17 artifacts that will make you look at the legacy of antiquity from a different angle (18 photos)

History is rarely as we imagine it. Sometimes ancient masters created things that baffle modern archaeologists, and sometimes they frighteningly accurately anticipate pop culture.





This collection includes a copper scorpion from Peru, a 3,000-year-old Egyptian statue that bears a striking resemblance to Michael Jackson, a meerschaum pipe with Shakespeare on it that cost as much as a small house in Paris in 1867. Also included are statues without mouths, "clothing from a hundred families," and other objects that are hard to look away from.

1. Traditional Chinese children's clothing, "Baijiayi" (shirt and pants), made during the Qing Dynasty, 19th century



It was made from scraps of fabric donated by various village families (hence the name "clothing from a hundred families"). It was believed that the clothing protected the child from evil spirits and brought longevity.

2. A 16th-century diamond ring found with a metal detector in Warmington, Gloucestershire.





3. A copper door knocker. Iran, Safavid Dynasty, 17th century



4. Shahr-e Yeri, Iran, nicknamed the "City of the Eyeless," contains 500 anthropomorphic stone menhirs dating from the late 2nd to early 1st millennium BC.



With the exception of one female menhir, the faces of all the sculptures are missing a mouth. This absence likely had ritual or religious significance. According to a common theory, the steles were totems or idols in the sanctuary, and the absence of a mouth symbolized the rule of silence in the sacred space. The only stele with an elaborate mouth, identified as female, may have signified a special role for women (for example, as a priestess-herald of the temple).

5. Tomb of King Sukjong and Queen Inhyeon, with sculptures of the spiritual path. Korea, Joseon Dynasty, 1700-1720.



6. Silver disk with spirals, made by the Moche civilization (100-800 CE) in Peru. Currently housed in the National Museum of Archaeology, Anthropology, and History.



7. The Cangzhou Iron Lion is a cast iron sculpture located in Cangzhou City, Hebei Province, China.



Cast during the late Zhou Dynasty in 953 CE, the Iron Lion is the largest known and oldest surviving work of art cast in iron in China.

8. Aquamarine gemstone on a gold stand. Vienna, Austria, circa 1800



9. Meerschaum pipe with an image of Shakespeare, late 19th century



10. Tomb of Quintus Lollius Urbicus (109-160 AD) in Tiddis Algeria



He was an Amazigh military leader who, as governor of Roman Britain, led a military campaign in Scotland, defeated local tribes such as the Brigantes and Votadines, and began construction of the Antonine Wall around 142 AD.

11. Horn Lice Comb. India, 19th century



12. Shamanic mask created by the Dorset people



Often referred to in oral traditions as the Tunit or Sallirmiut, they are a paleocontinental culture whose representatives inhabited the Arctic regions of North America, including modern-day Nunavut, Canada, and Greenland. 500-1200 CE.

13. Painting of a hawk on a branch. China, Yuan Dynasty, 1279-1368 CE.



14. 3,000-year-old Egyptian statue "Head of a Woman," New Kingdom, limestone, Field Museum of Natural History, Chicago



The statue attracted widespread attention due to its uncanny resemblance to Michael Jackson, largely due to damage to the nose and facial structure from erosion.

15. Seated Male Figure. Colombia, Quimbaya culture, XI-XII centuries AD.



16. Copper Scorpion. Peru, Moche civilization, 6th-7th centuries AD.



17. Ceramic sculpture from Veracruz depicting a lifeless human face. 600-900 AD, currently housed in the Amparo Museum in Mexico.