10: Roman Concession Stand
Archaeologists have just discovered a concession stand at the Colosseum in
Rome – and in a strange twist, it has a lot of similarities to concession stands today that
you can find at any sports arena! People have wanted their snacks for thousands of years!!
According to archaeologists from the University of Milan, the concession stand charged at least
10 denarii – the local Roman currency back then – for a small clay cup of wine. This is now the
earliest known instance of sporting fans being completely ripped off by the first tiny glass
of liquid. Today it's 20 bucks for a beer. 2000 years ago, it was 10 Denarii for a cup of wine.
While the archaeologists didn't say exactly what the conversion rate is with today’s money,
they did say the price was well beyond what an average Roman citizen would pay at their
marketplace! An average Roman soldier had an annual salary of 450 Denarii or less
and a pair of boots you would wear every day cost 15! So 10 for 1 drink was way overpriced!
It's a shocking example of ancient capitalism. It also shows how the advanced Roman Empire
had already mastered the art of ripping their own people off and bleeding them dry.
This is according to professor Lambrugo Frederico, who also says that the excavation team uncovered
the remains of warning signs forbidding spectators from bringing their own food or beverages
into the Colosseum. Basically, watching gladiators fight in ancient Rome had similar
rules as going to the movie theater today. Furthermore, evidence shows the concession
stand was selling bags of snails and olives for 20 denarii, an even bigger rip off than the drinks.
The remains of the stand itself were found on the lower level beneath the Colosseum,
close to where fans had to go to enter the stands, right so you couldn’t miss it!
9: Dying Embrace The skeleton of a mother and her child were
discovered by Chinese archaeologists after 4000 years locked in a final embrace. The interlocked
skeletons were dug up at an early Bronze Age site that the experts have nicknamed the Pompeii of the
East. But while on the outside these skeletons might look sweet and loving, the truth behind
their horrible deaths is a little more disturbing. It's believed that the mother was trying to
protect her child during a brutal earthquake that hit China’s Qinghai province in the year 2000 BC.
As of right now, experts don't know the scale of the disaster that killed these poor people.
The mother and her child are only one pair of skeletons in a site littered with the dead.
Their best guess is that the earthquake caused the nearby Yellow River to flood, which ended
up destroying the settlement and preserving the dead in their final moments of terror.
For example, the archaeologist found the woman's skeleton still peering up at the sky, knelt on the
floor, with her arms wrapped around her young child. Archaeologists say the kid was probably
a little boy, no older than five. It's hard to imagine just how frightened the woman must have
been as the floodwaters came charging at them. She looked at the sky for help and then was dead!
8: Medieval Palace in the Garden A local Englishman living in a small
village recently discovered the unimaginable in his back garden. This happened in the small town
of Wiveliscombe (wilz-km), when homeowner Charles Pole hired a crew to help with a
construction project. Charles happens to be disabled, so he was having a bungalow built
in his garden for himself as a quiet retreat. At 81 years old, Charles nearly had a heart attack
when the builders he’d hired stumbled onto ancient wall foundations and the remains of an old floor.
The ruins have been dated back to the 13th century, with archaeologists saying they
were once part of a local bishop’s palace. Charles had literally been living on top
of an ancient palace and had no clue. Amazingly, the palace actually shows
up in historical records. Local historians had already known there was a palace somewhere nearby,
but they were unsure of its exact location. The palace was likely constructed around 1256
when a royal charter gave the bishop of Bath and Wells permission to hunt in the area. Back then,
England was far more forested than it is today. The bishop then constructed a private palace for
himself, kind of like an extremely luxurious hunting lodge. The palace then continued to be
used by various bishops up until the 16th century when all mention of it vanished.
According to archaeologist Bob Croft with the South West Heritage Trust, the palace
was likely abandoned and then dismantled by locals in the area to build their own houses
and other buildings. By that time it was just a shoddy ruin, nobody even knew what it was.
Then at some point, somebody built Charles’ house right over top of it!
7: Bacon’s Rebellion At historic Jamestown in Virginia,
staff with the Jamestown Rediscovery project made a strange discovery while installing some lights
in front of the memorial church. They found burn deposits just beneath the surface of the soil.
