We know it is more than 60,000 years since the first people entered the continent of Sahul — the giant landmass that connected New Guinea, Australia and Tasmania when sea levels were lower than […]
Social and Cultural History
Five Great Historically Accurate Films: Part Two
By Michael Vecchio READ PART ONE of FIVE GREAT HISTORICAL FILMS Gandhi (1982) Dir. Richard Attenborough The name Mahatma Gandhi can mean many different things to many people; perhaps it […]
How The Napoleonic Wars Entrenched British Rule In 19th Century South Africa
The battles between Britain and France following the French Revolution and into the Napoleonic Wars had far-reaching effects, not only in Europe, but across the globe. Caught in the crossfire […]
Who will have us? Jewish Refugees before WW2
The plight of Jewish refugees after the outbreak of World War II in 1939 is well documented. Hundreds of thousands of people fled Nazi persecution and hoped to find a […]
People gave up on flu pandemic measures a century ago when they tired of them – and paid a price
Picture the United States struggling to deal with a deadly pandemic. State and local officials enact a slate of social-distancing measures, gathering bans, closure orders and mask mandates in an […]
Nikola Tesla – His Vision is our Reality
The legacy of one of the greatest inventors in history is some of our most important technological breakthroughs. By Cormac McDonagh. Nikola Tesla may be a familiar name nowadays, thanks […]
The Deadliest Infectious Diseases in History and Their Prevalence Today
The advances in medicine and technology have helped curb the spread of one of the biggest global killers – infectious diseases. By Madison Moulton Throughout history, infectious diseases have moved […]
Picturing the unimaginable: a new look at the wreck of the Batavia
Before dawn on the morning of June 4 1629, the Batavia, a ship of the Dutch East India Company, struck a reef at the Abrolhos Islands, some 70 kilometres off […]
How will our bodies be put back together? What about those eaten by cannibals? A brief history of Christian resurrection beliefs
Easter celebrates the Christian belief that Jesus Christ rose from the dead. In so doing, he overcame sin and death on behalf of all of us. The resurrection of Jesus […]
Highland Clearances: Changing a Culture
Cultures, customs and traditions change as time passes on, but sometimes this change is brought about with force from outside rather than evolution from within. One such example is how […]
Ancient undersea middens offer clues about life before rising seas engulfed the coast. Now we have a better way to study them
The world’s oceans hold their secrets close, including clues about how people lived tens of thousands of years ago. For a large portion of humanity’s existence, sea levels were significantly […]
Archaeologists have a lot of dates wrong for North American indigenous history – but we’re using new techniques to get it right
By Sturt Manning, Cornell University. Columbus famously reached the Americas in 1492. Other Europeans had made the journey before, but the century from then until 1609 marks the creation of the modern […]
Mistaken Maps and the Myths They Perpetuated
Mapmakers in history occasionally got it wrong. Sometimes, very wrong. By Madison Moulton Maps are one of humanity’s greatest inventions. Early maps explain how humans understood the world around them, […]
What is the Austronesian Expansion?
The mass migration of Austronesian-speaking peoples thousands of years ago still has an impact on modern countries of the Indo-Pacific region and beyond. By Madison Moulton Around 3000 BCE, a […]
Saint Patrick: A Story of Faith and Mythology
By Michael Vecchio Every year on March 17th, much of the western world celebrates “being Irish” by wearing the colour green, drinking beer, and decorating with the symbols of leprechauns […]
Hidden women of history: the priestess Pythia at the Delphic Oracle, who spoke truth to power
By Julia Kindt, University of Sydney. In a time and place that offered few career opportunities for women, the job of the priestess of Apollo at Delphi stands out. Her […]
Wise women: 6 ancient female philosophers you should know about
By Dawn LaValle Norman, Australian Catholic University. When we conjure up ancient philosophers the image that springs to mind might be a bald Socrates discoursing with beautiful young men in […]
Archaeologists determined the step-by-step path taken by the first people to settle the Caribbean islands
For the millions of people around the world who live on islands today, a plane or boat can easily enough carry them to the mainland or other islands. But how […]
Cultural diversity – the making of Rome
By Richard Shrubb. The Roman Empire was arguably the most successful empire in history, eclipsing even the British Empire. The core reason for this is the acceptance of the diverse […]
This 17,500-year-old kangaroo in the Kimberley is Australia’s oldest Aboriginal rock painting
In Western Australia’s northeast Kimberley region, on Balanggarra Country, a two-metre-long painting of a kangaroo spans the sloping ceiling of a rock shelter above the Drysdale River. In a paper […]