In AD 9, three Roman legions under the command of Publius Quinctilius Varus were ambushed and destroyed in the Teutoburg Forest in Germania. Were there any survivors?

The Roman emperor Constantine the Great convened the first Council of Nicea, where it was decided that 25 December would be the official date for Christmas. Is this notion correct?

After the Battle of Marathon, Pheidippides is said to have run back to Athens to report the news of the Athenian victory. But was this run the inspiration for the modern marathon race?

It is often assumed that Aesop, the writer of the famous Fables, was a Greek author. However, none of the evidence agrees with this.

Some ancient sources claim that elephants were given wine before battle in order to rouse them into a fighting frenzy. But was this practical or even safe?

It is often repeated that the Spartans practiced an institutionalised form of eugenics, part of which included the disposing of “imperfect” babies . Modern archaeology, and historical studies, have brought this story under serious scrutiny.

It is a common claim that the construction of the pyramids are a mystery and archaeologists have no real evidence to figure out how they were built. As a result, alternative histories offer elaborate theories to try and explain the pyramids.

The Hippocratic Oath is used to this day as a marker of medical diligence and responsibility, and it is assumed that its author was none other than Hippocrates, the “father of medicine”.

Despite all evidence to the contrary, there is a persistent claim that the ancient Greek heavy infantryman referred to as a “hoplite” is named after his shield.

With the coronavirus making its way through the world, ancient epidemics like the Plague of Athens are seized upon to make dire forecasts about the fate of modern society.