Secrets of the Dead

"Chasing the Plague" looks at the societal impacts of the bubonic plague on medieval Europe as scientists today track down the earliest known bubonic plague victims. They are studying the virus in hopes of preventing future outbreaks, while historians and scholars explore the societal impact of the plague on medieval Europe. What happens when a third of a continent's population is wiped out?

There are only two accepted portraits of William Shakespeare that are considered "official," but a portrait that's been hanging over a mantlepiece for the last 50 years could be the third. It could be worth as much as $200 million…if it is genuine. 

What if women were hidden among the ranks of Ancient Rome's fearsome gladiators? A group of experts searches for evidence to prove women once fought in the arena just like men. Combining history, archaeology, and forensic investigation, journey across Europe in a quest for answers. If a female gladiator's existence can be proven definitively, what can we learn about their lives?

Can the stories about King Arthur be proven true? Was the legendary court of Camelot a real place? Join Prof. Mark Horton on his journey across Britain to prove real events and places inspired the chivalric myths. Horton scours medieval texts and archaeological sites for a new understanding of the Arthurian legends and what Britain was like after the Romans left in the fifth century.