Posted on 11/19/2013 4:45:19 PM PST by SeekAndFind
Blame Hollywood, the media, and even history teachers for perpetuating certain totally ridiculous or unfounded "facts" about history. We're here to debunk some of the biggest myths.
1. Jewish slaves didn't build the pyramids. This popular myth reportedly stems from comments made by former Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin when visiting Egypt in 1977, according to Amihai Mazar, professor at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.
"No Jews built the pyramids because Jews didn't exist at the period when the pyramids were built," Mazar told the AP.
Recent archaeological finds actually show that Egyptians built the pyramids themselves.
"The myth of the slaves building pyramids is only the stuff of tabloids and Hollywood," Dieter Wildung, a former director of Berlin's Egyptian Museum, told the AP. "The world simply could not believe the pyramids were build without oppression and forced labor, but out of loyalty to the pharaohs."
2. Cleopatra wasn't Egyptian. Cleopatra belonged to the Ptolemaic dynasty, a family of Greek origin that ruled Egypt after Alexander the Great. Her family actually refused to speak Egyptian, and she was the first to learn the language.
The misconception about her nationality may have arisen from the way she represented herself in public — as the reincarnation of Isis, an Egyptian goddess.
3. Vikings didn't wear horned-helmets. Archaeological evidence doesn't show any evidence of horned-helmets. Death sites instead tell us most Viking warriors went bare-headed or wore leather headgear, according to The History Channel.
This popular, albeit false, image of burly men striding into battle with horns apparently dates back to the 1800s, when Swedish artist Gustav Malmströmstems included the imagery in his work. Some of Wagner's operas also included costumes with horned-helmets.
(Excerpt) Read more at businessinsider.com ...
ON THE LIST ( click above link for the explanation ):
* Christopher Columbus didn’t discover America.
* The Pilgrims didn’t host the first Thanksgiving.
* Napoleon Bonaparte wasn’t short ( at least compared to the men of his time)
* Marie Antoinette didn’t say, “Let them eat cake.”
* Paul Revere never yelled, “The British are coming!”
* George Washington didn’t have wooden teeth.
* Albert Einstein didn’t fail math.
* A cow kicking over a lantern didn’t cause the Great Chicago Fire.
* Spanish Influenza didn’t originate in Spain.
* Wall Streeters didn’t jump to their deaths following the market crash of 1929.
* Abner Doubleday didn’t invent baseball.
ADD YOUR OWN HISTORICAL MYTH HERE...
Senator Stoddard didn’t shoot Liberty Valance.
“Obama is a great orator”
Obama was more qualified than Sarah Palin.
Obama never lied. Period.
TR did not create Thanksgiving. George Washington did on November 26, 1789.
15. If your health care plan, you can keep it. Period.
bump
But what he DID have were NASTY. If you ever get to tour Mount Vernon, don't miss this exhibit (and a chance to kiss your dentist!)
16. I did not have sex with that woman...
It figures.
Nope. Spain was neutral in the War, and was one of the few countries where reports weren't censored.
So it was one of the few countries that reported flu, even though all were suffering.
Some of my favorite myths busted
Clinton did not have sexual relations with that woman, Miss Lewinsky.
John Kerry is a war hero.
1939 would be FDR (spit!).
Were witches were burned at the stake in Salem MA?
No, those accused were mostly hanged...and one was pressed to death.
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