Daily Content Archive
(as of Thursday, December 31, 2020)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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| Article of the Day | |
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 Sino-Roman RelationsIndirect contact between the Roman and Chinese empires began around the 2nd century BCE, when the Han Dynasty undertook westward expeditions and found other cultures. By 100 CE, Han ambassadors had tried to reach Rome itself. Ptolemy's Geographia, written circa 150 CE, contains references to China. In 166, Roman ambassadors finally made direct contact with China, and Roman soldiers are rumored to have settled there. Why did the Roman Senate try to prohibit the wearing of Chinese silk? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 The Vandals Invade Gaul (406 CE)An ancient Germanic tribe that originated in North Jutland, the Vandals began a decades-long migration in the early 5th century. The violent path they cut through Europe made their name synonymous with senseless destruction. Crossing the Rhine in 406 CE, they invaded their first stop, Gaul. The Roman-allied Franks refused to allow them to settle there, so the Vandals devastated the region and kept moving. By the time they sacked Rome in 455 CE, they had established a kingdom of their own—where? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 Henri Matisse (1869)One of the premier artists of the modern period, Matisse left his law career after taking up painting during an illness in 1890. He explored Impressionism but instead began to use vivid primary color as a structural element. He became a leader of the short-lived Fauvist movement, and by 1909, he had achieved worldwide fame. After 1939, he became increasingly active as a graphic artist. His contribution to 20th-century art is inestimable. Which of his paintings was burned in effigy in 1913? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 Discretion of speech is more than eloquence, and to speak agreeably to him with whom we deal is more than to speak in good words, or in good order.Francis Bacon (1561-1626) | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 Watch Night (Eulonia, Georgia) (2020)Watch Night services are held every New Year's Eve at Mt. Calvary Baptist Church in the village of Eulonia, Georgia. The heart of the event is a "ring-shout" performance by the McIntosh County Shouters, made up of call-and-response singing, counter-clockwise dance movements, and interlocking rhythms created with hand-clapping and stick beating. Watch Night is a solemn yet joyful Christian vigil on the last night of the year. Because the Emancipation Proclamation went into effect at midnight on January 1, 1863, African Americans have invested the occasion with added significance. More... | |