Secrets of the Dead

History Series / 9 Seasons

Secrets of the Dead is part detective story, part true-life drama that unearths evidence from around the world, challenging prevailing ideas and throwing fresh light on unexplained events.

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How Hannibal's Elephants Crossed the Alps

2m 58s

Hannibal was determined to get his whole army - men and animals - across the treacherous path through the Alps. But how did he handle 37 elephants? Expert Dr. Tori Herridge speaks with Santiago Borragan Santos, Chief Veterinarian at Cabárceno Park in Spain, to learn how the park controls Europe’s largest herd of captive African elephants.

Preview | Scanning the Pyramids

36s

Tracing the origin of the legends of secret chambers hidden in the heart of the pyramid, Secrets of the Dead will show what lies within, solving a 4,500-year-old mystery, by following the first scientific mission in 30 years to be authorized by the Egyptian government to examine the pyramids of Egypt.

Muography Helps Scientists See Inside the Great Pyramid

1m 39s

Scientists used an unprecedented imaging technique called muography to create an internal scan of the Great Pyramid of Giza. See how it works. Muography is the process of recording the trajectories of sub-atomic particles known as muons to form images. The process is similar to taking an x-ray but on a much larger scale.

Andrew Turnbull: The Most Reviled Man in Colonial Florida

6m 14s

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

4m 38s

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

30s

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

1m 40s

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.

Why Slaves Escaped to Florida for Asylum

1m 55s

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

41s

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

30s

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

3m 1s

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?

4m 12s

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

3m 19s

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

30s

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

3m 17s

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

2m 52s

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

3m 31s

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

30s

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.

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