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TIL da Vinci was given a vineyard as payment for making The Last Supper, which was bombed in WW2, and the DNA of those vines is being used to recreate the wines he had

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a8QWZ TIL when the UN's Nordic Battalion was sent to Bosnia in 1993 it disobeyed orders, broke rules of engagement, faked loss of communication to HQ, and became known as one the most trigger-happy peacekeeper units. This enabled them to achieve their mission objective: to protect civilians at all cost.
76p7 TIL that in 2012 the NYPD committed a man to a mental hospital when he claimed to be a Navy SEAL after being arrested for running a red light and weapons possession. It was soon confirmed that he was in fact an active duty Navy SEAL, and he was released with all charges against him deferred.
m1DxY TIL in 1979 the campaign promise of two guys running for student government included bringing the Statue of Liberty Wisconsin. When they won, they spent $4,000 of University funds creating a replica of Lady Liberty buried up to her eyes in frozen Lake Menota
4NdR TIL That it rains diamonds on gaseous planets like Neptune and Uranus. They contain methane that at high pressures and temperatures, turn into diamonds which then fall to the center of the planet.
6EAYY TIL: While cleaning up after an art exhibit in 1959, a group of janitors set out to prove they could make art that was just as good as what was on display. Their snuck-in piece of discarded scrap metal won a ribbon for merit.