The winter solstice is here. Today marks the shortest day in the Northern Hemisphere, while last night was the longest night of the year. This has been an important event for millennia, with evidence of celebrations going back as far as 10,000 BCE. Some of the world"s most famous Stone Age monuments, including Stonehenge, are aligned with the point that the sun rises or sets on the winter solstice. Traditionally, it was a time for feasting and lighting of fires to symbolise the darkest day of the year. Ancient Germanic tribes celebrated the winter solstice by bringing evergreens into their homes as a symbol of the returning light and the coming spring.
Happy winter solstice!
Today in History
More Desktop Wallpapers:
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					Like paint on a canvas
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					Waitangi Day in New Zealand
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					Maha Shivaratri
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					Methoni Castle, Messinia, Greece
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					Daintree Rainforest and Noah Beach, Queensland, Australia
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					A light in the coastal darkness
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					Apple trees in spring, Germany
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					Tufa formation on Mono Lake, California, United States
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					We’ve identified these ‘flying objects’
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					Nature’s own canvas
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					Taj Mahal, Agra, Uttar Pradesh
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					Verdon Gorge, France
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					Independence Day
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					Ring-tailed lemur
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					Sperm whale pod surfacing
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					Union Square, Manhattan, New York, USA
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					Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming, USA
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					Poinsettia
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					Gateway to Latin America
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					Whos in this creepy copse?
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					Say hello to these halophytes!
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					Jaswant Thada and Mehrangarh Fort, Jodhpur, Rajasthan
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					Przewalskis horses, Hustai National Park, Mongolia
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					Perfect, pastoral Palouse
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					Happy Holi!
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					Least chipmunk, Kootenai National Forest, Montana, United States
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					Zoroaster Temple, Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona, United States
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					Cinque Torri, Dolomiti, Cortina d’Ampezzo, Belluno, Veneto, Italy
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					Sundance Film Festival
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					Cable car station on Piz Nair mountain, Graubünden, Switzerland
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