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World History
Ernst Stromer discovered Spinosaurus in Egypt. His fossils were destroyed in WWII, yet still shape how we imagine this mysterious dinosaur today.
The plan — conquer China and push west to attack the Ottomans — was peak imperial hubris, as the Spanish themselves eventually realized.
Historians Alexandra Churchill and Nicolai Eberholst reexamine the pivotal conflict from a grassroots perspective.
"The Big Map of Who Lived When" plots the lifespans of historical figures — from Eminem all the way back to Genghis Khan.
The fellowship's journey through Middle-earth mirrors the modernization of the English countryside.
“Chicago May” was a classic swindler who conned her way around the world in the early twentieth century. She was also a sign of hard times.
With the invention of the leap year, the Julian calendar was used worldwide for over 1500 years. Over time, it led only to catastrophe.
From Æthelred the Unready to Halfdan the Bad Entertainer, these strange epithets colored the legacy of four rather unlucky historical figures.
Gladiators fought in rounds, and there were referees to enforce rules. Only rarely were gladiators killed.
Thanks to protocols established centuries ago in Europe, world leaders no longer need to worry about having their heads bashed with an axe.
Dive into China's profound intellectual legacy through five seminal texts that have shaped millennia of thought.
The history of cartography might have been very different if the Latin version of Muhammad al-Idrisi's atlas had survived instead of the Arabic one.
The global extent of the Revolutionary War surprises many Americans today — but it was crucial to independence.
Almost all royal lines try to legitimize their rule with legendary origin stories. Here are five of the strangest examples.
Once a cosmopolitan faith, Islam valued intellectualism and modernity. It was derailed by various geopolitical and religious forces.
Glimpse into the ancient Maya empire through the writing of its own inhabitants.
Here’s what Europe would have looked like if the Confederation of the Danube had been established after WWII.
Mongol forces never fully conquered the continent, but they played a key role in its historical development.
Queen Calafia seems like she could have sprung from the pages of a modern fantasy novel.
This year marks 2,000 years since the birth of the Roman author of the first natural encyclopedia.
Studying the display of personal wealth across time can help us better understand the history of socioeconomic inequality.
Wealth concentration among elites was common in ancient nations, but the scale on which it took place in Egypt’s 18th Dynasty was unprecedented.
The most important events in history have nothing to do with politics or wars.
The Knights Templar were not only skilled fighters, but also clever bankers who played a crucial role in the development of Europe’s financial systems.
Is history decided by discernible laws or does it unfold based on random, unpredictable occurrences?
With almost every shovel of sand shifted in Egypt, another artifact comes to light.
More than 1,000 years ago, Mesoamerican societies conducted one of history's most interesting experiments in commodity money.
Million Stories
Venerated astrophysicist Carl Sagan entertained the possibility.
Some artifacts drown in shipwrecks, others are taken by the tide. Many others will vanish as a result of climate change and rising sea levels.