A Construction worker pinging the eye of a large woman Hanfu sculpture in front of the Hong Kong Skyline on September 28, 2025 in Hong Kong. (Photo by Vernon Yuen/Nexpher Images via ZUMA Press Wire/Alamy Live News)

“Sky burial or ritual dissection was once a common funerary practice in Tibet wherein a human corpse is cut in specific locations and placed on a mountaintop, exposing it to the elements or the mahabhuta and animals – especially to birds of prey. The location of the sky burial preparation and place of execution are understood in the Vajrayana traditions as charnel grounds. In Tibet the practice is known as jhator, which literally means, «giving alms to the birds»”. – Wikipedia

Photo: A burial master chops bones of a body to feed vultures during a celestial burial ceremony on April 19, 2006 in Dari County of Guoluo Prefecture, Qinghai Province, northwest China. Celestial burial is a traditional funeral of Tibetan people, which began in the 7th century. (Photo by China Photos/Getty Images)

Several beaches along South Florida's Atlantic coast line were closed after thousands of sharks were seen migrating in the waters. The sharks were migrating from Boca Raton to Jupiter since the beginning of March, marine biologists told NBC Miami. Photo: A spinner shark swims just offshore on Midtown Beach in Palm Beach on Tuesday. (Photo by Jeffrey Langlois/Palm Beach Daily News)

Do you think that history is a science? Well, not exactly. First, and foremost, history is the state's “legend of wars”, it’s official regalia. Of course, public historians are not interested in scientific truth – quite the opposite. In this respect, any attempt to present a state’s history as altruistic and benevolent as possible is welcomed and encouraged – as opposed to any revisionism attempts that may be more accurate. In this matter, Chinese have surpassed us all – they revised in highly creative manner (but rather shamelessly) the technology already invented by Europeans, a process that resulted in oldest state on the planet. Here is an interesting paradox: ask any sinologist about the Middle Kingdom during second century B.C., and he will describe it to you in such a vivid manner as if he has been living there all his life – but as soon as you will ask him to describe Chinese history in the 19-20th centuries… let's say, his eagerness will be greatly diminished. However, we will discuss China in a different article, and in the meantime we will try to understand how exactly historic “legend of wars” is formed and functions – based on a specific and well-known example. A great example is Ferdinand Magellan's first voyage around the world.

Soldier boys at Fort Dix, N.J., learn something about guns during their working hours, as they show their girlfriends at a camp dance, December 13, 1940. In front row, playing with the coin amusement gun, from left: Pvt. Tom D'Amato of West Orange; Rose Sinkewicz, behind gun site, of Trenton; Julia Ivans of Trenton, and Pvt. Vernon Landers of Kearney. Back row: Pvts. William Sargent and William Corlies of Philadelphia. (Photo by AP Photo)

A demonstrator wears a feather headdress during the “No on APEC” protest on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Leaders' Meeting in San Francisco, California, on November 12, 2023. (Photo by Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP Photo)

“March 19, 2012 was the first rehearsal for the Victory Day Parade at the training ground in Alabino (near Moscow, Moscow Military District). Since the end of February troops and vehicles from various units and formations of the Armed Forces began arriving to Alabino training ground. The first rehearsal included only military vehicles. During the ride the average speed of vehicles is 12 km/h, the distance depending on the type of vehicle from 12 to 15 meters”. – Vitaly Kuzmin

People at a Czech Stop look at a cloud of smoke rising from the explosion in West, Texas, April 17, 2013. (Photo by Andy Bartee via Dallas Morning News/MCT)