Today, February 24, is the lottery's birthday, UNN reports.
It is believed that on February 24, 1466, the wife of the famous Flemish artist Jan Van Eyck organized the first lottery in the modern sense: on the occasion of the 25th anniversary of her husband's death, she raffled off his painting among the local rich to raise funds to help the poor.
Lotteries gradually became popular in the Netherlands, France, and Italy.
It has been documented that draws that can be called the prototypes of lotteries were held in China 200 BC.
Today, there are an incredible number of different lotteries in the world that can be divided into two types:
- lucky ticket: when a person buys a lottery ticket with a certain set of numbers and symbols that become winning after the drawing;
- the smith of his own happiness: when a person fills in the fields on a lottery ticket or, on the contrary, crosses out a certain combination of numbers or symbols.
It is interesting that according to statistics, 80% of people who hit the jackpot during the lottery do not know how to properly manage this money, spend it quickly, and often become completely bankrupt.
Today you can also join the celebration of the International Bartender's Day.
The first professional bartenders began to appear in the United States in the first half of the nineteenth century. This profession was popularized by a New Yorker who charmed everyone with his cocktails and published a bartending manual in 1962.
Since 2008, February 24 has been the International Day of Sword Swallowers. The event was established by the International Association of Sword Swallowers.
The art of sword swallowing originated in ancient India four thousand years ago. Currently, there are less than 150 sword swallowing practitioners in the world, and this art form is rarer than ever, making it even more interesting to study.
The purpose of today's event is to show people that sword swallowing is not a trick or an illusion, but a real and highly skilled art that requires years of practice and physical control.
According to the church calendar, this day marks the first and second discovery of the head of John the Baptist.
According to legend, after John the Baptist was beheaded by order of King Herod Antipas, one of the maids buried his head in an estate on the Mount of Olives. The nobleman Innocent, who became the owner of the estate, decided to build a church instead and recovered the head. However, before his death, he decided to hide it again.
The second discovery of the head of John the Baptist occurred after a vision to Archimandrite Markel. The shrine was moved to Emesa and then to Constantinople.
Ivan and Oleksandr celebrate their name days today.