Was all currency in Ancient societies in physical form only? Before building a mega project, did an ancient person first need to amass a hoard of physical currency and pay up front, or could things constructed on speculation or credit?

1 Answers 2022-12-20

"Some argue that iconography we associate with witches, from the pointy hat to the cauldron, originated from women working as master brewers." Is there any truth to this?

It's an interesting blog post, but how much of it is fiction, and how much of it is true? Was brewing once considered women's work, and men looking to push them out accusing them of witchcraft the source of the modern kitschy image we have of witches?

https://theconversation.com/women-used-to-dominate-the-beer-industry-until-the-witch-accusations-started-pouring-in-155940

1 Answers 2022-12-20

Feudal/Historical Japanese attitude toward physical differences?

I’ve created a character with Vitiligo for a Feudal Japan setting. It is fantasy but still.

I can research their attitudes NOW and I know that they don't like for anyone to be standing out like a nail, because its just asking to be beaten down. But I need to know about the PAST.

And I need to know if a physical difference like vitiligo is an exception to the rule. Because after all, its not something she’s choosing to make her different.

Thanks!

1 Answers 2022-12-20

When did the American public become aware of the full extent of the Holocaust?

I'm aware that people in the US government knew, fairly early on (1942, as I hazily recall) that the Nazis were embarking on a program to exterminate the Jews in Europe. When did the American public find out? My perception is that the people in the US didn't realize the full extent of the Holocaust until after VE Day, when news of what had actually gone on in the camps started to emerge from newly liberated German territory. Am I incorrect in this belief? Were there efforts to make Americans aware of what was happening to the Jews in Europe prior to the end of the war? And, if so, how successful were those efforts?

1 Answers 2022-12-20

Were there any British people supporting the Americans during the American Revolution?

1 Answers 2022-12-20

Just how atheist were ancient Roman atheists? What does that mean in the classical Roman context?

So I've seen some quotes from various Romans, questioning the reality of gods as they understood them.

Religion is regarded by the common people as true, by the wise as false, and by the rulers as useful.

  • Lucius Annaeus Seneca

Live a good life. If there are gods and they are just, then they will not care how devout you have been, but will welcome you based on the virtues you have lived by. If there are gods, but unjust, then you should not want to worship them. If there are no gods, then you will be gone, but will have lived a noble life that will live on in the memories of your loved ones.

  • Marcus Aurelius

If horses had gods, they would look like horses

  • Xenophanes

But, it is also my understanding that religion in ancient Rome was more about performing worship rather than believing the correct things. That, the stories and lineages of the gods, what exactly their natures and powers were, and any ambiguities or contradictions of those claims were not a concern to ancient Romans. But, if one refused to participate in public rites, such as sacrifices and ensuing meals, that was seen as anti-social, an action against the state, and would threaten to bring disaster and downfall to the people.

So if a Roman philosopher questioned or disbelieved in the gods, what impact would that really have? Would they still participate in the acts of worship? Did any of these philosophers refuse to participate in them, because of their (dis)beliefs? Or were questions or expressions of atheism a more-or-less harmless philosophical exercise/position?

2 Answers 2022-12-20

Potatoes are a new world food. Where do Chanukah celebrations come from, how did they wind up like they are now, and what did they used to look like?

Chanukah celebrates the miracle of the oil and repelling Seleucids. Where do the celebrations come from?

Latkes couldn't be more than a few hundred years old (in their present form) based on the ingredients, and moreover I'm pretty sure it's Yiddish. Likewise the modern celebration involves candles even though the miracle being celebrated is an extension of oil.

What was this holiday like "back in the old days," and how did it wind up in it's present form?

Edit: I'm not sure why this got tagged "Christmas" but.... yikes!

1 Answers 2022-12-20

What would you recommend for a book that covers the development of Roman Art and Architecture, and maybe some context for the time period?

Preferably not a very entry-level text because I am fairly familiar with technical art terms and forms of analysis.

1 Answers 2022-12-20

Are there any accounts of purposeful groin attacks during the Middle Ages?

Was it fairly common for someone to do like in the modern day? If not why? Was it allowed to be used in something like warfare? If not why?

1 Answers 2022-12-20

Why the 10 Amendments haven’t changed since 1791 since technically all constitutions are a product of their time?

For clarification I am not from the US

1 Answers 2022-12-20

are there any rankings in the armies of ancient japan?

Dear fellow historians,

I'm a 17 year old student writing a thesis about the samurai and how it vanished in Japan. The first chapter is about the history of the samurai. Unfortunatly I am unable to find any information if there were any rankings in the samurai class, or the armies. I am aware that the samurai was an elite warior class, but I've got some questions hoping you can help me:

-Are there rankins in the samurai class itself?

- Was every warrior a samurai or did you need to pass some sort of test?

- Were thre ranks in the ancient armies, if so what ere they?

If its possible to give me a source with information about my questions, I can settle for that.

My apologies for any grammar mistakes i might have made, English is noty my first language.

Thank you in advance for helping me.

