Questions tagged [ancient-history]
Ancient history was from the beginning of recorded history (c. 4000 B.C.) until the fall of the Roman Empire (c. A.D. 500).
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Ancient clothing in India [on hold]
Where can I find any reliable source to find about clothing in India regarding 400th BC?
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How did western classical ancients have a primarily biological valuation of human kind? [on hold]
In his book Psychological Types, and in respect of classical times, Jung says,
"The ancients had, so to speak, an almost entirely biological valuation of their fellow-men; this is everywhere ...
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Questions about Thracia [closed]
I have some questions which I’d like to ask you. I’ve been taught that Thracia was the first nation that was born in Europe before all the other European nations. Further, that Romania, which is the ...
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Question about Tauri tribe in Crimea
The old name for Crimea is Tuarica and the tribe that for some time lived there is Tauri. The info I have is that they are schyto sarmatian tribe and etc, but the point of my question is; Does anyone ...
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1answer
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Were the earliest Egyptian hieroglyphs ever discovered really found in Qustul in Ancient Nubia?
In a comment posted on an answer to the question, 'Does modern scholarship accept an Ethiopian origin for Egyptian hieroglyphs?', the user that posted the question wrote:
"The oldest kingdom in ...
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3answers
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Does modern scholarship accept an Ethiopian origin for Egyptian hieroglyphs?
Please Note: Ethiopia does not necessarily refer to the modern country (Abyssinia) now called by that name. The Ethiopians of antiquity were usually the Beja (Medjay), Bisharin and Nubian peoples of ...
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1answer
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Why did Hawaii become a dependent state of USA after USA was born 300 years ago? [closed]
I’m asking this because, I know that Hawaii is a very ancient civilization because it has an unique language, and you can’t find anywhere on Earth except in Hawaii, and when USA was born 300 yers ago, ...
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1answer
203 views
History of Moti Masjid
Who built the Moti Masjid?
Google says it's Sahjahan who built it, but Wikipedia says it was built by Jahangir.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moti_Masjid_(Red_Fort) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/...
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3answers
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How did the ancient Greeks synchronize time?
How the time synchronization was achieved in ancient Greece? The context of this question is about Eratosthenes and his calculation of the size of the Earth based on Sun casting shadows with different ...
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2answers
325 views
Is there any historicity to the concept of Ghost Fences / Walls?
A Ghost Wall or Fence is a concept I keep coming across in historical fiction set around the Iron Age or Sub-Roman Britain. Generally, it appears as a boundary made of deceased peoples bones to either ...
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2answers
145 views
What was the relation between the biblical king Herod and the Parthian king Orodes II?
What was the relation between the biblical king Herod and the Parthian king Orodes II who was named Hyrodes Anaridus on coins?
The son of Orodes II, Pacorus invaded Judea, however I could not find ...
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Roman desks and lacquer
I've been watching the Netflix piece on Ancient Rome and noticed a beautifully lacquered desk which I felt might not be accurate for the time. Does anyone have information about their use of lacquer ...
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2answers
348 views
Example of a battering ram used to successfully breach a gate
I am looking for a specific example of a battering ram used to breach the gate of a castle or fortification in Europe. I can find lots of indirect references to the use of battering rams on gates (...
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0answers
161 views
Have large human bones been used as measuring instruments?
Have any of the six types of large bones from the arms1 or legs2 of human beings ever been used (to a significant or considerable extent), in ancient or prehistoric times, as measuring instruments for ...
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0answers
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Djinn and devils/demons question [migrated]
I know that ancient Arabians had a mythology about evil creatures made of dust and fire called djinn, now my question is this: how were they different from Demons and devils?
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2answers
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Who was the first female ruler to be given the suffix, “the great”?
Down through the ages exceptional elite leaders have been referred to with the suffix, the great. Cyrus the Great of Persia, Alexander the Great of Macedonia, and perhaps Alaric the Great of the ...
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Has the drought also revealed ancient structures in France as it did in Ireland?
I was wondering whether the drought has also revealed ancient structures in France as it did in Ireland (e.g. like https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-44801939).
I searched the net but couldn't ...
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2answers
431 views
When did Northern India and N. China begin to dominate in global demographics?
Video: Human Population Through Time
This simple video says that there were 170 million people in the world at the beginning of the current era. Each dot represents a million people -there are about ...
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3answers
144 views
Are there any documented cases where a society was capable of large scale selflessness for the benefit of future generations? [closed]
Are there any documented cases in history where a society has altruistically created or conserved something exclusively for the benefit of next generations at a large scale?
An good example of such ...
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2answers
127 views
What was the medium for Marcus Aurelius's Meditations?
I imagine Romans using papyrus and quills on a still table, allowing time for the ink to dry, which may not be possible in a battlefield. I once saw a documentary which depicts him walking off in ...
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0answers
105 views
What kind of musical instruments were used in ancient barbarian tribes?
I am a member of a reenactment group in Romania, and we mostly do Roman, Dacian tribes and other barbarian tribes (allies of Dacians).
Some other members including myself want to form a band, and be ...
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3answers
438 views
How extensive and developed was the ancient Kushite (Nubian) horse trade?
In 1997 there was a fascinating paper published called The Horses of Kush by Lisa A. Heidorn in the Journal of Near Eastern Studies which summarized some finds about the popularity of horses from Kush ...
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1answer
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Need help identifying 2 old coins
Can anyone tell me what these 2 coins are ?
How can I safely clean them?
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0answers
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What terms and language do I need to search for collections of ancient symbols and images?
I'm sorry I just don't know the terminology to successfully google what I'm looking for. What field studies artifacts that contain some form of image made by people (even if the image is just a ...
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2answers
299 views
What was the legal process of raising a legion in late Republican Rome?
