By Tim Lambert Ancient Greek women wore a form of bra called an apodesme. Roman women also wore a band of cloth or leather around their chest called a strophium or mamilare. However, for hundreds of years after the fall of Rome, women usually did not wear anything for support. From the 16th century to… Continue reading A History of Bras
Category: Daily Life in the Past
A History of Bread
By Tim Lambert For thousands of years, until the end of the 19th century, bread was ‘the staff of life’ in the Middle East and most of Europe. Indeed, the word bread was sometimes a synonym for food. In Prehistoric Times, people ate flatbread. It’s believed that the Egyptians discovered leavened bread. The staple food… Continue reading A History of Bread
A History of Children
By Tim Lambert Life for children in the past was hard and dangerous. In the past, many of the children born died before they could grow up. As many as 25% of children died before their fifth birthday. As many as 40% of the people born died before they were 16. Even if they survived,… Continue reading A History of Children
A History of Christianity in England
By Tim Lambert Christianity in Roman Britain The first evidence of Christianity in what is now England is from the late 2nd century AD. (There may have been Christians in Britain before then, we cannot be sure). Roman Britain was a cosmopolitan place. Merchants from all over the empire settled there and soldiers from many… Continue reading A History of Christianity in England
A History of Clocks
By Tim Lambert Early Clocks Today we take knowing the time and the day of the year for granted but for our ancestors, it was far more difficult. Until mechanical clocks were invented in the 13th century there were various ways of telling the time. The earliest method of telling the time of day was… Continue reading A History of Clocks
A History of Clothes
By Tim Lambert Egyptian Clothes Not surprisingly, given the hot climate, Egyptians wore only light clothing. Men wore a loincloth and a kind of kilt. Women wore dresses with shoulder straps. Clothes were made of linen or cotton. Later in Egyptian history, clothes became more elaborate and colorful. Egyptians shaved their hair and wore wigs.… Continue reading A History of Clothes
A History of Coffee
By Tim Lambert The Ethiopians invented coffee. The coffee plant is native to Ethiopia. According to legend, coffee was discovered by an Ethiopian goatherd called Kaldi around the year 800. He noticed that goats who ate certain beans became very lively. So coffee was found. Later, people added hot water to the ground-up beans. Later,… Continue reading A History of Coffee
A History of Coins
By Tim Lambert Early Coins At first, people simply bartered, that is they exchanged goods for goods. However, eventually, it became convenient to have one thing that could be exchanged for any goods. Before the Celts used coins, they used iron bars as a form of currency. The Chinese used cowrie shells. However, finally, people… Continue reading A History of Coins
A History of Condiments
By Tim Lambert Early Condiments Since ancient times people have used condiments to enhance their food. The first condiment was salt. Salt has always been used both as a preservative and to enhance the flavor of food. Vinegar has also been used since ancient times. Its name is probably derived from the French words vin… Continue reading A History of Condiments
A History of Dentistry
By Tim Lambert Early Dentistry In Sumer (now Iraq) in 2000 BC, people believed that tooth decay was caused by worms. This strange belief carried on in the West until the Tudor Times. The Etruscans an ancient civilization that existed in Italy after 800 BC, were excellent dentists. They made false teeth from human or… Continue reading A History of Dentistry