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The Best Episodes of Secrets of the Dead

Every episode of Secrets of the Dead ranked from best to worst. Let's dive into the Best Episodes of Secrets of the Dead!

The Best Episodes of Secrets of the Dead

Part detective story, part true-life drama, long-running series explores some of the most iconic moments in history to debunk myths and shed new light on...

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  1. 9.0/10(1 votes)

    #1 - The Woman in the Iron Coffin

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    S17:E3

    On October 4, 2011, construction workers were shocked to uncover human remains in an abandoned lot in the Elmhurst neighborhood of Queens, New York. So great was the level of preservation, witnesses first assumed they had stumbled upon a recent homicide. Forensic analysis, however, revealed a remarkably different story. Buried in an elaborate and expensive iron coffin, the body belonged to a young African American woman who died in the first half of the 19th century, before the Civil War and the federal abolishment of slavery. But who was she? Secrets of the Dead: The Woman in the Iron Coffin follows forensic archaeologist Scott Warnasch and a team of historians and scientists as they investigate this woman’s story and the time in which she lived, revealing a vivid picture of what life was like for free African American people in the North.

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  2. 8.4/10(21 votes)

    #2 - Blood Red Roses

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    S4:E1

    The Battle of Towton in North Yorkshire, fought during the Wars of the Roses, was reputedly the bloodiest battle ever seen on English soil. In 1996 a mass grave of soldiers was discovered there by chance. This was the catalyst for a multi-disciplinary research project, still unique in Britain ten years after the initial discovery, which included a study of the skeletal remains, the battlefield landscape, the historical evidence and contemporary arms and armour. The discoveries were dramatic and moving; the individuals had clearly suffered traumatic deaths and subsequent research highlighted the often multiple wounds each individual had received before and, in some cases, after they had died. As well as the exciting forensic work the project also revealed much about medieval weaponry and fighting. Blood Red Roses contains all the information about this fascinating discovery, as well as discussing its wider historical, heritage and archaeological implications. (UK/PBS)

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  3. 8.3/10(23 votes)

    #3 - Bombing Nazi Dams

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    S3:E6

    In the spring of 1943, Allied forces to begin preparations for a top secret Allied raid. Each aircraft carried a top-secret weapon -- a newly-invented bouncing bomb -- designed to shatter Germany's major dams.

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  4. 8.2/10(51 votes)

    #4 - Escape from Auschwitz

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    S7:E2

    The story of Rudolph Vrba and Alfred Wetzler, two young Slovak Jews who escaped the Auschwitz death camp. They immediately wrote a detailed account of their experiences resulting in thousands of lives being saved.

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  5. 8.1/10(34 votes)

    #5 - The Hunt for Nazi Scientists

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    S5:E1

    Days after D-Day, Allied forces joined together for a different kind of mission. Through rare footage, eyewitness testimonies, and real-life accounts, the story is told of the race to capture the German physicists and other scientists and any secrets they may hold of advanced 'vengeance' weapons. Finding the scientists could mean gaining significant advantage in the looming Cold War. Liev Schreiber narrates the story of the scientists' dramatic capture and the influences they have on wars today.

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  6. 8.1/10(35 votes)

    #6 - Last Days of Pompeii

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    S20:E2

    An ornate ceremonial chariot was recently discovered in the ruins of Pompeii, offering insights into the lives of wealthy, high-ranking landowners who lived outside the city. Buried by the Vesuvius eruption 2,000 years ago, this is not a humble transport cart. “It's the Lamborghini of this ancient world,” says Eric Poehler, an expert on ancient infrastructure in Pompeii.

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    The 20 WORST Episodes of Secrets of the Dead

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  8. 8.1/10(42 votes)

    #7 - Eiffel's Race to the Top

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    S21:E1

    Find out about the race to build Paris’ most famous landmark when two men vied to be the first to build a monument 1,000 feet tall. See how one man’s vision transformed the Paris skyline, making the Eiffel Tower a global icon. Dramatic recreations, official renderings and personal correspondence tell the story.

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  9. 8.1/10(32 votes)

    #8 - Field of Vampires

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    S22:E2

    In 2022, a terrifying discovery: a female skeleton dating from 1650, buried with a sickle across her neck and giant padlock on her toe — double protection to keep her from rising from the dead. All the evidence points to her being buried as a vampire... and she’s not alone, with more than 50 deviant burials around her. Who was she and what did these burial rituals mean?

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  10. 8.0/10(31 votes)

    #9 - Herculaneum Uncovered

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    S6:E3

    On August 24th, A.D. 79, Mount Vesuvius erupted, burying the city of Herculaneum. This program documents the archaeological re-discovery of that ancient, well preserved city on the Bay of Naples.

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  11. 8.0/10(84 votes)

    #10 - Ultimate Tut

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    S12:E5

    New scientific research provides insights into how King Tutankhamen was buried, why his tomb remained intact and how he died.

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  12. 8.0/10(35 votes)

    #11 - Graveyard of the Giant Beasts

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    S16:E2

    A mining operation in Cerrejon, Northern Colombia reveals a large cache of fossils dating to ten millions years after the KT extinction of the dinosaurs.

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  13. 8.0/10(1 votes)

    #12 - King Arthur's Lost Kingdom

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    S17:E5

    Uncover new archaeological evidence rewriting our understanding of the Dark Ages in 5th– and 6th-century Britain that might also explain the legend of King Arthur.

