Featured
Definition
Ptolemy XII
Ptolemy XII Neos Dionysos (r. 80-51 BCE) was king of Ptolemaic Egypt and father of Cleopatra VII (r. 51-30 BCE). His illegitimate birth and drunkenness inspired ridicule, and he was nicknamed "Auletes" ("the Flute-Player") for his musicianship. He reigned for nearly 30 years, bribing leaders of the Roman Republic like Pompey and Julius Caesar to prevent the Roman annexation of Egypt...
Featured
Definition
Tarquinia
Tarquinia (Etruscan name: Tarch'na or Tarch, Roman name: Tarquinii) is a town located on the western coast of central Italy which was an important Etruscan and then Roman settlement. It is famous...
Featured
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Map of the Seven Years' War in Europe, 1756-1763 - Alliances, Battles, and the Global Balance of Power
The Seven Years' War (1756-1763) was a major European and global conflict driven by the rivalry between Austria and Prussia...
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Map of Rome's Civil War (49–45 BCE) - Caesar’s Campaigns and the Collapse of the Roman Republic
The Roman Civil War (49-45 BCE) was a decisive conflict that transformed the Roman Republic and accelerated the transition...
Latest Content
Article
Lugalbanda and the Anzud Bird - A Sumerian Hero's Journey
Lugalbanda and the Anzud Bird is a Sumerian myth dated to the Ur III period (circa 2112 to circa 2004 BCE) featuring the hero-king of Uruk, Lugalbanda, father...
Image Gallery
75 Images of the Pacific War
In this gallery of 75 images, we examine the key features of WWII's Pacific War. After the 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor, the US naval base in Hawaii, Japan continued to expand its...
Article
Matter of Aratta - The Great Sumerian Epic
The Matter of Aratta is the modern-day title for a collection of four poems – Enmerkar and the Lord of Aratta, Enmerkar and En-suhgir-ana, Lugalbanda in the Mountain...
Article
First Days in the Union Army - Recruitment and Training in the Civil War
Recruitment and training practices during the American Civil War varied according to the year, the commanding officer, and between the opposing...
Article
Battle of Belmont - B. F. Sawyer's Eyewitness Account
The Battle of Belmont (7 November 1861) was an engagement fought during the American Civil War in Mississippi County, Missouri. It was the first combat command...
Article
Drinking Customs in Merry Olde England
Raising toasts, sharing cups of cheer, and singing raucous songs while partaking of alcohol are customs which date back to the early Middle Ages in England. Several of...
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Map of the Middle Kingdom Egypt (c. 2050–1800 BCE) - Reunification, Nubian Frontiers & Trade Networks
The Middle Kingdom of Egypt (c. 2050–1650 BCE) was a period of political reunification, renewed royal authority, and cultural...
Image
Map of the Seven Years' War in Europe, 1756-1763 - Alliances, Battles, and the Global Balance of Power
The Seven Years' War (1756-1763) was a major European and global conflict driven by the rivalry between Austria and Prussia...
Image
The Seven Sacks of Rome
Across nearly two millennia, the city of Rome was repeatedly captured and plundered as its political position changed from the capital of an expanding republic to the symbolic center...
For You
Definition
Assyrian Warfare
Assyria began as a small trading community centered at the ancient city of Ashur and grew to become the greatest empire in the ancient world prior to the conquests of Alexander the Great...
Definition
Domitian
Domitian was Roman Emperor from 81 to 96 CE and his reign, although one of relative peace and stability, became engulfed in both fear and paranoia. His death at the hands of those who were closest...
Definition
Battle of Pydna
The Battle of Pydna in June 168 BCE was a decisive Roman victory that ended the Third Macedonian War and established Rome as the dominant power in the Mediterranean. The Roman Republic was...
Definition
Ten Commandments
The Ten Commandments introduce the legislation received by Moses on Mt. Sinai after the Israelites escaped from Egypt (as related in the biblical book of Exodus). The "ten commandments"...
Book Reviews
Book Review
The Army of Alexander the Great
The Army of Alexander the Great (2025) is a highly detailed and insightful examination of one of the most influential military forces in history. Rather than presenting Alexander...
Book Review
Philippines Gold: Treasures of Forgotten Kingdoms
Published on the occasion of the opening of the exhibition of "Philippine Gold: Treasures of Forgotten Kingdoms", organized by the Asia Society, New York and the...
