Don’t just read about history. Read things that are actually from history. These are some old documents that helped to shape our modern world—and ones that you can actually find a copy of in a museum or online.

• Rosetta Stone. On display at the British Museum in London. This big ol’ piece of stone helped us translate a few ancient languages. And inspired a line of language software.
• Magna Carta. Circa 1215. Copies can be found at the British Library, the Lincoln Cathedral, and Salisbury Cathedral. The basis of the modern British government.
• Martin Luther’s Ninety-Five Theses. The subtitle was ‘Disputation on the Power of Indulgences.’ Written in Latin in 1517. Famously nailed to a church door in Germany.
• The United States Constitution. Written in 1789. On display at the National Archives Museum in Washington D.C. The oft-debated basis for the modern American government.
• The Mayflower Compact. Signed aboard a boat in 1620. The original copy has been lost. Established the pilgrim colony on Plimoth Rock. No mention of the first Thanksgiving.
• The Declaration of Independence. Written in 1776 and signed by 56 members of the Second Constitutional Congress. Can be seen at the National Archives and Records.
• The Zimmerman Telegram: This was a secret communication from Germany to Mexico attempting to create an alliance during WWI. The British discovery of this message angered the United States into joining the Great War. Both encoded and decrypted versions of the telegram can be found at the National Archives in Washington, D.C.