Kind regards, Moimiek

1 Answers 2022-12-20

Where did our modern stereotypical image of a caveman come from, where they wear loin clothes, carry a big club, grunt, hunt sabertooth tigers, and live in a cave come from? And where does the term “caveman” originate?

2 Answers 2022-12-20

Tuesday Trivia: Christmas! This thread has relaxed standards—we invite everyone to participate!

Welcome to Tuesday Trivia!

If you are:

  • a long-time reader, lurker, or inquirer who has always felt too nervous to contribute an answer
  • new to /r/AskHistorians and getting a feel for the community
  • Looking for feedback on how well you answer
  • polishing up a flair application
  • one of our amazing flairs

this thread is for you ALL!

Come share the cool stuff you love about the past!

We do not allow posts based on personal or relatives' anecdotes. Brief and short answers are allowed but MUST be properly sourced to respectable literature. All other rules also apply—no bigotry, current events, and so forth.

For this round, let’s look at: Christmas! For millions, the 25th of December marks the birth of their Lord and Savior. For millions of others, it's about family, gift giving, and sparkling lights. And for perhaps billions of other humans, it's just another day. It's a deeply sacred time. It's a highly commercialized event. It's complicated, it's cold (on part of the globe), it's Christmas! This thread is about all the things about the holiday you want to share and celebrate!

9 Answers 2022-12-20

Why did Churchill intervene to save Coco Chanel from execution?

Chanel has been documented as more than a Nazi collaborator during the war, she was a Gestapo spy responsible for the deaths of French citizens.
So when De Gaulle was rounding up and executing collaborators, Churchill intervened. But why? And how?

1 Answers 2022-12-20

Mike Duncan's Revolutions podcast is ending. Any reviews?

There is only one more episode planned, stated to be an informal one (presumably saying goodbye, mentioning any future plans, &c).

There are two aspects that I'm wondering about.

(1) His history of each specific revolution. He has his bibliographies for each on his website, https://thehistoryofrome.typepad.com/revolutions_podcast/ Of anyone has expertise in one of the revolutions he covered: was he giving the current common version (if one exists), or a view that's a few decades old, or his own notions - and what do you think about his take on them?

(2) He has 12 appendices where he lays or 6 comparative revolutionology, as it were. He does have a "General" section in his bibliography. Even more here, do these appear to be his own thoughts, or a school of thought, or uncontroversial statements, or what? I'm more interested in this case because so much of his per-revolution history was narrative with a lot of easy to check basic facts (there's no debate on whether Robespierre was or was not beheaded on July 28, 1794). He approaches the appendices in the same style, so not mentioning his sources, existing schools of thought, possible variant interpretations, or such,l. So I'm even more dubious about the appendices.

3 Answers 2022-12-20

What did medieval people think space was?

1 Answers 2022-12-20

I recently watched the new Adam Curtis documentary about the collapse of the Soviet Union. The thing that I found most surprising is that Boris Yeltsin came out looking great. How did this seemingly dynamic man of integrity become the drunken laughing stock he was seen as in the mid-1990s?

I honestly had no idea that he helped to defeat a coup against Gorbachev that would have put him in charge. How did he go from this to stumbling around the White House grounds in his underpants looking for pizza in a few short years?

1 Answers 2022-12-20

What did the Jews of Jesus's time think of Zoroastrians, and how is it reflected in the portrayal of the Magi in the traditional nativity story?

The Magi are traditionally portrayed as Persian kings or scholars, presumably non-Jewish Zoroastrians. They also seem like some of the most virtuous non-Jews in Jesus's life, so I wonder, did Jews/early Christians of this time period generally have a positive view of Zoroastrians? Is there any particular significance in the portrayal of a Zoroastrian figure bringing gifts and worshipping the messiah?

1 Answers 2022-12-20

In Europe in the Middle Ages wine and beer were the primary drink, obviously that wasn’t the case in the Medieval Islamic world — what was? Coffee?

1 Answers 2022-12-20

What made the Imperial German Stormtroopers so effective in their assaults when the Western Front had been stalemated for so long?

1 Answers 2022-12-20

The medieval period in was a deeply religious time, but how many average people "actually believed it"?

Of course the medieval period covered a lot of time, and I'm sure there were always varying degrees of devotion, but how common would it have been to meet people who were just going through the motions and actually didn't care? What about those who questioned their belief in God? I'd imagine it would be hard for historians to know for sure since few people would publicly admit this?

1 Answers 2022-12-20

Did Marcus Aurelius like Jewish people / treat them well?

1 Answers 2022-12-20

When did the Italian city states leave the Holy Roman Empire?

The city states were de facto independent since the Peace of Constance in 1183, but were still nominally part of the Empire after that. When I check maps they seem to be represented as part of the Empire until 1648, which is when the Treaties of Westphalia were signed, yet I can’t find anything making them de jure independent. What part of the treaty made it so?

For example:

Map in 1600

Map in 1648

1 Answers 2022-12-20

How far back and how well-planned was the holocaust?

Saw this question on another site and got curious.

3 Answers 2022-12-20

WW2: Did Germany plan to attack France/Britain all along?

When Britain and France declared war on Germany, did this change Germany's plan? How did the plan change?

1 Answers 2022-12-20

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