Ireland's history is steeped in religion and mystery. Why did its people stop worshipping the earth 5,000 years ago? Did St. Patrick really act alone in converting the Irish to Christianity in the 5th century? Historians, astronomers, and other scientists believe answers to these and other questions lie in the stars. Discover the role that celestial occurrences have played in Irish religious beliefs and practices as we explore ancient hallowed sites and even the heavens above.
In the rocky highlands of Jordan and the deserts of Saudi Arabia lie the remains of two remarkable cities, Petra and Hegra, built by the Nabataeans over 2,000 years ago. The story of this lost kingdom has faded from history, but thanks to ancient inscriptions and recent discoveries, these rock tombs and temples are finally yielding profound secrets about the Nabataeans' way of life. Join us as we enter Sacred Sites carved from cliffs and reveal a civilization where women wielded unrivaled power for centuries.
Fans of "The Da Vinci Code" know the Knights Templar as a secret society, but the story of their tumultuous two centuries in power is more shocking and scandalous than any Hollywood movie. Follow our team of experts as they go to Jerusalem's Temple Mount, the most bitterly contested sacred site in the world. With the help of DNA tests and a remarkable discovery in the Vatican archives, we reveal the truth about the knights' rise into the world's most powerful military religious order to their spectacular and sudden fall from grace.
Earthquake lights. Hallucinogenic gases. Magnetic fields. New scientific research has revealed that these and other tectonic phenomena happened at virtually every site in ancient Greece where oracles delivered their prophecies to pilgrims and nobles. Could it be that the landscape itself contributed to making these places sacred? Join us as we travel the Mediterranean to visit locations where oracle predictions determined the fate of nations and examine the connection between mankind and what may be the most Sacred Site of all: Earth itself.
Of all the ancient civilizations, Egypt has left the greatest legacy. Its monuments all evoke one indisputable truth: Early Egyptians were obsessed with death and the afterlife. On papyrus rolls and tomb walls, they recorded spells to help the deceased pass all the tests and creatures they would encounter in the underworld. These recordings were known as the Book of the Dead. But what if this book is hiding something deeper about these ancient Egyptian beliefs? The answers could lie within one unique artifact.
Embedded on a canyon floor in New Mexico are the broken ruins of ancient structures, buildings constructed over 1,000 years ago by the Pueblo civilization of Chaco Canyon. For over 300 years, this community grew and prospered under the leadership of a shadowy elite. But something happened that led to claims of bloodshed, human sacrifice, and even cannibalism. What happened? Our team of experts visits the remarkable landscape that this ancient civilization once called home to see what caused its swift and violent demise.
From Camelot to the quest for the Holy Grail, see how much of the King Arthur myth is based on fact.
Travel across Mexico and Guatemala to sacred Mayan sites and discover new secrets about why they built them.
Discover astonishing new findings about the Camino de Santiago as scientists examine the spiritual path's ancient origins.
Follow a team of experts as they search the sacred sites of Malta to explain the disappearance of the Temple People.
Uncover surprising secrets about the political and sexual power of ancient Egyptian women.
Follow scientists around the world as they study sacred sites Nazis claimed were built by and for an ancient Aryan race.
Follow archaeologists to Ireland, Greece, and Egypt as they examine sacred rituals held by wise women and priestesses.
Over millennia, human societies across the globe have been hit by cataclysms that have obliterated entire civilizations, leaving only the timeworn ruins of their great monuments and sacred sites. Follow archaeologists to Malta, Orkney Island, and the locations of ancient Mayan cities as they investigate evidence of past apocalyptic events. Then see how, in the wake of disaster, new societies have emerged, along with new understandings of who we are and what our place is in the universe.