They realized the deposits were evidence of either the Jamestown Fort burning down in 1608,
of the Confederate troops retreating in 1862, or the famous Bacon Rebellion back in 1676.
The archaeologists knew they had something interesting on their hands, so they continued
digging until they found a mysterious square pit filled with burned artifacts. The artifacts
were confirmed to definitely be from the Bacon Rebellion that happened at the site over 345 years
ago. The team called it evidence of one of the most unusual chapters in the history of Jamestown.
For those unfamiliar with the rebellion, it happened on September 19,
1676. A man named Nathaniel Bacon led a siege on the historic city of Jamestown. He burned
the whole place to the ground after a violent skirmish with Governor Sir William Berkeley.
It was the first rebellion of its kind in the American colonies. Bacon had managed
to gain support from poor farmers in the area to take out the fat cats living in Jamestown.
Jamestown was rebuilt after Bacon burned it down – but until just recently,
no evidence of the incident was ever found. Archaeologists now have physical proof in the
form of burned pieces of the old fort that this dramatic event really did take place.
6: Man VS Serpent
There's nothing quite as strange as a giant human skeleton found wrapped up in an equally giant
serpent’s skeleton. The original story of the giant and the snake goes back to 2018
when the photos appeared online. The skeleton was supposedly discovered in a Thai cave near Krabi.
Somehow, the giant and the serpent got into a bit of a battle, ending with both of them dead and the
snake wrapped around the human. Even more bizarre is that the snake in the photograph has horns,
suggesting it may have actually been some kind of dragon or perhaps even a dinosaur.
Giant skeletons have been discovered in different parts of the globe – but this
doesn’t seem to be one of those cases. But did someone actually die while battling a snake?
This has actually happened. A venomous snake bit a man and in revenge the man bit the snake back,
poisoning himself and killing the snake all at the same time! He then died from the venom.
But after much investigation this particular case was actually an art installation displayed in a
Thai cave. The skeleton and the serpent are real only in the sense that they haven't been digitally
manipulated. They were set up by an artist from Taiwan as part of a captivating exhibition
on contemporary art. They've even remained on display inside this mysterious Thai cave
for curious tourists to come peek at but not sure why they tried to make it look so real!
5: Massacre Victims From the Iron Age Archaeologists made yet another shocking
discovery in Spain. This time, the discovery dates back to the Iron Age. A massacre site was found
near the town of La Hoya, in the Basque region. It was actually spotted by archaeologists in 1935
but not excavated until decades later. When archaeologists finally got around to digging
up the mass graveyard, they were shocked to find extreme levels of brutality practically
unheard of. There were 13 skeletons dumped here, none of which were buried in a proper grave.
Many of the dead people had been dismembered before they were thrown into
the ground – dismembered in the worst possible ways. They were missing limbs, they had their
skulls smashed in, and it looked like they had been torn apart by some kind of rampaging beast.
Even though the excavations have been over for years, archaeologists still don't know
what happened to the victims of the massacre. They don't even know who these people were.
The only thing that’s certain is that whoever the victims had been in life, someone – or some group
of people, hated them enough to rip them limb from limb and then dump them in an unmarked pit.
And now for number 4, but first it’s shout out time!! Wanted to say a big thank you to Jennifer
Diemer and damon mountain! Thanks so much for watching and letting us be a part of your day!!
If you are new here be sure to hit that subscribe button and
keep on watching for more awesome discoveries!!
4: Ancient Ceremonial Monument
An archaeological investigation in England recently led to the discovery of a huge
ceremonial monument and several bizarre ancient structures. The excavations were conducted by a
team with Albion Archaeology after an evaluation suggested there could be evidence of activity
stretching from Neolithic times to the Saxons. As it turned out, the evaluation was right.
The earliest remains found here are of a Bronze Age monument, originally constructed 6000 years
ago. It was probably a ceremonial center where the ancients came to perform unknown rituals.
To give you an idea of the timeline, the monument is at least 1000 years older than Stonehenge.
