Ancient History Articles: Rome, Greece, Egypt & More – Century Past

Carthage

According to legend, Carthage was founded by the Phoenician Queen Elissa (better known as Dido) sometime around 813 BCE although, actually, it rose following Alexander’s destruction of Tyre in 332 BCE. Originally a small port on the coast, established only as a stop for Phoenician traders to re-supply or repair their ships, Carthage grew to become the most powerful city in the Mediterranean before the rise of Rome. Ancient Carthage articles.

Joshua J. Mark, Ancient History Encyclopedia 2018

How Hannibal beat the Alps but couldn’t beat Rome

Robin Lane Fox reveals how the classical general, famed for his crossing of the Alps, was defeated because he couldn’t fulfil his promise of liberation from Rome. Ancient Carthage articles.

Robin Lane Fox, History Extra 2017

Ten Stunning Yet Little Known Ancient Treasures Across Africa

From over a thousand stone circles concentrated in a small area to ruins of great cities, megalithic calendars that predate the pyramids by tens of thousands of years, and the remains of towns that have seen the rise and fall of countless civilizations, there is no shortage of awe-inspiring sites across the continent.

April Hollway, Ancient Origins 2015

This major discovery upends long-held theories about the Maya civilization

New technology allows scientists to visualize ancient Maya cities like never before. Ancient history articles.

Ben Guarino, Washington Post 2018

Salmonella May Have Caused Massive Aztec Epidemic, Study Finds

In 1545, people in the Mexican highlands starting dying in enormous numbers. People infected with the disease bled and vomited before they died. Many had red spots on their skin. It was one of the most devastating epidemics in human history. The 1545 outbreak, and a second wave in 1576, killed an estimated 7 million to 17 million people and contributed to the destruction of the Aztec Empire. Ancient history articles.

Rebecca Hersher, NPR 2018

Secret World of the Maya

The earliest explorers to uncover the ancient Maya civilisation in Central America could not believe that it owed its creation to the indigenous population, whom they saw as incapable savages. Nigel Richardson explains how this view changed.

Nigel Richardson, History Today 2013

Secrets of Puebla Tunnels

A 500-year-old series of tunnels long believed to be folkloric was uncovered beneath the streets of Puebla. Ancient history articles.

Atlas Obscura

The khipu code: the knotty mystery of the Inkas’ 3D records

Instead of words or pictograms, the Inkas used khipus – knotted string devices – to communicate extraordinarily complex mathematical and narrative information. But, after more than a century of study, we remain unable to fully crack the code of the khipus. Ancient history articles.

Manuel Medrano, Aeon 2017

Does Chinese Civilization Come From Ancient Egypt?

A new study has energized a century-long debate at the heart of China’s national identity.

Ricardo Lewis, Foreign Policy 2016

The Lost Manuscript of Archimedes – Podcast

Archimedes is famous for being Ancient Greece’s greatest engineer. Yet a random discovery – a prayers book found in an old church in Turkish Istanbul, casts this mysterious genius in an even more surprising light.

Curious Minds Podcast, 2017

Aryan Invasion May Have Transformed India’s Bronze-Age Population

An influx of men from the steppe of Central Asia may have swept into India around 3,500 years ago and transformed the population.

Tia Ghose, Live Science, 2017

Ancient Pyongyang

Pyongyang was the capital of several successive ancient Korean kingdoms.

Mark Cartwright, Ancient History Encyclopedia, 2016

Cultural & Theological Background of Mummification in Egypt

Mummification was not merely done to protect the deceased body from decay and decomposition; rather, most ancient Egyptians practiced it—both the rich and the poor—to ensure a successful passage into the next life. Mummification was much more elaborate and far more of a regular, integral part of common Egyptian life than popular culture typically presents. Ancient Egypt articles.

John S. Knox, Ancient History Encyclopedia 2016

Does Chinese Civilization Come From Ancient Egypt?

A new study has energized a century-long debate at the heart of China’s national identity.

Ricardo Lewis, Foreign Policy 2016

Great Pyramid of Giza

The Great Pyramid of Giza is a defining symbol of Egypt and the last of the ancient Seven Wonders of the World. It is located on the Giza plateau near the modern city of Cairo and was built over a twenty-year period during the reign of the king Khufu (2589-2566 BCE, also known as Cheops) of the 4th Dynasty. Ancient history articles.

Joshua J. Mark, Ancient History Encyclopedia 2016

Tutankhamun: who’s afraid of the pharaoh’s curse?

Joyce Tyldesley examines Howard Carter’s discovery of Tutankhamun – and gets to the bottom of those curse stories.

Joyce Tyldesley, History Extra 2019

Prehistoric Egyptians mummified bodies 1,500 years before the pharaohs

Together with our previous research, this new information tells us that the prehistoric Egyptians, living at the time the man died, already had knowledge of the processes required to preserve the body, and practiced a developed religious belief system about the afterlife. Ancient Egypt articles.

