Scythians were nomadic herders of the steppes north of the Black Sea. Their origin, just like their mother tongue, is unknown. They were among the first nomads riding domesticated horses, which gave them tremendous mobility and power. From the seventh century B. C. they dominated the Eastern part of Europe
There’s more to the eye makeup that gave Queen Nefertiti and other ancient Egyptian those stupendous gazes and legendary beauty than meets the eye. Scientists in France are reporting that the alluring eye makeup also may have been used to help prevent or treat eye disease by doubling as an
Temple dedication foundation cones were placed in the temple walls of ancient Sumer (modern-day Iraq) for decoration. They record information about the ruler of that day and information about the god the temple was dedicated to. The exposed disk shaped ends of these cones were usually dipped in bright colours
The Roman Empire cultivated a mass glass production industry that went unmatched for almost a thousand years. This allowed the Romans to craft a wide range of ornate and everyday glassware, examples of which you can buy from Artemission. Early glass making The first examples of man-made glass date back
A Light in the Darkness The earliest oil lamps appear to be simple scooped out dishes of stone which held oil or animal fat and a floating wick. They were used by the artists who decorated the painted caves of Europe during the Magdalenian Period some 12,000 years ago. With
The ancient Greeks strived to create art which they could use to honour the gods of Olympus. This spiritual pursuit led the ordinary people of Ancient Greece to develop a highly-evolved culture of terracotta art, examples of which you can buy from Artemission. Honouring the Olympic pantheon The people of
Hieroglyphs – the picture writing of ancient Egypt, is the oldest writing system in the world. It predates the wedge-shaped cuneiform writing of Mesopotamia (Iraq) by about 50 to 100 years. Recently examples have been found that appear to date back to the middle of the fifth millennium BC. The
Ancient Egyptian faience is something completely different from European faience, andshould not be confused with it. European faience is a hard, brightly coloured, tin-glazed pottery first made in Faenze (hence its name) in Italy in late medieval times. It is also known as majolica. Egyptian Faience Egyptian faience (often referred
Scarabs are the commonest of all ancient Egyptian antiquities. They take the form of the scarabeus beetle and are often carved on the underside with texts that can vary from a simple good wish, a personal name and title used as a seal, or religious or historical texts. Scarab Symbolic
The ancient Near East is the fountainhead of modern civilization. It was in the ancient Near East, more than 5000 years ago, that people first learned to live in cities, invented writing and developed the first high civilizations. The Near East Influence The fascinating discoveries of Near Eastern archaeologists over