This curious drawing was created around 1625 by an unknown artist from 17th-century France. Although the artwork is labeled with the nondescriptive title, Witchcraft,...
By the reign of Emperor Constans II of Constantinople (r. 641-668), the empire had long been plagued by fierce religious debates between the different...
This illustration, by the Norwegian artist Adolph Tidemand (1814-1876), depicts the death of powerful Jarl (or Earl) Hákon Sigurdsson of Lade. Jarl Hákon (also...
Historians (with their written records) and archaeologists or scientists (with their data and tested evidence) often can work in a complementary fashion, with each...
This curious drawing was created around 1625 by an unknown artist from 17th-century France. Although the artwork is labeled with the nondescriptive title, Witchcraft,...
The carved standing stones in the village of Aberlemno, Scotland, are beautiful pieces of artwork left behind by the Picts. In particular, the stone...
(Battle of Spottsylvania by Thure de Thulstrup (1848–1930), via Creative Commons)
The United States of America is a very sentimental country. Its citizens, like...
Augustus and his predecessor, Julius Caesar, both were said to have lived surprisingly sober lifestyles. They were reported to have been health fanatics, who...
This painting, by an unknown 17th-century artist, depicts the sad mythological tale of Apollo and Daphne, encapsulated in a wooded scene with an ornate...
Lucan (c. 39-65)
"Steep calamities
will come suddenly; it's a fast fall from the summits."
From Lucan’s Civil War (Book 5, approximately between lines 744-771), translated...
By the reign of Emperor Constans II of Constantinople (r. 641-668), the empire had long been plagued by fierce religious debates between the different...
Using military posturing and diplomatic negotiations with Norwegian vassals, King Canute (or Knut) the Great—ruler of England since 1016 and Denmark since 1019—was able...
Egil Skallagrimsson (10th century Viking-age poet)
"Blind, I must bear
this eye ailment,
blunder to the fire, beg
mercy from a maidservant;
formerly a fierce king
warmed to my words;
the...
Lucian of Samosata (2nd century CE Satirist)
"The noblest of philosophies for sale, the most distinguished; who'll buy? Who wants to be more than man?...
Mencius (c. 372-289 BCE)
"A man must not be without shame, for the shame of being without shame is shamelessness indeed."
From The Mencius (Book VII,...
Marcus Aurelius (121-180)
Roman Emperor
"Think thyself fit and worthy to speak, or do anything that is according to nature, and let not the reproach, or...
Diogenes Laertius (3rd Century biographer of philosophers)
"No part of philosophy is separate from another part; they all combine as a mixture."
From Diogenes Laertius'...
Epicurus (341-270 BCE)
From Principal Doctrines (Kuriai doxai)
"Of all the things which wisdom secures for the attainment of happiness throughout the whole of life, by...
Heraclitus (6th and 5th Century BCE)
"One thing is wisdom: to be skilled in the plan upon which all things are controlled throughout the universe."
...
Martin Luther (1483-1546)
"I enter the fray after careful reflection and in a sufficiently hostile frame of mind."
From Martin Luther’s Table Talk (published c....
