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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Have Penal Colonies become independent?
Have there ever been any Penal Colonies that became independent nations/empires/what have you?
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Does anyone remember this lecture or at least the person? [closed]
I hope this is the right place to ask this:
A few years ago I have watched a very interesting lecture on youtube. I tried finding it again, and I am not able to.
What I remember:
The topic was... ...
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Did any significant changes occur in Zoroastrianism/Mazdayasna around the 1st century AD? [closed]
Has any significant changes occurred in history of Zoroastrianism/Mazdayasna circa 1st century AD in relation to its doctrines, practices and/or schools (movements) within it? What radical event(s) ...
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87 views
Who were the ancestors of the Albanians? [closed]
As of now, we are not so sure that the Illyrians were our ancestors,although it is the most probable theory, since they lived in the same area. Also, a lot of people consider the Epirotes living in ...
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1answer
1k views
How many times did the the sacred fire of Vesta die?
The sacred fire of Vesta was a sacred eternal flame in Ancient Rome, tended to by the Vestal Virgins. Except once a year for the kalendae (first day of March), extinguishing the sacred fire resulted ...
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1answer
740 views
Were women allowed to study at the Library of Alexandria?
The closest thing I've been able to find on the topic was in relation to Hypatia, the mathematician, who was born centuries after the library was burned. Is there a list of known people who studied at ...
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2answers
146 views
Is there any data that supports or refutes the claim made in this paper about the Harappan/Indus Valley civilization?
I came across an old article recently, about the collapse of the Harappan civilization. Here's the paper it is based on-
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3387054/
I found this to be the ...
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2answers
370 views
What are the historical equivalents of cooperative storytelling like modern role-playing games?
I understand the direct history of RPGs mostly coming from Dungeons and Dragons, which had grown out of the combat game Chainmail, but I am wondering if there were any close equivalents in older ...
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2answers
1k views
Are the historical sources from the ancient history trustable?
Are the historical books of Herodot or Polybius or any other historian from ancient history usually correct? Did they add some 'drama' in their books or did they desire to gain favor of those of high ...
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2answers
239 views
Which emperor tried to command the tides?
I remember somewhere a story about an emperor who was so convinced of his awesome powers that he attempted to command the tides to recede. All I can find on the web is the story of King Canute ...
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1answer
548 views
What is the meaning of the quadruple symbols combination on a possibly Roman monumental piece?
During my visit to a village central western part of the Asia Minor I saw monumental pieces. Which were emplaced on some part of the buildings by villagers. I see a sword, sickle (hook), pickaxe, and ...
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1answer
112 views
Is there any research on the (possible) ancient origins of populations in different regions in Cyprus and their movements on the island?
I was looking at a map of the kingdoms of ancient Cyprus where each kingdom was presented to have had either Greek majority , Phoenician majority or was mixed Greek/Eteocypriot so I was wondering if I ...
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1answer
111 views
What is the earliest-known list of the Roman Principate?
Iām wondering what the earliest-known surviving list of the Principate (27BC-284AD) is. Iām also interested in what the earliest-known record that uses the term Principate to refer to that group of ...
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100 views
Why did many Hellenic or Hellenized names in antiquity end in -bazos or -dates?
Ancient names ending with bazos (or bazus), eg megabazos(great-x), Artabazos (again great-x), Pharnabazos.
And Dates (Mithradates, Tiridates).
I know Mithra was a deity, what does the second half of ...
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2answers
185 views
What was the role of the mountain ranges surrounding India in developing India's civilization?
I am reading 'The Wonder That Was India' by A.L.Basham. In chapter 1, Introduction the author says,
India's isolation has never been complete, and the effect of the mountain wall in developing her ...
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134 views
Was Pericles the only famous loss from the plague in Athens?
Reading about the Plague of Athens in The Peloponnesian War by Thucydides, I was struck by this question.
The plague killed an estimated 75,000 to 100,000 people in a city full of famous people, but ...
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2answers
326 views
Why were the cities of the Eastern European Plain founded much later than those elsewhere in Europe?
As site on which to found a city, Moscow seems to have a lot going for it. It's surrounded by fertile farmland - Russia produces more grain than the United States - it's located on a watercourse which ...
