"Ancient Macedonian Gold": 71 Authentic Historical Finds That Might Feel Like Time Travel

You can still see the stunning art in the Basilica of San Vitale in Ravenna. The church was built during Justinian's rule around 525-526 AD, and took about 20 years to finish. The spot where the church was built is special: according to legend, a sacellum containing the remains of Saint Vitale dates back to the fifth century.

Nevertheless, the church's architecture is quite unusual. Upon first glance, you'd notice it's not in the traditional church shape. But the most beautiful thing about them is the mosaic decorations. In the presbytery, just beside the altar, there is also a circular marble labyrinth — getting out of it reportedly symbolizes rebirth.

Nowadays, when people go to protests, they show up with signs, flags, and other accessories that express their frustrations. Back in the late 19th century, people also had that kind of "merch" for the causes they believed in. The Suffragette socks you see in this list are just one item among many that were worn by the Women’s Social and Political Union (WSPU).

Members of the union would wear the socks, silk motor scarves, protest sashes, enamel badges, rosettes, beaded necklaces, and many other attributes. If you look closely, you'll notice that the socks were decorated in three colors: those were the official colors of the union. Purple symbolized dignity, white symbolized purity, and green symbolized hope.

Why did Ancient Greek coins have octopuses on them? Most likely because seas and rivers were vital to the Greeks for food, trade, and travel. Many of these and similar coins featuring maritime creatures were coined in Syracuse, one of the greatest maritime cities in Ancient Greece. Other sea creatures also feature on Greek coins: turtles, crabs, clam shells, fish, dolphins, and even men riding said dolphins or an eagle snatching the poor dolphin up.

The story behind the cats on the Château De Pierrefonds may be simpler than you'd think. The castle was commissionedby King Charles VI's brother, Louis of Orléans, and completed in 1407,, but was destroyed 200 years later at the behest of Cardinal Richelieu. 

Then, at the orders of Napoleon III, architect Eugène Viollet-le-Duc restored the castle in 1857. Viollet-le-Duc was a big cat fan and included cat statues in several places. The most accessible one is in the courtyard, while the others are on the roofs. The architect had a soft spot for all nocturnal animals, and often included an eagle owl in his other works.

The petroglyphs in Kyrgyzstan are certainly something to behold. In Northern Kyrgyzstan, near Issyk Kul Lake, there are100 acres of stones and boulders with carvings that give us a glimpse of our world 3,500 years ago. But there are newer carvings as well, most likely by the Saka-Usun who roamed these parts roughly between the ninth century B.C. and the first century A.D.

The carvings include images of Argali sheep, horses, camels, wolves, wild boars, birds, and also humans with bows and arrows. The Greeks called the Saka-Sun Scythians, cattle herders and nomads who were battling Alexander, lived in tents, and traveled with carts. But the petroglyphs are like photographs of their daily lives, surviving way longer than our digital footprints may hold.

Which artifact did you find the most fascinating, Pandas? Let us know your favorites in the comments! If you liked this list and are craving more fascinating finds from the past, check out our previous publications about unique historical treasures and these incredible discoveries!