Which fascinates you most?

[Theunicornhunter 2]

I think Egypt has always had a special appeal to me. Rome is the least appealing of the three to me because it was so brutal, granted burying people alive in pyramids is pretty callous too but with Rome it was a sport to watch people being killed.

 

There's a quote - which is something to the effect that the true measure of a society is how it treats its weakest citizens (which I've also seen as how it treats its: women and children; children, young and old, prisoners, animals etc). The point is the measure is how those with power treat those without - I'm not sure any society ancient or modern really passes that test.

 

Still Egypt fascinates me - maybe it is their fascination with the afterlife and the Valley of the Kings and wondering how they managed their architectural feats.

 

I would like to know more about some of the South American cultures - who could quite possibly rival those of the old world - but sadly so much of the writings and history of this continent was lost (burned :) )

[Charface 0]

I'm most fascinated by the ancient Mayan civilization.

[trekz 7]

Good question! I voted Ancient Egyptian - since I've always foumd reading about the pyramids and mummies fascinating. I went to the King Tut exhibition in the 1970's in Chicago and have briefly seen some of the exhibits at the British Museum.

 

I do also find the Romans fascinating for their organization of roads, aqueducts, etc. The Greeks also are of interest, as are the Mayans, and Incas. (I really want to go to Machu Pichu) The Mound builders of the Americas are also interesting.

 

Of more recent times I also find the Vikings fascinating for their exploration, their skilled seamanship, and their settling into communities around Europe.

Edited October 16, 2006 by trekz

[Stephen of Borg 2]

I have always loved Greek culture and stories from their past. There is nothing I like about Egypt, that's why it took a long time for me to like Stargate

[Kor37 9]

I'm not a student of either of these. My passion is the history of the early American west.

[Adm.RegBarclay 1]

Roma invicta!

[Yillara Skye 1]

<- A Clue to my vote, would be my current avatar :) Even though I chose Medusa as my Halloween avatar

 

 

 

 

 

I voted Ancient Greece, although I love reading or watching things about Ancient Egypt. I really like studying the mythology of all three that were listed, too. Since I was little, I think what started my interest was the mythology and that remains the biggest pull for me. Rome is somewhat interesting, but is nowhere as intersting as Egypt or Greece.

 

My sister... now she is a BIG fan of Ancient Egypt. Anything and everything Egypt, is a big deal to her. To the point she wishes she could go there and study firsthand.

 

 

Of course, I am interested in many facets of my ancestral backgrounds... especially: Scandinavian, Celtic (Scotland, Ireland & Wales), and Native American. I include these because I like reading and watching things about their histories (and of course mythology). The "ancient" forms of these cultures hold just about as much facination to me as the culture I voted for.

Edited October 16, 2006 by Yillara_Skye

[LoveMalePecs1 0]

Often I watch t.v programs to do with Rome either on Discovery Channel or The Learning Channel (TLC) (even have the mini-series on DVD but shown as one long film ("Empire")

 

Mayan as well.

Edited October 16, 2006 by LoveMalePecs1

[mj 7]

Other. Ancient Ethiopia, because the Greek historian Herodotus called them the first civilized men. Also the pyramid builders of Egypt moved up from the south....precursors of Egyptian pyramids were found in Ethiopia.

[Sman 0]

I voted for the Roman Culture partly because of their creation of roads etc.. although it really is hard to be interested in any of them to be honest.

 

Finally, What is the Mayan Civilisation?

 

I have never heard of that culture before.

[Trekmachine 0]

I voted Ancient Egypt

[Theunicornhunter 2]

The Discovery Channel has a new series on right now called Engineering an Empire - unfortunately I've missed parts of it - fell asleep but it is worth looking into and yes, it was what inspired this thread. For those who voted Rome I'm sure you'd like that ep - they were amazing engineers.

 

Next week is about Alexander's Greece.

[Kor37 9]

I voted for the Roman Culture partly because of their creation of roads etc.. although it really is hard to be interested in any of them to be honest.

 

Finally, What is the Mayan Civilisation?

