A clay cylinder covered in Akkadian cuneiform script, damaged and broken, the Cyrus Cylinder is a powerful symbol of religious tolerance and multi-culturalism. In this enthralling talk Neil MacGregor, Director of the British Museum, traces 2600 years of Middle Eastern history through this single object.
Related Subject: Ancient Persia
It's another sweltering morning in Memphis, Egypt. As the sunlight brightens the Nile, Peseshet checks her supplies. Honey, garlic, cumin, acacia leaves, cedar oil -- she's well stocked with the essentials she needs to treat her patients. Elizabeth Cox outlines a day in the life of an ancient Egyptian doctor.
Related Subject: Ancient Egypt
Gregory Heyworth is a textual scientist; he and his lab work on new ways to read ancient manuscripts and maps using spectral imaging technology. In this fascinating talk, watch as Heyworth shines a light on lost history, deciphering texts that haven't been read in thousands of years.
Related Subject: Ancient Middle East
Welcome to the world of Lucius Popidius Secundus a 17-year old living in Rome in 73 AD. His life is a typical one of arranged marriages coming-of-age festivals and communal baths. Take a look at this exquisitely detailed lesson on life of a typical Roman teenager two thousand years ago.
Related Subject: Explore Ancient Rome
Rather than demo another new technology, Tom Wujec reaches back to one of our earliest but most ingenious devices -- the astrolabe. With thousands of uses, from telling time to mapping the night sky, this old tech reminds us that the ancient can be as brilliant as the brand-new.
Related Subject: Explore Islam and Science
Hattusa also Ḫattuša or Hattusas, (Hittite: URUḪa-at-tu-ša) was the capital of the Hittite Empire in the late Bronze Age. Before 2000 BCE, the apparently indigenous Hattian people established a settlement on sites that had been occupied even earlier and referred to the site as Hattush. The Hattians built their initial settlement on the high ridge of Büyükkale.
A circa 1962 CE narrated newsreel explaining the plans for relocation of the twin temples of Abu Simbel. The footage includes a brief animation of relocation as well.
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