検索キーワード： 制作 "Charles River Editors" 古代

Set in the northeastern corner of Spain and nestled next to France is the autonomous region of Catalonia. More than seeing themselves as Spaniards, Catalonian people see themselves as Catalan first and foremost, and they all are natively fluent in the language, Catalan. After a tumultuous history during which it bounced back and forth in terms of its political status and relationship to Spain’s central government, Catalonia was granted its autonomy on December 18, 1979. In 2006, it came close to acquiring its total independence, but that status is still being hotly contested.

Over the last 2,000 years, ambitious men have dreamed of forging vast empires and attaining eternal glory in battle, but of all the conquerors who took steps toward such dreams, none were ever as successful as antiquity’s first great conqueror. Leaders of the 20th century hoped to rival Napoleon’s accomplishments, while Napoleon aimed to emulate the accomplishments of Julius Caesar. But Caesar himself found inspiration in Alexander the Great (356-323 BCE), the Macedonian king who managed to stretch an empire from Greece to the Himalayas in Asia by the age of 30.

The acrid stench of asphalt and sulfur singes the hairs of people’s nostrils, and when the blustering winds subside, the potent miasma lingers in the air. To the untrained eye, the La Brea Tar Pits seem to be nothing more than simply pools of thick, viscous black sludge...The pit’s contents have spelled the doom for a countless number of creatures both large and small, from legions of insects to mighty mastodons, mammoths, and snarling saber-toothed cats from the Pleistocene Era. La Brea Tar Pits are considered by many scientists to be among the greatest finds in modern history.

Standing around 10 feet tall and weighing several tons, woolly mammoths seem like the stuff of legend, but ancient cave art indicated that unlike dinosaurs, woolly mammoths were contemporaries of early humans, with the last ones going extinct only about 4,000 years ago. All of that explains why people have long been fascinated by woolly mammoths and have even envisioned bringing them back to life via genetics sometime in the future.

If the world had a navel, it would be the Dead Sea, the lowest point on Earth where one can still stand on dry land. The photographs of this unique lake seem to be taken from a science fiction movie, or a land devastated after a nuclear holocaust. To others, the fluffy shores could remind them of Antarctica although it is in one of the warmest spots on the planet. Its white, creamy masses, scattered along golden beaches, are not ice floes or frozen water, but effervescent salt formations.

When one thinks of the world’s first cities, Sumer, Memphis, and Babylon are some of the first to come to mind, but if the focus then shifts to India, then Harappa and Mohenjo Daro will likely come up. These cities owe their existence to India’s oldest civilization, known as the Indus Valley Civilization or the Harappan Civilization, which was contemporary with ancient Mesopotamia and ancient Egypt, and had extensive contacts with the former, making it one of the most important early civilizations in the world.

The city of Heliopolis was one of ancient Egypt’s most important religious centers, the focus of the civilization’s solar cult, and a destination for pilgrims for nearly 3,000 years. Heliopolis’ origins were quite humble though, and it does not appear that it was ever planned to be a great city. The city began as a small settlement in the late 4th millennium BC, but within a couple of hundred years it became the center of Egypt’s solar religion, due to several fortuitous circumstances.

Part of the reason Egyptian history is so intriguing is because it is so enigmatic. The imposing monuments, the strange practice of mummification, the picturesque form of writing, the colorful art, and other aspects of Egyptian life all make for an inspiring and somewhat baffling culture. Despite being the most intensely studied ancient culture in the world, there is no shortage of Egyptian mysteries worth studying, and even some of Egypt’s most famous monuments, such as the Sphinx and the Great Pyramid of Giza, are the subjects of heated controversies among scholars.

When one thinks of the world’s first cities, Sumer, Memphis, and Babylon are some of the first to come to mind, but if the focus then shifts to India, then Harappa and Mohenjo-daro will likely come up. These cities owe their existence to India’s oldest civilization, known as the Indus Valley Civilization or the Harappan Civilization, which was contemporary with ancient Mesopotamia and ancient Egypt and had extensive contacts with the former, making it one of the most important early civilizations in the world.

