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From today's featured article

Relief depicting spoils from the Jerusalem Temple carried in a triumphal procession

The First Jewish–Roman War (66–73/74 CE) was the first of three major Jewish rebellions against the Roman Empire. Fought in the province of Judaea, it was bloodily supressed and resulted in the destruction of Jerusalem and the Second Temple. After the client kingdom of Judaea was annexed as a Roman province in 6 CE, tensions grew due to harsh governance and social, ethnic, and religious divisions. Open revolt erupted after the Roman governor Gessius Florus looted the temple in Jerusalem and killed many civilians. Early rebel successes included the defeat of Cestius Gallus at Bethoron, but Roman forces under Vespasian and later his son Titus reconquered the province. Jerusalem fell in 70 CE after a devastating siege, and the last resistance ended with the fall of Masada. The war profoundly reshaped Jewish history and religion, accelerated the separation between early Christianity and Judaism, strengthened the Flavian dynasty, and set the stage for the later catastrophic Bar Kokhba revolt. (Full article...)

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Did you know ...

Flying Duchess

... that a British steam locomotive (pictured) sat at a logistics center in Kentucky for more than a decade?
... that JoJo Townsell caught the game-winning touchdown in his professional debut, only two days after signing a contract with his team?
... that an African elephant named Craig had tusks that were so long that they reached the ground?
... that the Beverly Hills Register of Historic Properties includes a storybook witch's cottage, a space-age gas station, and shops designed by Frank Lloyd Wright?
... that The Witcher Adventure Game was released simultaneously as both a physical board game and a digital video-game adaptation?
... that Boubacari Dicko, a non-sovereign monarch, helped to draft the 1991 republican constitution of Burkina Faso?
... that the 2010 Yazoo City tornado was considered to be the worst natural disaster to occur in Mississippi since Hurricane Katrina?
... that Queen Matilda drove Empress Matilda away from London so suddenly that the latter left her dinner still warm?
... that tribute videos, fan art, and memes have been made about a gay fan fiction about Minecraft YouTubers?

In the news

Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes

Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes (pictured), leader of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, is killed by the Mexican Army.
José Jerí is removed as the president of Peru by Congress, and replaced by José María Balcázar.
American civil rights leader Jesse Jackson dies at the age of 84.
The Nationalist Party, led by Tarique Rahman, wins the Bangladeshi general election.

On this day

February 23: The Emperor's Birthday in Japan (1960)

Christian, Duke of Saxe-Weissenfels

1725 – Johann Sebastian Bach premiered his Shepherd Cantata for the birthday of Christian, Duke of Saxe-Weissenfels (pictured).
1854 – The Orange River Convention was signed in Bloemfontein, with the United Kingdom agreeing to recognise the independence of the Orange Free State in present-day South Africa.
1886 – American inventor Charles Martin Hall discovered an inexpensive method of producing aluminium.
1987 – SN 1987A, the first supernova that modern astronomers were able to study in great detail, was observed from Earth occurring in the Large Magellanic Cloud.
2021 – Riots in four Ecuadorian prisons, caused by gang rivalries, resulted in the deaths of 79 inmates.

al-Zafir (b. 1133)
Allan MacLeod Cormack (b. 1924)
Edward Elgar (d. 1934)
Shiena Nishizawa (b. 1997)

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From today's featured list

Manchester Central Library

The Grade II* listed buildings in Greater Manchester, England, reflect the region's architectural, industrial, and civic development seen across its ten boroughs from the Late Middle Ages into the 20th century. The 241 Grade II* listed buildings in Greater Manchester are "particularly important buildings of more than special interest", including timber‑framed halls, churches, mills, warehouses, transport structures, and public buildings (example pictured) that illustrate Greater Manchester's growth from rural townships into an industrial and urban centre. The list brings together these nationally important structures, outlining their historical context and architectural interest, and offering an overview of the area's diverse built heritage. (Full list...)

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Today's featured picture

Quercus robur, commonly known as the pedunculate oak or the English oak, is a species of tree in the family Fagaceae, comprising beeches and oaks. It is a large flowering plant, native to most of Europe, North Africa and western Asia. It is deciduous and grows to a height of up to 40 m (130 ft), with a single stout trunk that can exceed 10 m (33 ft) in girth. The fruits (acorns) are borne in clusters of two or three, on a long peduncle (stalk) that is 4 to 8 cm (1.6 to 3.1 in) long. Each acorn is 1.5 to 4 cm (0.59 to 1.57 in) long, ovoid with a pointed tip, starting whitish-green and becoming brown, then black. As with all oaks, the acorns are carried in a distinctive shallow cup. It is an "alternate bearing" species, with large crops produced every other year. This photograph shows a pile of acorns, in various stages of ripening, taken from a Q. robur tree near Brastad, Sweden, and photographed on a plank of oak wood. The photograph was focus-stacked from eight separate images.

Photograph credit: Ann-Sophie Qvarnström

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