Antiquity Fun Facts
In ancient Egypt, these furry, purring animals were so special that people shaved off their eyebrows to show sadness when one died.
What are cats?
The earliest Egyptian one of these everyday objects didn't have a glass holder or anything to light it; it was simply dried grass soaked in animal fat that smelled terrible when lit.
What is a candle?
A large, advanced human society with its own culture, government, and social systems.
What is a civilisation (or civilization)?
A time period that lasts for exactly ten years.
What is a decade?
On October 14, 1912, this former US President was shot in the chest right before he was supposed to deliver a campaign speech in Milwaukee.
While ruling his kingdom, King Henry VIII famously ordered executioners to cut off the heads of this total number of his wives after accusing them of treason or cheating on him.
What is two? (Anne Boleyn and Catherine Howard)
The oldest example of this sweet food was served to Roman emperors by running servants who collected mountain ice and mixed it with crushed fruits, honey, and snow.
What is ice cream?
A country, state, or territory ruled by a king or a queen.
What is a kingdom?
A legal member of a country who has the right to vote and live there.
What is a citizen?
On October 13, 54 AD, the Roman Emperor Claudius died suddenly after eating his favorite food, which his enemies had poisoned.
What are mushrooms?
While building the Great Pyramid of Giza, ancient Egyptian laborers were not paid in gold or currency, but were instead given four to five liters of this alcoholic beverage daily as a primary source of nutrition and hydration.
What is beer?
The earliest example of this personal care item was described in ancient Babylon as a boiled, sticky paste made of oil, burnt wood, and animal fat used to clean wool clothes rather than human skin.
What is soap?
A specific unit of time that is exactly equal to one hundred years.
What is a century?
DAILY DOUBLE!!!!!!
A formal word for a person or animal that lives in a specific place.
What is an inhabitant?
In October 1860, an 11-year-old girl wrote a letter to this tall US President and told him he should grow a beard to look better.
The ancient Maya and Aztec civilizations valued this tropical seed so highly as a form of currency that fakers would carefully fill empty bags with dirt or wax to cheat merchants.
What are cacao beans? (or cocoa/chocolate seeds)
Before this classroom tool existed, 18th-century writers carried small, rolled-up balls of moist white bread dough to stick to paper and remove ink.
Who is Jumbo?
A traditional, ancient story that usually explains historical events, natural phenomena, or early human beliefs. In modern times, it's a story that is not true but is based on some universal truth.
What is a myth?
A person in your family who lived a very long time ago, like a great-great-grandparent.
What is an ancestor?
Theodore Roosevelt's life was miraculously saved because the force of the assassin's bullet was broken by this object tucked inside his coat pocket.
What is his speech? (or manuscript)
Ancient Egyptian doctors treated eye infections using an unusual topical remedy made from this common flying insect, mixed with human milk and clay.
What is a fly? (or dead flies)
Before this had running hot water, the earliest prototypes were made from giant stones or clay that servants had to manually fill by carrying hundreds of heavy buckets from a river.
What is a bathtub?
A traditional society consisting of families connected by social, economic, religious, or blood ties and usually living far from urban areas.
What is a tribe?
A verb meaning to set a boat into the water, send a rocket into space, or introduce a brand new product or project.
What is to launch?