Secrets of the Dead backdrop
Documentary•Mystery

The Worst Episodes of Secrets of the Dead

Every episode of Secrets of the Dead ranked from worst to best. Explore the Worst Episodes of Secrets of the Dead!

Binge this in 1d 7h•Peaking at 8.6/10

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 past events. Using the latest investigative techniques, forensic science and

Airs on
PBS
BestEpisodes
WorstEpisodes
BestSeasons
AllEpisodes

Seasons23

All1234567891011121314151617181920212223

Episode Rankings

  1. #1 Worst Episode
    Click to reveal
    Secrets of the Dead Season 4 Episode 6 - Amazon Warrior Women
    0.0/10(0 votes)

    #1 - Amazon Warrior Women

    S4:E6

    (Archaeology) The myth of the Amazons, a tribe of bloodthirsty blond women thundering across arid battlefields to the horror of their male foes, has lingered for centuries. Their exploits seized the imagination of the Greek scribes Homer, Hippocrates, and Herodotus. But proof of their existence had always been lacking. Now, a 2,500-year-old mystery may have been solved, cracked by an American scientist whose ten-year odyssey led her tens of thousands of miles in pursuit of the truth. After unearthing evidence of a culture of ancient warrior women in the Russian steppes, Dr. Jeannine Davis-Kimball followed a trail of artifacts to a remote village in Western Mongolia, where her quest for a living link to a long-imagined tribe ended with a startling discovery. There, among the black-eyed Mongols, Davis-Kimball found a blond child, a 9-year-old girl named Meiramgul. Through DNA testing, Davis-Kimball finds that the DNA sequences of the warrior women and those from the girl of Mongolia are identical.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  2. Secrets of the Dead Season 9 Episode 5 - Churchill's Deadly Decision
    0.0/10(0 votes)

    #2 - Churchill's Deadly Decision

    S9:E5

    Find out why Churchill chose to sink the French fleet.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  3. Secrets of the Dead Season 9 Episode 6 - Deadliest Battle
    0.0/10(0 votes)

    #3 - Deadliest Battle

    S9:E6

    The Battle of Stalingrad, the deadliest single battle ever seen, has been lauded as a shining example of Stalin's military genius, and altered the course of World War II permanently. The battle established the Soviet Union as a superpower to be reckoned with in the long Cold War that lay ahead. More than a half-century later, with newly uncovered evidence the full impact of this horrific battle is revealed.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  4. Secrets of the Dead Season 13 Episode 7 - Resurrecting Richard III
    0.0/10(0 votes)

    #4 - Resurrecting Richard III

    S13:E7

    Scientists test the bones of England's fierce King Richard III.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  5. Secrets of the Dead Season 14 Episode 2 - JFK & LBJ: A Time For Greatness
    0.0/10(0 votes)

    #5 - JFK & LBJ: A Time For Greatness

    S14:E2

    For many, President Lyndon B. Johnson is chiefly remembered for escalating the United States military involvement in Vietnam. But his legacy is much more than his role in the Vietnam War. In fact, Johnson engineered the passing of two of the most important laws Congress ever approved: the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  6. Secrets of the Dead Season 16 Episode 5 - Leonardo: The Man Who Saved Science
    0.0/10(0 votes)

    #6 - Leonardo: The Man Who Saved Science

    S16:E5

    An investigation to discover if Leonardo da Vinci came up with all of his credited ideas and inventions, or were they borrowed from ancient scholars and scientists?

    Director:Mark Daniels
    Writer:Unknown

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

    7. Trending NowTRENDING NOW

    The 20 BEST Episodes of Secrets of the Dead

    READ
  7. Secrets of the Dead Season 23 Episode 1 - The Rise & Fall of the Colosseum
    0.0/10(0 votes)

    #7 - The Rise & Fall of the Colosseum

    S23:E1

    The Colosseum: the jewel of Ancient Rome. It wowed vast crowds with extraordinary battles. It pushed the boundaries of technology. It exhibited Rome's vast wealth and power. Roman leaders spread the Colosseum's design throughout the Empire, and it helped them conquer the ancient world. But just as the structure embodied Rome's power, so too did it contribute to the Empire's downfall.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  8. Secrets of the Dead Season 23 Episode 3 - Cracking the Queen's Code
    0.0/10(0 votes)

    #8 - Cracking the Queen's Code

    S23:E3

    In early 2003, three amateur codebreakers announced they had successfully decoded the secret correspondence of one of the most tragic characters in European history: Mary, Queen of Scots. 57 encrypted letters detail the exiled queen's efforts to free herself from imprisonment and gain advantage over her rival, Queen Elizabeth. Now, after four centuries, Mary's urgent pleas can be revealed.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  9. Secrets of the Dead Season 23 Episode 4 - Chasing the Plague
    0.0/10(0 votes)

    #9 - Chasing the Plague

    S23:E4

    Follow scientists as they track down the earliest known bubonic plague victims in hopes of preventing future outbreaks, while historians and scholars explore the societal impact of the plague on medieval Europe. What happens when a third of a continent’s population is wiped out?