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  14. 8.0/10(45 votes)

    #13 - Death in Britannia

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    S21:E2

    Uncover what happens when archaeologists study a skeleton found with an iron nail through its heel bone, suggesting the person was the victim of crucifixion in Roman-occupied Britain. Only one other skeleton with evidence of crucifixion has ever been found in the world. Who was he? What was life in Roman Britain like? And why did he receive such a gruesome punishment?

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  15. 8.0/10(36 votes)

    #14 - The Herculaneum Scrolls

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    S21:E6

    Making headlines around the world, Brent Seales and his team of computer scientists set out on a mission to read the 2,000-year-old carbonized scrolls found in the remains of a villa in Herculaneum. Mt. Vesuvius’s eruption in 79 AD transformed the papyri, fusing together the layers of the scrolls and making them impossible to read. Can particle physics and AI finally reveal what the scrolls say?

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  16. 8.0/10(29 votes)

    #15 - The Civil War's Lost Massacre

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    S22:E1

    Originally a supply depot for Union forces in Kentucky, Camp Nelson became the site where 10,000 Black soldiers trained in the Civil War. But in the war’s last months, these soldiers were attacked by bitter Southerners. Their remains have never been found, and a team is dedicated to finding them to memorialize their service and heroism.

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  17. 7.9/10(33 votes)

    #16 - Bridge on the River Kwai

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    S4:E2

    (Modern Mysteries) While remnants of the abandoned structure exist today, jungles have consumed much of what remains. Construction records and documents revealing the railway’s route are scarce. So just how did a team of men in such poor condition and confronted with so many obstacles manage to build the railway? And how did their Allied brethren achieve its demolition?

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  18. 7.9/10(60 votes)

    #17 - Bones of the Buddha

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    S12:E6

    Bones of the Buddha is a 2013 television documentary produced by Icon Films and commissioned by WNET/THIRTEEN and ARTE France for the National Geographic Channels. It concerns a controversial Buddhist reliquary from the Piprahwa Stupa in Uttar Pradesh, India. It was released in May, 2013, and was broadcast in July 2013 in the US on PBS as part of the Secrets of the Dead series.

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  19. 7.9/10(45 votes)

    #18 - Building Notre Dame

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    S18:E3

    Follow an investigation into the centuries-long construction of Notre Dame de Paris, uncovering the vast architectural, technical and human challenges experienced throughout the turbulent history of one of the world’s most celebrated buildings.

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  20. 7.9/10(42 votes)

    #19 - Viking Warrior Queen

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    S18:E4

    Join a team of archaeologists as they examine one of the most significant Viking graves ever found and test the DNA of the remains of the female warrior buried inside, rewriting our understanding of Viking society.

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  21. 7.9/10(32 votes)

    #20 - Returning to Babylon

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    S21:E4

    A moving story of a people reclaiming their cultural heritage after an occupying force tried to erase it. Priceless artifacts from the Assyrian Empire were destroyed during the Isis occupation of Mosul. Now, a team of archaeologists is dedicated to finding pieces that survived. One possible discovery: the location of the Hanging Gardens of Babylon.

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  22. 7.8/10(68 votes)

    #21 - The Silver Pharaoh

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    S10:E1

    Tanis, Egypt, circa 1939. On the brink of World War II, an excavation team led by French archaeologist Pierre Montet unearthed an intact royal burial chamber containing treasures that rival the riches found in Tutankhamun’s tomb almost two decades before. But while the Tut discovery created an international sensation, the opening of the tomb in Tanis made barely a ripple in a world focused on impending war.

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  23. 7.8/10(86 votes)

    #22 - Bugging Hitler's Soldiers

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    S12:E2

    German POWs reveal inner thoughts about the Third Reich, including military secrets that helped the Allies win World War II.

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  24. 7.8/10(66 votes)

    #23 - Jamestown's Dark Winter

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    S15:E2

    Forensic anthropologists excavate an early American colony of Jamestown, Virginia.

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  25. 7.8/10(48 votes)

    #24 - Bombing Auschwitz

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    S18:E2

    On December 3, 1944, The Washington Post published an editorial on the atrocities in Auschwitz with the headline “Genocide,” marking the first time the word appeared in a national newspaper.

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  26. 7.7/10(18 votes)

    #25 - Day of the Zulu

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    S2:E4

    During the Anglo-Zulu wars in South Africa, the success of small British regiments against huge numbers of native warriors became the stuff of legend. But in one key 1879 battle, Zulu fighting unites known as Impis decimated the British forces at the battle of Isandlwana. Historian Ian Knight and forensic archaeologist Tony Pollard investigate the battle scene, trying to assess the impact of a solar eclipse on the outcome, and discovering the Zulu use of performance enhancing "battle drugs" that included cannabis and a powerful hallucinogenic mushroom. New evidence reveals the changing tide of the battle, the innovative strategy of the Zulu and one Critical, irreversible British mistake. (UK/PBS 55 min)

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Best Episodes Summary

"The Woman in the Iron Coffin" is the best rated episode of "Secrets of the Dead". It scored 9/10 based on 1 votes. Directed by N/A and written by N/A, it aired on 10/3/2018. This episode scored 0.6 points higher than the second highest rated, "Blood Red Roses".