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AKG

In the 1950s Yale University acquired the Vinland Map, which depicts areas of North America described by the Norse sagas. The map was believed to be the earliest depiction of the continent and originally dated to the 1400s, but some scholars were skeptical of its authenticity. After decades of careful examination, it was declared a fake in 2021, when studies revealed the presence of a 20th-century, titanium-based ink in the map’s graphics and texts.

Workers extract stone in a 15th-century illustration from the encyclopedia "On the Properties of Things" by Bartholomaeus Anglicus.

Bronze incense burners were lit during celebrations in the courtyard of the Hall of Supreme Harmony.

The Philae obelisk stands on the grounds of W.J. Bankes's estate at Kingston Lacy in Dorset, England.

The Rosetta Stone's trilingual inscription aided the deciphering of hieroglyphs.

An obsidian ax, circa A.D. 600-900, perhaps represents an ajaw. In Palenque, such objects were deposited in the foundations of buildings or placed in tombs.

A ceramic censer featuring an effigy of an unknown dignitary from A.D. 600-900