THE FACE OF THE STATUE OF LIBERTY……ISABELLA BOYER……She was born in Paris……the daughter of an African pastry chef and an English mother……Isabella had a special beauty and, at age 20….she married Isaac Singer…..the sewing machine maker….who was 50 years old…..after Singer’s death, Isabella became the richest woman in the country…..it is not surprising that she was chosen as the model for the Statue of Liberty…..as she embodied the American dream…..widowed, Isabella traveled the world and married the Dutch violinist Victor Robstett…becoming a countess…..he became a prominent figure in America and Europe.…and met the French sculptor Frédéric Bartholdi at a world event…..Bartholdi, impressed by her beauty and history…..used her face as a model for the Statue of Liberty….Isabella married a third time and died in Paris in 1904 at age 62…..but her face lives on in the iconic statue in New York….symbolizing freedom and American pride.
IN 1920…..at the age of 21, Adam Rainer was only 3’10″…..he had a rapid growth spurt….and by 1931 he had reached 7’2″…..when he died in 1950…..he was 7’8″…..he remains the only person in history to have been both a dwarf and a giant.
THE DAHOMEY AMAZONS…..Known as the Mino warriors…..this fierce all-female military squad from the kingdom of Dahomey, West Africa (modern-day Benin)…..operated from the 17th to 19th centuries…..The Mino, nicknamed the Dahomey Amazons by Europeans….were initially elephant hunters who evolved into a formidable military force…..these warriors, also called N’Nonmiton or “Our Mothers”…..were revered for their unmatched combat skills and loyalty to the kingdom…..recruited as young as 8 years old….many Mino sought escape from poverty or oppressive marriages….they took vows of celibacy…..to stay focused on their duties….The Mino’s rigorous training included survival expeditions and mastering combat techniques….with the motto “Conquer or Die”….. they dominated the battlefield and held significant roles in the kingdom’s Grand Council…..armed with Winchester rifles, clubs, and knives…..the Mino were a force to be reckoned with…..by the mid-19th century, they numbered between 1,000 and 6,000……making up a third of Dahomey’s army…..the kingdom eventually fell to French colonization, and the Mino were disbanded…..but their legacy of courage and empowerment endures.
THE INVENTOR OF THE AUTOMATIC TRAFFIC LIGHT…..Was an African American named Garrett Morgan…..he was an African American inventor notable for his innovative contributions…..in 1923, he patented the automatic traffic light…..an improved version of the manual traffic light……which included warning signals to regulate vehicle traffic more safely and efficiently…..this invention was fundamental to improving road safety in modern cities…..in addition to the traffic light……Morgan also invented a gas mask that protected against toxic gases and carbon monoxide……after witnessing a mine tragedy in which he helped rescue trapped workers…..his gas mask was widely used and saved numerous lives during fires and industrial emergencies…..these inventions not only highlight Morgan’s technical skill…..but also his commitment to public safety and welfare…..his legacy lives on as an inspiring example of how innovation can make a significant difference in everyday life and in emergency situations.
DATING BACK AROUND…….12,600 years, a vast 8-mile-long expanse of ice age artwork in the Amazon rainforest……illustrates mastodons, giant sloths, and various extinct species….this ancient art offers a priceless glimpse into the ancient past and the animals that inhabited the planet.
THE ANCIENT BODIES IN POMPEII……Pompeii, Italian Pompei, preserved ancient Roman city in Campania, Italy……14 miles (23 km) southeast of Naples, at the southeastern base of Mount Vesuvius……around noon on August 24, 79 CE, a huge eruption from Mount Vesuvius showered volcanic debris over the city of Pompeii…….followed the next day by clouds of blisteringly hot gases…..buildings were destroyed, the population was crushed or asphyxiated, and the city was buried beneath a blanket of ash and pumice…..for many centuries Pompeii slept beneath its pall of ash, which perfectly preserved the remains…..when these were finally unearthed, in the 1700s, the world was astonished at the discovery of a sophisticated Greco-Roman city frozen in time…..grand public buildings included an impressive forum and an amphitheater……lavish villas and all kinds of houses, dating back to the 4th century BCE, were also uncovered……inside were some preserved remains of people sheltering from the eruption…. others lay buried as they fled……bakeries were found with loaves still in the ovens…..the buildings and their contents revealed day-to-day life in the ancient world….and stirred 18th-century interest in all things classical.
IN HIS 1976 BOOK……Called The Twelfth Planet…..Russian-American author Zecharia Sitchin claimed that the Anunnaki were actually a race of extraterrestrial beings from the undiscovered planet Nibiru…..who came to Earth around 500,000 years ago in order to mine gold…..according to Sitchin, the Anunnaki genetically engineered homo erectus to create modern humans to work as their slaves……Sitchin claimed that the Anunnaki were forced to leave Earth when Antarctic glaciers melted…..causing the Flood of Noah…..which also destroyed the Anunnaki’s bases on Earth…..these had to be rebuilt and the Nephilim…..needing more humans to help in this massive effort, taught them agriculture……Ronald H. Fritze writes that, according to Sitchin….. “the Annunaki built the pyramids and all the other monumental structures from around the world…..that ancient astronaut theorists consider so impossible to build without highly advanced technologies.”…….Sitchin also claimed that the Anunnaki had left behind human-alien hybrids……some of whom may still be alive today…..and unaware of their alien ancestry…….Sitchin expanded on this mythology in later works…..including The Stairway to Heaven (1980) and The Wars of Gods and Men (1985)……In The End of Days: Armageddon and the Prophecy of the Return (2007)…..Sitchin predicted that the Anunnaki would return to earth…..possibly as soon as 2012, corresponding to the end of the Mesoamerican Long Count calendar.