Did you know that kites were invented 2,300 years ago? A Chinese philosopher, Mo Di, who lived from 468-376 BCE, designed the very first kite in the shape of an eagle.[1] It was not made out of paper, because paper had not been invented yet. Instead, he used wood. Imagine how hard it must have been to fly a wooden kite! Amazingly, he did manage to keep it in the air for a whole day. His student, Gongshu Ban, later nicknamed Lu Ban, learned how to build kites from Mo Di. He even improved upon his mentor’s design, making a bamboo kite in the shape of a magpie, which is a bird common on the Eurasia continent. Lu Ban was able to keep his kite in the air for up to three days.[2] Continue reading
Category Archives: Communications
KIDS’ BLOG! Chinese Kites Soar Throughout History
Posted in Blog, Communications, Culture, Kids Blog, Kids: Art, Kids: Communications, Kids: Culture, Kids: Public Life, Kids: Science and Tech, Public Life
Tagged ancient history, ancient kites, AntiquityNOW, box kites, Chinese engineering, Chinese kites, General Hsin, history of kites, Lu Ban, military kites, Mo Di
A Brief History of the Timeless Dilemma of Censorship and America’s Response
Image courtesy of Tyler Menezes on Flickr.
The life of Socrates is in the hands of 500 reticent jurors. He stands trial for poisoning the minds of Athenian youth and inspiring rebellion with anti-democratic teachings. Silently, the jurors cast their ballots into one of two urns that represent guilt or innocence…
Socrates was found guilty and sentenced to death. Shielding the public from dangerous ideas outweighed one man’s right to free expression on the scales of Athenian justice. Throughout history, society’s weighing of public good against individual rights has shaped the history of censorship. It’s a dilemma both ancient and familiar. Continue reading
Posted in Blog, Communications, Crime, Culture, Education, Human Rights, Law, Literature, Politics, Public Life
Tagged American legal system, ancient history, ancient law, AntiquityNOW, book burning, censorship, Jewish Law, Plato, Roman Law, Socrates
KIDS’ BLOG! Seeing Ancient Invisible Ink Through Modern Eyes
Image by Noel Hidalgo Tan, Antiquity Publications.
Invisible ink, such a simple and yet crafty way to keep secrets. You may know that it was used in wars such as the American Civil War, the American Revolutionary War and both World Wars, but did you know it was being used thousands of years ago by ancient civilizations? In the first century AD, Pliny the Elder wrote in his Natural History, an early encyclopedia, about how the milk of the tithymallus plant could be adapted as an invisible ink. Ovid spoke about secret ink in his Art of Love. Ahmed Qalqashandi, a medieval Egyptian writer and mathematician, described several types of invisible ink.[1] And recently an article published in LiveScience explored a startling new discovery at Cambodia’s famous Angkor Wat temple regarding invisible ink.[2] Ancient invisible ink didn’t always start out as invisible and in this case the ancient artists probably had no idea that their stunning works would one day be hidden to the naked eye. Continue reading
Graffiti From Ancient to Modern Times: Memorialization, Human Expression and the Art That Will Not Die
Credit: Lincolnshire Medieval Graffiti Project
Graffiti has been around since time immemorial. From ancient caves to carved mountainsides to splendiferous murals, pictures have been splashed and carved on walls and surfaces throughout time and across cultures. Self-expression, political agitation, vendettas, advertisements—all reasons for some to bring out the paint and depict what moves them most. There is something inherently primal in the need to memorialize one’s self and time. Indeed, graffiti’s immediacy and rawness of expression can astonish, whether found deep in the caves of Lascaux or in the modern day artistic gyrations of the anonymous British artist Banksy. Continue reading
Posted in Ancient Origins, Art, Blog, Communications, Culture, Public Life
Tagged ancient graffiti, ancient history, Ancient Origins, AntiquityNOW, education, Lincolnshire, medieval graffiti
Exploring LegacyQuest 2014! Social Media: Dreaming Through the Ages
Over the next several weeks we’re going to be featuring each of the 2014 LegacyQuest video entries in a blog post exploring the video and its creators. We are so proud of the students and teachers who took part in this year’s inaugural festival and we want to share their work with the world. Continue reading
Science Fiction or Uncovered Truth: The Enigmatic Origins of Crystal Skulls
The crystal skull. Collection of the British Museum in London. Image courtesy of Rafał Chałgasiewicz
Another entry in AntiquityNOW’s new Science Fiction section is a story that has bedeviled skeptics and believers alike. The origins and purpose of the crystal skulls have been debated for years, but Eric Vassalo, who submitted portions from his blog post on the subject to AntiquityNOW, is a cynic regarding traditional inquiry. He wanted to analyze for himself what these crystal skulls were all about. As part of a group exploring sites containing these artifacts in Mexico, he mused:
Like a group of mutant X-men we all shared our fascinating and surreal stories of how we came to be in this place doing what so few dare to do, challenge our spoon-fed history and attempt to get at the truth.
