2016-03-02 10:42
The Jomon Period is the earliest historical era of Japanese history which began around 10,000 BCE, coinciding with the Neolithic Period in Europe and Asia, and ended around 300 BCE when the… Read More
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Ancient History Encyclopedia Blog
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Ancient History Encyclopedia is a non-profit educational website with a global vision: to provide the best ancient history information on the internet for free.
2016-03-01 17:00
Back by popular demand, Ancient History Encyclopedia will once again share news, on a monthly basis, about select museum exhibitions and events of interest to our global audience via AH… Read More
2016-03-01 14:38
The Romans are known for their remarkable engineering feats, be they roads, bridges, tunnels, or their impressive aqueducts. Their constructions, many of them still standing, are a testament… Read More
2016-03-01 11:21
Religions of the Constantinian Empire by Mark Edwards is a phenomenal book. He writes a very comprehensive book on the beginnings of and influences on Christianity in the Constantinian Empir… Read More
2016-02-28 19:01
The Tang Dynasty (618-907 CE) is regularly cited as the greatest imperial dynasty in ancient Chinese history. It was a golden age of reform and cultural advancement, which lay the groundwork… Read More
2016-02-26 18:16
Whether there was a king, a consul, or an emperor that stood supreme over Rome and its territories, the one constant throughout Roman history was the family. Like many earlier societies, the… Read More
2016-02-26 10:49
Oracle Bones (also known as Dragon's Bones) were the shoulder blades of oxen or plastrons of turtles (the flat, underside of the turtle's shell) which were used in the Shang Dynasty of China… Read More
2016-02-25 17:00
Ill be honest, every time I look at the photo above I long to visit Greece again. Its not just the awe-inspiring scenery, amazing food, or ancient history. Its the way of life. Slow, ca… Read More
2016-02-25 10:38
L. Mestrius Plutarchus, better known simply as Plutarch, was a Greek writer and philosopher who lived between c. 45-50 CE and c. 120-125 CE. A prodigious and hugely influential writer, he is… Read More
2016-02-24 09:52
Thebes was the capital of Egypt during the period of the New Kingdom (1570-1069 BCE) and became a very important center of worship of the god Amon (also known as Amun or Amen, a creator god)… Read More
2016-02-23 17:00
Lying at the crossroads of the eastern Mediterranean, the island of Cyprus has long been a meeting point for many of the worlds great civilizations. Situated where Europe, Asia and Africa me… Read More
2016-02-23 13:57
Miltiades (c. 555-489 BCE) was the Athenian general who defeated the Persians at the Battle of Marathon in 490 BCE. The Greeks faced a Persian force of superior numbers led by the commanding… Read More
2016-02-22 09:57
Taoism (also known as Daoism) is a Chinese philosophy attributed to Lao Tzu (c. 500 BCE) which contributed to the folk religion of the people primarily in the rural areas of China and became… Read More
2016-02-21 17:56
The myth of Adonis, a tale as old as time, is a legendary love story that combines tragedy and death on the one hand, and the joy of coming back to life on the other. The story of the… Read More
2016-02-19 17:10
Isis is an ancient Egyptian goddess, associated with the earlier goddess Hathor, who became the most popular and enduring of all the Egyptian deities. Her name comes from the Egyptian Eset… Read More
2016-02-19 09:55
The First Emperor: Selections from the Historical Records by Sima Qian, translated by Raymond Dawson is an abridged version of Sima Qian's much longer history. Sima Qian (145-86 BCE) is know… Read More
2016-02-18 18:17
Dubai is a city that elicits sharp opinions. While its shopping malls, glittering lights, luxury hotels and villas, and iconic futuristic architecture continue to attract large numbers of to… Read More
2016-02-18 17:00
Apollo was considered an epitome of youth and beauty, source of life and healing, patron of the civilized arts, and as bright and powerful as the sun itself. He was, arguably, the most loved… Read More
