Too many times, the idea floats that commerce in the past wasn’t as interesting as it is today. Archaeologists beg to differ. There’s nothing like stumbling upon an ancient business and seeing the tools a surgeon held, how wine was made, or even ancient customers who took shelter. Even better, newly discovered workshops reveal mysterious products, enigmatic peoples, and technology more advanced than anything seen before.

10 The Pompeii Shop

A group of customers went shopping in AD 79 and never made it out of the shop alive. The infamous volcanic eruption of nearby Mount Vesuvius hit the shop near the outskirts of Pompeii and overwhelmed them. In 2016, a mixed team of French and Italian archaeologists rediscovered the unlucky patrons, among them a teenage girl, while excavating the Herculaneum port. The other people who died there were also young. In addition to their remains, the diggers found gold coins and a gold necklace pendant that somehow got overlooked by looters.

While investigating the shop, researchers found telltale signs that somebody ransacked the business during the disaster, looking for things to steal. What product or service was sold at the shop is not entirely clear. However, it appeared to have been some sort of workshop with an oven, possibly to forge objects made of bronze. The same dig uncovered a second shop with a well and a spiral staircase, but researchers are presently at a loss about what type of business was conducted at the site.

9 The Flint Factory

In 2016, archaeologists were shoveling beneath an abandoned kindergarten in Bulgaria. When they found flint, it didn’t take them long to realize that the different-sized pieces meant a lot of tool-shaping once occurred there in antiquity. The more they looked, the more the scope of the factory became apparent. This wasn’t just a hearth around which a few people had gathered and chipped some tools for themselves. It was literally a production line manned by individuals specialized in different aspects of product creation.

Ancient employees toiled 6,500 years ago and mass-produced items such as flint knives. Moreover, experts believe that this was a prehistoric exporting business. No completed tools were found. The only signs of stone were flint cores, chips, and weapons in different stages of production—but none that were finished. This supports the idea that as soon as a knife or ax was done (or a whole batch of them), they were moved elsewhere to be sold. Another interesting discovery at the factory was a grave dating back to the same time it was still in use. Inside was a man clasping a stone ax scepter.

8 Nonstick Frying Pans

A first-century Roman cookbook called De Re Coquinaria mentioned cookware that nobody could find. Called Cumanae testae or Cumanae patellae, these nonstick wonders were described by the author as best suited for cooking chicken stew. In 1975, archaeologist Giuseppe Pucci suggested that a brand of ceramics called Pompeian Red Ware was the Cumanae described in the ancient cookbook.

Backup for his theory arrived in 2016, when a trash site near Naples produced 2,000-year-old pottery fragments. Nearly 50,000 pieces of pots, lids, and frying pans were recovered. Just like Pompeian Red Ware, most were coated with a red-slip layer on the inside to prevent food from burning to the bottom. The fragments at the dump site were likely freshly made wares that didn’t make the cut or broke during production. What supports Pucci’s claim is the fact that the city of Cumae, which gave the mysterious kitchen utensils their name, was located just 19 kilometers (12 mi) from Naples. The city once mass-produced and exported pottery to places as far-flung as Africa as well as across Europe and the Mediterranean.

7 The Naxos Mine

A prehistoric workshop was discovered in 2013 on the Greek island of Naxos. The extraordinary thing was that it appeared to have been in use for thousands of years. Also, it wasn’t owned by modern humans. Earlier hominids had passed something on to each successive generation, something critical for survival: the location of a seemingly endless supply of chert. The valuable stone was necessary for the creation of tools and weapons. On Naxos was essentially a 118-meter-high (387 ft) hill consisting almost entirely of the sought-after raw material. Called Stelida, the site was first discovered in 1981 by a survey on the northwestern coast of the island.

The 2013 excavations found the rubble left behind by toolmakers who mined the hill from the Paleolithic era right through to the Mesolithic. There was also ample evidence that tools and weapons were created at the site, although none have been found so far. The discovery could also change how researchers piece together human migration. This area of Greece is now being studied as previously unknown route that early humans took to spread from Asia to Europe.

6 The Galilee Kiln

The ancient world needed places to manufacture ceramic, and Galilee was no different. However, one pot workshop found in the modern-day town of Shlomi is unique. Found in 2016, what made it so special was its industrial oven. Unlike other kilns made of stone or even mud, this one was cut straight into the bedrock. Archaeologists found that the geology of the area likely accounted for this unusual firing pit. The region had a chalky type of bedrock that was soft enough to be shaped into the desired form while resistant enough to endure the heat of the pottery-making process.

