21 Feb 2020 Pre-Historic Island Hopping ‘Hobbits’ in the South Pacific By jim willis Archaeology & Science 1 Although New Zealand and the Philippines are separated by more than 5,000 miles (8,000 km), the stories of how people first migrated to them, and how those stories were treated by scholars, show clearly that, in the words of the poet Bob Dylan,... Read More
19 Feb 2020 The Augurs of Rome: Birds Predicting The Will Of The Gods By MartiniF History & Tradition 1 Cycles of nature were at the core of the ancient practice of divination to decipher the will of the gods. Many different methods of divination were practiced in antiquity, such as dream interpretations (oneiromancy), interpreting the entrails of... Read More
16 Feb 2020 Nadi Shastra: Ancient Leaves of Destiny By Enrico History & Tradition 0 A fascinating and incredible mystery is linked to ancient India, a journey into the remote past of a land that still has to reveal to the whole of humanity many of its 'stories' and its wonders. The so-called Leaves of Destiny, or Nadi Shastra,... Read More
15 Feb 2020 Swords of Fate: The Ancient Blades That Forged History By ashley cowie History & Tradition 1 For thousands of years humans have found good reason to stab, chop, slice and dice each other up, and the choice weapon which has endured the tests of time is the sword. Historically, kings, emperors, princes and royal army generals all owned their... Read More
13 Feb 2020 From Pigeon Poop to the Origin of the Universe By jim willis History & Tradition 0 The term, ‘Big Bang’ was coined by the English astronomer and cosmologist Sir Fred Hoyle in 1949. But when he first employed it, during a BBC radio broadcast on astronomy, it was meant to be derisive in nature. At that time in his life Hoyle... Read More
10 Feb 2020 Pirates of the Northern Seas and Scotland’s Oceanic Criminals By ashley cowie History & Tradition 0 Pirates, maybe even more than mermaids and sea serpents, are the most fascinating and misunderstood entities of maritime history and while it is known today that mermaids were seals and giant serpents were the washed up carcasses of whales, the... Read More
07 Feb 2020 Beware the Fate of the Fairy Winds By David Halpin Mythology & Mystery 0 In many folk tales from around the world there are accounts of a midwife who is taken by fairies to help with a birth. Apart from the overall otherworldly nature of these tales, the mode of transport is one which is often overlooked; that of the... Read More
05 Feb 2020 In Rome, I Saw Written On Top Of A Door By Roberto Volterri History & Tradition 0 In Rome "I saw written on top of a door." (Inferno, III, v. 11, Dante)In Rome, hidden a corner of Piazza Vittorio Emanuele II, one will find the last remnant of the Academia dell’ Arcadia, an esteemed group of alchemists, formed four... Read More
03 Feb 2020 Who Built This City? Underground Derinkuyu, and the Rock Churches of Göreme By jim willis Archaeology & Science 1 Could the underground cities in Cappadocia, Turkey date back to 12,800 years ago? In 1963, so the story goes, a man living in Cappadocia excavated some large stones from his basement while renovating his house. Behind them he found an ancient... Read More
31 Jan 2020 Real World Locations, Where Myth Meets Reality By ashley cowie Mythology & Mystery 1 Mythology presented in books, arts, cartoons and movies have subliminally forged impressions of mythical castles, magical mountains and enchanted forests in people’s minds, but many of the places featured in children’s stories are not simply... Read More