This page features brief excerpts of stories published by the mainstream
media and, less frequently, blogs, alternative media, and even obviously
biased sources. The excerpts are taken directly from the websites cited in
each source note. Quotation marks are not used.
Source: BBC
July 21, 2007
A fresco painting by a Renaissance master which once decorated the bedroom of Pope Alexander VI in the Vatican has gone on show in Rome.
A leading Italian art historian and curator says he has documentary proof that it was once part of a much larger painting depicting the aged Pope kneeling in front of his youthful mistress, Giulia Farnese.
This is an unusual example of "damnatio memoriae" - a Latin phrase meaning "damnation of memory".
Source: AP
July 19, 2007
Archaeologists excavating the seabed off Cyprus have discovered the tools of ancient mariners, which they believe were used by foragers more than 10,000 years ago _ before the island had permanent settlements.
The underwater discovery of what archaeologists said were the oldest materials recovered off the island's coast could shed fresh light on the early history of Cyprus and Mediterranean seafaring.
Source: BBC
July 20, 2007
A last ditch bid to save an historic clipper from being broken up will be made later.
The Carrick, which pre-dates the Cutty Sark, was built at Sunderland in 1864 and is now berthed at the Scottish Maritime Museum in Irvine, Ayrshire.
North Ayrshire Council granted provisional permission for the ship to be demolished in February as it would cost almost £20m to restore it.
About 100 campaigners from Sunderland will call for the ship to be returned.
Or
Source: http://www.splcenter.org
July 20, 2007
The neo-Confederate movement isn't known for its racial diversity, but there long has been one dedicated black man willing to fight for the Southern cause: H.K. Edgerton. A constant fixture at protests in support of Confederate symbols, Edgerton at one point walked from his home in Asheville, N
Source: Peggy Noonan, in the WSJ in the course of a review of Robert Novak's memoir
July 20, 2007
Rowland Evans was Mr. Novak's partner in their successful column for 30 years. They complemented each other, Evans the patrician Democrat and Mr. Novak the rougher-edged Republican. But Mr. Novak says Evans, who died in March 2001, misled him about the depth of his friendship with frequent column subject Robert F. Kennedy, and the frequency of their contacts. Mr. Novak found out while researching his book, and from Evans's own mouth: the oral histories he left behind. Mr. Novak speaks of Evans i
Source: Times (UK)
July 20, 2007
Children must be taught landmark dates in chronological order from primary school, to give them a common sense of British history and identity, Ofsted tells the Government today.
Far from knowing the order of key events, such as the Battle of Hastings or the signing of Magna Carta, pupils have no overview of history and cannot answer the “big questions” it poses, the schools’ inspectorate has found.
Not only are key events in British and world history overlooked, but wi
Source: International Herald Tribune
July 18, 2007
The Kalashnikov, the world's most abundant firearm and a martial symbol with a multiplicity of meanings, turns 60 this year. In some places this is cause to shudder. In Russia it is treated as a milestone to celebrate, and a chance to cry foul.
Once strictly communist products, the AK-47 and its offspring are killing tools so durable and easy to use that they were heralded as achievements of state socialism and industrial might. Uncoupled from the laws of supply and demand by their
Source: AP
July 18, 2007
Bangladesh presented Sri Lanka on Wednesday with a few strands of hair said to have belonged to Buddha, in a sign of friendship and goodwill.
A pagoda-shaped metal urn containing the hair was given to a Sri Lankan delegation by custodians of an ancient Buddhist monastery as monks in saffron robes chanted religious texts.
Source: LiveScience
July 11, 2007
An ancient volcanic super-eruption, one of the largest known in Earth's history, may not have devastated the world and humanity as much as once thought.
The eruption at what is now Lake Toba in northwestern Sumatra roughly 75,000 years ago was the largest of the last 2 million years.
The gigantic blast released at least 7.7 trillion tons, or 670 cubic miles, of magma, equivalent in mass to more than 19 million Empire State Buildings.
Source: AP
July 18, 2007
Archaeologists called Tuesday for urgent steps to safeguard Petra, the ancient rose-red rock city recently picked as one of the new seven wonders of the world, saying an increase in visitors could damage it unless protective measures were taken.
"Choosing Petra as a world wonder has made the public even more aware of the need to conserve this unique heritage that we have," said Khairieh Amr, a senior archaeologist with Jordan's Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities.
