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IN HIS DAY, MIDWIVES WERE THE ANSWER

Monday, December 18, 2023

In today’s newsletter, we go beyond the manger to discover what childbirths were like in the time of Jesus, learn that monarchs are actually toxic, examine clues centuries after America’s first English colony vanished ... and take a look at our Photos of the Century.

In this 15th-century work by Lotto Lorenzo, a midwife (right) appears alongside the baby Jesus and Mary.

PAINTING BY LORENZO LOTTO, COURTESY BRIDGEMAN IMAGES

A manger, the Christmas song says. No crib for a bed.

What were childbirths like in the age of Jesus? Three words: Call the midwife. (Above, a midwife at right appears alongside the baby Jesus and Mary in this 15th-century work by Lotto Lorenzo.)

Even with experienced helpers, maternal and infant mortality rates in the Roman Empire were sky-high compared to today. Sickly newborns were sometimes left outside to die—or for someone else to pick up. “In Mary’s day,” writes Nat Geo's Dina Fine Maron, “the long-term survival of any child was cause for celebration.”

READ THE FULL STORY

STORIES WE’RE FOLLOWING

An illustration of Gorgosaurus consumption

VIDEO BY JAIME ROJO

Monarchs (above) are actually toxic—and 5 other ways the butterflies unsettle and amaze us Related: Follow the monarch on its dangerous 3,000-mile journey across the continent

The holidays can take a toll on your gut health. Here’s how to deal.

Unearthing the stories of these 5 vanished cities

Ketamine effectively treats depression, but do the benefits outweigh the risks

The year Christmas really did get canceled—by Christians

Finding traces of the missing ancient Wonder of the World

How centuries of Japanese folklore inspired the new hit movie The Boy and the Heron

Frozen shoulder is a real condition – and it mostly affects women

Finding a lost Maya city—and other amazing 2023 archaeological discoveries

How magnesium affects your sleep and anxiety

WHERE IN THE WORLD

A black and white photo of a sea taken in 1936

PHOTOGRAPH BY FRANZ SCHENSKY, ULLSTEIN BILD/GETTY IMAGES

People have been navigating the stormy waters of this sea (pictured above) for millennia. It has a reputation for being formidable and dangerous, with waves that have recently gone viral on TikTok. Which sea is it?

A. North Sea
B. Bering Sea
C. Weddell Sea
D. Greenland Sea

CLICK FOR THE ANSWER

IN THE SPOTLIGHT

At left, an actress plays Eleanor Dare in a historical drama. At right, a stone with inscriptions.

PHOTOGRAPHS BY MARK THIESSEN WITH PERMISSION OF BRENAU UNIVERSITY

Where oh where is Virginia Dare? What happened to the settlers of America’s first English colony? From letters carved on trees to clues (above right) unearthed by expeditions over the ages, archaeologists and researchers alike are still trying to answer one of history's biggest mysteries. What have they found? (Above left, a reenactor playing colonist Eleanor Dare).

THE VANISHED COLONY

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT

A large group of people carries a large gorilla on a stretcher made of sticks through a green field

PHOTOGRAPH BY BRENT STIRTON, GETTY REPORTAGE

Photos of the century: 23 years down this century, and these compelling images delight, haunt, or stun. Among them: this 2007 photo of a rare mountain gorilla slain in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, which ignited global outrage.

Today’s soundtrack: Pictures of You, The Cure

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