A new 4,000-year-old clay tablet with markings whose symbolism has yet to be deciphered has been unearthed at the prehistoric pile dwelling site of Lucone di Polpenazze in Lombardy, northern Italy. This is the third so-called enigmatic tablet found in the Lucone D sector, the 21st tablet to be discovered at the overall Lucone site. The tablets, usually made of clay but sometimes of stone, feature incised lines and impressions of geometric shapes including triangles, squares and circles. The oldest of the tablets are predominately characterized by impressed dots. They have been interpreted as possible calendars, counting tools, or forms of proto-writing. A ritual function has not been ruled out either, extending to the hypothesis that they might have been used as a sort of sacred amulet. One of the most intriguing interpretations today, however, links them to the management of trade, suggesting a function comparable, in some respects, to modern shipping documents used to identify specific goods (perhaps metal). In addition to northern Italy, enigmatic tablets have been found in Switzerland, Germany and the Danube-Carpathian Basin area in southeastern Central Europe. The largest single concentration of them has been discovered at the Lucone di Polpenazze site. Located close to Lake Garda, the Lucone di Polpenazze site is now a shallow basin, but in prehistory was a small lake housing at least five distinct pile dwelling settlements occupied from the Neolithic period to the Bronze Age. The Lucone D sector is a small pile-dwelling village from the early Bronze Age. Radiocarbon dating of the oak logs used to build the houses on stilts dates the village to 2034 B.C. The distribution of the houses indicates they were built over the full lake, not when the water was low, attesting to the engineering prowess of the community. Archaeologists also discovered that household waste was ejected off the platforms the houses were perched on creating a layer cake of organic remains What makes Lucone D exceptional among the other pile dwellings at the site is that the village was struck by a catastrophic fire which destroyed the homes but carbonized and preserved many materials that would normally have decomposed. Wooden sickles, loom weights, linen fragments, seeds and the remains of food in a ceramic bowl have survived in carbonized form. The conflagration even preserved some of the sun-dried clay of the dwellings, firing it as it were in a kiln.

Historical Events 1642 - English Civil War begins between Royalists and Parliamentarians 1939 - Dutch border guards take positions for German invasion 1958 - Toronto's Boyd Carter (15 yards) and Dave Mann (116 yards) combine for a CFL record for the longest punt return in a 15-14 win over the Montreal Alouettes in Toronto 1988 - US performs a nuclear test at Nevada Test Site 2024 - Vice President Kamala Harris accepts the Democratic nomination for U.S. President on the last day of the party's national conference in Chicago More Historical Events » Famous Birthdays 1874 - Edward Bairstow, English composer, born in Trinity Street, Huddersfield, England (d. 1946) 1907 - Cyril Astley Clarke, British physician and geneticist, born in Leicester, England (d. 2000) 1926 - Marc Bohan, French fashion designer, born in Paris (d. 2023) 1974 - Agustín Pichot, Argentine rugby player, born in Buenos Aires, Argentina 1974 - Brimstone [William Kucmierowski], American professional wrestler, actor and radio personality (The Grindhouse Radio), born in Mineola, New York More Famous Birthdays » Famous Deaths 1701 - John Granville, 1st Earl of Bath, English royalist statesman, dies at 72 1914 - Léon Amédée François Raffenel, French general (3rd Colonial Div, WWI), dies during Battle of Rossignol at 58 1977 - Sebastian Cabot, British actor (Kismet; Family Affair - "Mr. French", Time Machine), dies at 59 2009 - Elmer Kelton, American Western novelist (b. 1926) 2011 - Nick Ashford, American songwriter, record producer ("Ain't No Mountain High Enough"; "Reach Out and Touch (Somebody's Hand)"), and singer (Ashford and Simpson - "Solid"), dies of throat cancer at 70 More Famous Deaths »

Wikimedia CommonsFelix Baumgartner in 2014. Felix Baumgartner lived his life on the edge. A daring skydiver and BASE jumper, he set a number of world records, and even became the first human to break the sound barrier in freefall. But though he reached great heights during his life, he sadly lost his life while paragliding in 2025. Before he died at the age of 56, Baumgartner was known for his daring, breathtaking stunts. He jumped off the tallest buildings in the world, leaped from Rio’s Christ the Redeemer statue, flew across the English channel using carbon fiber wings, and partnered with Red Bull to pull off a stunning 24-mile plunge from the stratosphere. But in the end, Baumgartner’s passion for adventure became his death knell. On July 17, 2025, Felix Baumgartner died in a paragliding accident in Italy. The Early Life Of Felix Baumgartner Felix Baumgartner was born on April 20, 1969, in Salzburg, Austria. According to The Telegraph, Baumgartner was fascinated by heights from an early age. As a young boy, he constantly asked friends and family to throw him high in the air, and when he was just five years old, he drew a picture of a man with a parachute, captioned: “I had a dream…and this was it!!!”