Images

The Viking Age Snaptun stone was carved around 1000 CE and shows a face with stitched-up lips, which reminds of a story preserved in the Prose Edda where the Norse god's Loki’s lips are sewn up. As such, it is usually thought to be one of...

Colossal Statue of Shapur I (240-270 CE), located in the Shapur Cave in modern-day Iran.

An artist's impression of Cniva, the king of the Goths (c. 250 - c. 270 CE), in battle as depicted in the PC game Rome II: Total War - Empire Divided.

An engraving of the colossal statue of Shapur I, who ruled the Sasanian empire from 240 to 270 CE, which stands in the Shapur cave, Bhishapur. (From "The Seven Great Monarchies Of The Ancient Eastern World", Vol. 3, 1876 CE).

An artist's impression of Hormizd, the Sassanid ruler (r. 270- c. 273 CE), in battle as depicted in the PC game Rome II: Total War - Empire Divided.

A silver coin of Shapur I who ruled the Sasanian empire from 240 to 270 CE. (Reza Abbasi Museum, Tehran, Iran)

This is a fragment of a frieze depicting a battle scene. It might perhaps depict a battle scene between ancient Greek warriors and the legendary Amazons. It comes from present-day Yubileynoye, which is located on Russia's Taman peninsula...

These Roman mummy masks come from ancient Egypt. They date from the 1st-2nd century CE, and they painted and made from plaster. (Pushkin Museum, Moscow)

This necklace was unearthed in what is now present-day Armenia and dates from the 15th-13th century BCE. It contains gold and other sardonyx beads. (Metsamor Historical-Archaeological Museum-Reserve, Taronik, Armenia)

This Eneolithic stone statuette of a woman is from what is present-day Armenia. It dates from the 5th-4th century BCE. (Metsamor Historical-Archaeological Museum-Reserve, Taronik, Armenia)