I've read some about both the Roman army and the Late Republican period, but realized that, while I understand well enough how legions worked in the field, I have only a very incomplete idea of who ...
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2answers
408 views
Did Greek traders visit the Philippines in the 1st century AD?
According to the article Cebu, a Port City in Prehistoric and in Present Times,
The Visayan Islands had earlier encounter [sic] with the Greek traders in 21
A.D.
This is repeated in the ...
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3answers
385 views
How accurately could ancient soldiers/commanders maneuver during battles
I am currently working on a small strategy game/interactive simulation of historical battles, whose main goal is to give the player – playing as the general of a ancient army – a more realistic amount ...
11
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1answer
270 views
Is David Graeber correct to assert that patriarchy did not exist in Sumeria?
In Debt: The First 5000 Years, David Graeber incisively claims that
As we’ll see, there is reason to believe that it is in such moral
crises that we can find the origin not only of our current ...
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0answers
109 views
What was the significance of the seven wonders of the ancient world in ancient life? [closed]
What is the background of the 7 wonders of the ancient world?
How significant were the wonders to those in ancient societies?
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4answers
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How did Christianity replace Roman Paganism and other ancient religions?
Christianity seems to have been the first world religion that was interested in and successful with establishing itself as not only the state religion of but practically the only in an empire - namely,...
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1answer
371 views
Why so many early temples on Malta?
Why is there such a concentration of early neolithic temples on Malta?
Seven world heritage sites, plus several other significant locations (see Megalithic Temples of Malta) adds up to a lot of ...
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1answer
161 views
What was clothing in ancient Palmyra like?
What is known about what people used to wear in the city of Palmyra during the third century AD? Was it more similar to Roman or Persian fashion of the period?
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1answer
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How do I find the sources which determined the year of the fall of Babylon?
I'm really asking a general question about the study of history. Allegedly, the Babylonian Empire fell to the Persians under Cyrus the Great in 539 BCE. All articles regarding this event simply take ...
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1answer
178 views
Did Ancient Romans use metal thimbles? What were they like?
The Romans didn't have forks, so they picked the food with their hands. It is known about the rich that after every course they wiped them and received from their slaves pots with perfumed water to ...
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1answer
143 views
Did Greeks piss in their theatres?
Are there any historical references to this being done? Either for fun, as revenge of some kind or for any other reason?
Did they have toilet facilities available near or inside the theaters, or even ...
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0answers
82 views
What were the incentives for war during the Warring States Period?
I've been reading about the Warring States Period in Li Feng's 'Early China', and I don't know if I missed a passage but I can't seem to figure out why the period was so violent.
I've been searching ...
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1answer
115 views
How could manu be Latin as it originated in Ancient India? [closed]
The word 'manuscript': Somewhere I read 'Manu' is a Latin word which means 'hand'.
How could this word be Latin as it originated in India or say Ancient India?
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2answers
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What is the first horse name recorded in history?
What is the first horse whose name has been recorded in history?
I wrote down a long list of famous people and their mounts, and I realized that Bucephalus, the horse of Alexander the Great, was the ...
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1answer
53 views
Where did Cicero talk about Plato's Menexenus Funeral Oration?
I'm writing a paper on Aspasia--ancient Greek woman rhetorician--and in Plato's Menexenus he attributes a funeral oration to her. I found references in a couple of places to Cicero saying that the ...
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1answer
109 views
When did cultures start to emerge in ancient Peru?
Upon understanding John Rowe's theory of horizons, I became a bit confused about what should be considered a culture. This concept isn't very clear to me.
According to John Rowe, the earliest period ...
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1answer
143 views
Is there any short summary of John Rowe's theory of horizons about the Incas?
This topic often gets me confused as I have not found much information about John Rowe's chronology of the origins of the Inca's empire. All that I know is that he divided the history of ancient Peru ...
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1answer
144 views
Why did almost every ancient civilization have a found religion? [closed]
I'm studying to be an Anthropologist and I've always had this question but I cannot get a definitive answer. Almost every ancient civilization I have studied, whether it be in the Old or New World had ...
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1answer
240 views
How is the accuracy of the Maya Calendar measured?
It is taken as a fact in many books and specialized publications that the Maya calendrical system - the Haab' and the Tzolk'in - was more accurate and closer to the real solar year than the Gregorian ...
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1answer
228 views
Why was Troy also called Holy Ilios?
Is there some evidence in the Iliad and the Odyssey why Troy was capitol and Holy city? Why was it the Holy city?
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1answer
171 views
How did the Trojan allies get to Troy?
Also, across which territory did they pass? From which side of the world did they come?
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1answer
222 views
What is the earliest evidence for the use of hearing aids?
D. N. Brooks, in Hearing aids – a historical survey states that Emperor Hadrian
reportedly used to cup his hand behind his ear, the better to hear the
affairs of state...Historically, the cupped ...
3
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1answer
180 views
Babylonian handbags - meaning?
What is the meaning of “handbags” that Babylonian gods are often depicted carrying ?
![god with handbag]
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1answer
101 views
Antoninus Pius coins
I have looked all over online and cannot find this specific coin. Can anyone help? We believe they are of Antoninus Pius, but I can’t identify anything on the back, although I believe the winged ...
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1answer
193 views
When was Sura in the Roman Empire?
I am curious about this statement:
Sura was under Roman control in the time of Pliny the Elder (23-79 CE) and Ptolemy (c. 100-170 CE) but was conquered by the Sasanian king Shapur I in 253 CE.
...
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1answer
319 views
Pythagoras: sinfulness of eating beans
I have read some of Pythagoras' commandments; they are strange. Any idea why he considered that eating beans was a sin?
The book from which I took the data is 'history of western philosophy' by ...