. Red BullFelix Baumgartner, seen here climbing a tree at a young age, was drawn to heights even as a boy. Drawn to the adrenaline and thrill of jumping, Baumgartner went on his first parachute jump at the age of 17. Then, while completing his National Service in the Austrian army, he honed his skydiving skills on the army’s parachute display team. By the time his military service ended in the 1990s, Baumgartner decide to devote himself to skydiving — and BASE jumping. While skydiving is a popular pursuit for many, BASE jumping is far more dangerous. BASE stands for “buildings, antennae, span, earth,” and it involves jumping from fixed objects such as skyscrapers, cliffs, or bridges. And since BASE jumping involves jumping from much lower heights than skydiving, it calls for extreme focus and precision. There is far less room for error. Felix Baumgartner became very, very good at it. The Daredevil Career Of Felix Baumgartner In 1999, Felix Baumgartner leaped from the the Petronas Towers in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The buildings, at 1,483 feet, were the tallest in the world at the time, and Baumgartner set a world record for highest parachute jump. Baumgartner wanted more. Later that year, he set out to jump from the hand of the Christ the Redeemer statue in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Because it was a “short” distance (roughly 100 feet), Baumgartner had no room for error. According to the BBC, the organizer of the jump called Baumgartner “the craziest base jumper in the world,” adding, “normally, you need [160 to 200 feet]. It’s extremely dangerous.” But Baumgartner pulled it off. Next, Baumgartner took things even further — he set out to fly. In 2003, Baumgartner set out on one of the most ambitious wingsuit flights ever. Working with Red Bull, he jumped out of airplane flying 30,000 feet over England and “flew” over the English Channel in a carbon-fiber wing suit. Wikimedia CommonsThe suit Felix Baumgartner used to fly across the English Channel. But even these stunts weren’t enough to satisfy Baumgartner’s hunger for height. In 2004, he became the first person to leap from the Millau Viaduct in France, then the highest bridge in the world. Three years later, he jumped from the Taipei 101 in Taiwan, then the world’s highest building. There was only one place higher that Felix Baumgartner could jump from: the stratosphere. The 2012 Red Bull ‘Stratos’ Jump Seeking greater heights, Felix Baumgartner worked with Red Bull to break the record for the highest freefall parachute jump. Baumgartner would jump from the stratosphere, a full 24 miles from the Earth’s surface. In this case, it wasn’t only the height of the jump that was daunting. Baumgartner needed to wear a special suit for the jump, and it was absolutely vital that the suit worked. If something went wrong, Baumgartner’s blood could boil, and he would be dead in just 15 seconds. But Baumgartner struggled with claustrophobia while wearing the restrictive suit. He ultimately sought out sports psychologists to overcome his fear, and after two test jumps in 2012, set out for the main event. On Oct. 14, 2012, eight million watched live as Baumgartner risked it all. Baumgartner took a helium balloon up into the stratosphere, and prepared to jump from a tiny exterior platform at 128,100 feet. “I know the whole world is watching now,” he said, “and I wish the world could see what I see.” Red BullFelix Baumgartner just before he leaped from the stratosphere — and plummeted 24 miles back down to Earth. Then he jumped. The daredevil plummeted to the earth at more than 800 miles per hour, but never lost consciousness. He deployed his parachute after entering Earth’s atmosphere four minutes after jumping, breaking three world records: highest freefall, highest crewed balloon flight, and first person to travel faster than the speed of sound in freefall. As his family watched, Baumgartner landed safely — and triumphantly — on the ground. The Death Of Felix Baumgartner Given all the great risks that Felix Baumgartner had taken, a simple paragliding outing didn’t seem all that dangerous. But on July 17, 2025, Baumgartner tragically died while paragliding in Porto Sant’Elpidio, Italy. Baumgartner appeared to lose control of the motorized paraglider moments after takeoff, with witnesses seeing him crash into the swimming pool area of a seaside resort. Baumgartner died at the scene. He was 56 years old. A subsequent investigation found that Felix Baumgartner’s death was due to human error. The paraglider had been in perfect condition. Somehow, Baumgartner had lost control of the device. “He fell into a spiral, and he could not get out,” Prosecutor Raffaele Iannella stated. “He was unable to do the maneuver that he should have done to exit.” Wikimedia CommonsA commemorative stone to Felix Baumgartner in Vienna. Baumgartner’s death prompted widespread tributes from fellow pilots, skydivers, and BASE jumpers, as well as extreme sports athletes around the world. Red Bull remembered him as a loyal, brave, determined person. “You always sought out the greatest challenges and mastered them with sharp thinking, relentless precision and a good dose of courage,” the company wrote after his death. “You delved deep into every project. No detail was too small, no risk too great – as long as you could calculate it.” Indeed, Felix Baumgartner’s name is now synonymous with daring and bravery. During his life, he pushed himself to jump from greater and greater heights — until there was no more sky left to conquer. After learning about Felix Baumgartner, read about skydiving Google executive Alan Eustace, who later broke Baumgartner’s altitude record. Then, learn about daring stuntman Karl Wallenda. The post The Story Of Felix Baumgartner, The Extreme Skydiver And BASE Jumper Who Astonished The World, Then Perished Tragically appeared first on All That's Interesting.