The shop was active around 1,600 years ago, during Roman times. By studying the ceramic remains in the double-chambered kiln, it was determined that the owners focused mainly on storage jars and containers designed to hold oil and wine. One box was used to feed a fire with branches and tinder, while the other chamber was used to harden the clay.

5 Foundry Complex

A happy accident occurred in 2016 when a group of people headed toward a sightseeing area on Lake Baikal in Siberia. Many tourists had trampled this route before, but these weren’t just any visitors. Noticing the slag and clay on the path, the trained eyes of the archaeology party quickly realized that something was up—or more like down. Soon, a medieval foundry was unearthed. Used to make weapons, the complex was highly advanced and professional. A pair of rare, ancient stone furnaces were once part of a skilled metallurgic operation that churned out weapons, metal parts for horse tack, clothing, and even sickles.

The Baikal region has a rich history of working with metal and exporting the excess. However, the new foundry, which dates to around AD 1000, shows a level of technology that’s a step above anything the experts have ever seen before. The location was well-chosen, high on a hill, in order to harness the wind to help with the combustion process. The ancient blacksmiths may have been the Kurykan people, who were known for their expert metallurgic abilities.

4 The Glass Community

In prehistoric Poland, an isolated community left behind a fascinating part of their identity. Apart from a few houses, artifacts found on Mount Grojec in 2017 showed that they were glassmakers. There were no completed items that might have placed them instead as glass buyers, but there were artistic blunders, slag (melted waste glass), and half-glass, ready to be heated and shaped. The only finished product found were small beads.

The discovery of the 2,000-year-old factory is an important one for Polish history. Not only is this probably the oldest glass workshop found in the country, but it’s also the only proof that glass processing occurred in Poland much earlier than the Middle Ages, which is when conventional thought believes the craft blossomed. There are numerous furnaces at the small village, and some were for forging metal as well. The pieces of raw glass were of particular interest. The half-processed material was acquired from somewhere, but researchers aren’t sure who the suppliers were. It’s not even certain who the villagers were.

3 Christian Winery

In 2013, a Byzantine-era wine factory was discovered in Israel. Located near the archaeological site of Hamei Yo’av, the ruins covered enough area to indicate that the residents of the settlement produced wine on a large scale. Spanning over 100 square meters (1,100 ft²), the complex consisted of sections where grapes were dumped after being delivered to the factory. The fruit was probably also left to ferment in these compartments. In the middle was a vast floor constructed at a sloping angle to allow the juice from pressed grapes to flow into holding vats.

Archaeologists believe that besides producing the best wine they could, the workers turned grape waste into secondary products, such as vinegar and a less refined “pauper’s wine.” The owner might also have been Christian. One of the artifacts found at the wine press was a small ceramic lamp fashioned in the shape of a church. The hollow artifact was carved with crosses that would glow once a flame was lit on the inside.

2 The Surgeon’s Room

When archaeologists cleared away ancient earthquake rubble in Cyprus in 2017, they found what they believe to be a doctor’s office. Found near the city square of Nea Paphos, it had several rooms. In one of them, the team found a glass unguentarium in mint condition. Such bottles were used to store liquids like oils, perfumes, and medicines. But the best discovery was a surgeon’s 2,000-year-old tools.

The surgical instruments were all made from metal. One was iron, and the other five were bronze. They included a long, narrow spoon, pliers, and devices most likely used to set a patient’s broken bones. Like the bottle, the set was well-preserved. Coins found in a second room roughly date to the time when a big earthquake hit Nea Paphos in AD 126, collapsing the building that housed the doctor’s office as well as other businesses. The debris was never cleared away or replaced with anything else, which helped to seal the artifacts away safely.

1 Revenue Office

Nicopolis ad Istrum was a city founded by Roman emperor Trajan in what is modern-day Bulgaria. Raised around AD 102, it was sacked by several different barbarian hordes throughout its long history and was eventually settled by the Bulgarian Empire between the tenth and 14th centuries. Like any well-run Roman city, commerce was tightly governed by the powers that be. After its ruins were found in 2016 near Veliko Tarnovo, the city proved to be huge.

One fascinating building was a public place that appeared to have been the office of that eternal unfavorite: the tax man. Inside, archaeologists found stone weights and measuring devices in large numbers. Called egzagia, they were compulsory for anyone selling goods anywhere in the city so that buyers would not be deceived. The team that investigated the site believe that the building was a tax agency and government center where trade in Nicopolis ad Istrum was strictly controlled.

