Month: July 2020

From Villages to Kingdoms

July 30, 2020 justin-david-hebert Season 2, Yayoi Comments Off on From Villages to Kingdoms
Season 2, Episode 2: From Villages to Kingdoms
Bronze spearheads from Kyushu dating to the 1-2c CE. Source: I, PHGCOM / CC BY-SA (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/)
A Dotaku bell unearthed in Shizuoka prefecture, which is located just to the east of Kansai. Clusters of these bells buried on hilltops throughout central Honshu may have been part of a ritual to ratify alliances between clans. Source: Miguel Hermoso Cuesta / CC BY-SA (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)
Bronze swords excavated from the Yoshinogari site. Katanas are still hundreds of years away, but these would certainly get the job done. Source: Pekachu / CC BY-SA (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)

The Yayoi Way

July 27, 2020 justin-david-hebert Season 2, Yayoi Comments Off on The Yayoi Way
Season 2, Episode 1: The Yayoi Way
Burial Jars from the Yoshinogari Site. Public Domain.
A stone knife from the Yayoi period on display at the Nagoya City Miharashidai Archaeological Museum. Source: KKPCW / CC BY-SA (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)

Check out the webpage of the Yoshinogari Site for more pictures and history!

Bonus Episode: Dinosaurs of Japan

July 6, 2020 justin-david-hebert Season 1 Comments Off on Bonus Episode: Dinosaurs of Japan
The Nipponosaurus Skeleton. Note the duck bill and Lambeosaurine crest atop its noggin. Attrib.: Momotarou2012 / CC BY-SA (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)
Paleoartist Hattori Masato’s reconstruction of Kamuysaurus, seen here exhibiting both two-legged and four-legged movement. Attrib.: Art by Masato Hattori, published by Yoshitsugu Kobayashi, Tomohiro Nishimura, Ryuji Takasaki, Kentaro Chiba, Anthony R. Fiorillo, Kohei Tanaka, Tsogtbaatar Chinzorig, Tamaki Sato & Kazuhiko Sakurai / CC BY (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0)
Kamuysaurus compared to a human. Hi there, big fella! Image Public Domain
A skeleton of a Fukuisaurus. Note the almost ceratopsian skull which looks, to me, a bit like a rat. Attrib.: Titomaurer / CC BY-SA (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)
A reconstruction of Fuikuiraptor (left) facing off against Fukuisaurus (right). Attrib.: 藤谷良秀(Yoshihide Fujitani)
A reconstruction of Fukuititan, still pretty big for being on the small side of the titanosaur family! Attrib.: 藤谷良秀(Yoshihide Fujitani)
Fukuivenator Skeleton, with scale model reconstruction. Attrib.: Titomaurer / CC BY-SA (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)
Paleoartist Tamura Nobu’s reconstruction of Fukuivenator, feathers and all. Attrib.: Nobu Tamura email:nobu.tamura@yahoo.com http://spinops.blogspot.com/ http://paleoexhibit.blogspot.com/ / CC BY-SA (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)
The elusive Fukuiraptor in all of his ambiguous glory! Its skull is strikingly Tyrannosaurid, and yet its teeth are Carchodontosaurid. Attrib.: Titomaurer / CC BY-SA (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)

This will probably be the last episode on Dinosaurs I ever make but it was worth it. No ragrets.

The Paleolithic Hoax

July 2, 2020 justin-david-hebert Season 1 Comments Off on The Paleolithic Hoax

I don’t really have any interesting photos or pithy captions for this episode. It’s unfortunate how far some people will go to elevate their own fame over the common good. History belongs to its people, and to mislead those people intentionally is a terrible crime. It is also tragic how these events led to the untimely death of a legitimate researcher who was likely innocent of the charges laid against him.

Suicide is not something I take lightly. It causes untold misery, sadness, and confusion for the victim’s loved ones, and if you are struggling with thoughts of harming yourself, please seek help. You are not alone.

Visit the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline

Call the National Suicide Prevention Hotline (US): 1-800-273-8255