Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Reposted by Rafael Mena Illustration

ch-AAAAAAHHH-rles snart 🎃 @thehistocrat.bsky.social · 7h

Well as a few new folks followed me, I do videos and podcasts on history/archaeology/mythology over at The Histocrat on youtube, and I've also done a couple of video essays on the game Pathologic 2 on the channel Histotrash, check them out!

www.youtube.com/@TheHistocrat
www.youtube.com/@histotrash

The thumbnail for my video 'Cave Art is Cool' showing a family a paleolithic humans painting in a cave.

The thumbnail for my Mythillogical podcast episode 'The Fairies' showing multiple fae creatures on a green forest background.

The thumbnail my 'Birth of Civilisation' youtube series showing a family of epipaleolithic humans and their settlement.

The thumbnail for my video essay 'Pathologic 2 is weird... and I love it!' featuring a bird like executor figure with love hearts pasted over its eyes.

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Reposted by Rafael Mena Illustration

Rafael Mena Illustration @rafaelmenai.bsky.social · 9d

Hey guys, I'm having some troubles with the landlord and I might be needing to find a new place soon.

I don't really want to beg for cash or anything so I'd appreciate if you guys could lend me some support over on the Patron if you're able ofc.

www.patreon.com/c/Rafaelmena

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Rafael Mena Illustration @rafaelmenai.bsky.social · 9d

Also, the dude in the OP is a Quangariecha, elite soldier and guard of King Tariacuri of Patzcuaro, forebearer of the Tarascan empire.

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Rafael Mena Illustration @rafaelmenai.bsky.social · 9d

I thank you in advance and really appreciate *any* support, I was hit with the problem at a VERY inconvenient moment and it'd really be great if I could avoid anymore distractions from my work, cheers 😓

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Rafael Mena Illustration @rafaelmenai.bsky.social · 9d

I'm swamped with work atm, so I wouldn't feel comfortable taking commissions, as I don't think I'd be able to start anything larger than a sketch until next year, but I'm doing a lot of crazy stuff that I think you'll definitely be interested in if you like and follow what I do!

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Rafael Mena Illustration @rafaelmenai.bsky.social · 9d

Hey guys, I'm having some troubles with the landlord and I might be needing to find a new place soon.

I don't really want to beg for cash or anything so I'd appreciate if you guys could lend me some support over on the Patron if you're able ofc.

www.patreon.com/c/Rafaelmena

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Reposted by Rafael Mena Illustration

Thomas Kole @thomaskole.bsky.social · 10d

This has been in the making for a while, and it's coming soon:

An interactive 3D viewer for my virtual reconstruction of Tenochtitlan, right in your browser.

More details to follow. Stay tuned!

#tenochtitlan #blender #threejs

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Rafael Mena Illustration @rafaelmenai.bsky.social · 11d

The US is the Russia of the western hemisphere and Latin America's relationship with that country is very much reminiscent of Eastern Europe.
Imagine how obnoxious some of the "lofty ideal" narratives would sound from the mouth of a "Z" russian and you get the gist of lurking bluesky as a mexican.

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Rafael Mena Illustration @rafaelmenai.bsky.social · 11d

This looks really tight

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Reposted by Rafael Mena Illustration

Prosper Tipaldi 🌱🌿 @prospertipaldi.bsky.social · 29d

More mixing nonsense, but I'm having too much fun with it! 😊

A drawing of a woman in a mix of late medieval plate armor and late roman armor, with light green and red clothes. She is wielding a spear and a shield, and wearing a golden late roman helmet. Her shield is painting with three arrows piercing through a dragon.

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Reposted by Rafael Mena Illustration

Emily Stepp @emilyart.bsky.social · 24d

Design study of early and recent movie Tyrannosaurus rex. King Kong 1933 "Meat-Eater" and Jurassic World Rebirth 2025 "Ember" for DracoTyrannus. #Tyrannosaurus #Trex #Tyrannosaurusrex #Dinosaur #Retrosaur #KingKong #JurassicWorldRebirth

Digital pencil style line drawings on a white paper background with the retro Meat-Eater at the top and Ember at the bottom. Both with mouth open in a walking facing left pose.

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Reposted by Rafael Mena Illustration

Bill Corbett @billcorbett.bsky.social · Sep 11

Remembering MN house speaker Melissa Hortman, her husband Mark and their beloved dog Gilbert. Murdered in June at their home by a rightwing Trump-voting evangelist, who also shot another MN lawmaker and his wife at THEIR home, 9 and 8 times, respectively (miraculously, they survived).

