World Civilizations

Un viajero que recorriera el mundo en 1411 hubiera quedado deslumbrado por las imponentes civilizaciones orientales. La Ciudad Prohibida estaba en plena construcción en la China de los Ming; en Oriente Próximo, los otomanos acechaban Constantinopla. Por el contrario, los belicosos países de Europa occidental, Inglaterra, Escocia, Castilla, Aragón, Francia y Portugal, eran pobres y atrasados, debilitados por las epidemias, las pésimas condiciones sanitarias y las guerras incesantes.

From the international bestselling author and notable journalist Aldo Cazzullo comes a brilliantly researched and extremely accessible journey through the history and legacy of the Roman Empire. “The only way to narrate over a thousand years of history is to understand what it has left us. To...

The years 1800-1940 were the heyday of the independent explorer—free-spirited, mostly European adventurers who took incredible risks in pursuit of discovery and fame.

One of the most dynamic eras in American history, the 1920s began with a watershed year that would set the tone for the century to follow. The Roaring Twenties is the only decade in American history with a widely applied nickname, and our collective fascination with this era continues. But how did this surge of innovation and cultural milestones emerge out of the ashes of World War I?

Atlantis and Other Lost Worlds is the most up-to-date and comprehensive investigation of history's infamous sunken city. Nowhere else will you find a more dramatic and convincing presentation of the evidence for its archaeological reality.

On October 12, 1492, one of the most important “first contacts” of the modern era was made when three ships of Spanish origin approached the island archipelago now known as the Bahamas, cautiously dropping anchor as the captain of the fleet gazed across to what he assumed was the coast of India. According to the popular version of the story, amazed at the sight of ships and men of such unfamiliar appearance, the native people of the island plunged into the clear waters of the western Atlantic, expertly swimming or aboard dugout canoes, and came out to greet the strangers.

This captivating audiobook delves into the complexities of the Quran's message and Charles Darwin's theory, exploring the intersections of faith, science, and the human experience. Through a rich historical narrative, listeners will embark on a journey that illuminates the profound ideas that have shaped our understanding of existence and the human spirit.

A History of Atlantis must differ from all other histories for the fundamental reason that it seeks to record the chronicles of a country whose soil is no longer available for examination to the archaeologist.

This Series, in seven parts, tells the story of America from the earliest founding through the days of Woodrow Wilson and The Great War (World War I). You'll hear stories of great explorers and pioneers.

The Toltec are one of the most famous Mesoamerican groups in South America, but they are also the most controversial and mysterious. The Toltec have been identified as the group that established a strong state centered in Tula (in present-day Mexico), and the Aztec claimed the Toltec as their cultural predecessors, so much so that the word Toltec comes from the Aztec's word Tōltēcatl, translated as artisan.

The Zulu are one of the most famous ethnic groups in Africa and possibly one of the most misunderstood. Of course that was due almost entirely to the fact that European colonial powers encountered the powerful group in the 19th century and found that they were more than willing to resist and fight them. At the height of its power in the southern part of Africa, the Zulu could rely on an army of 40,000 warriors, presenting a formidable obstacle to the designs of the British.

Spend twenty-four hours with the ancient Chinese. Travel back to AD 17, during the fourth year of the reign of Wang Mang of the Han dynasty, a vibrant and innovative era full of conflicts and contradictions. But as different as the Han culture might have been to other great ancient civilizations, the inhabitants of ancient China faced the same problems as people have for time immemorial: earning enough money, coping with workplace dramas, and keeping your home in order.

The Toltecs are one of the most mysterious and little understood of all the ancient cultures of Mesoamerica. This culture was venerated by later civilizations, such as the Aztecs. Even today, “Toltec knowledge” is used as a kind of shorthand for arcane wisdom from an ancient culture. However, discussing the actual history of the Toltecs is extremely difficult. Much of what we know of these people comes from writings and oral traditions of the Aztecs, as translated and interpreted by the European invaders.

Surviving the attack proved to be more than they could have imagined… Months after a super-EMP attack devastated the United States, the country is now unrecognizable. Major cities are run by gangs, survivors are dying of starvation and the government is falling victim to lawlessness. Those...

In 1999, few people had thought to examine the effects of climate on civilization. Now, due in part to the groundbreaking work of archaeologist Brian Fagan, climate change is a central issue. Revised and updated 10 years after its first publication, Floods, Famines and Emperors remains the definitive account of how the world's best-known climate event had an indelible impact on history.

If you want to discover the captivating history of ancient Mediterranean civilizations, then pay attention....

For centuries, raw and primal urges and principles had taken hold of conquerors, officials, and governments. But there was a light at the end of the tunnel. Humanity just needed to acknowledge knowledge. It needed to value the art of studying phenomena and learning, not just spiritual notions and religion. Welcome to the book about how this happened. Welcome to a glimmer of hope in humanity’s realization of what this world is and what lies in the elements yet to be discovered. Get ready for some enlightenment in your own life as you learn about the Age of Enlightenment.

*A New York Times Book Review Editors’ Choice* From celebrated Yale professor Valerie Hansen, a “vivid” and “astonishingly comprehensive account [that] casts world history in a brilliant new light” (Publishers Weekly, starred review) and shows how bold explorations and daring trade...

Tim Queeney is a sailor who knows more about rope and its importance to humankind than most. In Rope, Queeney takes listeners on a ride through the history of rope and the way it weaves itself through the story of civilization. From Magellan's world-circling ships, to the fifteenth-century fleet of Admiral Zheng He, to Polynesian multihulls with crab claw sails, he shows how without rope, none of their adventurous voyages and discoveries would have been possible.

For thousands of years, the notion of dragons has struck fear in the hearts of men and women all over the world. The ancient Egyptians believed there was a dragon of darkness that attacked the sun god each day, and in Norway people thought that a dragon gnawed at the roots of the tree that sustained all life on Earth. Around the globe, dragons have been depicted as everything from massive, winged, fire-breathing creatures to beasts sporting a camel’s head, deer’s horns, rabbit’s eyes, and eagle’s claws! Dragons might hoard treasure in caves, or they might be responsible for floods and the death of livestock.