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Books > History > World history > BCE to 500 CE
"Egyptian Mummies" is regarded by egyptologists as the classic
account of mummification in ancient Egypt. Originally published in
1924, its re-issue in complete form will be welcomed by all those
who have sought rare second hand copies in vain. This book provides
the most comprehensive account available of the technical processes
and materials employed by the ancient Egyptian embalmers together
with a historical analysis of their modification throughout the
dynastic period. The authors draw on fully illustrated
archaeological and pathological evidence together with Egyptian and
Greek textual references to provide a thorough survey of the
mummification process and attendant funeral ceremonies, and to
offer clues to an understanding of the custom's significance and
the reasons for its adoption.
Mesopotamia was one of the earliest regions to produce writing, literature and the fine arts, as well as being one of the first areas to construct states. This comprehensive and detailed survey of the region's prehistory and protohistory shows how these fascinating developments were possible. Petr Charvát explores the economic, social and spiritual spheres in Mesopotamia from the Palaeolithic to the time of the early states, c. 100,000 BC to 2334 BC. The narrative is supplemented by numerous descriptions of the principal archaeological sites for each phase, and by conclusions outlining the most important developments and changes. eBook available with sample pages: 0203164814
The history of European drama began at the festivals of Dionysus in ancient Athens, where tragedy, satyr-drama and comedy were performed. Understanding this background is vital for students of classical, literary and theatrical subjects, and Alan H. Sommerstein's accessible study is the ideal introduction. The book begins by looking at the social and theatrical contexts and different characteristics of the three genres of ancient Greek drama. It then examines the five main dramatists whose works survive - Aeschylus, Sophocles, Euripides, Aristophanes and Menander - discussing their styles, techniques and ideas, and giving short synopses of all their extant plays.
Sparta is one of the best-documented states of ancient Greece. Its political and social systems have fascinated and perplexed generations of classical scholars, as well as having a powerful influence on European civilization to this day. In this fully revised and updated edition of his groundbreaking study, Paul Cartledge uncovers the realities behind the potent myth of Sparta. The book explores both the city-state of Sparta and the territory of Lakonia which it unified and exploited. Combining the more traditional written sources with archaeological and environmental perspectives, its coverage extends from the apogee of Mycenaean culture, to Sparta's crucial defeat at the battle of Mantinea in 362 BC.
The theorem of Pythagoras, Euclid's "Elements", Archimedes' method to find the volume of a sphere: all parts of the invaluable legacy of ancient mathematics. But ancient mathematics was also about counting and measuring, surveying land and attributing mystical significance to the number six. This volume offers the first accessible survey of the discipline in all its variety and diversity of practices. The period covered ranges from the fifth century BC to the sixth century AD, with the focus on the Mediterranean region. Topics include: * mathematics and politics in classical Greece * the formation of mathematical traditions * the self-image of mathematicians in the Graeco-Roman period * mathematics and Christianity * and the use of the mathematical past in late antiquity.
When originally published in 1987, this book was hailed as a landmark in the study of the Roman World. Now back in print with a new preface by the author, it is still the most comprehensive survey of the Roman World available. Ranging from the founding of Rome in the eighth century BC, and throughout the Empire and beyond this book will continue to be an essential resource on the subject for many years to come.
As an essential companion to Plato's Apology and Crito this book provides valuable historical and cultural context for our understanding of the trial of Socrates. The complexity and significance of the trial is illuminated through discussion of such important elements as the nature of Athenian democracy, the polis ideal, Greek shame culture, Athenian religion, civil disobedience, and Socrates' rejection of politics. Colaiaco's approach is unique because he does justice both to Socrates and to Athens by demonstrating their individual strengths and weaknesses - and ultimately, their tragic incompatibility. Another highlight is that he provides a comprehensive picture of this conflict - essentially Socrates' radical challenge to traditional Athenian values - within the necessary historical and cultural context so that readers are better able to grasp the complexity and significance inherent to this trial.
In the history of nineteenth-century religious thought, William
Robertson Smith occupies an ambiguous position. More than any other
writer, he stimulated the theories of religion later advanced by
Frazer, Durkheim, and Freud. Smith himself was not an original
scholar, but was rather "clever at presenting other men's theories"
within new and sometimes hostile contexts. Smith was an important
contributor to two of the most serious challenges to Christian
orthodoxy of the last century, the "Higher Criticism" of the Bible
and the comparative study of religion, and was also the victim of
the last successful heresy trial in Great Britain. Yet he was an
utterly devout Protestant, whose views on Biblical criticism (for
which he was damned) are now considered as true as his views on
totemism and sacrifice (for which he was praised) are now
considered false.
Despite Smith's enormous significance for the history of
religious ideas, he has been written about relatively little, and
most of what we know about his life and work comes from a source
almost a century old. Originally published in 1882, The Prophets of
Israel is a collection of eight lectures, including "Israel and
Jehovah;" "Jehovah and the Gods of the Nations," "Amos and the
House of Jehu," "Hosea and the Fall of Ephraim," "The Kingdom of
Judah and the Beginnings of Isaiah's Work," "The Earlier Prophesies
of Isaiah," "Isaiah and Micah in the Reign of Hezekiah," and "The
Deliverance from Assyria."
