Five Interesting Artifacts
1. Rosetta Stone
The Rosetta Stone is a large stone that was discovered in the town of Rosetta, now called Rashid, in Egypt. The same information is written in three different scripts on the stone - Ancient Egyptian hieroglyphics, Demotic, and Ancient Greek. Because the Greek portion of the stone could be read, scientists were able to decipher Ancient Egyptian hieroglyphics for the first time. The Rosetta Stone is dated 196 BCE and announces a decree from King Ptolemy V. |
2. Terracotta Warriors
More than 8,000 soldiers, 130 chariots with 520 horses, and 150 cavalry horses made out of terracotta were buried with the First Emperor of China, Qin Shi Huang around 210 - 209 BCE. The army was meant to protect the Emperor in the afterlife. The figures are life-sized. |
3. Pharaoh Tutankhamun (King Tut)
The tomb of this Egyptian pharaoh is one of the most famous discovered tombs of all time. Tutankhamun ruled around 1332 to 1323 BCE. He became pharaoh around the age of 9 or 10. |
4. The Antikythera Mechanism
The Antikythera Mechanism is a bronze device found in a shipwreck off the coast of the Greek Island of Antikythera. It is an analog computer designed to predict astronomical positions and eclipses that was made around 100 BCE. Originally it had an outer wooden box with about 30 gears inside. To see a neat video that explains more about the Antikythera Mechanism, click here. |
5. The Cave of Altamira
The Cave of Altamira is a cave located in Spain which has paintings on its walls made by Paleolithic people. The paintings were made at least 13,000 years ago. These paintings are important because they show us how artistically skilled the humans were during the Paleolithic period. |