/r/askhistorians

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I'm in a market in Rome at the height of the empire (say, early 2nd century). What's the farthest an item would have traveled to get here? What's the most "exotic" thing I could get?

1538 upvotes • Obligatory-Reference

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As a Roman in York at around 200AD, what options were available to transfer money to my family in Rome? How long would it take?

1538 upvotes • doc_frankenfurter

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I'm a poor Vietnamese farmer at the beginning of the Vietnam War. When recruiters for the communist north come to my village, how are they going to convince me that I should be involved in the war?

1538 upvotes • QuackSnake

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What led to the split between the People's Front of Judea and the Judean People's Front in the first century?

1537 upvotes • casualevils

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Many Catholic relics, like bejeweled skulls or wrist bones placed on prominent display in churches, seem creepy or ridiculous to modern sensibilities. Did any medieval people feel similarly? When did veneration of relics stop being so central to ordinary worshippers' experience of Catholicism?

1537 upvotes • FelicianoCalamity

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What was homosexuality in ancient china like? NSFW

1537 upvotes • AmericanMare

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Spartans apparently had no written laws or records. Athens was excellent at keeping laws and records but hated the Spartans almost as much as they hated the Persians. How do we know that Spartas current history isn't a clever slander by Athens?

1536 upvotes • Felix_Roseboner

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How did Native Americans handle harsh winter weather such as blizzards? Did they have any way of predicting foul weather?

1535 upvotes • buonscott

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ELI5: When people discuss the Holocaust, why do they focus mainly on the killing of the 6 million Jews?

1535 upvotes • _Boba_Fett

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Why is the "king in the mountain" / "sleeping hero" folktale so widespread across European cultures?

1535 upvotes • depanneur

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Title	Upvotes	Author	Mark as read	Favorited	Rating	Add to a list
I'm in a market in Rome at the height of the empire (say, early 2nd century). What's the farthest an item would have traveled to get here? What's the most "exotic" thing I could get?	1538	Obligatory-Reference
As a Roman in York at around 200AD, what options were available to transfer money to my family in Rome? How long would it take?	1538	doc_frankenfurter
I'm a poor Vietnamese farmer at the beginning of the Vietnam War. When recruiters for the communist north come to my village, how are they going to convince me that I should be involved in the war?	1538	QuackSnake
What led to the split between the People's Front of Judea and the Judean People's Front in the first century?	1537	casualevils
Many Catholic relics, like bejeweled skulls or wrist bones placed on prominent display in churches, seem creepy or ridiculous to modern sensibilities. Did any medieval people feel similarly? When did veneration of relics stop being so central to ordinary worshippers' experience of Catholicism?	1537	FelicianoCalamity
What was homosexuality in ancient china like? NSFW	1537	AmericanMare
Spartans apparently had no written laws or records. Athens was excellent at keeping laws and records but hated the Spartans almost as much as they hated the Persians. How do we know that Spartas current history isn't a clever slander by Athens?	1536	Felix_Roseboner
How did Native Americans handle harsh winter weather such as blizzards? Did they have any way of predicting foul weather?	1535	buonscott
ELI5: When people discuss the Holocaust, why do they focus mainly on the killing of the 6 million Jews?	1535	_Boba_Fett
Why is the "king in the mountain" / "sleeping hero" folktale so widespread across European cultures?	1535	depanneur