Ancient Origins Magazine

The Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games will include five new sports - baseball/softball, karate, sport climbing, skateboarding, and surfing. This is one of the ways these Olympics are unique, but this event also differs from others in striking ways due to the impact of the coronavirus pandemic.

For one thing, the Olympics were postponed for a year. Another difference from past events is that fans won’t be there to cheer on their favorite athletes. Tens of thousands of athletes, support staff, and journalists are expected to attend, but spectators have been banned from the venues. While debate continues on whether sports broadcasters will try to incorporate artificial crowd noise into the games, it makes me consider the role of spectators at the Olympic Games of the past.

The ancient Olympics also knew how to draw in crowds of men (women weren’t allowed). The stadium of Olympia could contain about 45,000 spectators and that in Nemea about 40,000. If they had the means, men would travel from far and wide to watch their favorite runners, boxers, wrestlers, horse racers, and javelin throwers. But the audiences didn’t just attend because they loved sports, they also knew that the Games were a good place to network.

In-between events, merchants, fortune-tellers, jugglers, and many others conducted business. Even philosophers and writers, like the historian Herodotus, sought out the large audiences with hopes of gaining fame. Politicians of course saw the occasion as a good opportunity for political propaganda.

While spectators were undoubtedly important ever since the ancient Games, most people would agree the value of sports is more than just the number of fans cheering on athletes. Although some sports stars, such as the charioteer Gaius Appuleius Diocles, who you’ll learn about in this issue, were out for fame, many athletes are spurred on by their love of the sport more than their adoring fans and money.

In this issue we explore the origins and passion people hold for popular sports such as football, golf, and boxing all around the world. But we also cover some terrifying sports you may be less familiar with, such as buzkashi, described as “blood-drenched polo, with a headless goat as the ball.” A less intense, but equally surprising sport you’ll learn about is lava sledding in Hawaii – we have an exclusive interview with the man behind this ancient sport’s comeback.

Remember how I mentioned that women couldn’t attend the ancient Olympics where men competed? They had their own! This issue guides you through the fascinating story of the Heraean Games, one of history’s best kept secrets.

Speaking of secrets and mysteries, we also cover the legends surrounding the Cwezi – were they African demigods or possibly visitors from another planet?

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On January 9, 1493, Christopher Columbus was sailing in the Caribbean Sea when he reported seeing three mermaids rise out of the sea. Writing in his ship log, he revealed that they were not as beautiful as typically depicted in paintings, but that they did have a human face. 

Columbus’ report was not particularly unusual for his era. In centuries past, the world’s oceans were thought to be full of sea monsters, sirens, krakens, and other bewildering creatures. We now know that most of these cryptids, or “hidden animals”, described in the Middle Ages correspond with species that had not yet been classified by science, such as whales, walruses, and giant squids.

Sadly, Columbus had not seen mermaids but most likely manatees – a marine mammal related to the elephant which, from a distance, can appear human-like; they have round heads which they can turn from side to side, their forearms bend at the elbow, and they nurse their young in the same way humans do. In fact, the scientific name for manatees is Sirenia, a name reminiscent of sirens, the mythical mermaids of ancient Greece.

It is at this collision point between the fantastical creatures of folklore and the animals not yet discovered by science, that we find the field of cryptozoology, which is dedicated to the study of animals rumored but not proven to exist. Some animals we know today, like the gorilla and platypus, were once cryptids but are now recognized by science. Others, like bigfoot, sasquatch or the Loch Ness monster continue to tempt the hopeful with the possibility of their existence.

In this issue, we delve into the curious world of cryptids, exploring what facts are behind the legends of Olgoi-Khorkhoi, the Mongolian death worm of the Gobi Desert; Camazotz, the batman of Mesoamerica; Kraken, the giant, ship-destroying sea creature of Scandinavian folklore; Unicorns, and the dinosaur-like monsters said to lurk in the depths of lakes. Of course, we could not leave out the world’s most captivating cryptid – bigfoot, and his related ‘cousins’, the yeti, yowie and sasquatch. What is behind the global phenomenon of hairy hominid sightings? We also hear from a cryptozoologist who tells us what it is really like out in the field searching for cryptids, and we leave you with the ultimate cryptid film list!  

Skeptics love to poke fun at cryptids research, but there is one thing that both cryptozoologists and scientists can agree on – there are a lot of strange creatures out there whose existence has yet to be proven.

