rosetta stone 2016

In 1799, soldiers fixing a wall found a slab that unlocked a language no one could speak |

During routine repairs in 1799, French soldiers near Rosetta discovered a granodiorite slab inscribed with three scripts. This artefact, the Rosetta Stone, proved to be the key to deciphering ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs. Image credits: via Wikimedia Commons There is something rather sneaky about history. World-shattering revelations can happen when one doesn’t think they’re coming. Sometimes…

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seahenge

In 1998, a beachgoer spotted an upside-down tree in the sand, uncovering the ancient ritual secrets of Seahenge |

A prehistoric monument, Seahenge, was discovered at Holme-next-the-Sea, Norfolk, dating back 4,000 years. Image Credits: via Wikimedia Commons At the dawn of Holme-next-the-Sea in Norfolk, England, a strange phenomenon occurred during the sunrise. Someone walking on the beach noticed a strange figure making its way across the water, resembling an upside-down tree, its roots growing…

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the digging at the quiet suffolk mound changed what we know about early england

In 1939, A local man’s routine dig on a country estate exposed a hidden ship and rewrote the story of Britain’s “Dark Ages” |

The digging at the quiet Suffolk Mound changed what we know about early England. Image credit – Gemini What begins with a simple dig many times results in incredible discoveries. A similar mundane excavation incident in 1939 yielded one of the greatest discoveries made within European archaeology. This was seemingly carried out privately on a…

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interior of mammoth cave western australia october 2023 01

In the early 1900s, cavers in Western Australia found massive bones and unearthed Mammoth Cave, a lost world of giant fossils |

New research indicates early Australians were not just hunters but possibly the world’s first palaeontologists, collecting and valuing fossilized bones, transforming the cave from an ‘abattoir’ into a source of ancient narratives. Image Credits: Via Wikimedia Commons Buried within the limestone formations in the far south-western reaches of Western Australia is a place where one…

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snettisham hoarddscf6579

In 1966, a tractor driver uncovered twisted gold in a Norfolk field, revealing the massive Snettisham hoard |

A routine ploughing in Snettisham, Norfolk, unearthed Europe’s greatest Iron Age treasure trove, a hoard of over 175 torcs and other precious metal objects. Image Credits: Johnbod, via Wikimedia Commons The mundane routine of agricultural tasks in Snettisham, Norfolk, quickly gave way to an unexpected episode of serendipity. The plough blade came across some stubborn…

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art fry built the foundation for post it notes from spenser silvers glue

In 1968, Spencer Silver created a glue “failure” that later helped create one of the world’s most popular office tools |

Art Fry built the foundation for Post-it notes from Spenser Silver’s glue. Image credit – Wikimedia When scientist Spencer Silver was working on making a strong adhesive in 1968, his creation turned out to be quite different. His glue adhered only weakly, meaning that it did not form a permanent connection. For any laboratory work,…

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