2016-02-18 13:57
Egypt's Early Dynastic Period (3150-2613 BCE) lay the foundation of what would become one of the most impressive civilizations of the ancient world. The kings of this era, except for Narmer… Read More
2016-02-17 09:56
The New Fire Ceremony, also known as the Binding of the Years Ceremony, was a ritual held every 52 years in the month of November on the completion of a full cycle of the Aztec solar year (x… Read More
2016-02-16 17:00
During a recent trip to Rome, I paid a long overdue visit to the Centrale Montemartini, an annexe of the Capitoline Museums located on the Via Ostiense just beyond Porta San Paolo. Centra… Read More
2016-02-16 17:00
During a recent trip to Rome, I paid a long overdue visit to the Centrale Montemartini, an annexe of the Capitoline Museums located on the Via Ostiense just beyond Porta San Paolo. Centra… Read More
2016-02-16 13:57
Imhotep (Greek name, Imouthes, c. 2667-2600 BCE) was an Egyptian polymath (a person expert in many areas of learning) best known as the architect of King Djoser's Step Pyramid at Saqqara. Hi… Read More
2016-02-15 16:57
Religion was for the Incas, as with many other ancient cultures, inseparable from politics, history, and society in general. All facets of community life were closely connected to religious… Read More
2016-02-14 17:56
The pyramids are the most famous monuments of ancient Egypt and still fascinate people in the present day. These enormous tributes to the memory of the Egyptian kings have become synonymous… Read More
2016-02-12 16:55
Djoser (also known as Netjerikhet, Tosorthos, and Sesorthos, c. 2670 BCE) was the first king of the Third Dynasty of Egypt, reigning for over twenty years. Some sources indicate a king named… Read More
2016-02-12 09:55
Your Travel Guide to Ancient China (Passport to History) by Josepha Sherman is a children's book, written for ages 9 and older and targeted for a grade-level of 4 and up, but any adult… Read More
2016-02-11 17:00
Today we have another contribution from Timeless Travels Magazine. On a recent visit to Maltas prehistoric temples, Garry Shaw endeavours to enter the minds of Maltas temple builders, once t… Read More
2016-02-11 13:52
Coyolxauhqui (pron. Koy-ol-shauw-kee) was the Aztec goddess of the Moon or Milky Way who was famously butchered by her brother Huitzilopochtli, the god of war, in Aztec mythology. This story… Read More
2016-02-10 09:54
The Third Dynasty of Egypt (c. 2670-2613 BCE) begins with king Djoser, famous for his Step Pyramid at Saqqara. Although there are some sources which claim a king named Sanakht (also known as… Read More
2016-02-09 14:16
Caligula. Gladiator. Spartacus. HBO’s series Rome. If you’ve seen any on-screen adaptation of life in the Roman Empire, you’ve seen some depiction of gossip worthy or ta… Read More
2016-02-09 08:42
Pankration is an ancient martial art which mixes wrestling and boxing. The sport can be traced as far back as the second millennium BCE in the territory of ancient Greece. Its name derives f… Read More
2016-02-08 17:00
Are you looking for some ancient history information and Google is not being specific enough to satisfy you? The following are some online resources I have found useful for my own research o… Read More
2016-02-08 16:14
Meleager (Greek: Meleagros) is a hero from Greek mythology who famously led an expedition to kill the Calydonian boar which was terrorizing the kingdom of Oeneus in Aetolia in central-wester… Read More
2016-02-07 17:54
The Second Dynasty of Egypt (c. 2890 - c. 2670 BCE) rose from the turmoil which ended the first and was marked by uprisings (or, at least, internal difficulties) throughout. The precise caus… Read More
2016-02-05 15:02
The Templo Mayor or Great Temple (called Hueteocalli by the Aztecs) dominated the central sacred precinct of the Aztec capital Tenochtitlan. Topped by twin temples dedicated to the war god H… Read More
2016-02-04 17:00
Cuneiform is considered the single most significant legacy of the ancient Sumerians of Mesopotamia. It was developed c. 3500-3000 BCE, is considered the first written language created… Read More
2016-02-04 11:21