It’s National Poetry Month! Ancient Poetry and the Created Self: From Early Epics to Afghan Women’s Landays
Marble terminal bust of Homer. Roman copy of a lost Hellenistic original of the 2nd c. BC. From Baiae, Italy. In the British Museum.
Throughout time, poetry has been one of the most evocative of art forms. From ritual chanting and epic histories to love sonnets and modern free verse, poetry has represented the essence of what it is to be human. Since April is National Poetry Month in the United States, let’s take a look at the origins of this artistic device. As well, we’ll observe a unique poetry tradition recast with a 21st century perspective. We’ll see how poetry is giving voice to women in Afghanistan, who as with early cultures that forged their identities in verse, are tapping the extraordinary power of poetry to create their own sense of “self.” Continue reading
Posted in Anatomy and Physiology, Blog, Communications, Culture, Human Rights, Literature, Music, Public Life, Religion
Tagged Aeneid, Afghanistan, ancient history, AntiquityNOW, Aristotle, Epic of Gilgamesh, Iliad, landay, Mahabharata, Odyssey, Poetics, poetry, Ramayana, veda, Virgil
Music Origins: Mesopotamia, American Gospel and the Neurology of Faith, Part I
Through the centuries many forms of music have arisen out of mystical or spiritual ardor: Indian ragas, Japanese Shinto music, Madih nabawi or Arabic hymns, the classic liturgical anthems of Europe and American gospel. Whether by the pounding of drums or the sonorous stones of Stonehenge or the arpeggios echoing against ancient cathedral walls, worship through music has defined civilizations from early times. What is this power in music that moves humans to seek their deities in notes, rhythms and sounds? Let’s look at two very different cultures with surprisingly similar perspectives. Continue reading
Modern Technology Brings the Dead Sea Scrolls to Life
The discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls is undisputedly one of the most important archaeological moments of the last several centuries. In 1947 hundreds of ancient scrolls, including the oldest copy of the Hebrew Bible were found in a remote Judean Desert cave giving us an unprecedented insight into the society, religion and language during the Second Temple Period. To gaze upon and study these scrolls is an incredible opportunity that few have had up to this point. However, thanks to a collaboration between Google and the Israeli Antiquity Authority, anyone with an internet connection is now able to view these stunning pieces of history in high definition. Using the most advanced and innovative imaging technology, the IAA has imaged and uploaded the scrolls to a public online digital library and they’ve recently revamped their website to make the experience even more user-friendly. Technology is once again giving us the ability to understand and appreciate our past. Continue reading
Posted in Blog, Communications, Computer Technology, Culture, Education, Literature, Public Life, Religion, Science and Technology
Tagged ancient history, AntiquityNOW, Christianity, Dead Sea Scrolls, Essene, Google, Israeli Antiquity Authority, Judaism, Leon Levy Digital Library, multispectral imaging, Qumran
Explore Our New Teacher-Submitted Curriculum: “The Use of Symbols in Egyptian Religion”
AntiquityNOW is pleased to announce a new curriculum available on our website. Submitted by Sharlyn Scott, social studies teacher at Desert Vista High School in Phoenix, Arizona, the curriculum is titled “The Use of Symbols in Egyptian Religion: Ancient Egyptian, Coptic Christian, and Islamic Images.” Scott developed the curriculum after a Fulbright Hays study tour to Egypt in the summer of 2010. The curriculum leads students from the ancient to the modern, asking them to “analyze artwork, sculpture and architecture to determine different cultural world views and values”.[1] Continue reading
Posted in Blog, Communications, Education, Public Life
Tagged ancient history, AntiquityNOW, Coptic Christian, education, Egypt, Fulbright Hayes, Islam, Sharlyn Scott
AntiquityNOW 