In ancient monuments as far apart as Egypt’s Great Sphinx, the strange Andean ruins of Tihuanaco, and Mexico’s awe-inspiring Temples of the Sun and Moon, he reveals not only the clear fingerprints of an as-yet-unidentified civilization of remote antiquity, but also startling evidence of its vast sophistication, technological advancement, and evolved scientific knowledge. A record-breaking number one bestseller in Britain, Fingerprints of the Gods contains the makings of an intellectual revolution, a dramatic and irreversible change in the way that we understand our past—and so our future.And Fingerprints of the Gods tells us something more. As we recover the truth about prehistory, and discover the real meaning of ancient myths and monuments, it becomes apparent that a warning has been handed down to us, a warning of terrible cataclysm that afflicts the Earth in great cycles at irregular intervals of time—a cataclysm that may be about to recur.

    These records of other nations lend chapters 10 and 11 of Genesis a degree of accuracy that sets them apart from all other historical documents of the ancient world. In a book which is the fruit of more than 25 years of research, he traces the development of the creation / evolution controversy that raged in the ancient world, and explodes many of the myths and errors of 'modernist' biblical critics. This book shows how European history can be traced right back to the flood and the descendants of Japheth, through contemporary accounts and a table of nations.

    For the second edition, the book has been thoroughly rewritten and expanded. It includes two new chapters, as well as an extensive preface in which the author reflects on the scholarly traditions which have influenced his work and explains his current thinking about the book's themes.New edition of popular account of the first 1000 years of Christianity. Thoroughly rewritten, with extensive new preface of author's current thinking.Includes new maps, substantial bibliography, and numerous chronological tables.

    and A.D. 800, from the rise of Mycenaean civilization to the fall of Ravenna and the collapse of the Western Roman Empire. John Warry tells of an age of great military commanders such as Alexander the Great, Hannibal, and Julius Caesar - men whose feats of generalship still provide material for discussion and admiration in the military academies of the world.The text is complemented by a running chronology, 16 maps, 50 newly researched battle plans and tactical diagrams, and 125 photographs, 65 of them in color.

    These portraits of the emperors form the building blocks of an invaluable and highly readable popular history of Imperial Rome, brought to life using the colorful testimony of contemporary authors.

    But how much of these are based on real happenings and how much is based on myth?With a visionary's ardor and a scientist's attention to detail, Zecharia Sitchin, author ofThe Earth Chronicles, gives a stunning account of human interaction with celestial travelers. He also provides further proof that prophetic dreams,visions, UFO encounters, and other extraordinary phenomena are indeed the hallmark of intervention by intergalactic emissaries who reach out from other realms to enlighten, guide, punish, and comfort us in times of need. Sitchin's research and theories, illustrated with maps and charts, chronicle a magnificent and inspiring journey through history, from the dawn of time to the approach of the millennium.

    The beginnings of Rome, once thought to be lost in the mists of legend, are now being revealed by an ever-increasing body of archaeological evidence, much of it unearthed during the past twenty-five years. This new material has made it possible to trace the development of Rome from an iron-age village to a major state which eventually outstripped its competitors and became a Mediterranean power. The Beginnings of Rome offers new and often controversial answers to major questions such as Rome's relations with the Etruscans, the conflict between patricians and plebeians, the causes of Roman imperialism and the growth of a slave-based economy.

    The author brings to light recently uncovered evidence about ancient Pythagoreanism and its influence on Plato, and reconstructs thefascinating esoteric transmission of Pythagorean ideas from the Greek West down to the alchemists and magicians of Egypt, and from there into the world of Islam.

    For the first time the lives of Joseph, Moses, Joshua, Saul, David and Solomon are examined from an historical perspective, as David Rohl explores their cities, palaces and tombs.

    It was a region of enormous cultural, political and linguistic diversity.In this authoritative new study, Amelie Kuhrt examines its history from the earliest written documents to the conquest of Alexander the Great, c.3000-330 BC. This work dispels many of the misapprehensions which have surrounded the study of the region. It provides a lucid, up-to-date narrative which takes into account the latest archaeological and textual discoveries and deals with the complex problems of interpretation and methodology.The Ancient Near East is an essential text for all students of history of this region and a valuable introduction for students and scholars working in related subjects.Winner of the AHO's 1997 James Henry Breasted Award."

    Like many of their contemporaries throughout the Nile Valley, these people embalmed their dead and then painted commemorative portraits of them, usually on wood or linen, to be placed over the mummies. Looking into the well-preserved, startlingly lifelike faces collected in this beautiful volume, one can trace the earliest roots of portraiture as it began in these Greco-Roman Fayum, or mummy, portraits, and continued through the Renaissance to the present. Despite their ancient history, the stylized portraits appear strikingly modern and painterly, with echoes of Modigliani and Matisse. Having experimented with them herself, Euphrosyne Doxiadis describes in detail the painting techniques and materials. Also included are fascinating notes on the clothing, jewelry, and hairstyles of the period.

    Pharaohs and Kings unveils the historical reality of such biblical personalities as Moses, David, and Solomon, and such archaeological wonders as the desecrated statue of Joseph in his coat of many colors. Basis of a series on The Learning Channel in January 1996. Photos.

    This book, a comprehensive history of women in the Archaic and Classical Ages, completes our picture of ancient Greek society.Largely excluded from any public role, the women of ancient Greece nonetheless appear in various guises in the art and writing of the period, and in legal documents. These representations, in Sue Blundell's analysis, reveal a great deal about women's day-to-day experience as well as their legal and economic position--and how they were regarded by men. Here are women as portrayed in Homer, in Greek lyric poetry, and by the playwrights; the female nature as depicted in medical writings and by Aristotle; representations of women in sculpture and vase paintings. This is evidence filtered through a male view: Sappho is the only female writer of antiquity much of whose work survives. Yet these sources and others such as regulations and law court speeches reveal a great deal about women's lives and about their status as defined by law and by custom.By examining the roles that men assigned to women, the ideals they constructed for them, and the anxieties they expressed about them, Blundell sheds light on the cultural dynamics of a male-dominated society. Lively and richly illustrated, her work offers a fresh look at women in the ancient world.

