In 1891, when geologist Erwin H. Barbour was conducting an expedition in the poorlands near White River, Nebraska, locals drew his attention to unusual fossils. They were sand-filled spiral tubes up to 3 meters long with walls of white fibrous material. Such fossils were found in an area that at the time was considered the bottom of a dried-up ancient lake.
Europe is known for its magnificent castles and fortresses, but only a few survive in their original form. Since reconstructing them would be financially impossible and culturally abhorrent, a London-based creative agency named NeoMam Studios have decided to digitally restore them to their prime. Using old paintings, blueprints, and textual documents that describe the strongholds, the design team from NeoMam Studios have resuscitated over a dozen castles across Europe.
A Brown University student group, Decolonisation at Brown, wants the school to remove two Roman statues displayed on campus, claiming the sculptures represent ethnic-European supremacy and colonialism. The ethnic-bastardised student group at the Ivy League university in Rhode Island has lobbied the school’s Undergraduate Council of Students to support its initiative to remove statues of Roman Emperors Caesar Augustus and Marcus Aurelius.
Polish archaeologists found a very large hoard of 6.5 thousand silver coins, silver and gold bullion, and two wedding rings, which could belong to Princess Maria, daughter of Chernigov Prince Oleg Svyatoslavich of the Rurik dynasty.
About 12 kilometers north of the city of Arles, in the Provence region of southern France, is the small town of Fontvieille. It is a commune of just 3,500 inhabitants who live from agriculture and tourism, but until the 5th century AD it was also the place where the greatest concentration of mechanical energy was found in the entire ancient world.
Birdwatcher stumbles upon £800,000 hoard of 2,000-year-old Celtic gold coins dating from time Boudicca was at war with the Romans.
Experts say each coin is worth up to £650 and could have belonged to Boudicca.
The lucky finder said ‘a cascade of coins fell out,’ of an urn he had unearthed.
The Roman poet Catullus described Saturnalia as “the best of times” — he didn’t even have to offer a caveat, like the Christmas-obsessed Charles Dickens did in his novel Great Expectations. Saturnalia was just straight-up awesome.
The ancient Spanish city of Salamanca, situated on the banks of the River Tormes, is one of the oldest university towns in Europe with a rich and elegant collection of Renaissance, Roman, Gothic and Baroque monuments. Among them are two majestic cathedrals built between the 12th and 18th centuries. The New Cathedral, constructed between the 16th and 18th centuries, features late Gothic style with a Baroque styled cupola. The cathedral’s vaulted stone ceilings contain graceful paintings and its sandstone walls are intricately carved. But one element is peculiarly out of place and out of time.
The old city of Segovia, about 90 km north of Madrid, is best known for its aqueduct, but this historic city is full of architectural curiosities, such as the ornamental façades and geometric textures on the walls of many of the houses, the strangest of which is Casa de los Picos, or the “House of Peaks”. The façade of this house is covered entirely by granite blocks carved into pyramid-shaped reliefs. There are more than six hundred pyramids jutting out of the walls giving the impression of a giant cheese grater.
The ancient Viking burial site in Estefall in southeastern Norway was in fact a whole complex, including a feast hall and a religious building.
Michael Walsh Stories and Books 
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