Jana Jones, CNN 2018

Pharaoh Up-Close: An Interview with Dr. Garry J. Shaw

In this special feature interview, James Blake Wiener speaks with Dr. Garry J. Shaw, a British Egyptologist, who teaches at the Egypt Exploration Society in London, UK. Shaw’s latest work is ‘The Pharaoh: Life at Court and on Campaign’, which highlights the multifarious roles the Egyptian Pharaoh fulfilled within ancient Egyptian civilization.

James Wiener, Ancient History et cetera 2013

A Drone’s Eye View of the Ancient Pyramids of Egypt, Sudan & Mexico

Drone flyovers of the Nubian pyramids of Meroe, Sudan; pyramids of Giza.

Open Culture 2016

Beer Archaeology: Yes, It’s a Thing

Travis Rupp is a classics instructor at The University of Colorado. He’s also a “beer archaeologist” who works on a special projects team at the Avery Brewing Company (in Boulder) where they “brew beers the way that ancient Egyptians, Peruvians and Vikings did.”

Open Culture 2017

How Ancient Egypt Shaped our Idea of Beauty

Pop culture is steeped in images of smoky-eyed pharaohs and their queens. Were the ancient Egyptians insufferably vain – or are we simply projecting our own values onto them?

Alastair Sooke, BBC Culture 2016

Ancient Egyptian Bread

Trying to make bread as it was done in ancient Egypt.

Miguel Esquirol Rios, Historical Cooking Project, 2014

Halloween Owes Its Tricks and Treats to the Ancient Celtic New Year’s Eve

During Samhain, the deceased came to Earth in search of food and comfort, while evil spirits, faeries and gods came in search of mischief. Ancient Europe articles.

Jackie Mansky, Smithsonian 2016

The History of Europe: 5,000 Years Animated in a Timelapse Map

The work of EmperorTigerstar–a Youtuber who specializes in documenting the unfolding of world historical events by stitching together hundreds of maps into timelapse films.

Open Culture 2016

Rodents may have been on the menu in ancient Scotland

Rachael Lallensack, Science 2016

Did Dutch hordes kill off the early Britons who started Stonehenge?

A gene study has shown that incomers could have ousted Stone Age Britons. Ancient Britain articles.

Robin McKie, The Observor, 2017

Royal People: Boudica, Queen of the Iceni

Boudica is one of the most famous women in English history. Ancient Britain articles.

Just History Posts, 2017

Six Strange Facts about Christmas

The more you peer into the history of the festival, the stranger it can seem. Over the centuries, Christmas has involved hymn-humming insects, pious cows, talking animals and bits of charred wood that protect us from witchcraft and lightning. Ancient history articles.

David Castleton, The Serpent’s Pen

Europe’s Mighty Megaliths Mark the Winter Solstice

Dating back thousands of years, Europe’s massive stone monuments aligned ancient peoples with the heavens above. Ancient Europe articles.

Michael J. Gantley, National Geographic, 2017

Who were the Celts?

Historians have been puzzling over this most enigmatic of ancient peoples for centuries, but are we any closer to establishing their origins? Barry Cunliffe investigates… Ancient Celts articles.

Barry Cunliffe, History Extra 2015

Ancient History in depth: An Overview of Roman Britain

Did ordinary people suffer under a tyranny, when Rome seized power in Britain, or were there advantages to foreign rule? Dr Mike Ibeji explores the realities of British life at the time of the Romans. Ancient Britain.

Dr Mike Ibeji, BBC History, 2011

10 Things You Didn’t Know About Sparta

The popular image of Sparta propagates a version of Sparta, our version of Sparta, and this is often quite removed from the ancient sources and idealised. As such, this post includes some interesting facts (and theories) about ancient Sparta that you might not know. Ancient Greece articles.

James Lloyd, Ancient History etcetera, 2016

Who Killed Alexander the Great?

James Romm examines some intriguing new theories about a long-standing historical mystery. Ancient Greece articles.

James Romm, History Today 2012

The Greeks really do have near-mythical origins, ancient DNA reveals

Ann Gibbons, Science 2017

The Bronze Age Collapse

John Bennet, Professor of Aegean Archaeology at the University of Sheffield, Linda Hulin, Oxford Centre for Maritime Archaeology at the University of Oxford, Simon Stoddart, University of Cambridge. 43 min.

In our Time, BBC Radio 4 2016

A Persian Navy, an Ionian Revolt – Podcast

We begin our look at the events that directly contributed to the beginnings of the Greco-Persian War. After a brief summation of the events that brought the early Persian Empire into contact with the Ionian Greeks, we take a look at the evidence and theories about what the naval situation was like in the Aegean during the late 6th century BCE.

Brandon Huebner, The Maritime History Podcast, Episode 31, 2017

The Mystery behind Greece’s temples

Studies show that the ancient Greek temples could have astronomical intentions – but on what scale? Ancient history articles.

