/r/askhistorians

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Black clothing was used in Ancient Greece, but natural black dye is extremely difficult to make. How did they do it? Would us recognize it as black or was it a deep/dark shadow of other colours?

2687 upvotes • 0841790642

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Both of my grandfathers used to talk about solving disputes with fist fights when they were young men in the 1940s and 50s. Were assault laws really that weak or loosely enforced in the USA back then? How common was this kind of thing?

2686 upvotes • Ellikichi

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Why do animals in Medieval manuscripts look so crazy? Did the painters not know what they looked like? Was it intentional? Did they have a hard time drawing?

2685 upvotes • Dinocrocodile

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In traditional Hawaiian culture women would be put to death for eating pork, coconuts, taro, several types of fish, and 67 out of 70 varieties of bananas. What did Hawaiian women subsist off of? Why was there such a drastic limitation on what women could eat?

2685 upvotes • Tatem1961

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In 'Django Unchained', the title character says that every slave has heard of Candyland, the plantation owned by the villain of the story. Would slaves know individual plantations through reputation? How efficient were their means of inter-plantation communication?

2681 upvotes • 124876720

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The Eastern Roman Empire had to pay 11,000lb (5000kg) of gold to the Sasanian Empire in 533 AD. How did this work logistically?

2679 upvotes • tyroncs

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Plutarch said that Cleopatra spoke the language of the troglodytes. Who does this likely refer to?

2679 upvotes • Gulbasaur

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I am medieval farmer. How rich is my vocabulary?

2677 upvotes • GRV16

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Disagreements between the citizenry have caused extreme polarization where it seemed that civil war would certainly result. In your period of focus, what examples exist of such groups becoming so enraged at each other that fell short of civil war, and how did they end up mending their differences?

2677 upvotes • Hands0L0

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When did higher education become stereotypically politically liberal?

2676 upvotes • q203

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Title	Upvotes	Author	Mark as read	Favorited	Rating	Add to a list
Black clothing was used in Ancient Greece, but natural black dye is extremely difficult to make. How did they do it? Would us recognize it as black or was it a deep/dark shadow of other colours?	2687	0841790642
Both of my grandfathers used to talk about solving disputes with fist fights when they were young men in the 1940s and 50s. Were assault laws really that weak or loosely enforced in the USA back then? How common was this kind of thing?	2686	Ellikichi
Why do animals in Medieval manuscripts look so crazy? Did the painters not know what they looked like? Was it intentional? Did they have a hard time drawing?	2685	Dinocrocodile
In traditional Hawaiian culture women would be put to death for eating pork, coconuts, taro, several types of fish, and 67 out of 70 varieties of bananas. What did Hawaiian women subsist off of? Why was there such a drastic limitation on what women could eat?	2685	Tatem1961
In 'Django Unchained', the title character says that every slave has heard of Candyland, the plantation owned by the villain of the story. Would slaves know individual plantations through reputation? How efficient were their means of inter-plantation communication?	2681	124876720
The Eastern Roman Empire had to pay 11,000lb (5000kg) of gold to the Sasanian Empire in 533 AD. How did this work logistically?	2679	tyroncs
Plutarch said that Cleopatra spoke the language of the troglodytes. Who does this likely refer to?	2679	Gulbasaur
I am medieval farmer. How rich is my vocabulary?	2677	GRV16
Disagreements between the citizenry have caused extreme polarization where it seemed that civil war would certainly result. In your period of focus, what examples exist of such groups becoming so enraged at each other that fell short of civil war, and how did they end up mending their differences?	2677	Hands0L0
When did higher education become stereotypically politically liberal?	2676	q203