Archeologists Uncover What Destroyed The Real Sodom Nearly 4,000 Years Ago, Inside The Real-Life English Estate From "Downtown Abbey," And More

[History Uncovered]( [33 Striking Mummy Portraits That Bring The Faces Of Ancient Egypt To Life]( [After Egypt became part of the Roman Empire around 30 B.C.E., many people continued to mummify and bury the deceased as they had for centuries, but some elite families added a new funerary tradition to the mix: lifelike portraits of the dead on wooden panels that were often attached to the corpse.]( [The Story Of George 'Bugs' Moran, The Powerful Chicago Mobster Who Rivaled Al Capone]( [Bugs Moran was the leader of Chicago's North Side Gang during Prohibition — and likely the intended target of the St. Valentine's Day Massacre.]( [Archaeologists Uncover 'Cosmic Airburst' That Destroyed The Real-Life Biblical Sodom 3,600 Years Ago]( [The blast caused temperatures of over 3,600 degrees Fahrenheit, enough to melt swords and spears, turn pottery to glass, and flatten the city within seconds.]( [This 12th-Century Fortress In Slovenia Is The World's Largest Cave Castle — And It's Built On A 200-Foot Cliff]( [2,000-Year-Old Stash Of Drugs Said To Cause 'Insanity And Giddiness' Found Inside Hollowed-Out Bone At A Roman Settlement]( [The discovery of this bone containing black henbane seeds seems to suggest that ancient Romans deliberately collected and used the hallucinogenic plant, which could cause "insanity and giddiness."]( [This 3,600-Year-Old Vial Of Lipstick Recently Discovered In Iran Is The Oldest Ever Found]( [Inside The Forced Suicide Of Socrates, Who Was Sentenced To Die By Drinking Poison]( [Socrates is a revered philosopher today, but he grew to be unpopular in his native Athens, where a jury found him guilty on charges of impiety and corrupting the youth in 399 B.C.E. — and sentenced him to death.]( ['Titanic Of The Alps' That Sank In 1933 Will Be Soon Be Raised From The Bottom Of A European Lake]( [The Säntis operated for 40 years before it was sunk in 1933 — and it's so well-preserved that you can still read its name on the side of the ship.]( [33 Opulent Photos Of Highclere Castle, The Real-Life English Estate Behind 'Downton Abbey']( [Highclere Castle in Hampshire, England sits on 5,000 acres and is so large that its current occupants don't even know how many rooms there are.]( [Untangling The Myth Of The Gordian Knot, The Greek Legend About Alexander The Great's Rise To Power]( [According to legend, anyone who untied the Gordian knot would be destined to rule Asia. When Alexander the Great came across this unsolvable tangle of rope during his conquest of Asia Minor, he simply sliced straight through it with his sword — and went on to fulfill the prophecy.]( [The Shocking True Story Of Grizzly Adams, The Legendary California Mountain Man Who Caught And 'Tamed' Bears]( [Adams never could truly tame his animals and sustained a serious head injury during a wrestling match with one of his bears in 1858. After his prize bear, Ben Franklin, died of a sudden illness, Adams sold what remained of his menagerie to P.T. Barnum and died soon after of complications from his injuries.]( [Archaeologists In Hungary Unearth The Remains Of A 7th-Century Warrior Wearing A Complete Set Of Armor]( [The warrior was buried beneath his horse, a standard practice for the Avar people, who believed horses had supernatural powers.]( [Meet The Hot-Tempered Kentucky Abolitionist Muhammad Ali Was Originally Named After]( [In 1843, a gunman hired to assassinate Cassius Marcellus Clay aimed at the politician's chest and fired — and the politician only survived because the bullet hit the Bowie knife that Clay had just drawn in defense. Even after being shot in the chest, Clay attacked the gunman, slicing off his nose with the very knife that stopped the bullet.]( [Listen To The History Uncovered Podcast]( [On October 16, 1888, a Whitechapel neighborhood watch group received a letter addressed "From Hell" which chillingly described a murder. Even more chillingly, the letter came with what appeared to be a piece of a human kidney preserved in spirits.]( [Become An All That's Interesting Member]( [For just $4.99 a month, you'll enjoy all our content without ads, receive a quarterly letter from the editor, and get exclusive access to premium podcast episodes.]( [Unsubscribe]( [Web Version]( [History Uncovered On Instagram]( [History Uncovered On Facebook](