Sekhmet vs. Bastet: What Is the Difference?
Sekhmet and Bastet were both powerful feline goddesses in ancient Egyptian religion. Both could protect people, both were connected to the sun god Ra, and both could display fierce and benevolent qualities. Their similarities were strong enough that the two goddesses could sometimes overlap or be treated as contrasting manifestations of divine feline power. Despite […]
What Did The Ancient Egyptians Invent?
Ancient Egypt gave the world some of history’s most remarkable technological, scientific, and cultural innovations. So, what did the ancient Egyptians actually invent? The answer includes papyrus sheets, sophisticated carbon inks, one of the world’s earliest writing systems, a 365-day civil calendar, water clocks, advanced medical procedures, cosmetic formulas, irrigation technology, monumental stone architecture, and highly […]
Who Is the Most Powerful Goddess in Mythology?
Who is the most powerful goddess in mythology? It sounds like a simple question, but comparing goddesses from different religions and mythological traditions is difficult. There is no ancient ranking system that tells us whether an Egyptian goddess was stronger than a Greek goddess or whether a Norse deity could defeat a Mesopotamian one. Each tradition […]
Egyptian Hieroglyph Emojis: Copy and Paste Ancient Egyptian Symbols
Looking for Egyptian hieroglyph emojis that you can copy and paste? Although there is no complete set of ancient Egyptian emojis, Unicode includes hundreds of genuine Egyptian hieroglyphic characters. These symbols can be copied into social media posts, usernames, captions, messages, documents, and website content. Some of the most popular Egyptian symbols include: ð“‚€ ð“‹¹ […]
How Long Did It Take to Travel in Ancient Rome?
The Roman Empire built one of the ancient world’s most extensive transportation networks, connecting cities across Europe, North Africa, and western Asia. But how long did it actually take to travel in ancient Rome? For an ordinary traveler, a reasonable overland pace was about 15 to 25 miles per day, or approximately 24 to 40 […]
Where the ancient Egyptians black?
I struggle to post a single post on social media without someone chiming in to inform me that the ancient Egyptians were black. Most recently, I posted a video about Cleopatra I Syra. Her bust (like many ancient Egyptian statues) had her nose broken, and someone quickly chimed in to tell me that historians did […]
Who Was the First Pharaoh of Ancient Egypt? Narmer or Menes?
Narmer is widely regarded as the first ruler of a unified ancient Egypt and the founder, or one of the founders, of Egypt’s First Dynasty. He ruled around 3100 BCE, more than 5,000 years ago, near the end of the Predynastic Period and the beginning of the Early Dynastic Period. Narmer is famous for apparently […]
Osiris vs. Anubis: What Is the Difference?
Osiris and Anubis were both closely connected with death, burial, and the afterlife in ancient Egyptian religion, but they performed different roles. Osiris was the ruler of the underworld and the god whose resurrection offered the dead the hope of renewed life. Anubis was the god of embalming, mummification, cemeteries, and the physical protection of […]
Ancient Roman Bread Recipe: How to Make Panis Quadratus
When Mount Vesuvius erupted in AD 79, it buried Pompeii and Herculaneum beneath volcanic material. Buildings, household objects, food, and even loaves of bread were preserved in extraordinary detail. Among the most recognizable finds are round Roman loaves divided into eight wedge-shaped sections. This style of bread is commonly known today as panis quadratus. Although […]
What Did Ancient Greeks Look Like Compared to Modern Greeks?
Modern Greeks often resemble the people depicted in ancient Greek sculpture, frescoes, and painted pottery. This has led many people to wonder whether the inhabitants of Greece have changed physically during the past 2,000 to 3,000 years. The most accurate answer is that many modern Greeks probably share broad physical similarities with ancient Greek populations, […]