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Freyr (Old Norse for 'Lord', sometimes anglicised as Frey) is the main fertility god in Norse mythology, his connection with harvests, sun and rain, virility, weddings, and his rule over wealth securing him an important position within the...

The Kojiki ('Record of Ancient Things') is the oldest book of Japanese history and the oldest text of any kind from Japan. Compiled in 712 CE by the court scholar Ono Yasumaro, the work begins with the gods and the creation of the world...

The sculpture of the ancient Celts between 700 BCE and 400 CE is nothing if not varied as artists across Europe developed their own ideas and borrowed what interested them from neighbouring cultures. Early Celtic stone and wood sculptures...

Myles Standish (l. c. 1584-1656 CE) was the military advisor to the Plymouth Colony who traveled with the colonists (later known as pilgrims) aboard the Mayflower in 1620 CE. The colonists were made up of members of a religious separatist...

"La Joyeuse" (French for "The Joyous") was the name given to the sword of Charlemagne (l. 742-814 CE) in Medieval legend. This 9th-10th Century CE sword, popularly identified as "Joyeuse", has been used in French coronation ceremonies from...

Two steel-bladed Japanese samurai swords: the longer katana and shorter wakizashi. 18-19th century CE. (Los Angeles County Museum of Art)

Japanese steel katana and scabbard. Decorated with cord, iron, silver, gold, and shibuichi alloy. c. 1596–1615 CE. Yamato, Japan. (Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum)

Diogenes of Sinope (c. 404-323 BCE) was a Greek Cynic philosopher best known for holding a lantern to the faces of the citizens of Athens claiming he was searching for an honest man. He was most likely a student of the philosopher Antisthenes...

The Mighty King 600 of their warriors I put to the sword and decapitated; 400 I took alive; 3,000 captives I brought forth; I took possession of the city for myself: the living soldiers, and heads to the city of Amidi the royal city, I sent...

Colonel Thomas Blood, a known conspirator, made an infamous but unsuccessful attempt to steal the British Crown Jewels from the Tower of London in 1671. Disguised as a clergyman, Blood and his gang swiped the royal regalia from under the...