25 amazing rarities from the past that have survived to this day (26 photos)
Our world has existed for billions of years. And although the history of Homo sapiens dates back only about 300,000 years, this is still a huge period of time. It is impossible to know and understand everything that humanity has gone through, but fortunately, there are people who live to learn more about the past of our world. And some are even willing to share this information on the Internet. 
1. Translation of the text written in gold at the entrance to the temple of the Egyptian goddess Sekhmet 
"I ask one thing - to enter my home with respect. To serve you, I need not your loyalty, but your sincerity. Not your beliefs, but your thirst for knowledge. Enter with your vices, your fears and your hatred; I can help get rid of them. You can look at me and love me as a woman, a mother, a daughter, a sister, a friend, but never look at me as something that is above you. If your devotion to some god is greater than your devotion to God. within you, you insult both of them.”
2. After restoration work in the Hisham Palace in Jericho, one of the largest floor mosaics of the ancient world was discovered 
It has 38 detailed sections with floral and geometric patterns made up of over 5,000,000 pieces, plus a 1,300-year-old “tree of life.”
3. Inscriptions that Akhenaten left for his wife Nefertiti on the walls of the temples of Amarna 
“I swear by You, my God, to make her a light in my heart that will not go out, and to make me a support for her back that will not break, for she is part of me, and I am part of her, and without one the other cannot exist.”
4. Hin Sam Van, “Three Whale Rock” 
This stunning rock formation is approximately 75 million years old and is located in Thailand. If you look at it from the right angle, it really resembles a family of three whales. A unique spectacle!
5. The Cantalloc Aqueducts, built by the Nazca civilization in the arid deserts of Peru more than 1,500 years ago, continue to serve their purpose to this day. 
Aqueducts, with distinctively shaped openings, allow wind to penetrate and move water from underground aquifers through a network of underground channels, efficiently delivering it to areas where it is needed most.
6. Cave city of Vardzia in Georgia 
On the slopes of Mount Erusheti in this city, Tamar, the 25-year-old queen of Georgia, commissioned the creation of 6,000 cave dwellings in the 12th century. These structures were carved out of the rock and served as both a monastery and a refuge for Christian monks persecuted by Mongol and Muslim invaders.
7. At the age of 17, Cleopatra became queen of Egypt and ruled until she was 39. 
In addition to her native Greek language (Koine), the queen spoke Egyptian, Aramaic, Ge'ez (ancient Ethiopian language), ancient Persian, Hebrew, and the Berber language. Cleopatra also knew Latin. This meant that she could read any book in the world. She was also very knowledgeable in areas such as geography, history, astronomy, international diplomacy, mathematics, alchemy, medicine, zoology, economics and much more.
8. An Embrace That Lasts 2000 Years, Pompeii 
In 79 AD the city was destroyed and buried under volcanic ash and rocks during the eruption of Vesuvius. The catastrophic event led to the death of many city residents. Pompeii was preserved under a layer of ash and much of the city was perfectly preserved, providing a unique insight into the daily life and culture of Ancient Rome.
9. A gold ring dating back to the 4th century BC was discovered in the tomb of a Thracian king in the Yambol region of Bulgaria. 
This archaeological find sheds light on the skill and artistic traditions of the Thracians, an ancient people who inhabited the Balkans from the 5th century BC to the 6th century AD. The skill of Thracian artisans is undeniable.
10. Stone ruins of the capital of the ancient kingdom of Zimbabwe, located near modern Masvingo, Zimbabwe 
Archaeological research suggests that the central ruins and adjacent valley were home to a Shona community of between 10,000 and 20,000 people. This city was the center of a prosperous trading empire that existed from the 11th to the 15th centuries. The economy of the Kingdom of Zimbabwe was primarily based on livestock raising, crop cultivation, and gold exports to the Indian Ocean coast.
11. Kumbhalgarh Fort (Great Wall of India) is the second longest wall in the world. Length of about 38 km, is on the UNESCO World Heritage List 
This place is also known as Mewar Fort. The famous Rajput ruler Maharana Pratap was born here. Every detail of the fort was built with the aim of preventing unwanted incursions.
