Religious History

The Beckery monastery as it would have looked in the fifith century

Oldest Community of Monks in U.K. Discovered

The find was thanks to a community training dig

Do We Finally Know How the Holy Grail Disappeared?

How did an onyx cup thought to be the Holy Grail disappear from the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in 909 AD?

What Pilgrims Heard When They Arrived in America

They came to America seeking religious freedom, but what did their prayers, and those of the local Native Americans, sound like?

American soldiers in Nimrud in 2008, with the Ziggurat in the background.

ISIS Has Destroyed a Nearly 3,000-Year-Old Assyrian Ziggurat

The ziggurat of Nimrud was the ancient city’s central temple

The historic St. Anne's Well after it was rediscovered and excavated.

A “Cursed” English Well Has Been Rediscovered

An old photograph led archaeologists to the long-lost well

The Papal Palace of Castel Gandolfo sits atop a hillside overlooking Lake Alban.

Pope Francis Isn’t Using His Summer House, so the Vatican Is Letting the Public in

Get a rare look at the pope’s luxurious vacation home

One of the world's oldest-known carvings of the Ten Commandments will soon go up for auction.

The Oldest-Known Carving of the 10 Commandments Is Going up for Auction

But the buyer won’t be able to take it home

A 19th century illustration of the zodiacal constellation Ophiuchus.

NASA Didn’t Change Your Astrological Sign, Blame It on Earth's Wobbly Rotation

Astrology is not a science

A Hindu temple painted yellow.

This Group Celebrates Kenya’s Religious Diversity by Painting Religious Centers Yellow

Painting for pluralism

An artist's representation of the Akelarre.

Visit the Site of the Biggest Witch Trial in History

Over 7,000 people were accused of witchcraft in Basque Spain

The remains of a teenage boy found near an altar dedicated to Zeus at Mt. Lykaion

Did the Ancient Greeks Engage in Human Sacrifice?

The remains uncovered at an altar to Zeus on Mount Lykaion may confirm legends about human sacrifice at the shrine

A cartoon from the magazine The Judge, where "Democracy" is portrayed as the devil overlooking Washington, D.C., and looks very much like Grover Cleveland.

Lucifer Has Long Had His Hands in Politics

Since the earliest days of Christianity, people have accused their political rivals of being in league with the Devil

The historical flag of Prague's Jewish community.

How Did the Six-Pointed Star Become Associated With Judaism?

The connection between the two goes back centuries

This 98-foot-long figure appears to represent an animal sticking out its tongue.

“New” 2,000-Year-Old Geoglyph Spotted in Peru

There’s always more to learn about the mysterious Nazca lines

A print of Lake Suwa from the series Thirty-Six Views of Mount Fuji.

Japanese Priests Collected Almost Seven Centuries of Climate Data

Historic records from "citizen scientists" in Japan and Finland give researchers centuries of data on ice conditions

A statue of Julian of Norwich at Norwich Cathedra. She is one of the first-known women writers in the English language.

For the First Time, See Two Early Medieval Books Written By Women On Display Together

The manuscripts detail the authors' experiences

For the first time in hundreds of years, some seders might include rice and beans.

For the First Time in 800 Years, Rice and Beans Are Kosher for Passover

The Jewish Conservative movement relaxes a 13th-century ban on rice, corn and beans during Passover

Machine Learning May Help Determine When the Old Testament Was Written

Using computer algorithms to analyze handwriting, researchers discover citizens of ancient Judah were much more literate than previously thought

Geometric Shapes Inspire New, Stretchy Materials

Intricate designs drawn from Islamic art could help make materials that stretch in new ways

Mother Teresa stands with children at her Calcutta mission.

Mother Teresa Will Become an Official Saint

The champion of India's poorest has sprinted to sainthood since her 1997 death

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