top of page
Welcome to
Tastes Of History's Blog

Scroll
for a collection of recipes, research, guides and history related articles
Search


Dispelling Some Myths: The Wicker Man
The Wicker Man is a giant effigy supposedly used by the Druids to perform human sacrifice, according to the writings of Gaius Julius...

Tastes Of History
Sep 7, 2020


Invasion? What Invasion?
Introduction As you may know from the popular histories, the Romans left Britain at 'ten past four on a wet Tuesday afternoon', and...

Tastes Of History
Aug 28, 2020


Pict or Scot: Who's Who?
We were watching another history documentary the other day about the Scottish Wars of Independence in the 13th- and 14th-centuries. This...

Tastes Of History
Aug 8, 2020


The Chinese Xuan Feng or "Whirlwind"
Until the advent of gunpowder, the trebuchet (French: trébuchet) was a common powerful siege engine that used a long arm to throw a...

Tastes Of History
Jul 30, 2020


Dispelling Some Myths: Ancient Britons
In AD 60/61, after appalling treatment by the Romans, Queen Boudica of the Iceni tribe declared war on the oppressors. The Britons sacked...

Tastes Of History
Jul 28, 2020


Dispelling Some Myths: The Truth Behind the Olympic Torch
Let the Games Begin July 24th, 2020 should have seen the opening ceremony of the Games of the XXXII Olympiad of the modern era in...

Tastes Of History
Jul 24, 2020


Aliens & Pyramids
Introduction A few days ago, CNN Africa tweeted 'The fringe theories long attached to UNESCO sites' [1] introducing readers to some of...

Tastes Of History
Jul 15, 2020


Stirrups
Origins It is stated [1] that some scholars [2] believe the first true stirrups were conceived in Central Asia during the first century...

Tastes Of History
Jun 28, 2020


Dispelling Some Myths: The 300 Spartans
'The 300 Spartans' is a 1962 film retelling the story of the Battle of Thermopylae (Greek: Μάχη τῶν Θερμοπυλῶν, Máchē tōn Thermopylōn)...

Tastes Of History
Jun 21, 2020


Dispelling Some Myths: The Hidden Code in Statues
You might have heard how the statue of a horse and rider reveals how the named person died. In the United Kingdom, and the United States,...

Tastes Of History
Jun 21, 2020


Dispelling Some Myths: "Ring a Ring a Roses" and the Great Plague
Ring-a-ring o' roses, A pocket full of posies, A-tishoo! A-tishoo! We all fall down. For those of us of a certain age, you might remember...

Tastes Of History
Jun 21, 2020


Dispelling Some Myths: Julius Caesar's Birth
On the face of it one could be forgiven for thinking the medical procedure known as Caesarean section [1] was named for Roman statesman...

Tastes Of History
Jun 21, 2020


Dispelling Some Myths: Viking Horned Helmets
One of the history workshops that Tastes Of History offers for schools (in more normal times) is on the Vikings [1] . In doing so, we...

Tastes Of History
Jun 21, 2020


Dispelling Some Myths: Democracy's Roots
Ancient Athens in the 5th-century BC is often held to be the birthplace of democracy. The idea, however, was not unique to Athens. Other...

Tastes Of History
Jun 21, 2020


Dispelling Some Myths: Thumbs Up
Most people in western culture recognise the 'thumbs up' gesture as one that indicates all is well, while conversely 'thumbs down' means...

Tastes Of History
Jun 21, 2020


Dispelling Some Myths: "Cleopatra's Needle"
Take a walk along the Victoria Embankment in the City of Westminster, London and near the Golden Jubilee Bridges you will find...

Tastes Of History
Jun 21, 2020


Union Flag or Union Jack?
In the April 2020 issue of BBC History Magazine Dominic Sandbrook highlighted a significant historical event that month, namely the...

Tastes Of History
Jun 21, 2020


Dispelling Some Myths: The Earth is Flat
Once again a recently broadcast popular UK television programme promoted yet another 'factoid'. On this occasion a throw away comment, on...

Tastes Of History
Jun 20, 2020


Dispelling Some Myths: Spiral Staircases
In an effort to continually improve our knowledge we came across 'History…The Interesting Bits!', a blog by Sharon Bennett Connolly. In...

Tastes Of History
Jun 20, 2020


Dispelling Some Myths: Mediæval Murder Holes
Look up whilst you are visiting castles and you will often see voids in the overhead masonry associated with the defence of the...

Tastes Of History
Jun 20, 2020
bottom of page