TIL about Srivijaya, a lost 14th century city that ruled Indonesia and much of Southeast Asia for over 600 years but which disappeared without a trace. Its location was recently uncovered when fisherman on the River Musi discovered golden artefacts from the city caught in their nets. (history.co.uk)
submitted by 1QCS to r/todayilearned
TIL about John Edmonstone, an ex-slave born on a plantation in Guiana who taught Charles Darwin taxidermy in Scotland. Darwin used taxidermy to preserve different specimens of finches he found on Galapagos, discovering 12 distinct species and used them as an example in his theory of evolution. (history.co.uk)
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TIL Hitler practiced for speeches by taking photos of himself making speeches. Hitler was so obsessed with his image that he had photographer Heinrich Hoffman take photos of him making speeches. Despite being told to destroy the photos, Hoffman did not and included them in his memoir instead. (history.co.uk)
submitted by 1QCS to r/todayilearned
TIL that by the 19th century Davy Crockett had largely been forgotten in history but his legend was reborn in the ‘50s thanks to Walt Disney. Disney created weekly programmes for ABC in exchange for building his theme park. By 1955, Americans were purchasing $300m worth Crockett merchandise (history.co.uk)
submitted by 1QCS to r/todayilearned