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  10. Secrets of the Dead Season 23 Episode 5 - China's Bronze Kingdom
    0.0/10(0 votes)

    #10 - China's Bronze Kingdom

    S23:E5

    A mysterious ancient city lies hidden in the mountains of Sichuan—remnants of a kingdom consigned to oblivion for thousands of years, until the chance discovery of a jade artifact in 1986. More than 10,000 unusual items have been found at the site which experts believe may be as archaeologically important as the Terracotta Army of Xi'an. Could this be the capital of the ancient Shu kingdom?

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  11. Secrets of the Dead Season 23 Episode 6 - Picturing Shakespeare
    0.0/10(0 votes)

    #11 - Picturing Shakespeare

    S23:E6

    There are only two accepted representations of William Shakespeare that are considered "official"—but could a portrait that has been hanging over a family's mantelpiece for the last 50 years be the third? British window washer Steven Wadlow, whose father bought the portrait in the 1960s, is on the hunt to prove the painting is indeed genuine. If so, it could be worth as much as $200 million.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  12. Secrets of the Dead Season 18 Episode 6 - Gangster's Gold
    4.7/10(36 votes)

    #12 - Gangster's Gold

    S18:E6

    Join three groups of treasure hunters, armed with modern technology and newly uncovered clues, as they set out to find the lost treasure of notorious Prohibition-era gangster Dutch Schultz and solve an 85-year-old mystery.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  13. Secrets of the Dead Season 3 Episode 3 - Titanic's Ghosts
    5.6/10(15 votes)

    #13 - Titanic's Ghosts

    S3:E3

    In the aftermath of the Titanic, Canadian rescue ships recovered 328 bodies and buried dozens in unmarked graves. Today, scientific breakthroughs may help 3 families of missing passengers learn the true fate of their relatives.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  14. Secrets of the Dead Season 2 Episode 6 - The Syphilis Enigma
    6.0/10(28 votes)

    #14 - The Syphilis Enigma

    S2:E6

    In 1492, Christopher Columbus crossed the Atlantic in search of gold. But what his men carried back with them to Europe was something far less appealing. They brought the scourge of syphilis, a sexually transmitted disease never before seen in the Old World. At least that is what scientists have generally believed. But now, the discovery in Europe of a pre-Columbian body with definite signs of syphilis has archaeologist Charlotte Roberts convinced that syphilis existed in the Old World long before Columbus ever set sail. New evidence from across Europe is beginning to turn the prevailing Columbus theory on its head (UK/PBS 55 min)

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  15. Secrets of the Dead Season 5 Episode 2 - Gangland Graveyard
    6.0/10(40 votes)

    #15 - Gangland Graveyard

    S5:E2

    On October 6, 2004, FBI agents began digging up a Queens swamp in the hopes of finding the remains of the man who killed John Gotti's son. Instead, they unearthed a severed foot and other pieces of human skeleton, along with personal effects. Forensic tests tied the remains to Mob family captains who had been killed by mob boss Joseph "Big Joey" Massino. This program documents the search which opens a window into the grisly world of the mob.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  16. Secrets of the Dead Season 17 Episode 4 - The Nero Files
    6.1/10(37 votes)

    #16 - The Nero Files

    S17:E4

    Take a look at the life of Nero and find out what history may have gotten wrong about him

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  17. Secrets of the Dead Season 11 Episode 1 - Lost In The Amazon
    6.2/10(61 votes)

    #17 - Lost In The Amazon

    S11:E1

    On April 20, 1925, Colonel Percy Fawcett, his elder son Jack Fawcett and Jack’s lifelong friend, Raleigh Rimmell, departed from Cuiabá, the capital city of the Brazilian state of Mato Grosso, to find “Z” — Col. Fawcett’s name for what he believed to be an ancient city lost in the uncharted jungles of Brazil. The search for the mysterious Lost City of Z would be the great explorer’s last expedition. All three men would vanish without a trace. Eighty-six years later, Secrets of the Dead has mounted a modern day quest with explorer Niall McCann to find the truth behind the disappearance of famed adventurer Col. Percy Fawcett and his party in Lost in the Amazon

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  18. Secrets of the Dead Season 13 Episode 3 - Carthage's Lost Warriors
    6.2/10(41 votes)

    #18 - Carthage's Lost Warriors

    S13:E3

    146 B.C.: Carthage, the proud capital of the vast Carthaginian Empire, is ablaze. Marauding Romans are mercilessly slaughtering and pillaging. Any survivors face a terrifying fate as slaves on Roman galleys or in their quarries. Escaping the bloody carnage is impossible...or is it? Could some of the once-mighty Carthaginians have got away? And even more incredibly – could they have turned west on an epic journey across the vast Atlantic Ocean to new shores? Did they set foot in South America, long before Columbus ever walked the face of the Earth? Ancient documents suggest there was a Carthaginian getaway, and modern science has found evidence to support these extraordinary claims.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  19. Secrets of the Dead Season 2 Episode 5 - Tomb of Christ
    6.3/10(20 votes)