    Penguin 60 excerpt from The Odyssey

    In the final third of the fourth century the three great Cappadocian Fathers were at the centre of this exciting encounter. Their leader was St Basil, an ecclesiastical statesman, social reformer and monastic founder as well as a theologian. His friend St Gregory of Nazianzus was a brilliant preacher and sensitive poet who gave classic expression to the theology and spirituality of the Holy Trinity in luminous prose and verse. Basil's brother St Gregory of Nyssa was renowned for the depth of his speculative theology and mystical spirituality. Though they collaborated and shared many common perspectives, each had a unique gift and personality.This book is the first general treatment in English to bring together the three Cappadocians. It introduces the reader to their fascinating lives and writings and shows their connections with the Greco-Roman culture of their age.

    Encyclopedia of the Ancient Greek World provides interdisciplinary coverage of this influential civilization.

    Roman achievements in architecture, law, politics, literature, war, and philosophy serve as the foundation of modern Western society. Now, for the first time in an A-Z format, A Dictionary of the Roman Empire assembles the people, places, events, and ideas of this remarkable period in one easy-to-use source. With over 1,900 entries covering more than five hundred years of Roman history, from Julius Caesar and the Gallic Wars (59-51 B.C.) to the fall of Romulus Augustus, the last Roman emperor (476 A.D.), this accessible guide provides quick reference to one of the most studied periods of all antiquity. Every aspect of Roman life is included. Here are profiles of the great emperors, such as Marcus Aurelius, one of the most profoundly intellectual monarchs in western civilization, and the aberrant Gaius Caligula, who, after draining the Roman treasury with his eccentric behavior, made it a capital crime for citizens not to bequeath him their estates. Informative entries describe the complex workings of Roman government, such as census taking, the creation of civil service, coinage, and the venerable institution of the Senate, and offer insight into the various trends and cultural tastes that developed throughout Roman history. For example, a discussion on baths, the most common type of building in the Roman Empire, demonstrates the unique intermingling of luxury, community, recreation, and, in the provinces, an association with Rome, that served as the focus of any city aspiring to greatness. Other entries describe the practice of paganism, marriage and divorce, ludi (public games held to entertain the Roman populace), festivals of the Roman year, and gluttony (epitomized by famous gourmands such as the emperor Vitellius, who according to the historian Suetonius, lived for food, banqueting three or four times a day, routinely vomiting up his meal and starting over). Also featured are longer essays on such topics as art and architecture, gods and goddesses, and the military, as well as a chronology, a short glossary of Roman terms, and appendices listing the emperors of the Empire and diagram the often intertwined family trees of ruling dynasties. Comprehensive, authoritative, and illustrated with over sixty illustrations and maps, A Dictionary of the Roman Empire provides easy access to the remarkable civilization upon which Western society was built.

    Stunning photographs and illustrations, plus detailed cutaways, maps and diagrams.

    It is also intended to be an independent account of the physical evidence for Greek culture in this period and deals, therefore, with some subjects barely discussed in the text volumes, as well as serving as an illustrated commentary on their main themes. Major sections are devoted to art and architecture. Other sections deal with subjects for which the archaeological evidence is particularly illuminating and where it supplements the record of ancient authors in important ways: these include consideration of the economy and trade, the social and civic life of Athens, religion, the theatre, warfare and coinage.

    Art in the Roman Empire shows how many of the most impressive masterpieces were produced outside Rome, on the frontiers of its enormous empire.

    Takes you behind-the-scenes of a typical town; the "agora"; a gymnasium; a stadium; a typical home; the theater; the Acropolis; and more. Informative text, photos, and the many illustrations cover architecture, government and defense, and the pleasure, pastimes and customs that made up everyday life in ancient Greece. Features a timetable of important events, a comprehensive glossary of terms, and a guide to gods and goddesses. An ideal learning tool for young students.

    It is examined in the context of the extraordinarily diverse influences which affected it - from Greek and Persian to Russian and modern European literature, and the folklore of the Caucasus.

    But thousands of years ago, the production of silk cloth was one of China's most prized secrets. So how did silk become one of the most sought-after materials in the world?With lavish illustrations and a highly informative text, The Silk Route traces the early history of the silk trade—from the mulberry groves of China to the marketplace in Byzantium—and explores how two of the world's greatest empires were brought together, forever opening the channels of commerce between East and West.A treasure through the years, this book is perfect for the classroom and independent book reports.

    1000-1600) in the midwestern and southeastern United States a variety of greater and lesser chiefdoms took shape. Archaeologists have for many years explored the nature of these chiefdoms from the perspective common in archaeological investigations—from the top down, investigating ceremonial elite mound structures and predicting the basic domestic unit from that data. Because of the increased number of field investigations at the community level in recent years, this volume is able to move the scale of investigation down to the level of community and household, and it contributes to major revisions of settlement hierarchy concepts.

    These migrations of barbarian peoples, occuring between the 4th and the 9th centuries, were among the most important changes in European society, but they left no historical record in the accepted sense, and it is necessary to study them at a multi-disciplinary level, drawing on the resources of archaeology, sociology and anthropology.

    This unique study considers the ways in which these perceptions developed--reflecting both the shifting needs of Greek and Roman societies and the character of interaction between the various cultures of ancient Italy--to illuminate the development of a specifically Roman identity through the creation of an ideology of incorporation.

    Full color.