50 Amazing Facts about Ancient Civilization | Amazing Facts 4U
- Amazingly the average lifespan of peasants during the medieval ages was 25 years.
- Amazingly in medieval times, only wealthy people were allowed to wear underwear.
- The amazing fact was that in medieval Bagdad if you translate a book into Arabic, you would be given that book’s weight in Gold.
- Angkor Cambodia’s history dates back to the 9th century, the Khmer Empire. Amazingly it is the world’s largest single religious monument site with thousands of temples scattered over a large area.
- Ancient Chinese people chopped food in bite-size pieces because it took less time to cook and it also saved fuel. This gave rise to the need for chopsticks to eat food.
- Amazingly the royal physicians in Ancient China were forbidden from touching the emperors.
- An amazing fact was that visitors to the royal court in China were expected to kneel on the ground and tap their forehead on the ground nine times as a mark of respect to their ruler.
- Ancient Chinese writers also wrote on bamboo strips before the paper was invented.
- The amazing fact was that in ancient China, doctors would receive the fees only if the patient was cured. If the patient deteriorated, the doctor would have to pay the patient.
- About 3000 years ago, most Egyptians died by the time they were 30.
- In ancient Egypt, priests plucked every hair from their bodies, including their eyebrows and eyelashes.
- Egyptian workers were known to organize labor strikes.
- Amazingly in order to deter flies from landing on him, Pepi II of Egypt always kept several naked slaves nearby whose bodies were smeared with honey.
- It’s an amazing fact that ancient Egyptians slept on pillows made of stone.
- Ancient Egyptians kissed with their noses instead of with their lips.
- Meteorites were very important to ancient Egyptians, they created jewelry from meteorites by hammering them into shape making beads, and other designs. The jewelry was often buried with loved ones.
- Amazingly King Tutankhamun, the most famous of all Egyptian pharaoh’s parents were brother and sister.
- In ancient Egypt, it was amazing that actors were not allowed to testify in court as they were regarded as professional liars.
- The Hanging Gardens, one of the wonders of the World, had a total length of 56 km.
- The fact is Cleopatra married two of her brothers.
- A human skeleton found in France, nicknamed the Giant of Castelnau, measures 11 feet 6 inches. The bones were estimated to be between 10 and 12 thousand years old.
- Continuously inhabited for over 7,000 years, Athens is one of the oldest cities in Europe. It is also the birthplace of democracy.
- The 1st Olympic Games were held in 776 BC at Olympia, Greece which was a religious festival dedicated to the god ZEUS.
- It was amazing that in ancient Greece if a woman watched an Olympic event, she was executed.
- The Ancient Greeks also played an important role in the development of the alphabet. The word ‘alphabet’ itself comes from the first two letters of the Greek alphabet – alpha and beta.
- In ancient Athens, there was a process called Ostracism whereby people could vote once a year for the most destructive politician to the democratic process. The winner was amazingly banished for 10 years from Athens.
- In ancient Greece, amazingly children of wealthy families were dipped in olive oil at birth to keep them hairless throughout their lives.
- Amazingly at the height of its power in 400 BC, the Greek city Sparta had only 25000 citizens and over 500,000 slaves.
- Milo of Croton, a famous Olympic wrestler, was so strong he could bend nails between two fingers and carry a cow on his shoulders.
- It is amazing to know that ancient Greeks did not eat tomatoes, potatoes, oranges, and lemons since these were unknown at that time.
- Men of ancient Athens rivaled each other in the excellence of their beards. Beard trimming became an art & barbers became leading citizens.
- Boys in Sparta were sent to military camps at the age of 7. They learned how to read and write at 14. Military service lasted until 60.
- It was amazing that the ancient Greeks did not use napkins. Instead, they wiped their hands on pieces of bread that were given to the dogs.
- Food for the Greeks had religious and philosophical meaning. Amazingly they never ate meat unless it had been sacrificed to a god.
- In the ancient Persian Empire ( Present Iran) people used to debate ideas twice, one in sober and again in a drunk state. Amazingly an idea had to be approved in both states to be considered good.
- Ancient Romans celebrated “Saturnalia”, a festival in which slaves and their masters would switch places.
- The Aztecs in Mexico were known for gruesome and cruel acts performed to appease the gods sacrificing children and virgins. In their civilization, roughly 20,000 people were killed annually in the rituals.
- Mongols were considered barbarians and savages. One of them was Genghis Khan. Amazingly Mongols managed to have the largest contiguous empire in the history of mankind, from Vietnam to Hungary.
- In the marriage ceremony of the ancient Inca Indians of Peru, the couple was considered wed when they exchanged their sandals.
- The calendar we use was started by Julius Caesar, a Roman ruler. It is based on the movement of the earth around the sun, and so is called the ‘solar calendar.’
- The names of our months are taken from the names of Roman gods and rulers. January is named after Janus. The month ‘July,’ in fact, is named after Julius Caesar himself!
- Romans wore wedding rings. And Roman brides wore veils and carried flowers too. The bride and groom signed a contract to become man and wife, just like today.
- Amazingly in Roman times, it was considered to be treason for anyone other than the emperor to dress completely in purple.
- In ancient Rome, it was amazing that a crooked nose was considered a sign of leadership.
- Amazingly Roman laws were carved on twelve tablets. They were actually carved out on rocks so that everyone could know what the laws were.
- In Ancient Rome, crowds used the thumbs-up sign to encourage the winning gladiator to actually kill his opponent.
- The people of Sparta would abandon their newborn babies on a mountain to die if they didn’t appear strong enough.
- Roman emperor Caligula amazingly made his horse, incitatus an official Roman Senator.
- Amazingly the black death reduced the population of Europe by two-thirds during the 4 year period from 1347 to 1351 during which 50 million people died.
- Notorious for terrorizing through Europe, the Vikings were ferocious warriors who firmly believed that all people had a purpose in this life to fight to the death.
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