A Peek at the New Discoveries Inside the Great Pyramid
Scientists use augmented reality technology to see what the newly discovered voids inside the Great Pyramid of Giza might look like.
Andrew Turnbull: The Most Reviled Man in Colonial Florida
In the 18th Century, Dr. Andrew Turnbull's plantation in East Florida was the largest in North America. Turnbull employed more than 1,400 indentured servants from around the world - people fleeing famine and drought in their home countries. However, the conditions these servants faced on the plantation may have been more devastating than the hardships they left behind.
The True Story Behind the Guale Uprising
In the late 16th century, the Guale natives participated in a brutal uprising against their Catholic overseers. Legend says that Don Juanillo, heir to the chief, led the revolt because the friars would not allow him a second wife. However, there are reasons to suggest this may not be the full story.
Preview | Secrets of Spanish Florida
Secrets of Spanish Florida – A Secrets of the Dead Special uncovers one story of America’s past that never made it into textbooks. Follow some of America’s leading archaeologists, maritime scientists, and historians as they share the story of Florida’s earliest settlers. It’s a story that has taken more than 450 years to reveal.
Spanish and French Battle for Florida Fortress
When the Spanish settlers tried to move into Fort Caroline at present-day Anastasia Island, the French colonists were not pleased. As previous holders of the Fort, the French promised revenge...and may have exaggerated their efforts.
The First Thanksgiving Was Actually in St. Augustine
55 years before the Pilgrims even arrived in Plymouth, the first true Thanksgiving took place in St. Augustine, Florida.
Why Slaves Escaped to Florida for Asylum
Join a team of archaeologists, scientists and historians as they reveal the little-known history of America’s Spanish colonists who settled in Florida in 1565, long before Jamestown or Plymouth were founded. Narrated by actor Jimmy Smits.
Scanning the Pyramids
For the first time, the Egyptian government has granted unprecedented access to the pyramids at Giza. It is allowing multiple different technological tools to scan, measure and probe the ancient structures in order to create a picture of what exists inside the buildings themselves. Will there be vast ceremonial rooms? Burial sites? Secret chambers? Other mysteries? Find out.
Preview | Leonardo, The Man Who Saved Science
Leonardo da Vinci is well known for his inventions as well as his art. But new evidence shows that many of his ideas were realized long before he sketched them out in his notebooks — some even 1,700 years before. Was Leonardo a copycat?
The Vitruvian Man
During the Renaissance, the goal of art was the expression of harmony, and harmony is a matter of proportion. Leonardo was fascinated with proportion. Vitruvian Man is a pure expression of the Renaissance – a secular, almost carnal figure whose reach extends to the very limit of the cosmos.
Did Leonardo Really Invent the Parachute?
The parachute is one of many inventions attributed to Leonardo but in fact, he did not invent it. In 1968, researchers examining an obscure trove of Renaissance drawings discovered sketches from the studio of a 15th century Italian inventor that were eerily similar to Leonardo’s study for a parachute.
Leonardo's Anatomical Drawings
First sign of Leonardo's actual practical involvement in anatomy and dissection is some wonderful, slightly eerie drawings of a skull, dateable to about 1489. Leonardo’s illustrations, as precise as his technical drawings of machines, were unequalled in accuracy until the photographic techniques of the 19th century.
Preview | Nero’s Sunken City
Beneath the turquoise waves of the Bay of Naples lies an extraordinary underwater archeology site, the ancient Roman city of Baiae. From the first century to the third century AD, Baiae was the exclusive playground for the rich and powerful among Rome’s elite. What made Baiae such a special place? What really went on there? And why did it disappear?
What Happened at Baiae, Stayed at Baiae
150 miles south of Rome, Baiae is a resort where the elites could let their hair down, and indulge their wildest dreams. The coastal city offered spectacular ocean views but lay in the dangerous shadow of Vesuvius. Today, few know about Baiae. Some of the greatest names of the Roman republic such as Caesar, Cicero, Mark Anthony, Nero, all of these men had villas at Baiae.
Baian Seafood Casserole and Oyster Farming in Baiae
Shellfish farming was an industry as far back as the Roman times. The entrepreneur Sergius Orata is credited with being the first to lay out artificial oyster beds in the bay in the first century BC. The ancient Roman cookbook Apicius suggests how the rich prepared their farmed seafood. To prove their wealth, the rich would sometimes eat 100 oysters in a one sitting.
Nero's Banquets in Baiae
Nero was a cruel, eccentric psychopath who persecuted Christians and, it’s said, burned Rome to the ground. Baiae was his escape where he could indulge in his sadistic fantasies. Nero spent a fortune on indulgent banquets in Baiae. But these banquets weren’t just about food. They featured sex and debauchery.
Preview | Van Gogh’s Ear
The moment when Vincent van Gogh looked into a mirror, held up a blade and cut into his own ear defines his turbulent life and art. But what did he really do on the night of December 23, 1888, in the town of Arles? What was his state of mind? No one has been clear on the details... until now. Bernadette Murphy has spent five years piecing together a meticulous picture of his life in Arles.
The Yellow House
The Yellow House was at the heart of Vincent’s mission to create a modern artistic brotherhood in the south of France. Vincent seemed happier than he had ever been and began to paint obsessively.
The Sunflowers and Paul Gauguin
The walls of the Yellow House were soon covered with paintings inspired by Vincent's Arles experience including the iconic sunflowers. Paul Gauguin was something of a celebrity in the modern art world. He was lured by the sunflowers, and moved to Arles and took up residence at the Yellow House on October 23rd, 1888.
Who was Vincent van Gogh?
Born March 30th, 1853 in Holland, Vincent van Gogh was the eldest son of a Protestant minister. Vincent was expected to conform to a strict, religious upbringing. At the age of 16, he went to work at his uncle’s art dealership. With his younger brother's support, in 1880, at the age of 27, Vincent threw himself into his art. In 1886, he decided to move in with Theo in Paris.
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