Ancient History Books

Join Professor Alice Roberts as she travels over a thousand miles through Italy, France and Spain in search of a greater understanding of the Roman Empire and its legacy. From Naples to Pompeii, Rome to Turin, Nîmes to Narbo…

66 million years ago the dinosaurs were wiped from the face of the earth. Today, Dr. Steve Brusatte, one of the leading scientists of a new generation of dinosaur hunters, armed with cutting edge technology, is piecing together th…

An unforgettable journey into our ancient past, containing powerful lessons to learn about our future. Today there are 20 million species on our planet. Yet what we see is just a snapshot in time. 99% of earth's inhabitants are lo…

How do we give old words new voices? What must a translator lose - and what might she gain - when she moves between languages, bringing ancient stories to modern life?Emily Wilson has spent a lifetime wrestling with these question…

How many times have we been told that the working woman is a modern phenomenon? That men were responsible for the prosperity of humanity? That women's production was, for much of human history, confined to reproduction?Economica s…

The definitive history of Rome and its citizens. Rome is often remembered for its spectacular collapse. Yet for more than two thousand years - through civil wars, plagues, invasions and religious upheaval - the Roman state survive…

A vast area of Pompeii is being excavated for the first time, revealing astonishing insights into how people really lived. In this revelatory new history, Director of Pompeii Gabriel Zuchtriegel shares the untold stories that are …

What was it like to live on the edges of ancient empires, at the boundaries of the known world? When Ovid was exiled from Rome to a border town on the Black Sea, he despaired at his new bleak and barbarous surroundings. Like many …

How we search for meaning in our futures, as revealed by the divine, occult or supernatural, from ancient prophets to the end of days. What will happen to us next? From the earliest beginnings of human civilization, people have se…

What's exciting about a piece of bread 4,000 years old? Or some pots of paint abandoned in the eruption at Pompeii? Why should we be bothered with the distant past anyway? What's the point?The life, art and literature of ancient G…

In the ancient world the magicians of Egypt were considered the best. But was magic harmless fun, heartfelt hope, or something darker? Whether you needed a love charm, a chat with your dead wife, or the ability to fly like a bird,…

Bestselling author Philip Matyszak explores how the Greeks and Romans used magic, who performed it – and why. Magic was everywhere in the ancient world. The supernatural abounded, turning flowers into fruit and caterpillars into b…

An authoritative visual history of one of the world’s oldest and most vibrant cultures, drawing on South Asian art and artefacts from prehistory to the present. Arranged chronologically, and abundantly illustrated with expertly se…

This illustrated introduction to the history of China offers a fresh understanding of China’s progress from the Neolithic age to the present. Told in six chapters arranged chronologically, through art, artefacts, people and places…

A book of Greek myths with a twist! Readers step into the shoes of a legendary hero to solve mazes, crack codes and untangle the riddles that bring lavishly illustrated retellings of classic tales to life. Readers take on their ve…

A compelling and vivid narrative history of one of the founding civilizations of the modern world, the Byzantine empire, evocatively told through the lives of its 92 emperors. Based in the great city of Constantinople (modern-day …

A unique re-interpretation of the city of ancient Rome and its empire, using the tools offered by the latest information technology and graphic design. Packed with cleverly designed graphics, charts and diagrams, Ancient Rome: Inf…

A history of the Japanese archipelago through its material artefacts over fifteen millennia. This spirited visual account of life in the Japanese archipelago spans over 15,000 years, revealing the stories behind an intriguing sele…

In Mythica Emily Hauser tells, for the first time, the extraordinary stories of the real women behind some of the western world’s greatest legends. Following in their footsteps, digging into the history behind Homer’s epic poems, …

On 26 November 1922 Howard Carter first peered into the newly opened tomb of an ancient Egyptian boy-king. When asked if he could see anything, he replied: 'Yes, yes, wonderful things.'In Tutankhamun's Trumpet, acclaimed Egyptolog…

In Rome the echoes of the past resound clearly in its palaces and monuments, and in the remains of the ancient imperial city. But another presence has dominated Rome for 2,000 years -the pope, whose actions and influence echo down…

This luxurious foil-embossed hardback chronicles the rise and fall of the ancient Greek and Roman empires, accompanied by full-colour images of artefacts, artwork, maps and more. From palace-based societies in Minoan Crete to the …

A superb and illuminating history of Imperial Rome's most important women – dispelling the myths and misogyny that have distorted their reputations for over 2000 years. Writer, activist and journalist Joan Smith has worked for yea…

A superb and illuminating history of Imperial Rome's most important women – dispelling the myths and misogyny that have distorted their reputations for over 2000 years. Writer, activist and journalist Joan Smith has worked for yea…

An overview of the lost peoples and cultures who flourished and fought for survival alongside the Egyptians, Greeks and Romans. Who were the Philistines? What was a Pyrrhic victory? Were the Vandals really vandals? Why should you …

A definitive and thrilling new account of the last great dynasty of ancient Egypt, from Alexander the Great to Cleopatra.When Alexander the Great arrived in Egypt, he overthrew the hated Persian overlords and was welcomed as a sav…

What is the nature of things?What is justice? How can I be myself?How should we treat each other?Before the Greeks, the idea of the world was dominated by god-kings and their priests. Twenty-five hundred years ago, in a succession…

Cleopatra: lover, seductress, and Egypt's greatest queen. A woman more myth than history, immortalized in poetry, drama, music, art, and film. She captivated Julius Caesar and Marc Antony, the two greatest Romans of the day, and d…

From Alexandria to York, this unique illustrated guide allows us to see the great centres of classical civilization afresh. The key feature of Cities of the Classical World is 120 specially drawn maps tracing each city's thoroughf…

An epic new history of Ancient China told through the prism of a dozen extraordinary tombsThe three millennia up to the establishment of the first imperial Qin dynasty in 221 BC cemented many of the distinctive elements of Chinese…