Stav Dimitropoulos, BBC Travel 2017

Alexander the Great – Podcast

With: Paul Cartledge, Emeritus Professor of Greek Culture University of Cambridge, Diana Spencer, Professor of Classics at the University of Birmingham, Rachel Mairs, Lecturer in Classics at the University of Reading. 43 mins.

In our Time, BBC Radio 4 2015

Newly discovered mass graves could be filled with an ancient Greek tyrant’s followers

Thousands of years ago, an ancient Greek athlete named Cylon tried to overthrow the government. It did not end well. Now, archaeologists have stumbled upon mass graves near Athens containing the skeletal remains of 80 men who the researchers believe may have been followers of that wannabe tyrant, Cylon of Athens. Ancient Greece articles.

Elahe Izadi, Washington Post 2016

Even the ancient Greeks thought their best days were history

Joanna Haninck is associate professor of classics at Brown University in Rhode Island. Her latest book is The Classical Debt: Greek Antiquity in an Era of Austerity (2017). Ancient Greece articles.

Joanna Haninck, Aeon

Arabic translators did far more than just preserve Greek philosophy

Peter Adamson is a professor of philosophy at the Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich. He is the author of several books, including The Arabic Plotinus (2002) and Great Medieval Thinkers: al-Kindi (2007) and Philosophy in the Islamic World (2016), and hosts the History of Philosophy podcast.

Peter Adamson, Aeon

The Ancient Place Where History Began

The idea of Mesopotamia has intoxicated the West for centuries. Alastair Sooke takes a look at a civilisation where much of modern culture took form.

Alastair Sooke, BBC Culture 2016

Beautiful Babylon: Jewel of the Ancient World

Ruled by Hammurabi, restored by Nebuchadrezzar, conquered by Cyrus – this city in the heart of Mesopotamia was both desired and despised, placing it at the center stage of the dawn of history. Ancient Mesopotamia articles.

Juan Luis Montero Fenollos, National Geographic, 2017

The birth of Baghdad was a landmark for world civilisation

If Baghdad today is a byword for inner-city decay and violence on an unspeakable scale, its foundation 1,250 years ago was a glorious milestone in the history of urban design. More than that, it was a landmark for civilisation, the birth of a city that would quickly become the cultural lodestar of the world. Ancient history articles.

Justin Marozzi, The Guardian, 2016

Lost cities #1: Babylon – how war almost erased “mankind’s greatest heritage site”

In the first of a 10-part series, Justin Marozzi tells the story of this once-mighty city in Iraq is a microcosm of human history. Besieged by wars and weather, “restored” by Saddam Hussein, what has become of mystical Babylon? Ancient Mesopotamia articles.

Justin Marozzi, The Guardian, 2016

Ancient Wonders: The Hanging Gardens of Babylon

Gemma Hollman, Just History Posts 2017

Dead Sea Scrolls Revisited – Podcast

Roger Bolton reassesses one of the world’s great archaeological discoveries, beginning at the caves where a remarkable collection of Jewish texts hidden in the first century was discovered 60 years ago. 2 1-hour Episodes

Roger Bolton, BBC Radio 4

How the First Farmers Changed History

Carl Zimmer, NY Times 2016

Ancient History in depth: An Overview of Roman Britain

Did ordinary people suffer under a tyranny, when Rome seized power in Britain, or were there advantages to foreign rule? Dr Mike Ibeji explores the realities of British life at the time of the Romans. Ancient Britain.

Dr Mike Ibeji, BBC History, 2011

Conservation of a Romano-British urn

This is the first episode in a weekly series that tracks the in-depth conservation work on a Romano-British cinerary urn.

British Museum 2016

History in 3D; Ancient Rome 320 AD

The 3rd video trailer, illustrating our project dedicated to reconstruction of the whole center of ancient Rome city as it was in 320 AD.

Danila Loginov, YouTube animation

How Hannibal beat the Alps but couldn’t beat Rome

Robin Lane Fox reveals how the classical general, famed for his crossing of the Alps, was defeated because he couldn’t fulfil his promise of liberation from Rome. Ancient Carthage articles.

Robin Lane Fox, History Extra 2017

Does Chinese Civilization Come From Ancient Egypt?

A new study has energized a century-long debate at the heart of China’s national identity. Ancient Egypt articles.

Ricardo Lewis, Foreign Policy, 2017

A Day in Pompeii – Full-length animation

Zero One Animation, YouTube 2013

Ancient Rome

YouTube video simulation project between Khan Academy and Rome Reborn – with Dr. Bernard Frischer.

Created by Beth Harris and Steven Zucker

Ancient Rome Reconstructed

Animation on YouTube

kirubino

Animations Present Ostia Antica, The Harbor City Of Ancient Rome

Ostia Antica was the preeminent harbor city of ancient Rome, with its geographical location being around 19 miles from the’eternal city’.

Dattatreya Mandal, Realm of History 2016

Baths of Caracalla, Rome

Video animation on YouTube of one of the greatest Roman baths of the ancient world

Danila Loginov, 2012