National Geographic History January/February 2024

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FROM THE EDITOR

National Geographic History

Ancient Chinese Saddle Surprises Archaeologists • A horsewoman’s leather saddle, buried in China thousands of years ago, overturns assumptions that horseback riding was only for military men.

SCULPTURES WITH SADDLES AND STIRRUPS

Innovation and Service

Dr. Charles Drew: Father of the Blood Bank • A Black surgeon and researcher pioneered new ways to process and store blood, saving countless lives during World War II and leading to the creation of a national blood bank.

RUMORS OF HIS DEATH

REVOLUTIONARY IDEA

GOING MOBILE

FANCY PHARMA

The Poetry of Population Decline

Leech Mania, a Bloody Health Craze • In the 19th century, leeches were coveted in medicine, celebrated in fashion and art—and nearly driven to extinction.

Bloodletting Methods

North Pole by Balloon: The Andrée Expedition • In 1897 Swedish scientist Salomon August Andrée’s audacious quest to reach the North Pole by air became one of the great unresolved dramas of Arctic exploration.

AVOIDING DISASTER

A STORY BURIED IN ICE

THE RED SEA SCROLLS SECRETS OF THE WORLD’S OLDEST PAPYRI • In 2013, archaeologists made a sensational discovery on the shores of the Red Sea: the diary of Merer, head of a team of workers employed by Khufu to build his Great Pyramid.

HARBOR’S HISTORY

Shifting Ports

ANCIENT MULTITASKING

Merer’s Diary • Archaeologists found hundreds of papyrus fragments in the caves at Wadi al-Jarf. Written in black and red ink, the texts mention Pharaoh Khufu. Many of these fragments have been pieced back together to form documents—some measuring two feet long! The fragment of Merer’s journal shown here is from Papyrus B.

FLOATING TO GIZA • Materials used to build the Great Pyramid came from all over Egypt: limestone from the Tura quarries near Cairo, basalt from Fayyum, granite from Aswan, and copper from the Sinai Peninsula. In order to transport these materials swiftly and smoothly, artificial waterways were built at Giza so that goods could travel by boat as much as possible.

THE GAULS SACK ROME • In the early fourth century B.C., Gallic warriors conquered Rome and plundered its wealth. The words of their leader, Brennus, would haunt Romans for generations: “Vae victis—Woe to the vanquished.”

GAULS VERSUS ROMANS

The Gallic Look

Keeping Their Heads

SOUNDS (AND HONKS) OF ALARM

PALMYRA COSMOPOLITAN CROSSROADS • Built on an oasis in the Syrian Desert, Palmyra grew from a trading outpost into a prosperous commercial center where many people, faiths, and cultures mingled and mixed.

Palmyra Prospers

Streets of Palmyra

Crime Along The Trade Routes

The Temple of Bel

Worshipping the God With No Name

PALMYRENE PORTRAITS • Adorning the tombs of Palmyra’s wealthiest inhabitants were carefully rendered busts and reliefs of the deceased. The sculptures presented their subjects at their best—well dressed and coiffed in the fashion of the city. They combine Greco-Roman costume with elements of Persian-Sasanian influence, such as the facial expressions of the eyes and types of adornment. They were originally brightly painted, but only traces of their colors remain.

HARRIET THE SPY • Best known as a conductor on the Underground Railroad, Harriet Tubman continued the fight for freedom by serving with the Union Army and spying on the Confederacy in South…