Plus, the fascist who wrecked Italy—and still haunts Europe
| | Thursday, October 13, 2022 | | | | |
 | | METROPOLITAN MUSEUM/SCALA, FLORENCE | |
He was just a farmer who said he wanted to be a werewolf. Who had “confessed” (under torture) to making a pact with the devil—as well as to killing people and having sexual relations with a beautiful demon.
German townspeople didn’t view Peter Stump as a tortured crackpot. Long before big-screen tales on Professor Lupin, Harry Potter, and the just-released “Werewolf by Night!”, many people viewed werewolves as real (shown above, an engraving of werewolf-induced carnage). After a 1500s version of a “trial of the century,” Stump was convicted, skinned, impaled, and burned at the stake.
But there is no silver bullet for fear. What led to these panics? Who was usually accused of being a werewolf?
Read the full story here.
Please consider getting our digital report and magazine by subscribing here.
| | | |
 | | CHARLES WALKER/ALAMY/ACI | | | Eeeek! The werewolf panic spread across borders. This English engraving (above) details the path of Stump’s trial and death. Read more. | | | |
 | | PHOTOGRAPH BY ANDY COLEMAN, NAT GEO IMAGE COLLECTION | | | |
 | | PHOTOGRAPH BY DAAN MEENS | | A secret emerges after millions of years: Dinosaur skin is surprisingly common in the fossil record and a “mummified,” duck-billed Edmontosaurus is answering why that might be. The creature died more than 66 million years ago, but delicate tissues like skin and keratin remain—likely due to how it was buried. Nat Geo reports the preservation has given rise to another discovery too, the reptilian equivalent of a hoof (the keratin nail that covered its right foot, pictured above).
Related: This archaeologist hunts DNA from prehistoric diseases | | | |
| World’s largest cave chamber: The Sarawak Chamber in Malaysian Borneo is 2,000 feet long, 1,400 feet wide, and almost 500 feet tall. Or, roughly twice the size of Britain’s Wembly Stadium. Although discovered in 1981, researchers only recently mapped it using 3D laser scanning technology, shown above in Nat Geo Explorer Robbie Shone’s recent picture on our Instagram.
Related: Follow spelunkers into the massive cave labyrinth hidden under Borneo
| | | |
| Hybrids happen: A narwhal mates with a beluga whale. Their offspring? A narluga. A polar bear and a grizzly bear? A pizzlie. A male lion and female tiger? A liger (pictured above). Interbreeding between animals is surprisingly common in nature and has the potential to increase as the world warms. Luckily, their genomes may offer scientists a window into understanding evolution, Nat Geo reports.
Related: Modern humans may be one of the most populous hybrid species on Earth | | | |
Correction: Our writeup yesterday on the ghostly Tower of London misstated the cause of death of one of its most famous occupants. Queen Jane, who was imprisoned after only nine days on the throne, was beheaded. A special thanks to eagle-eyed readers Evelyn Shafer, Pat O’Brien, and Dave Frangquist for alerting us—and not leaving us, um, hanging.
This newsletter was curated and edited by David Beard, Sydney Combs, and Jen Tse. Do you have an idea or a link for the newsletter? Let us know at david.beard@natgeo.com. | | | |
Clicking on the Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and National Geographic Channel links will take you away from our National Geographic Partners site where different terms of use and privacy policy apply.
This email was sent to: mitch.dobbs.pics@blogger.com. Please do not reply to this email as this address is not monitored.
This email contains an advertisement from:
National Geographic | 1145 17th Street, N.W. | Washington, D.C. 20036
Stop all types of future commercial email from National Geographic regarding its products, services, or experiences.
Manage all email preferences with the Walt Disney Family of Companies.
© 2022 National Geographic Partners, LLC, All rights reserved. | | |
