› added 2 weeks ago

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TIL of the Cypress of Kashmar, a 1450 y.o. giant Cypress tree said to have been planted by the Prophet Zoroaster in Iran. Despite prophecy warning against it, it was chopped down by the Caliph because he did not want to travel so far to see it. The Caliph was murdered soon after.

Read more zoroastrian.org.uk

via reddit.com

nJJr TIL Hitler annexed Austria through a rigged popular referendum. The bubble representing “No” to union was half the size of “Yes” and was shoved to the corner of the ballot.
grrWX TIL in the Industrial Age, some foods were colored with poisonous things like various colors of lead and copper salts. Food coloring was used to hide bad quality and to imitate other foods as well. This made food poisoning common during this time.
4XG6w TIL there are (probably) hidden moose in New Zealand. There hasn't been a confirmed sighting since 1952, but DNA evidence suggests they're still around.
GaJQ TIL in France it is illegal to gather information on the ethnic origin of its citizens therefore it is impossible to know the percentage of ethnic French who inhabit France.
AD9Zo TIL after claiming that discs containing 25 million people’s bank details going missing in the post was a ‘palaver about nothing’, Jeremy Clarkson published his sort code and account number in The Sun. Someone then set up a £500 direct debit to Diabetes UK.