You’d think it’s safe to assume that some businesses aren’t going anywhere. From Coca-Cola and Nike to Apple and Microsoft, these businesses seem more like permanent structures than vulnerable companies right now. But take a picture and make a Xerox of it—or share it on your Myspace page—because these moments don’t last forever.

Many businesses grow and grow until they seem too big to fail. Here is a list of ten companies that thought they were too big to fail, but then they ended up doing just that. Many of the companies on our list have recognizable names, and all have made a major impact, but ultimately, they totally flopped!

Related: 10 Insanely Popular Companies That Nearly Went Bankrupt

10 Kodak

Kodak started back in the 19th century in 1888. Throughout the majority of the 1900s, Kodak was the dominant leader in the photography and film industry. Kodak became associated with photography and film of all kinds. Their slogan “Kodak moment” is still ingrained in our culture and sometimes heard today. A “Kodak moment” was something worth remembering by taking a picture, and Kodak was a giant in the photography industry until digital photography emerged.

Despite developing the first digital film camera back in 1975, Kodak never fully embraced digital photography. Kodak failed to innovate quickly enough and was outpaced by its competitors. Kodak created some innovative technologies but was unable to market them effectively to the public. Kodak acquired a photo-sharing website called Ofoto in 2001. However, Kodak was ineffective in using this technology to further its brand. Due to a general lack of adaptability, Many competitors caught Kodak off guard, notably Canon and Nikon, forcing the company to file for bankruptcy in 2012.

Though Kodak reformed in 2013, it will never again achieve the market dominance it attained in the 20th century. The newly formed Kodak is far smaller and now serves primarily commercial clients.

9 Xerox

When someone says “Xerox,” you know what they mean. A Xerox machine is just another word for a copy machine, like Kleenex is another word for a tissue. That’s how influential of a company Xerox was in their heyday. In 1959, Xerox launched the first commercially available photocopier.

The Xerox 914 photocopier was a truly revolutionary product. According to the National Museum of American History, the Xerox 914 was fast and economical, creating 100,000 copies per month. The National Museum of American History describes the Xerox 914 as one of the most successful Xerox products ever. The machine weighs a whopping 648 pounds. This just goes to show you how much copying technology has improved since this time.

The Xerox 914 earned Xerox over $500 million in revenue by 1965. However, Xerox didn’t stay at the top of the mountain forever. Xerox employees invented many early elements of personal computers, but the company wasn’t focused on computing. Some concepts designed by Xerox employees were given away to Apple and Microsoft. At no cost.

Apple and Microsoft developed these technologies and then marketed them to consumers. This strategic blunder left Xerox behind, while Apple and Microsoft have become the behemoths of the tech world that we know today.

8 Polaroid

Another film photography company that plummeted is Polaroid. Founded in 1937, this company is best known for its instant film and cameras. It’s easy—just point, shoot, and shake the photograph. At the time, this was a very cool invention since film took a significant amount of time to develop. However, an innovation came along that completely took away Polaroid’s major advantage: digital photography.

Unfortunately, Polaroid didn’t innovate its products effectively. Polaroid Corporation was declared bankrupt in 2001. Oddly, Polaroid was most popular in the early ’90s, hitting its peak revenue in 1991. Still, Polaroids are often referred to in popular culture, including by the group OutKast. Though not the giant it was, the brand has left its mark on popular culture.

7 Yahoo!

Yahoo! The company that’s so exciting, they added an exclamation point to their name. You can’t even read the name without hearing their famous “Yahooooooooo!”

Yahoo! was a powerhouse in the internet revolution. In 2016, Yahoo! was the sixth most visited website in the world. In 2011, Yahoo! was the third-largest email provider worldwide. Today…not so much.

Yahoo! is still holding on but has lost a lot of ground in the last decade. Google, Facebook, and others have pushed Yahoo! out of the market. Reportedly, Yahoo had a deal in place to buy both Google (in 2002) and Facebook (in 2006). Yahoo! didn’t follow through on either deal and continues to struggle in the wake of the two giants. Yahoo! may have been an early tech giant, but due to some poor strategy and mismanagement, its yodle has fizzled.

6 MySpace

If you were a teen in the mid to late 2000s, you know all about MySpace. MySpace launched in 2003 with a top friends list, custom homepages, and walls. These were all huge features at the time, and MySpace was the first truly major social networking site (sorry, Friendster).