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1answer
102 views
Do (modern) audio recordings exist for the sound of Ancient Egyptian, Ancient Coptic, or other ancient languages?
Here are audio recordings of the Akkadian or other Babylonian languages. They are of modern people reenacting it, but it sounds great. Good intro to the real ancient world.
Do any audio recordings ...
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5answers
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How did archers judge distance before range finders?
Before electronics, was there a method for judging distance in archery?
What methods were used historically?
How were combat archers trained to judge distances?
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1answer
106 views
What is the difference between galli and metragyrtai?
I have occasionally heard of the galli, castrated priests of Kybele in Rome.
Now, I noticed that Greek Lexika also refer to another type of said Godessās priest, namely a metragyrtes (ĪĪĪ¤Ī”ĪĪĪ„Ī”Ī¤ĪĪ£).
...
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1answer
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Were Roman males ever named after their mothers?
We know that Roman men often named sons after them, and daughters were usually given the feminine form of their father's name. But are there any records or evidence that a Roman man was ever given the ...
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2answers
243 views
Did they use nicknames in ancient Rome?
Praenomens in ancient Rome seemed to have been rather limited, especially by the time of the empire. There must've been cases where close friends or cousins and the like would've had the same ...
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1answer
173 views
Are there any hypotheses on how the Dorset people disappeared?
I read an article about how anthropologists have discovered artifacts from an ancient Arctic culture known as the Dorset that disappeared centuries ago and were the precursors to the Inuit in the ...
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1answer
302 views
Is there a reconstruction for whom and when were the peoples of the ancient Levant just before Israel, Judea and Edom?
Primarily from viewing lectures and interviews about the ancient history of the Levant, I understand that before Israel, Judea and perhaps also Edom states were created, their area included groups ...
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Could women make contracts in ancient Rome? [closed]
I'm writing a story and the main character is a wealthy widow who runs the estate for her rather lazy son. Could women in ancient Rome (specifically the 3rd Century Empire) legally make contracts, or ...
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3answers
277 views
Are there any examples of recurring payments in ancient times?
I'm interested in the history of recurring payments. The farthest I could get to is the feudal system, where peasants paid rent to knights once every so often. Obviously the banking system in the late ...
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0answers
351 views
Have historians attempted to reconstruct the polytheistic Semitic pantheon, dividing it into sub pantheons?
Historians reconstruct pantheons to better understand their role in society (see below for examples of reconstruction as a historical method). Has there been any attempt to apply this historical ...
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2answers
322 views
Who were the first leaders of the Yahwistic sect?
From reading the Bible and from studying from various lectures I have tried to synthesize who was or who were the first leader/s of the Yahwistic sect (Yahwism) in ancient Israel (the allegedly ...
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0answers
134 views
Why was being a school teacher something looked down upon in Ancient Greece?
I'm currently doing research on Epicurus for an article and I came across an passage from Timon (a central student of Pyrrho) where he calls Epicurus "Grammadidascalides", as if an epithet, along with ...
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2answers
663 views
Is there a database of ancient/current names of cities?
I am working on map of Ancient Etruscan civilization and I can't identify the exact location of Spica city. Based on minimap from Wikipedia page about Etruscan civilization, the city should lie about ...
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1answer
581 views
Was Yahweh a god in a possible Edomite Pantheon?
I understand from the Bible, from the Wikipedia articles Yahweh and Yahwism and from lectures of various scholars that polytheism was practiced by at least some religious leaders, priests, kings and ...
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1answer
326 views
How did Jerusalem function as an ancient city without a major water source? [closed]
Jerusalem seems to be an exception to the rule that all ancient cities must either be on a river or freshwater lake.
First settlement is estimated at 3500 BC.
The nearest major river as far as I can ...
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0answers
117 views
What actually happened during the elephant duel (Songkram Yutahatti) between King Naresuan of Ayutthaya/Siam and Mingy Swa of Hongsawadee/Burma?
Before we start, I just want to say that I find Thai history and the history of Southeast Asia in general to be extremely fascinating and interesting. I think that itās just as interesting as Chinese ...
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1answer
331 views
Did migrating people ever maintain contact across the Bering Strait?