Source: Detroit News
July 19, 2007
What should we call what happened during those six chaotic days in July 1967 when 43 people died amid gunfire, looting, with whole sections of Detroit in flames?
Many call it a "riot," a term that conjures images of mobs acting spontaneously. Blacks who lived through it call it a "rebellion."
"When I hear the word 'riot' I just get the chills," said Brenda Dixon, 45, of Detroit. "The word 'riot' just seems inhumane, like people acting savage
Source: BBC
July 19, 2007
Only one out of 18 publishers managed to spot plagiarised versions of Jane Austen novels, a writer says.
David Lassman, 43, from Bath, had his own attempt at a novel rejected by a string of publishers.
So he retyped parts of Pride and Prejudice, Northanger Abbey and Persuasion, before sending them to publishers and agents.
Not only did most of the literary experts fail to spot the trick - none offered him a book contract.
Source: http://www.earthtimes.org
July 19, 2007
Mass graves believed to hold the remains of 2,300 Japanese soldiers killed on the Aleutian island of Attu during World War II have been confirmed.
Maj. Chris Johnson of the Department of Defense says last week's four-day expedition to the Alaskan atoll by U.S. and Japanese delegations turned up clothing and remains that confirmed the burial sites listed in a 1953 report, KTUU-TV in Anchorage, Alaska, reported Tuesday.
Source: Telegraph (UK)
July 20, 2007
History is becoming an endangered subject as growing numbers of children drop the subject at 14, according to Ofsted, the education watchdog.
Less than a third of pupils study GCSE history, meaning few learn about important historical themes when they are "mature enough" to do so.In a critical report published today, inspectors said pupils were being driven away because of overloaded timetables and lessons that were often dumbed down.
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Source: Telegraph (UK)
July 20, 2007
Two amateur treasure hunters are in line for a pay-out of up to 500,000 pounds after a small pot they found buried in a field turned out to contain the most important hoard of Viking silver and gold found in this country for 150 years.
Packed inside the ornately carved 8th century silver gilt pot, experts at the British Museum found 617 coins, jewellery and ingots from as far afield as Samarkand, Afghanistan, Russia, France, and Ireland. The pot had been buried in a field near Harro
Source: http://www.expatica.com
July 19, 2007
Archaeologists uncovered a city gate from the 15th century in the centre of Eindhoven on Thursday. The so-called Woensel gate was one of the three guarded entrances to the centre. City archaeologist Nico Arts says the gate stood at the middle of a wooden bridge that crossed over a 30-metre wide city moat.
Source: Arizona Republic
July 19, 2007
Ancient Native American artifacts likely are buried under the path of the proposed South Mountain Freeway, Phoenix's lead archaeologist and freeway planners agree.
But unlike the now-U.S. 60 built in the early 1970s, construction crews won't be allowed to encase the ruins in asphalt. "That's an old saw," said Todd Bostwick, who has studied the Hohokam people for more than 25 years. "They (crews) have to dig them now."
Source: http://www.ireland.com
July 18, 2007
Gardai [Ireland's national police service] have arrested seven people who were protesting against the contentious M3 motorway being routed close to the historic Hill of Tara in Meath.
Five people were arrested this morning and were due to appear in court in Navan on a charge of obstructing traffic, a spokesman for the protesters said.
Two more people were arrested this afternoon and brought to Navan Garda station.
Source: AFP
July 17, 2007
BROOKHAVEN, NY, USA -- In his little office at Stony Brook University east of New York City, the former director of the Iraq National Museum in Baghdad has hung a maxim of Martin Luther King: "Darkness cannot drive out darkness, only light can do that."
For seven months, Donny George and his family have tried to rebuild their life in the United States. Even as the radio plays American country music, their thoughts are always on Iraq.
George and his family,
Source: http://www.news-antique.com
July 16, 2007
A letter handwritten by Gen. Ulysses S. Grant to Gen. Robert E. Lee on April 10, 1865, discussing terms of surrender of the Confederate Army and originally penned at the Appomattox Courthouse in Virginia, will be sold the weekend of August 4-5 by Gallery 63. The letter was consigned by a Texas woman and was authenticated by the late Civil War historian Shelby Foote.
“This may very well be the most important document to come on the market in the last fifty years,” said Paul Brown of