Next, researchers discovered evidence of a settlement from a much later time,
during the Iron Age. The settlement contained a roundhouse and storage pits likely used
for keeping seeds and grain safe over winter. But the most unexpected discovery was from the
days of the Anglo-Saxons. The archaeologists found buildings and structures left behind
just a few centuries ago, including an oven probably used for baking bread.
But the real trouble is trying to figure out why ancient people continued returning to the site.
It was used almost continuously from 6000 years ago until just a few hundred years ago,
seemingly abandoned without reason. 3: Psychological Warfare
In 2016, while clearing land for a new shopping and hotel complex in Leicester, England,
the workers stumbled across an ancient Roman site. It was a townhouse from the 2nd century AD.
But it wasn't the house itself that caused archaeologists to be shocked,
it was a small artifact found in the ruins. While excavating the house, a key handle was
discovered with a grisly scene drawn on it. The scene was of a barbarian being eaten alive by a
lion, with four young barbarian children watching in horror. Archaeologists say this may be direct
evidence of psychological warfare practiced by the Romans during their occupation of Britain.
The thing is that lions don't live anywhere on the British Isles. The people living in
Britain when the Roman soldiers showed up wouldn't have known what a lion was.
But based on this small bronze artifact and the horrible scene it depicts,
the Romans may have brought lions to Britain for the singular purpose of
executing people. They would feed the locals, whom they saw as barbarians, to the hungry animals.
2000 years ago when the key handle was crafted, Britain was seen as the very edge of civilization.
It was basically the very end of the world. The Britons were also considered to be the end of
civilized humanity, living at the furthest extent of the universe. They would dye their bodies blue
and green, they tattooed their faces, and – to the Romans – they acted like scary creatures.
So, it could be that the Romans brought lions to Britain as a type of psychological warfare,
to fight back against the barbarian hordes. To scare them into submission,
they released packs of lions to terrorize the local villagers.
2: Byzantine Town Near Be’er Sheva in Israel,
archaeologists recently discovered the remains of a Jewish town that dates back
1500 years. The town itself isn’t that strange, but the archaeologists also found a pair of public
ritual pools known as mikvahs, which were used in Judaism for purification rituals.
According to the Israel Antiquities Authority, the Jewish town was surprisingly large for how old it
is. There was even a synagogue discovered facing in the direction of Jerusalem,
which back then was considered the center of the world to the Jewish people.
Archaeologists aren't sure what exactly happened to this mysterious town,
but it appears to have been abandoned sometime after the Byzantine era in which it was built.
It was abandoned at the same time that Islamist conquests spread throughout the area in the 6th
century, destroying all in their path. Even more mysterious is that a different synagogue was found
a few miles east of the ruined city, built at the same time and abandoned at the same time.
From what archaeologists can tell, the locals packed up and fled in a hurry,
probably fleeing the bloodthirsty armies of Islam. 1: Ancient Visigoth Coffin
Researchers investigating the Roman ruins in Los Villaricos in Span discovered one of the
best-preserved Visigoth coffins ever. The coffin was made of hard stone, with intricate geometric
patterns carved all across its surface. It dates back to the 6th century AD, right around the time
when the legendary Visigoths, along with other Germanic tribes, invaded the territory previously
held by the Roman Empire – the very empire the Visigoths had toppled just a few centuries before.
The Roman ruins in which the coffin was discovered actually date back 600 years
before the coffin was ever buried. It was originally an agricultural settlement.
But after the Visigoths took over, they modeled the settlement to their own liking. A Roman villa
was repurposed and turned into a necropolis. Where the Roman owner of the villa once welcomed guests,
the Visigoths now buried their dead. Part of the villa was even turned into a Christian basilica.
Unfortunately, archaeologists have been unable to determine the identity of the Visigoth buried
inside the coffin. They don't know if he was an important ruler, a member of the church,
or just a rich guy who lived in the city.
Which of these incredible archaeological discoveries is your favorite? Let me know
in the comments and thank you for watching. If you haven’t already,
be sure to hit that subscribe button for all the best videos from the channel!