world, including all of the land that would come to be Italy, Spain, Greece and France and large chunks of North Africa, Turkey and Britain. Under Emperor Theodosius, Christianity became the sole religion of the empire, while all other belief systems became illegal, a dramatic change after centuries of polytheism. And while parts of the Empire continued to thrive, the Western Roman Empire was deteriorating. Gothic warriors won battles and killed leaders like Emperor Valens, and in 410 the Visigoths (nomadic Germanic peoples) sacked Rome. Meanwhile, Roman subjects in Britain were left to fend for themselves against raiders from Scotland and Ireland, having lost the support of Roman soldiers even before the separation from the Empire.
“The years from the later fourth century to 450, the period including the British hoarding peak, witnessed numerous invasions into the [mainland Europe] Empire by Germanic and Hunnic groups often followed by largescale devastation and disruption,” writes Roman archaeologist Peter Guest, the author of The Late Roman Gold and Silver coins from the Hoxne Treasure.
This level of societal upheaval has led to the “hoards equal hordes” hypothesis. Basically, Romano-British citizens who no longer had the protection of the Roman Empire were so terrified of the raiding Saxons, Angles, Picts and others that they buried their most valuable belongings. According to an entry from 418 in the 9th-century text Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, “In this year the Romans collected all the treasures which were in Britain and hid some in the earth so that no one afterwards could find them, and some they took with them into Gaul.”
For all their fears of “barbarians,” the Romano-British weren’t only the only people in the Roman Empire to experience upheaval—yet nowhere else have hoards been discovered in as dense of numbers as in Britain. Could there be an alternate explanation for why some wealthy family buried so much gold in the ground?
Because no organic materials survived in the Hoxne hoard, radiocarbon can’t be used as a dating technique. Instead, archaeologists use the age of coins, which they arrive it by looking at inscriptions on the coin as well as the ruler depicted on its face.
“The date after which Hoxne must’ve been buried is 408 or 409 [based on the age of the coins] and the traditional model would suggest it was buried around about that point in time,” Guest said in an interview with Smithsonian.com. “My perspective is that actually we’ve been misdating these hoards. If you look at them a little more carefully, then they should be dated to the period after the separation of Britain from the Roman Empire.”
Guest argues that the coins may have been in circulation around Britain for decades after the Roman Empire removed its influence from the island. One bit of evidence he offers for this hypothesis is a practice called clipping. Of the more than 15,000 coins in the Hoxne cache, 98 percent are clipped—bits of their edges have been removed, reducing their size by as much as a third. Based on chemical analyses, Guest and others have found that the metal removed from those coins was used to make imitation Roman coins that remained in circulation for longer.
“The Roman Emperor wasn’t supplying Britain with new gold and silver coins, and in light of that, the population tried to get over this sudden cutoff in the supply of precious metals by making the existing supplies go further,” Guest said.
But part of the value of the Hoxne hoard is that it contains more than just a massive quantity of coins. In The Hoxne Late Roman Treasure: Gold Jewelry and Silver Plate, archaeologist Catherine Johns speculates that the Roman family to whom the treasure belonged kept them as sentimental objects.
This suggestion is possible thanks to an analysis of not just what was in the hoard, but also how it was hoarded. Surrounding the coins and gold objects were nails, hinges, locks, scraps of wood, bone and ivory. Some of the objects were packed with straw, while others were placed in smaller, leather-lined wood boxes. Some of the items revealed significant wear, such as the silver handle in the shape of a tiger that had been detached from its vase, and the damaged pepper pots. All these details imply the stash might have been buried with care rather than being hurriedly hidden. And they also offer archaeologists plenty of fodder for theories about life for a wealthy family at the turn of the fifth century.
Take the dozens of silver spoons, for example. Some of them are worn down and show evidence of being repaired. Others are marked with words, including names (Aurelius Ursicinus and Silvicola) and a Latin phrase (vivas in deo). And while most of the spoons are inscribed to be read from a right-handed position, one spoon looks as if it was made for a leftie.
Or look at the pepper pot, selected by the BBC as one of 100 objects to tell the story of the history of the world. The silver pot is molded in the shape of a noble woman, with holes in the base of the object for pepper to be shaken out. Not only does the pot tell us the owners engaged in international trade—pepper had to be shipped and purchased from India—but it also reveals details about women’s fashion. As Johns writes for the BBC, “The most striking aspect of the lady’s appearance is her intricate hairstyle. It would have required very long, thick hair and the attentions of a skilled hairdresser to create,” and included decorative pins arranged to look like a tiara.
Even the jewelry reveals tiny glimpses of what life may have looked like for women. There’s a gold body chain for an adolescent girl, several rings missing their gemstones, and multiple bracelets, including one with the inscription utere felix domina Iuliane—“use this and be happy, Lady Juliane.”
“Were Aurelius and Juliane the owners of the treasure, or perhaps their ancestors? We do not know,” writes Kenneth Lapatin in the Times Literary Supplement. “These people remain ciphers to us and, unlike their possessions, are largely irrecoverable.”
Archaeology is a field that often requires making inferences. The Hoxne hoard offers tantalizing slivers of the past without enough detail to allow for definitive answers. Even something as simple as when the treasure was buried currently remains unknowable. “You can’t prove or disprove either of these two positions,” Guest said of the hypothesis that the treasure was buried at the end of the Roman Empire in Britain or in the years after the end. “The dating of material culture to produce our chronologies and the difficulty of that goes back a long way in archaeology.”
But even surrounded by unanswered questions, the Hoxne treasure is an irresistible collection that tells a dramatic story: the end of one empire, the earliest days of what would eventually become another empire. And whatever else it might provide archaeologists, it also provides the public with a happy ending—sometimes you find buried treasure when you least expect it.
