6 Ancient Sports Too Awesome For the Modern World While the Ancient Greeks are often credited with inventing Western Civilization, they were also responsible for a brutal sport called Pankration, which was basically the first mixed-martial art and was totally not gay. As you can see, there is absolutely nothing gay about Pankration. The "Game" Pankration was a lot like modern MMA, except there were no rules, no rounds, no rests and--in an interesting twist on Mortal Kombat--killing your opponent resulted in an instant loss. Congratulations on the victory, Jax. How is that "Insane"? The idea was to get as close as you could to killing a guy without actually killing him, using an arsenal of strikes, takedowns, grapples, chokeholds, hyperextensions and movies starring Nia Vardalos. However, if the person you were fighting died, it meant he had bigger balls than you because he refused to quit. "Wait, what are you... The Fisherman's Joust Well, for several reasons... These guys aren't even jousting. Also, there's blood.
Ancient Sumer with thanks to The History GuideWhat is good in a man's sight is evil for a god, What is evil to a man's mind is good for his god. Who can comprehend the counsel of the gods in heaven? The plan of a god is deep waters, who can fathom of it? Where has befuddled mankind ever learned what is a god's conduct?Before CivilizationBetween 9000 B.C. and the beginning of the Christian era, western civilization came into being in Egypt and in what historians call Ancient Western Asia (modern-day Cyprus, Syria, Lebanon, Israel, Jordan, Turkey, south-western Russia, Iraq and Iran). The earliest permanent settlements occurred between 9000-6000 B.C. and were accompanied by the domestication of plants and animals. The city-state was Sumer's most important political entity.
12 of the World’s Most Mysterious Monuments & Ruins 12 of the World’s Most Mysterious Monuments & Ruins Article by Steph, filed under Abandoned Places in the Architecture category. Around the world, in places as diverse as Homestead, Florida and Yonaguni, Japan stand monuments and ruins whose origins are shrouded in mystery. Nobody knows exactly why Stonehenge was built, how a set of manmade ruins came to be submerged deep in the ocean or who commissioned a giant carved granite set of post-apocalyptic instructions for rebuilding society on a remote hill in Georgia. Monumental Instructions for the Post-Apocalypse (images via: Wired) On a barren knoll in northeastern Georgia stands one of the world’s most bizarre and mysterious monuments. Lake Michigan Stonehenge (image via: io9) A group of researchers using sonar to look for shipwrecks at the bottom of Lake Michigan got quite a surprise when they found what appears to be an ancient Stonehenge-like structure 40 feet beneath the surface of the water. Underwater Ruins in Japan (images via: Hottnez)
Our animated maps in free access - The map as history The first Christian communities (1st century) This map is part of a series of 17 animated maps showing History of Christianity. 4 are currently available online Independence for India and Pakistan Clement Attlee, the Labour Prime Minister who replaced Winston Churchill in July 1945, soon realised that independence for India was inevitable, but disagreements among the Indian politicians made the negotiations very difficult. This map is part of a series of 14 animated maps showing Decolonization after 1945 The circumference of the Earth and the Route towards the West In the 3rd century BCE, Eratosthenes calculated the circumference of the Earth with remarkable precision. In later centuries, other Greek geographers, including the most famous of them all Ptolemy, suggested a much lower figure for the circumference for our planet. This under-estimation was adopted by 15th century map-makers. This map is part of a series of 16 animated maps showing The Age of Discovery (Part I) Europe Plunges into War