The History Thread!

Did the Székelys (the Hungarians in eastern Transylvania) believe in vampires?

Interesting question. I honestly have no idea.

Because Armored vehicles invariably come up at some point. So discussing them specifically doesn't over run the thread.

Bam done There is your Armored Vehicle thread. Have fun and crush small things.

But what about the history of crushing big things?

Siege weapons are a good topic as well. :P

The ancient Egyptian artist who decorated this coffin was a dud: "Archaeologists have analysed the odd and slightly inept painting found on a 2,400-year-old Egyptian coffin, which they say hints at a 'brain drain' during an unstable period in Egyptian history."

...That is actually kinda sad! With how important ufnerary rites were for egyptians, being not able to get this woman the funeral in a "proper" way might not have been a pretty experience.

Found this lovely album of color WW2 photos.

Thought this thread might enjoy. They're absolutely gorgeous.

It's odd to see a coloured photo of Eisenhower and Montgomery (in case of the former, at least from that period).

edited 12th Dec '14 1:24:48 PM by Quag15

Something from The BBC: The diplomat’s portable handbook (wheelbarrow required)

Given how the diplomatic staff tend to be, that's no surprise - it's not uncommon to find diplomats who could pose as Muslim on hajj, or Buddhists off to see a Monk somewhere, and do so while recording it all mentally.

If you ever find yourself thinking you can't chat up women, here is a picture of Yuri Gagarin◊ morosely sipping a cocktail while Vyacheslav Tikhonov chats to his date, Valetina Tereshkova, the first woman in space.

I don't know if Gagarin and Tereshkova actually came together, but its funny to imagine.

edited 13th Dec '14 7:59:48 AM by Achaemenid

Well, Yuri does seem to be the 'candle' in the table and in regards to them.

Magic mushrooms, hallucinogenic toad skins among common drugs in early Americas: "New research has found that psychoactive substances were widely used by ancient Mesoamerican civilisations in order to make sense of the world around them.

Led by neurologist Francisco Javier Carod-Artal from the Hospital Virgen de la Luz in Cuenca in Spain, the study found that pre-European civilisations in Mesoamerica used mind-altering substances for medical reasons and religious rituals. Mesoamerica is a region in southern North America defined by cultural similarities and extending from central Mexico to Belize, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, and northern Costa Rica. Within this region, a number of pre-Columbian societies dominated until the 15th and 16th centuries, when Spain colonised the Americas.

The study also found that indigenous communities living in this region are still using some of these same substances. "In many rural and traditional communities with limited access to the modern health system, many healers are taking care of the health in the native communities," Carod-Artal told Agata Blaszczak-Boxe at LiveScience. 'Seizures, migraine, depression, and other neurological and mental health disorders are treated in the context of ritual ceremonies with some of these drugs.'"

On the one hand, the first man into space.

On the other hand, Stirlitz.

Decisions, decisions.

Only the well-dressed elite can join Capuchin Monastery's 'Club Dead': "In catacombs below Italy’s Capuchin Monastery, thousands of mummies can be found posing in their best clothes, and no one really knows why."

If you read that page there's a link to another article about one particular mummy, a two year old girl who is much better preserved than the other corpses and appears to open and close her eyes. Apparently some guy discovered the secret behind the mummy, turns out that she's actually a vampire. The real reason behind her pristine preservation is that she was mummified by an expert instead of the local monks like the others were, and the blinking is just an optical illusion created by the glass.

edited 13th Dec '14 4:51:54 PM by Druplesnubb

I managed to cut out the entirety of the deranged anti-Semetic lyrics from Charlie and His Orchestra's version of "Makin' Whoopee" and it's actually a pretty nice.

But it's the deranged anti-Semitic lyrics that make Charlie and His Orchestra!

- Engineer Viniamin Prianichnikov, who crawled through an 80cm wide tunnel under the burning Chernobyl power plant to see if the core was melting down into the water table.

Heroes are Han Solos.

edited 14th Dec '14 5:33:32 AM by Achaemenid

Syphilis Sailed The Ocean Blue: Why A Bent Femur Won’t Overturn Columbus Theory: "In 1495 a horrific new disease appeared in Europe. Acquired by sexual contact and initially spread through Europe by mercenary soldiers from the army of King Charles VIII of France returning from a successful invasion of Italy, this new disease was extraordinarily unpleasant. Commentators at the time described dark green “boils that stood out like acorns,” accompanied by a stench so vile that if you smelt it you would imagine yourself infected, and by pains so severe that it was 'as if the sick had laid upon a fire'.

This new disease went by a variety of names, including The Great Pox, but most people preferred to blame it on the neighbours: the British called it the 'French disease,' the French called it the 'Italian' or 'Neapolitan disease' and the Italians called it the 'Spanish disease'. Today it is more widely known now as syphilis, an infection caused by the Treponema pallidum bacteria.

The most widely accepted theory is that syphilis was brought to Europe from the New World following Columbus’s voyage in 1492. But ideas about the origin of the infection still cause controversy. Most recent is the claim that bones found in Croatia that appear to show signs of syphilitic infection and which pre-date Columbus' expedition suggest the disease was around since Roman times. But a look at the wider evidence we have suggests otherwise."

I've heard that debate before. Other evidence came from Britain suggesting some people buried in a church died from syphilis over 100 years before Columbus as well. But other scientific journals have seem to have disproven those claims.

Meanwhile the most devastating pandemic in human history killed 90% of the indigenous inhabitants of the Americas. Isn't human history wonderful?

Since the idea of an Assassin's Creed game in China popped up here a while ago, have a look at this: Assassin's Creed Asia Isn't Impossible, Says Ubisoft

Apparently there already is a spinoff game set there in the works, but it's set during the Ming Dynasty, not the early years of the Republic I think the discussion focused on.

edited 15th Dec '14 4:06:52 AM by Krieger22

Not terribly surprised that they didn't go with the Republic.

Back to future with Roman architectural concrete: Advanced light source reveals key to longevity of imperial Roman monuments

Colossal statue of Pharaoh Amenhotep III raised in Egypt after 3,000 years