12. The Atacama Giant, located in the Atacama Desert in Chile. This is a massive geoglyph depicting an anthropomorphic figure 
This remarkable geoglyph is just one of nearly 5,000 geoglyphs discovered in the Atacama Desert over the past 30 years. Rising to an impressive height of 119 meters, the Atacama Giant is recognized as the largest known prehistoric depiction of a human figure, making it a truly impressive and significant archaeological discovery.
13. Queen Tiye, wife of Pharaoh Amenhotep III, mother of Akhenaten and grandmother of Tutankhamun. Or rather, her mummy 
Tiya was the daughter of Yuya and Tuya, who were also important figures in the history of Ancient Egypt.
14. Fort Bourtange, located in the village of Bourtange in Groningen, the Netherlands, was built in 1593 by order of William the Silent 
Its main purpose was to protect the only road between Germany and Groningen, which was then controlled by the Spanish during the Eighty Years' War. The fort survived its last battle in 1672 and continued to be part of the defensive network on the German border until it was abandoned and turned into a village in 1851. Today there is a historical museum here.
15. The Iraqi museum houses an ancient clay tablet discovered in Uruk (Warqa) in southern Iraq. This tablet is covered in cuneiform and has three geometric circles containing astronomical calculations 
The tablet is estimated to date back to the ancient Babylonian period, specifically 2004–1595. BC. This artifact can be found in the Babylonian Gallery of the Iraq Museum.
16. An ancient mummified foot was discovered in the sands of Saqqara (Egypt) 
The discovery provides a glimpse into the burial customs and beliefs of the ancient Egyptians, who placed great importance on preserving the body as a means of achieving eternal life. The practice of mummification involved the careful removal of internal organs and the application of various preservatives such as salt and resin to the body.
17. Limestone relief found at Amarna and dated to approximately 1372-1355. BC. 
Here Akhenaten, Nefertiti and their children are depicted worshiping Aten.
18. Copper coins were found at the site of a Chinese tomb dating back to the Tang Dynasty (618-920 AD). 
19. The Codex Gigas, known as the Devil's Bible, is famous for three reasons 
There is its status as the largest illuminated medieval manuscript in existence, its impeccably uniform typeface that appears almost inhuman in its precision, and its full-page portrait of the Devil. This huge tome was written between 1204 and 1230, measures 92 cm high, 50 cm wide, 22 cm thick and weighs a whopping 79 kg. It is written on parchment made from donkey skins. The manuscript is in Carolingian minuscule, a popular and highly legible medieval script.
20. This is the ancient city of Centuripe, shaped like a man and located in the hills of Central Sicily, Italy 
A fascinating combination of ancient history and urban planning!
21. The ancient Mayan city of Uxmal 
Uxmal probably ceased to function as an active political capital in the region around 950 AD, although some scholars argue that a centralized government may have persisted until the 10th century or even later. Modern archaeologists continue to explore the ruins of Uxmal, including its famous pyramid and the majestic Governor's House.
22. Marble staircase of the Leaning Tower of Pisa 
The tower, which is believed to have 296 or 294 steps depending on the staircase, has a two-step divergence from the seventh floor north staircase. During the construction of the tower in the 12th century, the soft ground could not provide sufficient support for the weight of the structure, causing it to begin to lean. This problem continued throughout the tower's completion in the 14th century, causing it to lean noticeably.
23. Comparison: The Imaginary Druid Festival at Stonehenge and Stonehenge Today 
Stonehenge, located on Salisbury Plain in Wiltshire, England, is a prehistoric monument consisting of an outer circle of towering standing sarsen stones, approximately 4.0 meters high, 2.1 meters wide and weighing 25 tons, connected by horizontal lintels. This ancient structure, now in ruins, is positioned to coincide with the sunrise during the summer solstice.
Stonehenge was built in six stages from 3000 to 1520 BC, during the transition from the Neolithic to the Bronze Age. The site was listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1986.
24. The medallion depicts Alexander the Great and gold coins were used by Hellenistic kings during their reign 
The Hellenistic period refers to the time when Greek culture and influence spread throughout the Mediterranean world following the conquests of Alexander the Great.
25. Menhir de Champs-Dolan, a massive menhir in Brittany, France. Most likely built between 5000–4000 BC. BC. 