    #19 - Tomb of Christ

    S2:E5

    For centuries, visitors to the Church of the Holy Seplulchre in Jerusalem believed that they stood within what was merely a symbolic representation of Jesus' burial place. But what if the edicule within the church, an ancient crumbling structure, really does house Christ's actual tomb? Oxford archaeologists Martin and Birthe Biddle reconstruct Jesus' final day and trace the history of the various incarnations of the edicule -- looking for evidence that there is a tomb present, and trying to decipher whether or not Christ actually lay there. (UK/PBS 55 min)

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  20. Secrets of the Dead Season 8 Episode 4 - Blackbeard's Lost Ship
    6.3/10(18 votes)

    #20 - Blackbeard's Lost Ship

    S8:E4

    Edward Teach, alias Blackbeard, was the most notorious pirate of his day. At the height of his rein, he commanded a fleet of four ships and a crew of 400 men. They were ruthless seafaring raiders who terrorizing vessels in American waters. In 1718, Blackbeard even blockaded the city of Charleston, crippling its economy. Eventually he was caught and beheaded by a posse from the Royal Navy. Now, 300 years later, a marine archaeology team believe they have found his sunken flagship, Queen Anne’s Revenge, off the North Carolina coast.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  21. Secrets of the Dead Season 1 Episode 5 - Cannibalism in the Canyon
    6.4/10(16 votes)

    #21 - Cannibalism in the Canyon

    S1:E5

    What happened to the peaceful ancient Pueblo civilization of the American southwest? For 1000 years, the Anasazi -- a democratic people with rich achievements in architecture, agriculture, astronomy and art -- flourished in what is now New Mexico. Yet around 1200 A.D., something brought their utopia to a sudden and mysterious end. Paleo-anthroplogist Christy Turner has found what he believes are clear signs of cannibalism among the Anasazi ruins, but American Indian groups and other archaeologists are skeptical. And while the evidence is difficult to refute, the meaning of the findings is still open to debate. In the shadow of a debate both scientific and political, question remain: Did the Anasazi culture become cannibalistic, or did cannibals from afar stumble across the perfect victims? (UK/PBS 55 min)

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  22. Secrets of the Dead Season 11 Episode 2 - China's Terracotta Warriors
    6.5/10(70 votes)

    #22 - China's Terracotta Warriors

    S11:E2

    The life-sized terracotta warriors of China are known throughout the world. This clay army of 8,000 including infantry, archers, generals and cavalry was discovered by archaeologists in 1974 after farmers digging a well near the Chinese city of Xian unearthed pieces of clay sculpted in human form. An amazing archaeological find, the terracotta warriors date back more than two thousand years. But what was the purpose of this army of clay soldiers? Who ordered its construction? How were they created? Secrets of the Dead investigates the story behind China’s Terracotta Warriors and documents their return to former glory for the first time.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  23. Secrets of the Dead Season 12 Episode 4 - Cavemen Cold Case
    6.6/10(37 votes)

    #23 - Cavemen Cold Case

    S12:E4

    Scientists say some of the 49,000 year-old Neanderthal bones discovered in El Sidrón, Spain, bear signs of cannibalism.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  24. Secrets of the Dead Season 13 Episode 1 - JFK: One PM Central Standard Time
    6.6/10(103 votes)

    #24 - JFK: One PM Central Standard Time

    S13:E1

    Fifty years after the tragic shooting of President John F. Kennedy, Secrets of the Dead chronicles minute-by-minute the assassination as it was revealed in the CBS newsroom from the moment the President was shot until Walter Cronkite's emotional pronouncement of his death, one hour and eight minutes later.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  25. Secrets of the Dead Season 1 Episode 3 - The Lost Vikings
    6.7/10(34 votes)

    #25 - The Lost Vikings

    S1:E3

    Why did Greenland's Vikings disappear? The Vikings of Greenland left no clues to their sudden and mysterious disappearance. Or did they? On a desolate coast of Greenland, an international team of archaeologists, forensic anthropologists, entomologists and botanists sets out to investigate clues in a complex chain of events that may have led to the demise of a Viking colony. Unearthing the ruins of a settlement that included a cathedral complete with stained glass, the scientists carefully identify and date the vestiges of the Viking society. Among their discoveries are a "mini Ice Age," a war with neighboring Inuits, and a religious order that may have doomed the Vikings to obsolescence. (UK/PBS 55 min)

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

Worst Episodes Summary

"Amazon Warrior Women" is the worst rated episode of "Secrets of the Dead". It scored /10 based on 0 votes. Directed by Unknown and written by Unknown, it aired on 8/4/2004. This episode scored 0.0 points lower than the second lowest rated, "Churchill's Deadly Decision".