The ancient world of the Mediterranean and the Near East saw the birth and collapse of great civilizations. While several of these are well known, for all those that have been recorded, many have been unjustly forgotten. Our history is overflowing with different cultures that have all evolved over time, sometimes dissolving or reforming, though ultimately shaping the way we continue to live. But for every culture that has been remembered, how many have we forgotten?
This thorough guide explores those civilizations that have faded from the pages of our textbooks, but played a significant role in the development of modern society. Forgotten Peoples of the Ancient World covers the Hyksos to the Hephthalites and everyone in between, providing a unique overview of humanity’s history from approximately 3000 BCE-550 CE.
This book offers a new understanding of these important, but often forgotten civilisations, and is a must-have for anyone interested in ancient history. We would highly recommend it.
Helpfully split into four sections, from the First Civilisations to the Fall of Rome in the West, each section then includes the main protagonists from those periods. You may have heard about the Canaanites or the Vandals, but what about the Arverni or the Alamanni? Matyszak gives you everything you need to know about them; their origins, trumps and defeats, whilst at the same time setting them in the wider historical context. Each entry exposes a diverse culture and highlights their important contributions to world history, examining the legacy that they have left to us today.
Carefully researched, each entry is also accompanied by a wide range of illustrated artefacts and artworks, as well as specially drawn maps, which help to tell the stories of these 40 lost peoples and allows readers to take a direct look into the past.
Matyszak brings to life the cultures and individuals that made up the busy, brawling multicultural mass of humanity that emerged from the ancient Middle East and spread across the Mediterranean and Europe. This book offers a new understanding of these important, but often forgotten civilisations, and is a must-have for anyone interested in ancient history. We would highly recommend it.
Forgotten Peoples of the Ancient World
by Philip Matyszak
Published by: Thames & Hudson Published: 20 August 2020 Price: £24.95
Comments