How luxury brands engineer desire with behavioural economics
From scarcity to market architecture, luxury fashion is manipulating our tastes. But a vintage countermovement has begun
by Charlotte Wren
Symbols and myth
The ancients dreamt the same dreams as us
There is something comforting about realising that, even in Homer’s day, people wondered what the hell their dreams meant
by Sam Dresser
Let me open a treasure chest to explain how metaphor works
Once maligned by philosophers, metaphors are a key communication tool for extending the power of literal speech
by Elek Lane
A Navajo creation story illustrates why humans must forge their own path
Directed by Dallin Penman
A Bronze Age pendant links lives centuries apart in this wondrous short
Directed by Samantha Moore
Ovid’s tales of mutual love show he was more than a poet of rape
Ovid’s epic poem explores two sides of the Roman idea of love: one led by violence and domination, the other by mutual desire
by Stephanie McCarter
Bronze Age people looked to the skyscape to navigate their lives
Long before stargazing helped humans navigate the Earth, the skyscape gave Bronze Age people mystery and wonder
by Kata Karáth
Far-flung ancient communities forged bonds through broken rings
What can the fragments of Neolithic slate rings found in Finland tell us about social relationships 6,000 years ago?
by Marja Ahola, Elisabeth Holmqvist & Petro Pesonen
Why people across the world see constellations, not just stars
Orion, the Big Dipper and the rest reflect shared features of human perception – but also diverse cultural interpretations
by Simon J Cropper, Duane W Hamacher, Daniel R Little & Charles Kemp
Why the first Buddhas in art wore finely folded Greek tunics
How the iconography of Greek art influenced the development of an increasingly standardised image of the Buddha in India
by Garrett Ryan
This isn’t just art, but a supercharged act of meaning-making
Psychiatric art is crammed with meaning yet it actively resists interpretation. This paradox lies at the heart of its appeal
by Shruti Ravindran
What our use of animal-based slurs and endearments says about us
The image of the adorable kitten and the insult of calling someone a ‘pussy’ have more in common than you might realise
by David Egan
This is not the end. Apocalyptic comfort from ancient Iran
Faced with the collapse of their empire, Zoroastrians sought comfort in the apocalyptic – and their literature flourished
by Domenico Agostini & Samuel Thrope
Our greatest invention was the invention of invention itself
Hypothetical thinking is the key to sustained innovation and creativity: invention drove the evolution of the human mind
by Keith Frankish