Burntisland Heritage TrustThe Blessing of Burntisland was carrying Charles I’s treasure and baggage when it sank off the coast of Scotland in 1633. After almost 400 years, a royal ship of England’s King Charles I that sank off the coast of Scotland while laden with his treasure may have finally been found. Burntisland Heritage Trust believe their team has located the wreck of the Blessing of Burntisland in the Firth of Forth bay in southeastern Scotland. While the group describes the chances that they have indeed found this wreck — at a site sitting about a mile from Burntisland — as “promising,” they’ve also urged caution that more testing needs to be done in order to absolutely confirm that they’ve finally found this fabled shipwreck. The Royal Treasure Ship Of Charles I That Sank In Scotland In 1633 The Blessing of Burntisland was traveling from Burntisland to Leith as part of Charles I’s Scottish coronation tour in 1633. But on July 10, stormy weather descended upon the seas. Public DomainCharles I likely covered up the shipwreck due to fear of political embarrassment. Charles I was aboard a different vessel for the tour, which survived the storm. But the Blessing of Burntisland, carrying his baggage and treasure, sank during the short voyage. Reportedly, only two of the 35 people on board the Blessing survived. According to the Burntisland Heritage Trust, the accident was likely covered up due to potential political embarrassment, which also meant that no one was looking for the wreck for decades. The cargo lost with the wreck reportedly included royal jewelry, textiles, coins, and precious-metal plates — in total, valued at around £100,000 at the time, or some $27 million today. Historical accounts have also suggested that a gold and silver dinner service commissioned for King Henry VIII during the 16th century was also aboard the vessel. But no official inventory or valuation of those goods was established. The exact dimensions of the ship are also unknown, but surveys have found that the wreck suspected of being the Blessing of Burntisland is about 55 feet in length. The Possible Discovery Of The Blessing of Burntisland The Burntisland Heritage Trust stated that they found the possible location of the wreck with a combination of subsea ground-penetrating radar, various advanced scanning techniques, and direct examination via diving. Wikimedia CommonsThe wreck is believed to have been discovered in the Firth of Forth, just a mile from shore. “Core samples now strongly point to the wreck being that of the Blessing,” a report from the trust said, according to Divernet. “We may have found the site of a historic wreck, but we have not yet identified it,” said search team leader Ian Archibald. “We have retrieved a timber sample but we do not know at this stage what ship that has come from. The next stage would be carbon-dating.” The team has reported the recovered timber to the Receiver of Wreck, a government official who presides over matters of shipwrecks and maritime treasure. Although still unconfirmed as of now, this promising find is exciting for the trust, which has been involved in more than 30 years of investigations related to the Blessing of Burntisland. According to a short history of the search on the trust’s website, the trust took over the search after an American exploration company pulled out in 1996. In previous searches, scuba divers attempting to investigate sonar targets have struggled with strong tides, deep silt, and low visibility. Wikimedia CommonsCharles I was later tried, convicted, and executed for high treason in 1649 after years of clashing with Parliament over the extent of his powers as part of the English Civil War. Over time, despite the difficult conditions, the team did make some finds — though not the royal treasure ship they were hoping for. The discoveries included pottery, shoe leather, and fastenings, but none helped identify the Blessing. Instead, the team discovered an armed naval tug boat from World War I and a fighter plane from World War II. If the identification of the Blessing is confirmed, this find would become one of Scotland’s most significant marine archaeological discoveries ever. While the chance of securing recovered treasure is exciting, it’s hard to know the estimated current value of the sunken goods — not to mention the haul’s value as a mythic piece of Scottish history. Discussions about the establishment of a visitor center or museum in Burntisland to exhibit the ferry’s story and artifacts have been in the works. The next step is carbon-dating of the recovered timber to see if this wreck is truly the royal ship lost 400 years ago. If not, the search will simply have to continue on. After reading about the potential discovery of the ship carrying Charles I’s treasure that sank 400 years ago, learn about the oldest discovered shipwreck found at the bottom of the Black Sea. Then, dive into the history of the Picts, the people who called ancient Scotland home. The post Charles I’s Sunken Treasure Ship May Have Just Been Found Off The Coast Of Scotland After 400 Years appeared first on All That's Interesting.