 

I have never heard of that culture before.

 

 

The Mayan Indians were an ancient civilization throughout Mexico and South America. They were pretty much wiped out by Cortez and the Spaniards when they invaded Mexico. 2 interesting things about the Mayans. One is that they built pyramids that were remarkebly similar to those in Egypt. They are still being discovered in the jungles. Secondly, they created a pretty sophisticated calendar. The Mayan calendar goes up to 2012 and then stops. There are many people who believe that that is when the world will end.

[Validus 0]

I went with ancient Greece. The ancient Greeks were the most advanced thinkers and scientists of the ancient world with the only notable exception being China and India (in philosophy). Anaximander was the first to theorize evolution, Democritus speculated the existance of atoms, and western thought would have been greatly weakened without the clear wisdom of Socrates. Aristotle was certainly impressive for his day, but he was wrong about too many other things for me to hold him in high esteem.

[Sman 0]

"The Mayan Indians were an ancient civilization throughout Mexico and South America. They were pretty much wiped out by Cortez and the Spaniards when they invaded Mexico. 2 interesting things about the Mayans. One is that they built pyramids that were remarkebly similar to those in Egypt. They are still being discovered in the jungles. Secondly, they created a pretty sophisticated calendar. The Mayan calendar goes up to 2012 and then stops. There are many people who believe that that is when the world will end."

 

That is pretty cool. I never knew that before.

Edited October 18, 2006 by Sman

[Theunicornhunter 2]

Actually, it's the History Channel - not Discovery running the series on empire building.

 

Did everyone know they found cocaine in Egyptian mummies? The did some pretty rigorous testing and determined the only plausible explanation was there must have been some contact between Egypt and Pre Columbian America - I think that's pretty fascinating.

 

As for Greeks - I used to be fascinated by Ancient Greece as well but then I decided they couldn't have been too advanced - they believed women were by nature inferior to men. Women also fared less well in their society than in some other contemporary cultures. So I took them off my list. :)

[ARMS 0]

Ancient Egypt is my favourite simply because of the pyramids and my love of stargate lol.

 

Question; Does anyone here know who Ninkasi was?

[trekz 7]

Did everyone know they found cocaine in Egyptian mummies? The did some pretty rigorous testing and determined the only plausible explanation was there must have been some contact between Egypt and Pre Columbian America - I think that's pretty fascinating.

 

As for Greeks - I used to be fascinated by Ancient Greece as well but then I decided they couldn't have been too advanced - they believed women were by nature inferior to men. Women also fared less well in their society than in some other contemporary cultures. So I took them off my list. :)

 

Yes I had heard about the cocaine. Very intriguing.

 

And as far as the Greeks, they also lost their marbles! The Elgin marbles, that is. :)

[Validus 0]

As for Greeks - I used to be fascinated by Ancient Greece as well but then I decided they couldn't have been too advanced - they believed women were by nature inferior to men. Women also fared less well in their society than in some other contemporary cultures. So I took them off my list. :P

 

I would gently remind you, Unicorn, that in the ancient world and even to this day female inferiority is considered a given. I myself do not believe that...but the notion that women are intellectually equal to men wasn't given serious credence until the Enlightenment of the 17th century. In the Christian world women are still viewed as inferior because of the belief that God made man and then made women from a part of man. I know- its a dumb idea...but try telling that to a church filled with fundamentalists as watch what happens.

[Theunicornhunter 2]

Actually, Validius, past societies and even contemporary societies (as well as various Christian denominations) vary vastly on their in views on women and on the status women held in that society. Example, while many people, myself included, are uncomfortable with some of the stories in the Old Testament the truth is women fared better in the Judaic culture than they did in other cultures like Greece. If one reads the classic section in Proverbs about a "virtuous women" you will see that business acumen and the necessary ability to engage in commerce and contracts were part of that definition.

 

I can't say there aren't people who consider women inferior but I really haven't met anyone like that in a long time.

[youbroughtheryouRiker 2]

I have to admit none. History is fascinating to me. Archaeology (sp?) isn't.