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  • 1177 B.C.

  • The Year Civilization Collapsed
  • Written by: Eric H. Cline
  • Narrated by: Andy Caploe
  • Length: 8 hrs and 3 mins
  • 4.3 out of 5 stars (60 ratings)

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1177 B.C. cover art

1177 B.C.

Written by: Eric H. Cline
Narrated by: Andy Caploe
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Publisher's Summary

In 1177 B.C., marauding groups known only as the "Sea Peoples" invaded Egypt. The pharaoh’s army and navy managed to defeat them, but the victory so weakened Egypt that it soon slid into decline, as did most of the surrounding civilizations. After centuries of brilliance, the civilized world of the Bronze Age came to an abrupt and cataclysmic end. Kingdoms fell like dominoes over the course of just a few decades. No more Minoans or Mycenaeans. No more Trojans, Hittites, or Babylonians. The thriving economy and cultures of the late second millennium B.C., which had stretched from Greece to Egypt and Mesopotamia, suddenly ceased to exist, along with writing systems, technology, and monumental architecture. But the Sea Peoples alone could not have caused such widespread breakdown. How did it happen?

In this major new account of the causes of this "First Dark Ages", Eric Cline tells the gripping story of how the end was brought about by multiple interconnected failures, ranging from invasion and revolt to earthquakes, drought, and the cutting of international trade routes. Bringing to life the vibrant multicultural world of these great civilizations, he draws a sweeping panorama of the empires and globalized peoples of the Late Bronze Age and shows that it was their very interdependence that hastened their dramatic collapse and ushered in a dark age that lasted centuries.

A compelling combination of narrative and the latest scholarship, 1177 B.C. sheds new light on the complex ties that gave rise to, and ultimately destroyed, the flourishing civilizations of the Late Bronze Age - and that set the stage for the emergence of classical Greece.

©2014 Eric H. Cline. Published by Princeton University Press. (P)2014 Audible, Inc.

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    3 out of 5 stars
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Just a bit anticlimactic

Such an enormously long wind up, for such a vague and open-ended conclusion ? It’s a compelling story and it is told well enough, but in a way which suggests a bit more of a punch-line would be coming at the end, which never does. This is a good book and I’m glad I listened to it, but it builds a bit too much anticipation for the conclusion at hand. It’s almost as if the author was working on a really interesting bit of research and then had to publish before actually finding what they were searching for. It does give a lot of historical context and covers a period of history which does not seem well represented in mainstream history, so definitely worth a listen, I was just hoping for more of a revelation at the end. I guess real life is not a scripted action movie, so maybe that’s on me.

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The Great Bronze Age

Very nice review of the bronze age and its subsequent collapse without being too heavy handed with hypotheses on why it disintegrated.

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Learn From History

The late Bronze Age Mediterranean was host to a complex sociopolitical network that fell victim to climate change, trade disruptions, and civil unrest. A repeating pattern in History.

Very informative, but this seems like material better suited to print where maps can be referenced.

Also, I get the feeling that the narrator enjoys saying " Sea Peoples" and "Suppiluliuma" just a tad too much :)


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saw a video that recommended this book.

Awesome read. Some of the voices for letters were weird. Amazing to hear the details of life so long ago.

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