Today:
You know the drill: this is the thread for all your history-related outpourings that are not necessarily questions. Minor questions that you feel don't need or merit their own threads are welcome too. Discovered a great new book, documentary, article or blog? Has your Ph.D. application been successful? Have you made an archaeological discovery in your back yard? Did you find an anecdote about the Doge of Venice telling a joke to Michel Foucault? Tell us all about it.
As usual, moderation in this thread will be relatively non-existent -- jokes, anecdotes and light-hearted banter are welcome.
Last week I submitted my application for Grad school to study for an MA in History. This week, the rest of my materials were added to my application (GRE score and my last Letter of Recommendation).
It's just a waiting game now, but I am hopeful!
Today I wrote my first answer to a question on /r/askhistorians. It was long, comprehensive and I thought it might actually be good enough for this great sub. Then I accidentally deleted it.
Just wanted to say good job to all the contributers on this sub reddit. Enjoy so much lying in bed for an hour at night randomly looking at various questions and answers. 👍
Hello all-
At long last, I've found the time to make another video for my ongoing Questions about Ancient Greece and Rome (you were afraid to ask in school) project. This time the topic is: "Why are so many Greek and Roman statues naked?" The video - shot partly in the Art Institute of Chicago (my local art museum) - briefly surveys the origins and meanings of artistic nudity in the classical world. You can view it here.
As always, questions and suggestions for improvement are welcome.
Your Weekly /r/askhistorians Recap
Friday, December 20 - Thursday, December 26
| Top 10 Posts | score | link to comments |
|---|---|---|
| Since WWII, nazi iconography has been symbolic of evil and villainy in western culture - especially in entertainment. What was the iconography of evil in culture before the nazis? | 4,305 | 126 comments |
| The game Red Dead Redemption 2 takes place in the US in 1899. In one area of the map you come across an abandoned Civil War battlefield with old cannons, trenches and barricades strewn about. Were there actually any visible remnants of Civil War battles as late as 1899? | 4,152 | 82 comments |
| Both the Witcher 3 and Skyrim have mentions of lighthouses being tampered with to make ships crash. Was this ever a common issue, or are there any popular documented cases? | 3,529 | 55 comments |
| Queen Elizabeth II is known to have received training as a mechanic during World War II. Her father, the king, reportedly ordered that she receive "no privileges" for her royal status. Was she genuinely a "normal" member of the ATS, or was it more of an honorary position to boost morale? | 3,450 | 59 comments |
| Apparently some scholars believe that Christianity did not evolve from Judaism as traditionally thought, but that both religions emerged together from a religiously chaotic region that contained a number of proto-Jewish/Abrahamic sects. Is this a matter of interpretation, or new evidence? | 3,180 | 154 comments |
| I have great primary source information from WWII, is there someone I should give it to? | 2,653 | 70 comments |
| Its typically believed that glasses were invented in the late 13th century; what was it like for people who needed them before they were invented? Were people just walking around blind? What was it like for the ancient Egyptian or even the ancient Roman empires? | 2,492 | 64 comments |
| A common element of letters to Santa from the late 19th and early 20th is requests for bags of nuts for Christmas. Why is this? Was it just tradition or did children actually want nuts for Christmas over, say, candy? | 2,405 | 111 comments |
| In the US we hear a lot about the Red Scare during the Cold War, but not so much about the other side. Did citizens of Soviet Russia have an equivalent "capitalist" or "democratic" scare? | 2,310 | 54 comments |
| East Indian Trading Company: How did they become so powerful, what happened to them and does any version/merger of the EITC still exist today? | 2,039 | 76 comments |
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Why did the Romans use amphorae for transport and storage instead of like, cylindrical pots ? They seem a weird an inconvenient shape
Lately I’ve been interested in summarization. Like: “how would you describe _________ with only 50 words?” or “If you could require everyone in the world to know one fact about your area of history, what would it be?”
I feel that this forces experts to think in the terms the layman needs.
How did the Romans conquer the Greeks? On the face of it, the Greek spear phalanx would seem to have serious advantages over the roman javelin and sword formations.