CRITICAL: During the construction of the Great Wall of China in the 3rd century BCE, around 400,000 people died. Among the dead were slaves and soldiers—many of whom were buried within the wall itself. Over the centuries, the structure was repeatedly rebuilt and repaired, and the version we see today was largely restored during the Ming dynasty (1368–1644).

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Ma Barker — the matriarch of American gangsters, mastermind behind the infamous Barker Gang. She met her end alongside her son Fred in a brutal, hours-long shootout with FBI agents who had surrounded her home in 1935.

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No European city would bury him. Niccolò Paganini (Oct 27, 1782 – May 27, 1840) was a legendary violinist shrouded in myth. His eerie look, temper, and rumored pact with the devil fueled dark legends—though he supported charity. His father, Antonio, locked young Niccolò in a dark shed to force practice; once, a doctor declared him dead, but he awoke in his coffin. His mother wept; the next day, his father made him play again. Paganini died at 57 of tuberculosis, plucking his violin till the end. After death, his coffin was moved repeatedly—locals refused him burial, fearing his cursed soul. His son fought for years to find him rest. Only in 1896—56 years after his death—was he finally laid to rest in Parma, Italy, after Pope Pius IX approved a Christian burial decades earlier. A genius tormented in life and death.

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Death triumphs.

Such plaques were placed on house walls during plague outbreaks — Augsburg, early 17th century.

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Timber rafting, Pudozh district, Karelia, 1973

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Mobile hair salon on a beach in Pribrezhnoye. Everything for the comfort of vacationers. Crimea. USSR. 1979.

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Strength test of a pipe. The inventor sits inside. Canada, 1920.

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In 1806, a chicken in Leeds, England, began laying eggs inscribed with the words «Jesus is coming». News spread rapidly, sparking fears of the imminent apocalypse. It later emerged that the bird’s owner had orchestrated the hoax—etching the message onto eggs with acid and reinserting them into the hen’s oviduct.

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Brothers Grimm, 1847.

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Robert and Dennis Skotack assemble the "nuclear horror sequence" on the set of Terminator 2: Judgment Day, 1991

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«Airport». Dubai, 1971

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Give a person power, and you'll see who they really are.

© Napoleon Bonaparte

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Vodka arrived in Russia from Europe in the 16th century. At that time, vodka sellers were looked down upon. Alcohol was seen as corrupting public morality, so selling it was considered one of the most shameful trades.

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In 1610, Polish occupiers seized Moscow's Kremlin — and two years later, after a long, grueling siege, were finally driven out. When the liberators entered Kitai-gorod, they were stunned. All of Europe stood in shock at the grim discovery. They were horrified to find that the Poles had been eating...
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Tram driver stops to hand an apple to an elephant. London, 1936.

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Combat donkey in Turkey, 1930s.

🤩 Historian's Diary

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Transporting one of the most unique structures in the Dombai settlement — the "Tarelka" hotel, built in 1969.

This one-of-a-kind construction is considered an architectural landmark of the 20th century, and a replica of it is preserved in a museum in Düsseldorf.

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On June 4, 1965, military pilot Valentin Privalov flew his aircraft between the central supports of the bridge spanning the Ob River.

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Pineapples first arrived in Britain in the 17th century, and by the 1700s, they became a major status symbol. People carried them like trophies, embroidered them onto clothing, and featured them on fine china. Some even rented one to impress guests at dinner parties!

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From the perspective of youth, life seems like an endlessly long future; from the perspective of old age, a very brief past.

Arthur Schopenhauer (1788–1860) – German philosopher

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