The Narmer Palette (also known as Narmer's Victory Palette and the Great Hierakonpolis Palette) is an Egyptian ceremonial engraving, a little over two feet (64 cm) tall and shaped like a che… Read More
2016-02-03 09:52
The Roman Republic was in death’s throes. Within a few short years, the “dictator for life” Julius Caesar would be assassinated, and, as a result, the government would desc… Read More
2016-02-02 09:44
Paestum, also known by its original Greek name as Poseidonia, was a Greek colony founded on the west coast of Italy, some 80 km south of modern-day Naples. Prospering as a trade centre it wa… Read More
2016-02-01 09:28
Narmer (c. 3150 BCE) was the first king of Egypt who unified the country peacefully at the beginning of the First Dynastic Period (c. 3150 - 2613 BCE). He has also, however, been cited as th… Read More
2016-01-31 18:52
Legalism in ancient China was a philosophical belief that human beings are more inclined to do wrong than right because they are motivated entirely by self interest. It was developed by the… Read More
2016-01-30 06:31
Soma was a fermented juice drink which was believed to have been consumed by the Hindu gods and their ancient priests, the brahmanas, during rituals. Thought to be an elixir its consumption… Read More
2016-01-29 10:49
Menes (c. 3150 BCE) is the legendary first king of Egypt who is thought to have united Upper and Lower Egypt through conquest and founded both the First Dynasty and the great city of Memphis… Read More
2016-01-28 10:15
The Shang Dynasty (c.1600-1046 BCE) was the second dynasty of China which succeeded the Xia Dynasty (c. 2700-1600 BCE) after the overthrow of the Xia tyrant Jie by the Shang leader, Tang. Si… Read More
2016-01-27 16:31
Publius Quinctilius Varus (c. 46 BCE – 9 CE) was a Roman politician and general under the rule of Emperor Augustus. He is most remembered for having lost three Roman legions when ambus… Read More
2016-01-27 11:09
Citizenship is and always has been a valued possession of any individual. When one studies the majority of ancient empires one finds that the concept of citizenship, in any form, was non-exi… Read More
2016-01-26 17:37
The kings of the First Dynasty of Egypt (c. 3150 - c. 2890 BCE) all worked toward the same ends: increasing trade, expansion of the kingdom through military campaigns, engaging in building p… Read More
2016-01-25 17:00
Jade Koekoe, Blog Editor of Ancient History Encyclopedia (AHE), recently spoke with novelist Dr. Roger Kenworthy, to discuss his series Memoirs of Nathanial Kenworth… Read More
2016-01-25 09:58
The concept of Oneness is expressed repeatedly in philosophical works both in the east and west. Whether one is reading the Paradoxes of Zeno of Elea (c. 465 BCE) or the treatises of Wonyho… Read More
2016-01-24 16:48
The Wiley Blackwell Companion to Ancient Israel is one of Wiley Blackwell’s several companion books. Aimed at producing "a multifaceted entry into ancient Israelite culture"… Read More
2016-01-22 11:31
The Early Dynastic Period in Egypt (c. 3150 - c. 2613 BCE) is the beginning of the historical era of the country during which the regions of Upper Egypt (south) and Lower Egypt (north) were… Read More
2016-01-21 17:00
Ancient art and archaeological remains have provided archaeologists and historians today with clues to how the ancients practiced their sexuality and their overall attitude toward sex. To th… Read More
2016-01-21 09:38
Gaius Suetonius Tranquillus (c. 69 – c. 130/140 CE), better known simply as Suetonius, was a Roman writer whose most famous work is his biographies of the first 12 Caesars. With a posi… Read More
2016-01-20 09:05
Egyptian religion was a combination of beliefs and practices which, in the modern day, would include magic, mythology, science, medicine, psychiatry, spiritualism, herbology, as well as the… Read More
2016-01-19 09:37
Mari was a city-state located near the west bank of the Euphrates River in Northern Mesopotamia (now eastern Syria) during the Early Bronze Age and the Middle Bronze Age. One… Read More
2016-01-18 17:00
I wrote about the series of special events that took place in Rome, in celebration of the 2000th anniversary of Emperor Augustus death. My last post focused on the House of Augustus (see her… Read More