1) pic of Melissa and Mark Hortman 2) pic of Melissa Hortman and dog Gilbert

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Reposted by Rafael Mena Illustration

Natee (they/them) @himmapaan.bsky.social · Sep 11

Hoist with his own petard.

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Rafael Mena Illustration @rafaelmenai.bsky.social · Sep 10

lol

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Reposted by Rafael Mena Illustration

Michael E Smith @michaelesmith.bsky.social · Sep 1

Some images of the Calixtlahuaca bird. The city was originally called Matlatzinco, but the conquering Mexica gave it the name Calixtlahuaca. The bird may signal the name of the ruling dynasty.

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Rafael Mena Illustration @rafaelmenai.bsky.social · Aug 30

Stick it out till the bubble bursts.

Rafael Mena Illustration @rafaelmenai.bsky.social · Aug 28

Amongst clasicists, or inded any person specialized in the pre-modern world, is there any average depth of rank for armies engaging in combat?
Or is it very specific to the formations used.

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Reposted by Rafael Mena Illustration

more mr. dice guy @juniorhoncho.bsky.social · Aug 23

ONLINE LEFTIST: what if we tried to find a candidate that's good
ONLINE LIBERAL: congratulations your attitude just killed us all. we're dead. hope you're happy. we could've just had trans people be dead but nooooo you and your purity tests put a gun to our heads and squeezed. enjoy the camps homo 🖕

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Rafael Mena Illustration @rafaelmenai.bsky.social · Aug 1

Gotta save to comission that tattoo design one of these days.

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Reposted by Rafael Mena Illustration

Natalia Jagielska @nataliajagielska.bsky.social · Aug 1

An illustration I did for a competition in China 🤞Anchiornis

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Rafael Mena Illustration @rafaelmenai.bsky.social · Jul 31

Thank you!

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Rafael Mena Illustration @rafaelmenai.bsky.social · Jul 31

The inspiration for the armor is based on panoply observed Classic Maya ceramics, as well as "Toltec" inspirations from Chichen Itza.

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Rafael Mena Illustration @rafaelmenai.bsky.social · Jul 31

and not a real attempt to imagine how these cultures would have developed with a more advanced knowledge of metalworking, as that would be a rather dramatic change to speculate with.

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Rafael Mena Illustration @rafaelmenai.bsky.social · Jul 31

Sketch of a Maya warrior wearing fantasy metal armor.

Part of a series of commissions that re-imagine Mesoamerican warriors if the region had developed steel. The intention here is more focused on fantasy, revisiting cultural and iconographic elements of the Classic Maya -

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Reposted by Rafael Mena Illustration

Killackey Illustration @kjkillackey.bsky.social · Jul 15

A new piece, my recent illo depicting long distance transport of wild boars to Asiab in the early Iranian #Neolithic. I’ve reposted a couple articles featuring the illustration but here’s the whole image and some detail crops.
#archaeology 🏺 #SciArt 🐡
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A reconstruction illustration (by Kathryn Killackey) showing groups of hunters approaching Asiab, an early Neolithic site in Iran. In the foreground, one ground is forging a river and climbing up onto the banks. Two men carry a field-dressed wild boar between them on a pole. Another man has his hide clothing bundled and is carrying them on his head. He also has a hide bag on his back with a red deer antler strapped to it. The hunters exiting the river are dressed in hide loincloths and carry bows or spears. One wears a necklace of boar tusks perforated at both ends. The rest of this group has already crossed and dressed themselves in hide leggings, tunics, and shoes. They carry an assortment of baskets and bags on their backs, one with another boar's head attached. Their tunics and legging have decorative detailing with red ochre and small disk beads. They are walking up a slope towards the settlement at the top. A group stands at the top of the slope, greeting the new comers. Behind them is a large rammed earth circular building with a flat thatch roof. There are also clusters of smaller circular structures made of poles and hide, some with wood shade shelters attached. Groups of people are busy preparing food, including cooking another boar, for a feast. Children and dogs are running about. Another group of hunters are also seen arriving in the midground, entering the image from the right side. The landscape is covered in a mix of grass, wild pistacio and almond trees. There are sedges along the river banks. This vegetation is dry and yellowing, indicating autumn. You can see mountains in the background and vultures following air currents in the distance.

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