/u/BuckminsterJones's posts in /r/askhistorians

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Are there any games or sports from the past that we know of by name, but have no idea how they might have actually been played?

685 upvotes

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When and how did the cultural divide between sit-down lavatories and squatting lavatories take place?

85 upvotes

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When and by which route did trade between China and India start?

76 upvotes

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What was border security like in the past? Were there customs agents and passport controls? Were there even well defined borders?

72 upvotes

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How much history is there left to be found? What is your educated guess as to how many books and documents are as yet undiscovered? Dusty shelves in old libraries? Lost scrolls in caves? Tablets in the sand? How often does new material from primary sources turn up?

38 upvotes

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How sea-worthy were Carthaginian ships compared to the ships sailing the Indian Ocean at around the same time, say 500 BC or so?

23 upvotes

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Was the quest for a warm-water port a serious motivation behind the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan?

19 upvotes

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Would it have been legal for someone to install a large naval canon in their home during the early years of the US? What was the first military technology that the public wasn't allowed to own in the States?

17 upvotes

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Did chariot racing typically have a strict formula for the chariots? Or could you really put knives on the hubs?

15 upvotes

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How is it that it took 2 years for the news of the Emancipation Proclamation to reach Texas?

8 upvotes

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Title	Upvotes	Mark as read	Favorited	Rating	Add to a list
Are there any games or sports from the past that we know of by name, but have no idea how they might have actually been played?	685
When and how did the cultural divide between sit-down lavatories and squatting lavatories take place?	85
When and by which route did trade between China and India start?	76
What was border security like in the past? Were there customs agents and passport controls? Were there even well defined borders?	72
How much history is there left to be found? What is your educated guess as to how many books and documents are as yet undiscovered? Dusty shelves in old libraries? Lost scrolls in caves? Tablets in the sand? How often does new material from primary sources turn up?	38
How sea-worthy were Carthaginian ships compared to the ships sailing the Indian Ocean at around the same time, say 500 BC or so?	23
Was the quest for a warm-water port a serious motivation behind the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan?	19
Would it have been legal for someone to install a large naval canon in their home during the early years of the US? What was the first military technology that the public wasn't allowed to own in the States?	17
Did chariot racing typically have a strict formula for the chariots? Or could you really put knives on the hubs?	15
How is it that it took 2 years for the news of the Emancipation Proclamation to reach Texas?	8