Herman Melville's Moby Dick is thought to be based upon the true story of the American whaling ship Essex, which was charged and sunk in mid-ocean by a 40 foot sperm whale in the vicinity of the Marquesas. The survivors landed on Henderson, after sailing...

Did the Chinese really inspire Italy's beloved pasta? Did the two cultures connect through the Silk Road or Marco Polo? Or is it possible that noodles don't actually belong to either of those countries- but instead a much older and far more fascinating hi...

People who live near the equator use more spices per recipe than people who live far from the equator. But that isn't for the reason you think. Spices and other plant ingredients have special powers that make them a truly magical superfood!

Salt and pepper shakers are so omnipresent on tabletops that adding a dash of the white or black stuff (or both!) is almost a dining rite. The seasonings pair well with just about everything and they go together like — well, salt and pepper.

For centuries the Melungeon people of Appalachia believed they were of Portuguese descent. Turns out, their direct lineage is more African than anything else.

Athelhampton House was originally built in 1485, at the end of the Wars of the Roses, during the early Tudor period. The Grade II listed building features classic Tudor architecture, with its most notable element being the Great Hall, which is a fine exam...

The Hope Diamond is indeed one of the world's most extraordinary gems. A blue diamond of great rarity and greater beauty. After 300 years of intrigue, revolutions, personal misfortunes and tragedies, the Hope Diamond now belongs to the American people and...

"The Druids didn't write down their teachings because the sound of rain doesn't need translating."

The birth of the violin.

Created by Plato as a antagonistic rival to his idealistic interpretation of "Ancient Athens", his portrait of Atlantis is nevertheless incredibly detailed - describing the history of the island, its geography, and finally the people who counted the doome...

Learn how the near-universal belief in ghosts goes back to the beginning of time. Discover how the oldest known writing, in cuneiform script on tablets of clay, gives us a full picture of the ancient Mesopotamian ghost experience: who might be expected t...

In 1983, the annual High Dive World Record Challenge took place for the final time. Five divers were battling it out, leaping from an outrageous 172ft (52.4m). Since that day, no one has matched this.

The basics have not really changed whereas the skill level certainly has. Some skills have progressed beyond comprehension while other skills were banned for being too dangerous.

The six-tonne Altar Stone at the heart of Stonehenge came from the far north of Scotland rather than south-west Wales as previously thought, new analysis has found.

Why would astrophysicists care about a two millennia old Roman shipwreck between the islands of Sardinia and Mal Di Ventre? Why would archaeologists care about a particle physics experiment hiding deep beneath the Apennine Mountains, seeking to answer one...