askhistorians

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What are the earliest references to Zoroastrianism in Indian sources? Is there any indication that it influenced contemporary religious or philosophical thinking in India?	24
Through most of its existence, the Papacy was essentially an elective, non-dynastic monarchy. Was this ever presented as a potential model for other western European monarchies?	22
In the Roman Empire, wealthy families typically had lavish country residences. Was this common in classical/Hellenistic Greece as well, or did upper-class Greeks live exclusively in town?	20
Did the Achaemenids and Sassanids understand “Iran/Eran” to refer to all the same peoples that modern linguists call Iranian speakers? Would they have included the Sakas, Sogdians, etc?	19
Before the printing press, were books commonly produced for resale, or were they all specially commissioned?	18
What are the origins of church bells (or other bell towers that were rung to summon a community)? Did they originate in medieval Europe, or were there similar town bells in ancient Greece, Persia, or elsewhere?	17
Classical sources describe western Eurasian nomads living in covered wagons, while medieval sources describe eastern nomads living in portable tents. Was this a regional difference, or did all Eurasian nomads shift from wagons to tents in the early Middle Ages?	17
The first recorded contact between China and Central Asia was during the Han dynasty (139 BCE); but the name of China in Central Asia was derived from the earlier Qin dynasty. Does this imply unrecorded contact between Qin and Greco-Bactria, or did the Han call themselves “Qin” to foreigners?	16
If the Greeks painted over their statues anyway, why did they generally choose pure white marble for sculpting? Were there parts of statues left exposed?	16
When Europeans first arrived in the Americas, did Native Americans generally regard them as a new type of people categorically different from the other nations they were familiar with? Or were they just seen as a particularly unusual tribe among other tribes?	15

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