2016-01-18 11:11
The Predynastic Period in Ancient Egypt is the time before recorded history from the Paleolithic to the Neolithic Age and on to the rise of the First Dynasty and is generally recognized as s… Read More
2016-01-17 17:49
Since the 'discovery' of eastern philosophy by western explorers and scholars in the 18th and 19th centuries CE, there has been an arbitrary division maintained, especially in colleges and u… Read More
2016-01-15 10:24
Hannibal (also known as Hannibal Barca, 247-183 BCE) was a Carthaginian general during the Second Punic War between Carthage and Rome (218-202 BCE). He is considered one of the greatest gene… Read More
2016-01-14 17:00
When you enter the main hall of the Sulaymaniyah Museum of Iraqi Kurdistan, you will encounter two large replicas of the rock-reliefs from the Mountains Merquli and Rabana. I was interested… Read More
2016-01-14 10:51
Vercingetorix (82-46 BCE) was a Gallic chieftain who rallied the tribes of Gaul (modern-day France) to repel the Roman invasion of Julius Caesar in 52 BCE. His name means "Victor of a… Read More
2016-01-13 14:27
Gortyn is located on the Mesara plain of central Crete and was an important settlement throughout antiquity from the Minoan to Hellenistic periods. In Roman times the city went on to gain ev… Read More
2016-01-12 10:09
The archaeological site of Tel Gezer is located in central Israel at the edge of the western mountains near the Shephelah, about 9 or 10 km southwest of the city of Ramleh. Gezer was one of… Read More
2016-01-11 17:00
For the ancient Greeks, music was viewed, quite literally, as a gift from the gods. It was an integral part of life weaving its way into education, athletic and military activities… Read More
2016-01-11 11:28
Germanicus (15 BCE - 19 CE) was a commander in the Roman Empire with a glowing reputation in his time under the rule of the Emperor Tiberius. His position in the Roman&nb&hell…Read More
2016-01-10 15:13
The Xia Dynasty (c. 2070-1600 BCE) was the first government to emerge in ancient China and became the first to adhere to the policy of dynastic succession; thus making it the first dynasty o… Read More
2016-01-08 07:54
History is not predictable; in many ways it can take on a life of its own. But sometimes, an individual's sheer presence is enough to bend history to his will. One such individual was Alexan… Read More
2016-01-07 17:00
If you're staying in Athens then you will almost certainly visit the world famous National Museum and so have your breath pleasurably taken from you as you marvel at the treasures of Greece'… Read More
2016-01-07 08:29
The Peloponnese is a large peninsula linked to the northern territory of Greece by the Isthmus of Corinth. To the west of the Peloponnese is the Ionian sea while to the east is the Aegean Se… Read More
2016-01-06 16:59
Shaye Cohen’s third edition of his work about Jewish life from the Maccabees to the Mishnah is most valuable as an overview. Oddly enough, he offers the most poignant critiques in his… Read More
2016-01-06 08:13
According to Jewish tradition, the original Jerusalem Temple was ordained by Yahweh/God, as described in 2 Samuel 7:12 where Yahweh commands Nathan to tell David: &nbs&hell…Read More
2016-01-05 16:41
Time has seen the rise and fall of a number of great empires - the Babylonian, the Assyrian, the Egyptian, and lastly, the Persian. Regardless of the size or skill of their army or the… Read More
2016-01-05 07:44
Contrary to popular belief, military history does not begin in Greece. In his book, The Origins of War, Arther Ferrill traces the development of war from prehistoric times until the time of… Read More
2016-01-04 09:31
Titus Maccius Plautus, better known simply as Plautus (actually a nickname meaning ‘flatfoot’), was, between c. 205 and 184 BCE, a Roman writer of comedy plays, specifically the… Read More
2016-01-02 09:33
Gezer is an ancient city and archaeological site located in central Israel where the central mountains meet the northern Shephelah, about 10 km southeast of the city of Ramleh. Accordin… Read More
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