MySpace excelled because it offered users customization and a chance to connect with their network of friends. It also allowed for bands, comedians, and other artists to use their pages to promote themselves. In 2006, MySpace was the most visited website in the world.

In case you have not checked your MySpace page lately, this is no longer the case. Thanks to Facebook and some other social media sites, MySpace was driven out. MySpace was purchased twice, first in 2005 by News Corporation, then by Time, Inc. in 2011. MySpace is still an active website but is used almost exclusively by bands and musical artists for promotion.

In 2007, it would have been laughable to suggest MySpace would totally flop. However, the first social media giant was not too big to fail after all. In 2019, MySpace embarrassingly lost 12 years of music and other uploaded content. That’s a good way to get moved off the top friend’s list.

5 Sears

Sears used to be synonymous with the retail industry. Founded in Illinois in the late 19th century, Sears began selling watches and developed to sell just about everything. From 1969 to 1989, Sears was the largest retailer in the United States. However, competition from the likes of Target, Wal-Mart, and eventually online retailers like Amazon, began to garner more market shares.

In 2005, Sears acquired K-Mart. But this acquisition seemed to do little to help the business get back on track.

With a general lack of innovation, particularly in the realm of e-commerce, Sears has been almost wiped off the map. Sears only had 182 stores in 2018, far less than the 3500 Sears stores nationwide in 2008. And in 1990, Sears and Walmart were generating similar amounts of revenue. However, Walmart took a more strategic approach (targeting discount shoppers) and eventually pushed Sears far out of the picture.

4 BlackBerry

A relatively young company for this list, BlackBerry was founded in 1984. BlackBerry was one of the first major smartphones, selling more than 50 million units at its peak in 2011. According to Business Insider, BlackBerry once controlled 50% of the smartphone market in the United States.

President Barack Obama even used a BlackBerry. Of course, five years after its peak in 2011, BlackBerry stopped manufacturing phones altogether.

The reasons for this flop are many. BlackBerry devices had a very small keyboard. In 2011, this was a usable and innovative technology. However, as smartphones have developed, all of them have adapted to use touch-screen technology. BlackBerry never made this adjustment. Despite the extreme popularity of their early models, BlackBerry was simply never able to keep up with the innovation of its competitors. Even Obama doesn’t use his BlackBerry anymore.

3 Blockbuster

Blockbuster was a staple if you grew up in the late ’80s or ’90s. An iconic brand, Blockbuster was the go-to for movie nights at home—the giant of video rental. At its peak, Blockbuster had over 9000 stores, but now it has only one.

See, Blockbuster made one huge strategic error.

In 2000, Netflix (a small, struggling streaming innovator at the time) offered to sell their company to Blockbuster for $50 million. Blockbuster refused the deal and instead invested their money elsewhere. Obviously, this was a devastating decision for Blockbuster.

The launch of Redbox in 2004 was just another nail in the coffin. Blockbuster went from the biggest name in rental to a punchline in movies in just a couple of short decades.

2 Borders

Borders was a book and music store founded in 1971. It was a juggernaut in the media industry for years. Unfortunately, due to a series of errors, this iconic bookstore went from “too big to fail” to “failed” in a Thanos-esque snap.

First, they were too slow to innovate e-commerce. This allowed companies like Amazon and Overstock.com to slowly take their market share. Borders also opened too many brick-and-mortar locations. According to Time, 70 percent of their stores were competing directly with a nearby Barnes and Noble.

Finally, Borders was taking on too much debt. At the time of the recession, Borders owed about $350 million. The company was never able to clear this debt and closed down its stores nationwide.

1 Toys “R” Us

Toys “R” Us was a toy store that was made for kids. In the late ’90s, Toys “R” Us was the largest toy retailer in the United States. It was every child’s wonderland, heralded by a lovable giraffe named Geoffrey. That is, they were until this iconic company was edged out by Walmart as the largest toy retailer.

Toys “R” Us pivoted to e-commerce through a partnership with Amazon, signing a ten-year deal to become their exclusive toy provider in 2000. At this time, toysrus.com would redirect to amazon.com.

Big mistake, Geoffrey.

Amazon became the top online destination for toys and sold toys of their own as well. Toys “R” Us eventually sued to get out of their contract, but at that point, it was too late. Toys “R” Us was a toy giant at one time. But if there’s one thing we’ve learned from fairy tales, it’s that giants usually fall down.