Not even 50 years ago, Belize, in Central America, gained independence on September 21, 1981, but its history dates back to 9,000 years. In prehistory the territory was home to several ancient civilizations, including the Maya from around 1500 BC
‘Nenikekmen / We are victorious’ cried Pheidippides as he stumbled exhausted into Athens’ agora, after running over the mountain, to announce their victory over Persia in the Battle of Marathon in 490 BC.
It could be quite the talk show: Who is King Tut’s real father? The host would be handed an envelope with the paternity test results. The audience hushes, clutching their seats, biting their nails.
A temple of the god, Baal, built in the ancient city of Ugarit, nowadays called Ras Shamra, on the north-eastern shores of the Mediterranean coast of Syria, date back to the beginning of the Middle Bronze Period (c. 2000 BC).
Gewissae was an Anglo-Saxon kingdom that ruled much of southern Britain from the fifth to the seventh centuries as the island began forging a new identity in the aftermath of Roman occupation.
The towering ruins of the Priory of Our Lady at Thetford recalls in the words of English Heritage, “one of the largest and richest foundations in medieval East Anglia,” yet the ravaged stones of Thetford Priory also stand as testament to the brutal efficiency of the English Reformation.
