Local villagers prepare to bury the body of elephant Hemantha during a religious ceremony at a Buddhist temple in Colombo March 15, 2016. Elephant Hemantha, which died from injuries to its feet, was under medical treatment for the last six months. The elephant used to march at street parades during festivals held by the temple. Elephant Hemantha died at age 23. Wild elephants have long lifespans, reaching 60–70 years of age. (Photo by Dinuka Liyanawatte/Reuters)

A school girl reacts as a health worker inoculates her with the dose of Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine against the Covid-19 coronavirus for the 12-15 years age group at an educational institution in Colombo on January 7, 2022. (Photo by Ishara S. Kodikara/AFP Photo)

Participants ride horses, hold spears and wear historic armoured suits of the Middle Ages as they compete during the Saint George international knight tournament in Moscow, Russia, May 3, 2015. (Photo by Maxim Zmeyev/Reuters)

An iguana in Bali helped Julij Kopilović, age eight, from Slovenia, earn second runner-up in Amazing Animals. (Photo by Julij Kopilović/National Geographic)

Twenty-year-old women draped in traditional kimonos gather for their “Coming-of-Age Day” ceremony at the Tokyo Disneyland in Urayasu, eastern suburb of Tokyo on January 13, 2020. (Photo by Kazuhiro Nogi/AFP Photo)

Buzludzha is a historical peak in the Central Stara Planina, Bulgaria and is 1441 metres high. In 1868 it was the place of the final battle between Bulgarian rebels led by Hadji Dimitar and Stefan Karadzha and the Ottoman Empire. The Buzludzha Monument on the peak was built by the Bulgarian communist regime to commemorate the events in 1891 when the socialists led by Dimitar Blagoev assembled secretly in the area to form an organised socialist movement with the founding of the Bulgarian Social Democratic Party, a fore-runner of the Bulgarian Communist Party. The Monument was opened in 1981. No longer maintained by the Bulgarian government, it has fallen into disuse. Buzludzha is reached by a 12 km side road from the Shipka Pass.

Some of the worlds most iconic cities have been photographed as youve never seen them before in the shape of tiny round planets. By using a pioneering method of aerial photography, each location can be now seen at a full 360 degree angle. After some skilful manipulation on Photoshop known technically as stereographic projection, each sweeping panorama is then turned into a small circular shaped image. Whether its the Eiffel Tower, The Empire State Building or the Shanghai Skyline, each image manages to show hundreds of miles of city landscape. Here: the French Riveria of Cannes, France. (Photo by Airpano/Caters News)

Few people haven’t heard about the ancient city of Persepolis, which lies at the foot of the Mountain of Mercy (Kuh-I-Rahmat). In ancient times, Persepolis was the capital of the Achaemenid Empire. Regretfully, it was burned by the Greeks in 330 BC after they looted the immense treasure of this city. It is said that Greeks needed 5,000 camels and 20,000 mules to carry all the treasures from Persepolis. The only thing of Persepolis that has survived the wear of time is the ginormous stone terrace 530 by 330 meters adorned by elaborate stone sculptures. It is amazing how intricately detailed some of the sculptures are, despite the fact that they were created many centuries ago.