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There are more than six billion people on the planet that worship a god or gods in one form or another. But humanity’s belief in god has fundamentally changed. Today, most adherents of a religion believe in a benevolent, merciful, and loving god (or gods). But it was not always this way. 

In the ancient world, gods and goddesses were believed to cast their wrath and fury upon the world, bringing droughts and floods, sickness, crop failures, plagues, and endless disasters. There were, of course, benevolent deities too – protectors, providers, healers, creators, and saviors, but their favor could not always be counted on, and keeping them appeased with offerings, rituals, or sacrifice, was of utmost importance.

Religious beliefs were so intricately woven into the fabric of existence that major events, such as wars, the rise and fall of rulers, and natural disasters; and even the ordinary events of daily life, were all believed to be under the will of the gods - nothing happened on earth unless first decreed in the heavens.

In many ways, these gods of old have never truly left us. Tales of their battles, bickering and conquests have influenced the course of our language and narrative. In fact, we pay homage to them daily – every Thursday (Thor’s Day), for example, we recall the Norse god Thor, the almighty god of thunder, while in February, we recollect Februus, the Roman god of purification. Traces of these ancient gods are also found in our modern-day symbols – the caduceus of god Mercury remains a symbol of trade and commerce, while the rod of Greek god Asclepius is a symbol used by healthcare and medical practices around the world.

Not only have the ancient gods never truly disappeared, but a revival in polytheistic beliefs is stirring once more. Nordic paganism is now Iceland’s fastest-growing religion, with the construction of the first temple to Thor and Odin in over 1,000 years, and all across Europe, we are seeing a renewed interest and adherence to old pagan traditions. Will we see the rise of the ancient gods once more?

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For many people, mummies conjure up images of horrifying, linen-wrapped monstrosities, arms reaching out from the dark, dusty tombs in which they have emerged. Fueled by legends and pop culture, superstitions remain strong even today – opening a mummy’s tomb is sure to lead to certain death, or at the very least, a lifetime of bad luck!

But in the ancient world, mummification was an honored tradition in which the deceased was ceremonially prepared for the afterlife, often through an elaborate and highly skilled process that was imbued with deep religious significance. So successful was this mummification process, in many instances, that the stomach of the deceased may still contain the last meal they ate before death. 

To look upon a mummy is to come face to face with our past. The remains of these ancient humans provide a window into the lives, health, culture, and deaths of individuals that have long gone. Today’s scientists treat them with great care, realizing that within them can be found knowledge of times passed. But it was not always this way.

Mummies have been ground into paint, boiled down into medicines, burned as fuel, and paraded around as entertainment. They were a commodity, a curiosity and a prized relic of an ancient age – the properties of which were believed to be both mystical and powerful.

In this issue, we bring to life the unknown worlds of the long-dead - exploring the near-perfect remains of ‘incorruptible’ medieval saints, unraveling the mystery of a mummified Persian princess bearing signs of a violent death, investigating the identity of the ‘Screaming Mummy’ who met a gruesome end, and celebrating the thousands of mummies – both human and animal – that have been discovered across the world, providing deep insights into the people of our past.

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The ancient Maya created one of the most famous civilizations in the world. Even today, people are still astounded by their monumental city structures at sites like Uxmal, Tikal, and Chichén Itzá. We trek through these awe-inspiring Mesoamerican locations where elite priests and powerful royals managed their people and lands.

The Maya had advanced knowledge of math, astronomy, and agricultural techniques, and in this issue we look at how they applied their skills so cleverly to life. They also developed their own writing system and used the hieroglyphs to tell their factual and mythological stories on decorated temple walls, pottery, and monuments. This special July-August issue reveals some of the rich religious beliefs held by the ancient Maya to explain how humanity arrived here and what happens in the Underworld when our days are done.

This issue provides insight on some of the darker ancient Maya traditions, such as bloodletting and human sacrifice. Thankfully, those practices have been cast aside by later generations, but other, more peaceful actions, such as creating foamy chocolate drinks and caring for stingless bees, are still cherished by their descendants today.

It seems the ancient Maya people had everything going for them…but then their civilization suddenly stopped. They abandoned their most precious city centers and stopped writing about their rulers. Why the ancient Maya civilization fell is one of the greatest archaeological mysteries. So, of course we explore the most popular, science-backed beliefs about what led to their dramatic end.

While the people have left us, their stories and influence remains. Whether it is through genetic ties, curiosity, a visit to the amazing sites, or by incorporating their tasty crops into our own kitchens (tomatoes, chilies, chocolate…the list goes on), everyone has felt the impact of the ancient Maya!

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