History Facts for Kids
Incredible facts from the past
The ancient Chinese used fingerprints as seals on clay documents and contracts as early as 300 BC, thousands of years before modern forensics adopted the technique.
Roman gladiators were like ancient celebrities. Their sweat was bottled and sold, and their faces appeared on pottery and walls as advertisements.
In 1919, a massive tank of molasses burst in Boston, creating a sticky wave over 7 metres high that flooded streets at 35 miles per hour.
Ancient Polynesian navigators sailed thousands of miles across the open Pacific using only the stars, ocean currents, and the flight patterns of birds — without any maps or instruments.
In ancient Egypt, both men and women wore eye make-up made from ground minerals. They believed it had healing powers and would protect them from the evil eye.
Roman soldiers were sometimes paid in salt, which was extremely valuable in the ancient world. The word 'salary' comes from the Latin word for salt, 'salarium'.
The world's first public zoo — London Zoo — opened in Regent's Park in 1828, though it was originally for scientific research and only opened to the general public in 1847.
Contrary to popular belief, educated people in the Middle Ages knew the Earth was round — this had been understood since ancient Greek times. The flat-Earth myth is largely a 19th-century invention.
Paper money was invented in China around the 7th century during the Tang Dynasty, more than 600 years before it appeared in Europe.
Ferdinand Magellan is often credited with the first circumnavigation of the globe, but he died in the Philippines. It was his crew member Juan Sebastián Elcano who completed the journey in 1522.