Slave collars of an iron age chain gang. The 6.6 kg iron chain connects 5 neck shackles used to bind slaves or criminals. When it was discovered in 1943 during construction of an airfield on the Welsh coast, the chain was still so strong the workers used it to tow vehicles. 100 BCE-60 CE [3773×2692]May 5, 2025
Statue of Paris by Pier Jacopo Alari Bonacols. Mantua,Italy 1518–1524. MET Museum. [1284×2246]May 4, 2025
The Lena Shoal shipwreck was discovered in 1997 at a depth of 48 meters near Lena Shoal in the Philippines. The vessel sank around 1490 during the Ming-Dynasty, and contained more than 5,000 objects, mostly Asian ceramics, like this rare Chinese plate depicting a flying elephant [1280×2218]May 4, 2025
While analyzing an 18th-century Austrian mummy, researchers discovered that the man died from tuberculosis and was preserved in a very unusual way: with wood chips, twigs and fabric packed into his abdomen through his anus [2400×1350]May 4, 2025
A 19th century CE Japanese ivory netsuke depicting a reclining cat, turning back to the left as it looks at a small bird, broken winged, on its back, a loose feather caught in the cat’s fore paw. Sold at Christie’s in 2008 [803×695]May 4, 2025
The Pueblo Bonito Frog carved from black jet and inlaid with turquoise eyes and collar. The frog, made by Ancestral Puebloan artisans, was found in Pueblo Bonito in New Mexico. 850–1140 CE, now housed at the American Museum of Natural History in New York City [2004×2096]May 4, 2025
Flintlock pistol made for Louis XV of France. Decorated with Rococo scrollwork and ornament. Not intended to be used, but is fully functional, dated 1750-60 [4080×3027]May 4, 2025
Cocoon-shaped flask. China, Qin or Western Han dynasty, late 3rd to 1st century BC. Buff earthenware with polychrome pigments. Art Institute of Chicago collection [2511×2250]May 4, 2025
The skull of a shaman with cut wolf jaw replacing upper incisor teeth, found at the Ayres Mound in Kentucky. His upper front teeth had been removed during his lifetime so he could hold the wolf jaw in his own mouth as part of an animal mask. Adena culture (500 BCE-100 CE) [3648×8529]May 4, 2025
The Piprahwa Gems are a collection of over 300 sacred relics, discovered in an inscribed reliquary urn with the Shakya clan’s share of the remains of the Buddha, Siddhartha Gautama. The gems, which date back to c. 240-200 BCE, were excavated at Piprahwa Stupa in India [3236×7242]May 4, 2025