The Inuit ranged from Alaska to Greenland. The Yupik were in Alaska and Russia. Would peoples have kept in contact across islands in the Arctic but not across the Bering Strait? This question could be ...
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2answers
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Why are there so many laws about eye injuries in the Code of Hammurabi?
Why are there so many laws about eye injuries in the Code of Hammurabi? (And so few laws about other body parts injuries.)
I want to concentrate on injuries mentioned as the crimes of physical ...
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1answer
245 views
Are there sources that record ancient women in patriarchal societies' thoughts about patriarchy?
Are there any sources describing what women in ancient patriarchal societies (like Greece, Rome, etc.) thought about the patriarchy? I've heard of feminist movements throughout history; this ...
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0answers
108 views
What would one call a skilled metal worker in Jerusalem, circa 600 BC?
I'm doing research for a book of fiction in which the main character is a skilled metalworker in ancient Jerusalem, circa 600 BC. I want to be authentic and historically accurate.
This person is ...
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2answers
141 views
How to you reply to Henry Ford and Otto von Bismarck? [closed]
All history is bunk -- Ford
All history is fairy tales rewritten by the winner of the last war --
Bismarck
There is a LOT of truth to what they say. And with PhD thesis like
the courtmartial of ...
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2answers
218 views
What are the most recommended non-biased books on Egyptian History
I am new to Egyptology, what are the most recommended non-biased books on Egyptian History, Hieroglyphs, mythology, etc... that are not biased and written by experts in the field?
By non biased, I ...
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3answers
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What is the difference between the Ancient Greek religion and the Ancient Roman religion?
What is the difference between the Ancient Greek religion and the Ancient Roman religion?
My question is about, not cultural differences, but conceptual differences." Wikipedia doesn't compare them. ...
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0answers
223 views
What is the origin of the idea to cover genitals with clothes or other materials? [closed]
This question was difficult to word. Please edit if it can be worded better.
I've seen many murals and ancient drawing as far back as 3,000BC (Kemetian, Sumerian) of society wearing atleast some ...
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0answers
143 views
Did soldiers and/or athletes of ancient times perform any kind of stretch or warmup exercises?
There are some 'time travel' stories where the protagonist, hailing from a modern age, does stretches and warmup exercises (calisthenics, radio, etc) and the natives have no idea what that is.
There'...
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2answers
3k views
How did Roman armies survive in the desert?
I'm writing a novel set in the third century. A general is marching his army through the middle of the Syrian Desert. How did Roman armies with tens of thousands of soldiers survive in the arid ...
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3answers
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Did slaves have slaves?
Was there anywhere in history where the enslaved were able to enslave others?
Was there a slave hierarchy?
I read the slavery wikipedia entry, it mentions that in various cultures people retained ...
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Are there more long Egyptian texts in pure hieroglyphics available online?
So far I've only found 3 or 4:
https://oi.uchicago.edu/sites/oi.uchicago.edu/files/uploads/shared/docs/oip34.pdf (This has a lot of fragments)
http://etana.org/sites/default/files/coretexts/14900.pdf ...
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1answer
794 views
Did ancient people regularly suffer from colds?
It seems that most people suffer some kind flu or a cold each year, particularly throughout winter. Did ancient people tend to regularly suffer seasonal sickness such as colds and the flu?
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2answers
232 views
Where is it recorded that Spartan common meals were followed by a recounting of noble deeds?
I'm having trouble finding a particular historical reference.
In On Manly Courage: A Study of Plato's Laches, on page 57, the author implies that Spartan common meals were followed by the recounting ...
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1answer
404 views
Why is the Harappa (Indus Valley) civilization considered one of the six independent cradles of civilization?
In addition to the proven Sumerian presence in Harappa, all its crops originates in the Fertile Crescent or Far East, which proves that they have been influenced by foreigners since the Neolithic ...
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4answers
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Did ancient peoples ever hide their treasure behind puzzles?
I just saw the film Dora and the Lost City of Gold, in which there is a somewhat meta running commentary over whether so-called "jungle puzzles", intellectual challenges typically requiring explorers ...
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3answers
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Earliest evidence of objects intended for future archaeologists?
In modern times, it is not unusual for people to wonder what, if anything, will archeologists of the future (human or otherwise) will learn about our civilization from various artifacts we leave ...