The Battle of Red Cliffs changed Chinese history. It marked the end of the Han Dynasty, one of the greatest in China’s history, and pushed China into the era of the Three Kingdoms, an era of perpetual warfare and chaos. Furthermore, the battle also had a dramatic effect on Chinese culture, media, and literature, and the battle and its major participants remain legendary in China.

The Byzantine Empire existed for over a thousand years, with a history spanning from the division of the Roman Empire in 395 until the Ottoman conquest of Constantinople in 1453. It was formed from the previous Eastern Roman Empire, and during its long existence, the Byzantine inhabitants were very proud to call themselves Romans. However, many things changed during the long lifespan of the Byzantine Empire, starting with a Hellenization in the sixth century.

At one point in antiquity, the Achaemenid Persian Empire was the largest empire the world had ever seen, but aside from its role in the Greco-Persian Wars and its collapse at the hands of Alexander the Great, it has been mostly overlooked. The Battle of Gaugamela: The History of Alexander the Great’s Decisive Victory and the Destruction of the Achaemenid Persian Empire looks at one of antiquity’s most important conflicts, and the profound ramifications of Alexander’s campaign; you will learn about the battle like never before.

When one thinks of the world’s first cities, Sumer, Memphis, and Babylon are some of the first to come to mind. If the focus then shifts to India, then Harappa and Mohenjo Daro will undoubtedly come up, but after that, India’s other ancient cities are often overlooked. This is unfortunate, since India’s oldest civilization, known as the Indus Valley civilization or the Harappa civilization, was contemporary with ancient Mesopotamia and ancient Egypt and had extensive contacts with the former, which makes it one of the most important early world civilizations.

At one point in antiquity, the Achaemenid Persian Empire was the largest empire the world had ever seen, but aside from its role in the Greco-Persian Wars and its collapse at the hands of Alexander the Great, it has been mostly overlooked. When it has been studied, the historical sources have mostly been Greek, the very people the Persians sought to conquer. Needless to say, their versions were biased.

The ancient Edomites were just one of the many cultures inhabiting the Levant during the Late Bronze Age and early Iron Age, but they remain known thousands of years later thanks to mentions in the Old Testament. The Bible indicates that the Edomites and their kingdom had a complex relationship first with the Hebrews and then with the Israelites. Ultimately, the Edomites flourished for several centuries only to suffer the same fate as the Israelites.

While he was one of the most influential men in the ancient world, research on Cyrus the Great is simultaneously fascinating and frustrating. Of course, this reality has deepened the mystique that surrounds Cyrus even to this day, and it has elevated his status from conqueror and king to enlightened humanist monarch and ideal ruler. Whatever the underlying issues, the incredible achievements of Cyrus distinguish him as one of the greatest kings in history, and his life, conquests, reforms, and rule continue to be of great interest over 2,500 years later.

Although the city had been destroyed, the legacy of the Persians survived, even as they mostly remain an enigma to the West and are not nearly as well understood as the Greeks, Romans, or Egyptians. When considering this empire’s rulers, the two most often referenced are Xerxes, the leader of the Persian invasion of Greece which caused the heroic sacrifice of the Spartans and their allies at Thermopylae, or Cyrus the Great, the man who created the Persian Empire.

Lying in the middle of a plain in modern day Iran is a forgotten ancient city: Persepolis. Built 2,500 years ago, it was known in its day as the richest city under the sun. Persepolis was the capital of Achaemenid Persian Empire, the largest empire the world had ever seen, but after its destruction, it was largely forgotten for nearly 2,000 years, and the lives and achievements of those who built it were almost entirely erased from history.

Mysterious Polynesia: The Myths, Legends, and Mysteries of the Polynesians chronicles some of these remarkable stories, as well as lingering mysteries across the region. You will learn about Polynesia like never before.

When scholars study the history of the ancient Near East, several wars that had extremely brutal consequences (at least by modern standards) often stand out. Forced removal of entire populations, sieges that decimated entire cities, and wanton destruction of property were all tactics used by the various peoples of the ancient Near East against each other, but the Assyrians were the first people to make war a science.