Posts by Madeleine Muzdakis

Madeleine Muzdakis

Madeleine Muzdakis is a Contributing Writer at My Modern Met and a historian of early modern Britain & the Atlantic world. She holds a BA in History and Mathematics from Brown University and an MA in European & Russian Studies from Yale University. Madeleine has worked in archives and museums for years with a particular focus on photography and arts education. When she isn’t writing, she enjoys hiking, film photography, and studying law while cuddling with her cat Georgia.
Archeology
September 24, 2023

1,900-Year-Old Ancient Roman Swords Are Found in a Cave Above the Dead Sea

The ancient Romans are known for the empire they built by conquest. Stretching into three continents, the Roman government and its regional deputies ruled by both bureaucracy and force. Sustaining such an empire took legions of soldiers, thousands of pounds of armor, and massive collections of weapons such as swords. These were created by Roman blacksmiths and have been found scattered where they were once dropped or hidden around the former empire by modern-day archeologists.

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Archeology
September 14, 2023

Fossilized Footprints Present Evidence of Earliest Known Shoes

When were the first shoes created and worn? While archeologists are not able to pinpoint an exact moment of invention, there are good reasons to believe that walking on artificial soles dates back about 148,000 years. Three sites in South Africa featuring prints from early human ancestors bear some striking signs of footwear. As described in a paper in Ichnos, researchers are working towards developing techniques to recognize shod-hominin tracks.

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Archeology
September 3, 2023

66-Million-Year-Old Fully Articulated Dinosaur Embryo is Discovered Inside of a Fossilized Egg

Back in a land before time, many dinosaurs laid eggs. With parents guarding their clutches, tiny baby dinosaurs might eventually emerge from incubating embryos. Yet this process is only occasionally captured in the fossil record. Fossils of nesting dinosaurs atop eggs, or of complete egg embryos, are quite rare. However, a fully articulated dinosaur embryo was discovered inside a fossilized egg held by a Chinese museum, according to a paper published in iScience in 2021.

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My Modern Met

Celebrating creativity and promoting a positive culture by spotlighting the best sides of humanity—from the lighthearted and fun to the thought-provoking and enlightening.