American actress Raquel Welch on a balcony overlooking a street in London, 1970. (Photo by Evening Standard). P.S. All pictures are presented in high resolution.

Vocalist Laila Skovmand, a musician with Danish company Between Music, plays underwater in a tank during a rehearsal ahead of their UK premiere concert Aquasonic at the Tramway in Glasgow on Ocrober 25, 2017. (Photo by Robert Perry/PA Images)

A “caixer” (horse rider) rears up on his horse during the traditional “Jaleo” at the Sant Lluiset Festival in Sant Lluis, Spain on September 3, 2022. (Photo by Matthias Oesterle/Rex Features/Shutterstock)

Sara Moni, dressed as the World of Warcraft's Sinestra, poses for photographers on day three of the Comic-Con International held at the San Diego Convention Center Saturday July 23, 2016 in San Diego. (Photo by Denis Poroy/Invision/AP Photo)

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.

Twin brothers Keith (L) and Deano Stapleton (R) interact with one another as people gather to witness the winter solstice on December 21, 2022 in Newgrange, Ireland. Crowds are gathering at Newgrange in Co Meath, this morning for the winter solstice – the astronomical phenomenon that marks the shortest day and the longest night of the year. Newgrange is a Stone Age (Neolithic) monument in the Boyne Valley, County Meath, it is the jewel in the crown of Ireland's Ancient East and was constructed approximately 5,200 years ago (3,200 B.C.) which makes it older than Stonehenge and the Great Pyramids of Giza. (Photo by Charles McQuillan/Getty Images)

Canadian actress Nina Dobrev needs an umbrella whilst leaving her hotel in Paris, France on March 4, 2019. (Photo by Splash News and Pictures)

Yoga enthusiasts perform a yoga exercise in a wine yoga class inside “Van Gogh: The Immersive Experience”, a multi-sensorial exhibition featuring artworks of renowned artist Vincent van Gogh at a department store in Bangkok, Thailand, August 5, 2023. (Photo by Athit Perawongmetha/Reuters)