National Geographic History

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FROM THE EDITOR

National Geographic History

Pompeii’s New Treasure • The recently discovered House of Phaedra features high-quality frescoes.

AI Uncovers Hundreds of Nasca Glyphs • A century ago, scientists began to study the enigmatic Nasca lines in Peru. With the help of AI, the known number has nearly doubled.

MISSIVES FROM AN ANCIENT CULTURE

Shepard’s Space Flight • Alan B. Shepard, Jr.’s Freedom 7 flight made him the first American in space. Soon after, President John F. Kennedy vowed to land a man on the moon before the decade’s end.

JERRIE COBB AND THE MERCURY 13

Building Up: A Spectacular Trajectory

Gaudí: Architect of Fantasy, Faith, and Form • A hundred years since his passing, the legacy of this architectural visionary continues to leave us spellbound.

GLIMPSES OF A MYSTIC

A HAVEN ABOVE THE CITY

MASTERPIECE OR EYESORE?

A STATEMENT OF INTENT

A DRAGON’S LAIR

A CATHEDRAL FOR THE POOR

The Unbeatable Rise of Medieval Chess Games • A newly unearthed medieval knight piece found in Germany sheds light on how chess became Europe’s favorite pastime, played everywhere from feudal halls to bustling towns.

QUICKENING THE PACE

THE QUEEN’S GAMBIT

The Enduring and Complex Legacy of Shaker Chairs • Crafted by a sect that sought perfection, the furniture of the Shakers reflected their spiritual convictions.

A musical heritage

ODYSSEUS THE HERO’S RETURN • In The Iliad, Odysseus is a prototypical Bronze Age warrior hero, but in The Odyssey, he personifies the Greeks who explored the Mediterranean.

A LONG JOURNEY

THE RETURN OF THE OTHER HEROES

ROGUE PIRATES OR TRADERS?

AN EPIC OF THE DOMESTIC SPHERE

WOMEN IN THE ODYSSEY • Even ancient scholars of epic poems stressed the importance of female characters in The Odyssey. Later, in the 18th century, it was suggested that it was composed for a female audience. In the 19th century, it was even posited that a woman wrote it, an idea taken up again at the end of the 20th century. More recently it has been suggested that Penelope is the poem’s true heroine. In a poem in which cunning is the sign of a hero, Penelope’s wits are what keep Ithaca safe in the absence of its king.

A DAY AT THE CIRCUS MAXIMUS CHARIOT RACING IN ROME • Romans would flock to the Circus Maximus to enjoy the city’s favorite spectacle: chariot racing. The contests were thrilling, with near misses, dramatic accidents, and adulation for the winners.

CIRCUS MAXIMUS

THE TRACK RECORD OF A STAR CHARIOTEER

THE CIRCUS MAXIMUS

SORCERY AND SKULDUGGERY

THE THRILL OF THE RACE

THE GREAT INVENTIONS OF THE ISLAMIC WORLD • As the spread of Islam encompassed the great cultural centers of antiquity, a drive to recover Greek classical heritage gave rise to an era of scientific discovery and technological innovation.

THE RISE OF SCIENCE IN ISLAM

The House of Wisdom

Arabic Numbers: From India to the World • It was al-Khwarizmi who, in the ninth century, promoted the Indian decimal-based number system, including a positional notation for zero, derived from Sanskrit. The Arabic word for “zero” is sifr (empty), which gave rise to the word “cypher” and the word for “digit” in several European languages, such as the French “chiffre.”

Medieval Islam, Land of Innovation

Surgical Instruments

Orientation on Land and at Sea • As...