ARCHAEOLOGISTS IN PERU……have uncovered a monumental throne room and the “Hall of the Braided Serpents” …..at the ancient Moche site of Pañamarca…..revealing evidence of a powerful woman who may have ruled over 1,300 years ago…..the throne room, decorated with murals of a crowned woman receiving visitors…..suggests the presence of a female ruler…..the worn throne shows signs of frequent use…..and researchers found colorful stones and human hair embedded in it…..nearby murals in the Hall of the Braided Serpents depict large, human-sized snakes and a mythical creature……offering insights into Moche ceremonies and beliefs…… this discovery adds to growing evidence…..that women held positions of political and ceremonial power in Moche society…..challenging traditional views of it as male-dominated.
THE AVERAGE PERSON…..consumes 9 pounds (4 kg) of coffee a year — that’s 496 pounds (224 kg) over the course of life…… want some other fun facts?….well, coffee’s actually a fruit….
the “beans” grow on a bush…..and are found in the center of a berry….known as a coffee cherry…..on average, an individual spends about $1,100 on coffee a year…..that’s about $60,500 over the course of life…… in the United States alone….people consume around 146 billion cups of coffee annually…..or about nine pounds (4 kg) per person…..globally, around 400 billion cups of coffee are consumed each year.
UNTIL THE 1990s……people thought that the temples on the island of “Malta” were the largest megalithic building on Earth……Göbekli Tepe is an old refuge at the highest point of a large mountain range in southeastern Turkey……not far from the border with Syria and about 15 kilometers northeast of the city of Sanliurfa (formerly Urfa/Edesa)…..archaeologists from Turkey and Germany are currently digging at a site that was dug up by hunter-gatherers….in the 10th millennium BC, between 9600 and 8200 a.C.,…..before people started living in one place all the time…..this whole group of stones, pillars, and statues was buried on purpose around 8,000 BC,…. and it stayed that way for 500 years…..no one knows why…..this site, along with Nevali Cori…..changed the way we think about the Eurasian Neolithic…..it has the oldest megalithic structure that we know of…..and it was built 6,000 years before Stonehenge…..people think it is the world’s oldest temple or sanctuary…..it’s thought to be where “the consciousness of the sacred” began, which was the start of civilization……so far, Göbekli Tepe is the world’s oldest religious place that has been found…..before the dig started, it wasn’t thought that such an old community could have built such a big structure…..the strong stratigraphic sequence points to activity that happened over many thousands of years……probably since the Mesolithic…..a few humanoid shapes were found at Göbekli Tepe…..one of them was a relief of a naked woman standing in front of a man and bending over……Schmidt thinks this woman is related to figures from Neolithic North Africa……who were known as welcoming Venus…..there is also at least one body with its head cut off, circled by vultures.
THE HAYA PEOPLE…..are an ethnic group from northwest Tanzania…..and they have a remarkable history that goes back over 2,000 years…..they are well-known for their skill in forging steel…..which is the process of making metal tools and weapons…..archaeological digs in their region have uncovered ancient furnaces that show how the Haya used to work with metal…..these furnaces have been carbon dated to be around two millennia old….proving that the Haya have been making metal items for a very long time……the art of forging steel involves heating iron until it is red hot…..and then shaping it with tools like hammers and anvils…..for the Haya people…..this craft is not just about creating useful items…..it also reflects their culture and traditions…..many Haya women are known for their beautiful tattoos…..which are an important part of their identity…..these tattoos often symbolize their heritage and status within the community……today, the Haya people continue to take pride in their steel forging skills….keeping their ancient traditions alive…..their rich history serves as a reminder of the importance of craftsmanship…..and how it connects people to their past…..the Haya show us how cultural practices can endure and thrive over time…..highlighting the strength and creativity of their community.
THE TERRACOTTA ARMY……it was built between 246 and 206 BC…..and is a faithful reproduction of the army that led the State of Qin, (end of the Warring States period, 476 – 221 BC)……to victory over the adversaries and to the unification of the Chinese Empire……in 1974, some farmers dug a well in Lintong County…..about thirty kilometers away from Xi ‘an…..thus it was that by chance, three graves containing the famous terracotta warriors were discovered….. part of the funeral equipment of the first Chinese emperor Qin Shihuang, (Kingdom 221 BC – 210 BC)……the army is made up of reproductions of terracotta warriors,….dressed in armor and equipped with weapons….placed to guard the tomb of Emperor Qin Shi Huang…..about 8000 warriors, 18 wooden chariots, and 100 terracotta horses have been brought to light…..it is a faithful replica of the army that had helped unify China.
WHAT THE STONE OF PALERMO IS…..the Rosetta Stone is famous for helping people figure out Egyptian hieroglyphics…..the Palermo Stone, on the other hand…..is an important part of Egypt’s past…..a piece of this fifth-century basalt stella can be seen at the Palermo Archaeological Museum in Sicily…..it shows information about Egypt’s first kings, mythical rulers, cult rituals, taxes, and more……the Palermo Stone was once about 2.1 meters long and 0.6 meters wide…..now, only pieces of it remain….with smaller ones in Cairo and London….it is one of the oldest records of Egyptian history…..it covers the time of the ancient kingdom and the time before the dynastic period…..and it lists kings and queens from Horus to Menes and beyond….the stone has information about events that happen every year….but it’s most likely talking about cow censuses that happen every two years…..it also talks about the building of Men-netjeret…..which may have been the first step toward the Djoser Pass Pyramid…..it also talks about the early melting of copper…..gods like Min and Heryshef, and Sneferu’s military battles……this old artifact tells us about Egypt’s history…..from its earliest architectural achievements to its extensive military actions.
BEHOLD A MASTERPIECE OF MUSICAL HISTORY……Johann Sebastian Bach’s handwritten personal copy of his monumental Mass in B minor……a work considered one of the greatest achievements of classical music…..was completed in 1749….the Mass showcases Bach’s unparalleled skill and devotion to his craft…..this precious manuscript is held by the Berlin State Library…..and has been recognized by UNESCO as a Memory of the World…..a testament to its cultural significance.