General ancient history

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Andrew Ziminski pictured at his workshop in Somerset.

Andrew Ziminski "The stonework at Stonehenge is a Gordian knot of mind-bogglingness" . This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Bottle of 'love potion'

General ancient history

Spanish fly, holy bread and mashed worms: history’s weirdest aphrodisiacs and love potions

Portrait of John Bingham, 7th Earl of Lucan (Lord Lucan), who disappeared in 1974 following a bloody homicide

The curious case of Lord Lucan + 10 other mysterious disappearances from history

Oliver Cromwell, Lord Protector

Royalists, beards and cowardice: are these the strangest taxes in history?

Three monarchs who stepped down through history: Kaiser Wilhem II; Anne of Cleves; and James VII and II. (Images by Getty)

Retiring royals: 9 rulers and royals who stepped down through history

Ayatollah Khomeini

General ancient history

A brief history of Iran

A stained glass depiction of the nativity.

The history of the nativity: how much is known about the birth of Jesus?

Illustration by Davide Bonazzi

The big question Should museums return their treasures?

Cardinal John Henry Newman

How to become a saint

The Temple Scroll, from the Dead Sea Scrolls

General ancient history

Digging for the Bible: 10 key discoveries from the Holy Land

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Daisy Dunn.

The destruction of Pompeii . This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

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Tom Holland by Helen Atkinson

Tom Holland on Christianity’s enduring legacy . This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Now a protected species in many countries, the hedgehog was once also a health food. A German cookbook dating from the mid-15th century recommends the meat of a hedgehog as useful for leprosy and urinary retention. (Photo by Yuri SmityukTASS via Getty Images)

Hedgehogs, cannabis bread and horse placenta: 13 weird and wonderful health foods in history

One of the earliest and most famous examples of extremism comes from ancient Rome. Starting in 264 BC and continuing for more than a century, Rome engaged in a series of wars with neighbouring Carthage. (Photo by Hulton Archive/Getty Images)

A brief history of extremism – from ancient Rome to al Qaeda

Medieval trepanning

General prehistory

Q&A What is trepanning?