Almost any information can be found on the Internet today. True, it often happens that the information does not correspond to reality, and many people take such "historical delusions" at face value. This review contains facts that are intended to dispel existing myths.
1. Nero played the violin as Rome burned
This story is known to everyone: 64 BC. Rome is on fire and Nero is playing the violin. But this is impossible. First, the violin was invented 1,600 years later. But even if there was a violin, Nero could play it only at a distance of 30 miles from burning Rome, since during the fire he was not in the Eternal City, but in his villa in the suburbs.
Did Nero have a violin? Photo: daviddarling.info
Some scholars are inclined to believe that Nero did not literally play the violin, but simply did nothing. Even Roman historians tell the story of the Great Fire of Rome in different ways, but none of them speaks positively about Nero. Today it is difficult to say for sure what Nero actually did when Rome burned, but it is reliably known that after the fire all his subjects hated him.
2. Caligula appointed a horse consul
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The Roman historian Suetonius left many interesting stories to descendants, but perhaps the best of them are stories about Caligula. It was thanks to Suetonius that the "fact" appeared that Caligula had appointed his horse as Roman consul. But modern historians have carefully read the texts of Suetonius, and came to the conclusion that this is a joke. However, there is no evidence or refutation of this fact … there are only Suetonius' records. And about Caligula, disputes continue today: who is he - a slandered madman or a sadistic killer?
Bust of Caligula. Photo: listverse.com
3. Spartans killed sick children
The Greek writer Plutarch said that every newborn Spartan child was brought to an elder who decided whether the child would live or should be thrown into a pit for it to die (if the child was born with any defects). For many centuries this has been accepted as true. But during archaeological excavations in the area where the pit was supposed to be, the remains of the babies were not found. It is possible that Plutarch simply wanted to make the Spartans look bad.
Murder of sick children in Sparta: truth or fiction. Photo: fanpop.com
If archaeologists are right, then Plutarch can be considered the propaganda mouthpiece of the time. But there is another fact, when Plutarch criticized the Spartans for killing babies, the Greek physician Soranus wrote an article entitled "How to recognize a newborn that is worth getting rid of." This article encouraged parents to kill disabled or sick children. As for the pit, it is quite possible that either Plutarch made a mistake regarding its location, or the geography changed over 2000 years.
4. Pocahontas and John Smith
Today, it is believed that the famous story of how the daughter of the Indian chief Pocahontas risked her life to save John Smith is a beautiful fairy tale. The theory goes that John Smith himself invented this story to "cling" to the glory of Pocahontas. But Professor Leo Limey studied this theory in detail and found several inconsistencies.
Pocahontas rescuing John Smith. Photo: listverse.com
On the one hand, John Smith was indeed the man who created the first English settlement in North America, as stated in the history books. He was very familiar with Pocahontas. Moreover, there is no reason to believe that John Smith is a liar. And more … No one disputed his story for 250 years after he told it. And the story of why the Indian princess adopted Christianity and left for England, and today excites the minds and souls of people.
5. The last words of Julius Caesar
Today it is common knowledge that Julius Caesar did not actually utter the phrase "And you, Brutus?" When he was killed. This is nothing more than a quote from a Shakespeare play, written 1600 years after Caesar's death. According to Roman historians, Caesar's real words were: "Kai su, teknon?" (“And you too, child?” In Greek). By the word "child" he meant Brutus.
"And you Brute?". Photo: listverse.com
So, if we paraphrase these words, then we can translate them as "And you, Brutus?" And some scholars even emphasize that today no one knows for certain whether Caesar said anything at all before his death. Even those people who wrote about this phrase at that time heard about it from others and did not know for sure if it was true.
6. Pharaohs were buried together with servants
Some modern scholars argue that after the death of the pharaoh, his servants were not killed in order to be buried with him. If this turns out to be true, then such an amazing discovery will radically change modern knowledge about Egypt. But … this is just a theory.
Pharaoh's death: alone or in company? Photo: listverse.com
Archaeologists have found the remains of 41 people buried next to the pharaoh Khor Aha. Some of them are children who clearly died a violent death - from simply strangled. Aha's successor, Pharaoh Khor Jer went even further. 300 people were buried next to him.
7. Pythagoras did not exist
According to some people, the Greek mathematician Pythagoras may not have existed at all. All references to him are the records of his followers. And the fact remains that there is nothing that was written by Pythagoras himself. But on the other hand, the same can be said about almost all famous people who lived in the sixth century BC.
Pythagoras. Photo: listverse.com
For example, the records of Socrates and Confucius were also made by their followers. If you follow a similar logic, it can be argued that they also did not exist. Therefore, serious pundits do not argue about whether there was a real Pythagoras.
8. "Sovereign" Machiavelli - satire
For many years Machiavelli's treatise "The Sovereign" shocked people with cynicism and cruelty. But once Jean-Jacques Rousseau suggested that it was just a satire. However, the satire is supposed to be funny, and Machiavelli wrote real advice on how to govern the republic. If this is really a satire, then it is unique, because there is not a single funny moment in it. Therefore, most scientists are skeptical about such a theory.
Machiavelli - author of the treatise "Sovereign" Photo: listverse.com
9. The cause of cannibalism of the Aztecs is protein deficiency
For a long time, it was believed that Aztec human sacrifice and cannibalism were intertwined. But the American anthropologist Michael Harner put forward the theory that the Aztecs simply didn’t have enough protein and resorted to cannibalism in a desperate attempt to survive. However, as it turned out later, the Aztecs actually had a wide variety of foods and did not suffer at all from a lack of protein.
Aztec cannibalism is a bad habit or sacrifice. Photo: picstopin.com
Harner's theory has been completely disproved. In addition, the Aztecs usually killed people and ate their hearts during harvest, when food was most abundant. In addition, only the elite ate human flesh, and they hardly lacked anything. In the end, scholars agreed that the Aztecs simply performed ritual sacrifices for their dark gods.
10. Jews have never been to Egypt
Israeli archaeologist Zeev Herzog stated that "archaeological evidence has been obtained showing that the Israelites have never been to Egypt." This was a rather shocking statement, since it was not only about the fact that biblical miracles never happened, but also that much of Jewish history is fiction. Herzog did not lie. There really is no archaeological evidence that the Jews were in Egypt or that they traveled in the desert. But this is by no means proof that they were not there.
Were there any Jews in Egypt? Photo: toramizion.ru
There are also many historians who disagree with Herzog's claim. They indicate that records of Canaanite slaves in Egypt have survived, and that in the fourth century BC, non-Jewish cultures told different versions of the story of Moses. However, maybe this is the Jewish wisdom.