Leptocleidus was a genus of plesiosaur which lived in the oceans during the early Cretaceous Period about 135 to 125 million years ago. It measured just 10 feet long, which is quite small for a plesiosaur. Three species of Leptocleidus… Read More ›
Europe
Lissodus
Lissodus was a prehistoric shark which lived from the early Triassic to the middle Cretaceous Period, about 250 to 110 million years ago, give or take. Named in 1835, it was a member of a group of sharks called the… Read More ›
Polyacrodus
Polyacrodus was a genus of prehistoric shark, composed of several species, with fossils found in North America, South America, Europe, Asia, and Africa. The name Polyacrodus means “tooth with many bumps”, and it was officially named by the German paleontologist… Read More ›
Cretaceous Stegosaurs in North America? Maybe
Stegosaurus stenops. © Jason R. Abdale (August 1, 2020) Stegosaurus is one of the most famous dinosaurs in the world. With its large back plates and spiked tail, it’s commonly seen in every child’s dinosaur book and is one of… Read More ›
May 1 – Part 3: “May Day” in Medieval, Renaissance, and Early Modern Europe
For most people nowadays, late June marks the beginning of Summer with the occurrence of the Summer Solstice, the day which holds the longest period of sunshine. However, this view is relatively recent. Even in some societies to this day,… Read More ›
May 1 – Part 2: Beltane, the Celtic Festival of Summer
Lo, dawning o’er yon mountain greyThe rosy birth-day of May!Glen-Shira knoweth well ‘tis Beltane’s blissful day. — Evan MacColl Summer is a-comin’ in! May 1 is the date of the ancient Celtic festival of Beltane, which marks the first day… Read More ›
May 1 – Part 1: The Month of Maia, the Ancient Roman Goddess of Motherhood
May is named in honor of the ancient Roman goddess Maia, the goddess of motherhood. Maia was also referred to by the Romans as Bona Dea, “the Good Goddess”. She might be one-and-the-same with Tellus, the ancient Roman “Mother Earth”… Read More ›
April 21 – Happy Birthday, Rome!
A scene from the movie The Fall of the Roman Empire (1964). For many people including myself, it is utterly impossible to imagine a world without Rome. The fabled “Eternal City of the Seven Hills” dominated the ancient world for… Read More ›
The “Other” Windtalkers: The Comanche Code-Talkers of the US Army in World War II
IntroductionThanks to the 2002 movie Windtalkers starring Adam Beach and Nicolas Cage, many people have become aware of the Navajo code-talkers who served with the US Marines in the Pacific Theater against the Japanese during World War II. Numerous books… Read More ›
April 12-19 – The Cerealia: The Feast of Ceres, the Ancient Roman Goddess of Agriculture
Wheat in a field. Public domain image, Wikimedia Commons. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Wheat_in_field.jpg. It is now mid April. The cold chill of Winter has been banished, and there will only be warmer days to come. New green growth is springing up everywhere. The… Read More ›
DINOSAURS AND BARBARIANS 