A new introduction by Robert Alun Jones discusses Smith's early
life, the heresy trial, Smith's early view of prophecy, and the
classic text itself. The book will be of interest to students and
teachers of religious studies, and general readers interested in
Robertson Smith.
Although there are many books written about the most famous Cleopatra, this is the only study in English devoted to her less well-known but equally illustrious namesakes. Cleopatras traces the turbulent lives and careers of these historically important women, examining in particular the earlier Macedonian and Ptolemaic Cleopatras, and the impact of their dynastic marriages on the history of the Hellenistic world. John Whitehorne also evaluates current views of Cleopatra VII's dramatic suicide, and considers the evolving political significance of royal women in the last three centuries BC. Clearly and engagingly written, Cleopatras reveals the true significance to the ruling dynasties of the 34 known Cleopatras who were not Cleopatra the Great, and illuminates some fascinating but little-known aspects of ancient Greek and Egyptian history along the way.
Representations of sexual difference (whether visual or textual) have become an area of much theoretical concern and investigation in recent feminist scholarship. Yet although a wide range of relevant evidence survives from the ancient Near East, it has been exceptional for those studying women in the ancient world to stray outside the traditional bounds of Greece and Rome. Women of Babylon is a much-needed historical/art historical study that investigates the concepts of femininity which prevailed in Assyro-Babylonian society. Zainab Bahrani's detailed analysis of how the culture of ancient Mesopotamia defined sexuality and gender roles both in, and through, representation is enhanced by a rich selection of visual material extending from 6500 BC - 1891 AD. Professor Bahrani also investigates the ways in which women of the ancient Near East have been perceived in classical scholarship up to the nineteenth century.
First Published in 2000. Routledge is an imprint of Taylor &
Francis, an informa company.
Roman Edessa offers a comprehensive and erudite analysis of the ancient city of Edessa (modern day Urfa, Turkey), which constituted a remarkable amalgam of the East and the West. Among the areas explored are: * the cultural life and antecedents of Edessa * Edessene religion * the extent of the Hellenization at Edessa before the advent of Christianity * the myth of an exchange of letters between a King Abgar and Jesus.
Series Information: Leicester-Nottingham Studies in Ancient Society
First Published in 2000. Routledge is an imprint of Taylor &
Francis, an informa company.
First Published in 2000. Routledge is an imprint of Taylor &
Francis, an informa company.
Averil Cameron is one of the leading historians of late antiquity
and Byzantium. This collection (Cameron's third in the Variorum
series) discusses the changing approach among historians of the
later Roman empire from the 1960s to the present and the articles
reproduced have been chosen to reflect both these wider changes in
treatments of the subject as well as Cameron's own development as a
historian over many decades. It provides a revealing and important
survey of some profound historiographical changes. Her volume
contains fundamental papers and reviews that tell a story in which
she has played a leading part herself. They move from her early
days as an ancient historian to her important contribution in the
establishment of the field of late antiquity and point to her later
work as a Byzantinist, a trajectory rivalled by few other scholars.
The book will be important for scholars and students of the later
Roman empire and late antiquity, and for anyone interested in the
inheritance of Edward Gibbon, the perennial questions about the end
of the Roman empire and its supposed decline, or the emergence of
Islam in the early seventh century and its relation to the late
antique world.
'George Grote was one of the most remarkable minds of the early Victorian age Routledge's reissue prefaced with an illuminating new introduction by Paul Cartledge, provides the best chance that there is likely to be of bringing him to a modern readership.' - Richard Jenkins, London Review of Books
Scholars opinions are mixed regarding the wonders Herodotus
described in his travels. Among the buildings, the Egyptian
Labyrinth was at the top of his list, and this has given rise to
much speculation about its form, size, and purpose over the last
two centuries. Pharoah's Gateway to Eternity searches for the
answers to these problems.
'Authoritative and meticulous historical account ... a fascinating introduction.' - Patricia Spencer, Egyptian Archaeology, 2001
Series Information: Approaching the Ancient World
The kings of ancient Egypt's first five dynasties were responsible
for the creation of a unique and enduring civilisation, epitomised
by its most impressive monuments, the pyramids. Yet what do we know
about the reigns of these kings? Excavations have revealed much;
but Egyptology has always been blessed with another rich source of
information, the written texts and inscriptions composed by the
ancient Egyptians themselves.
For the history of the first five dynasties, one particular
series of inscriptions has always been of prime importance. This is
the collection of inscribed, stone fragments known as the royal
annals. Now divided between museums in Palermo, Cairo and London,
these documents from ancient Egypt have been the focus of countless
studies in the century or so since they first came to light. For
they seem to record the reigns of Egypt's early kings on a
reign-by-reign, year-by-year basis. The information they contain
has been translated, interpreted and re-interpreted by generations
of Egyptologists, in the hope of achieving a better understanding
of the first great period of ancient Egyptian history. And yet
amazingly for such crucial documents, no complete edition of all
seven surviving fragments has ever been published. Royal Annals
fills this gap. The text is accompanied by specially-commissioned,
detailed line-drawings of all the fragments.
Author Biography: Richard Miles is a Research Fellow in Classical Studies at the Open University, and a Teaching By-Fellow and Director of Studies in Classics at Churchill College, Cambridge. He is currently working on a book on text and authority in the late antique North African church.
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