History

Strata: Portraits of Humanity - Jul'16

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(1) The Birch Creek Charcoal Kilns are a group of beehive-shaped clay charcoal kilns near Leadore, Idaho, built in 1886 to produce charcoal to smelt lead and silver ore from the nearby Viola Mine.  (2) Brora, Scotland, is where a volunteer-based excavation recorded the town’s historic salt houses before a big storm washed them away.  (3) Blacksmiths make a replica of a Saxon Sword.  This sword was buried with its owner and lay underground for 1500 years until it was found by archaeologists in the 1980s ahead of planned highway construction.

Strata: Portraits of Humanity - Jun'16

This episode is currently not viewable online.

(1) The Australian landscape may look unchanged, but its fossils and cave paintings tell a hidden story.  Forty to fifty thousand years ago, three major events occurred: people arrived in Australia, the environment changed, and several species went extinct.  (2) In the summer of 2009, a team of numismatists is looking to replicate bronze coinage, particularly the twin eagle piece struck in Alexandria, Egypt, in the 2nd century BC.  Even though numerous questions are left to be answered, the team is gradually mastering the production techniques of the ancient mints.