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The Scythian Empire

Central Eurasia and the Birth of the Classical Age from Persia to China

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This audiobook narrated by Jim Lee provides a rich, discovery-filled account of how a forgotten empire transformed the ancient world

In the late 8th and early 7th centuries BCE, Scythian warriors conquered and unified most of the vast Eurasian continent, creating an innovative empire that would give birth to the age of philosophy and the Classical age across the ancient world—in the West, the Near East, India, and China. Mobile horse herders who lived with their cats in wheeled felt tents, the Scythians made stunning contributions to world civilization—from capital cities and strikingly elegant dress to political organization and the world-changing ideas of Buddha, Zoroaster, and Laotzu—Scythians all. In The Scythian Empire, Christopher I. Beckwith presents a major new history of a fascinating but often forgotten empire that changed the course of history.

At its height, the Scythian Empire stretched west from Mongolia and ancient northeast China to northwest Iran and the Danube River, and in Central Asia reached as far south as the Arabian Sea. The Scythians also ruled Media and Chao, crucial frontier states of ancient Iran and China. By ruling over and marrying the local peoples, the Scythians created new cultures that were creole Scythian in their speech, dress, weaponry, and feudal socio-political structure. As they spread their language, ideas, and culture across the ancient world, the Scythians laid the foundations for the very first Persian, Indian, and Chinese empires.

Filled with fresh discoveries, The Scythian Empire presents a remarkable new vision of a little-known but incredibly important empire and its peoples.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.

©2022 Christopher I. Beckwith (P)2022 Princeton University Press Ancienne Asie Chine Histoire ancienne Moyen-Orient Iran

Ce que les critiques en disent

“A revolutionary rewriting of the current dominant view on Ancient Central Eurasia, The Scythian Empire will deeply transform what we believed the Greek, Roman, Persian, and Chinese classical ages were. Christopher I. Beckwith, one of the world’s leading linguists, has made accessible the story of the earliest known steppe empire in what is not only a provocative rethinking of Scythian history but a fascinating exploration of their language, art, and philosophy. Interpretatively audacious, adventurous, and ambitious, The Scythian Empire will generate debates for years and make readers see the history of Eurasia in an entirely unexpected way.”—Marie Favereau, author of The Horde: How the Mongols Changed the World
“Long forgotten, misunderstood, and dismissed as barbarians, the Empire of Scythia emerges at last from the shadows of ancient history, thanks to Christopher I. Beckwith. His insightful revelations illuminate the far-reaching legacies of the nomads who roamed and ruled the vast territory from the Black Sea to China’s Great Wall. This is a fascinating story of how Scythian culture and innovations in horsemanship, archery, linguistics, technology, warfare, practical dress, and ideas not only spread across the Eurasian continent but powerfully shaped the earlier empires of Persia, India, and China.”—Adrienne Mayor, author of The Amazons: Lives and Legends of Warrior Women across the Ancient World
“Using a wide array of sources, Beckwith has produced an original, pathbreaking, and provocative book that underscores the importance of the Scythians of ancient Central Eurasia in the shaping of peoples, political structures, ideologies, and classical civilization in the eastern Mediterranean world, Greater Iran, China, and South Asia.”—Peter Golden, author of Central Asia in World History
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Les plus pertinents
Does this book read well? Yes. Will you enjoy listening to it? Probably. Does this raise interest in linguistic points and prompt a reevaluation of the Scythian’s role in history? I think it does.

Does it prove the existence of a Scythian Empire? Absolutely not. Does it make grandiose claims based on limited evidence? Absolutely. It sticks with me that Beckworth repeatedly hammers home the need to follow the evidence in his epilogue when he has done nothing of the sort when it comes to explaining which parts of Herodotus he takes as gospel truth and which parts he is ignoring because they don’t fit his narrative. He takes it for granted that the Mede Empire existed through the entire book, then casual mentions that has be questioned in the final paragraphs of the book, dismisses it with a handwave, and never engages with any viewpoint contrary to his own.

I truly, honestly think that Beckworth knows he’s stretching his point and is trying to be a gadfly to provoke new lines of thinking in his fellow academics. Unfortunately, that means that this book is entirely unsuitable for a general audience who may not distinguish the useful parts of his scholarship from the lazy parts. If you must read this book, I strongly recommend reading Sarbanani review of it as well, which provides a chapter by chapter breakdown of the good, the bad, and the lazy. The fact I feel it’s necessary to read an academic review of this book to get anything useful out of it is not a point in its favour

For Academics, Not General Reading

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