Leonardo Da Vinci made a robotic lion in 1515 that would walk, sway, open its mouth and move its tail - it even had a compartment that opened to present flowers.
22
Unsinkable Sam (nickname of a German ship's cat) who served on 3 warships, one German, two British, all sank in action. The cat survived each sinking, floating away on wooden planks to rescue.
19
"Yo momma" jokes/insults were invented by Shakespeare.
39
During the Black Plague, it was thought that bad smells were the cause of the plague. "Plague Doctors" therefore wore masks with long beak-like noses stuffed with flowers or smoke to hide the smells.
19
The dildo was invented at least 22,000 years before the wheel.
47
Alligator snapping turtles can live for over 150 years. Scientists know this because some of the turtles had musket balls in their stomachs.
271
Peanut butter and jelly sandwiches were originally considered a delicacy, only enjoyed by those of the upper class.
9
Instead of McDonald's tearing down a ~200-year-old Georgian mansion, citizens of a small NY town forced them to renovate it instead, resulting in a uniquely historic franchise location.
7