Book Review
India: 5,000 Years of History on the Subcontinent
General readers would find this elegantly written work stimulating, while college and university faculty would welcome this as a much-needed textbook for their...
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| 1,761 | articles |
| 19,837 | illustrations |
| 2,642 | videos |
| 415 | 3D images |
| 16,209 | translations |
| 48 | languages |
| 1,336 | contributors |
| 15,563 | keywords |
| 59,791 | registered users |
Ancient Period
Definition
Book of Amos
The Book of Amos is a prophetic book of the Hebrew Bible largely dating to the 8th century BCE and considered to be scripture by modern-day Jews and Christians. The work chronicles the visions...
Article
Elephants in Hellenistic History & Art
Elephants were thought of as fierce and frightful monsters in antiquity, very real though rarely seen until the Hellenistic period. They were deployed on the battlefield...
Definition
Macedon - Birthplace of Alexander the Great
Macedon was an ancient kingdom located in the north of the Greek peninsula first inhabited by the Mackednoi tribe whose identity was challenged by some southern Greeks...
Image Gallery
Gallery of 25 Masks From the Ancient World
The love of masks is one of the striking similarities across global cultures. In this gallery of images, we showcase 25 masks from world history. Very often made with...
Definition
Indus Script
The Indus Script is the writing system developed by the Indus Valley Civilization and it is the earliest form of writing known in the Indian subcontinent. The origin of this script is poorly...
Article
The Price of Greed: Hannibal's Betrayal by Carthage
Hannibal Barca (l. 247-183 BCE), the brilliant Carthaginian general of the Second Punic War (218-202 BCE), had the military talent, expertise, and skill to have...
Definition
Dionysos
Dionysos (Roman name: Bacchus, also known as Dionysus) was the ancient Greek god of wine, merriment, and theatre. Being the bad boy of Mt. Olympus, Dionysus was perhaps the most colourful of the...
Article
Treasure Hoards in Ancient Literature
Aristophanes wrote in the 5th century BCE about coin hoards in Athens. He joked about the common saying, "No one knows but the birds where I hid my money," which led buffoons...
Medieval Period
Collection
Death and the Afterlife in the Ancient World
Belief in an afterlife was common in the ancient world, as it is today, and each culture created its own unique vision of the land that existed beyond the grave. Even...
Definition
Charles VI of France - The Mad King
Charles VI (lived 1368-1422) reigned as King of France from 1380 to 1422, during an important phase of the Hundred Years' War (1337-1453) against England. Known as the 'Mad...
Definition
Theodosian Walls
The Theodosian Walls are the fortifications of Constantinople, capital of the Byzantine Empire, which were first built during the reign of Theodosius II (408-450 CE). Sometimes known as...
Definition
Thessaly and the Duchy of Neopatras
Thessaly was an independent state in medieval Greece from 1267 or 1268 to 1394 CE, first as the Greek-ruled Thessaly and later as the Catalan and Latin-ruled Duchy of Neopatras...
Definition
Mixcoatl
Mixcoatl, 'Cloud Serpent,' was a Mesoamerican god identified with hunting, the Milky Way and the stars and heavens in general. The god may originally have derived from a deified hunter and warrior-leader...
Collection
Japan in Medieval Times
The history of medieval Japan (1185-1603 CE) involved the rise of the military and such figures as the shoguns and samurai but there were many other cultural developments in between...
Article
The Household Staff in an English Medieval Castle
An English medieval castle, if a large one, could have a household staff of at least 50 people, which included all manner of specialised and skilled workers such...
Definition
Golden Horde
The Golden Horde was the European appanage of the Mongol Empire (1206-1368 CE). Begun in earnest by Batu Khan in 1227 CE, the territory that would eventually become the Golden Horde came to...
Early Modern Period
Definition
Japanese War Tales
War tales (gunki monogatari) is a genre of historical writing that developed in Japan from the Heian Period (794-1185) to the Muromachi Period (1333-1573). They form an important element...
Article
Battle of Plassey
The Battle of Plassey on 23 June 1757 saw Robert Clive's East India Company army defeat a larger force of the Nawab of Bengal. Victory brought the Company new wealth and marked the beginning...
Definition
Elizabeth I of England
Elizabeth I reigned as queen of England from 1558 to 1603. Her 44-year reign was so long and packed with momentous events that the second half of the 16th century is now known as the...
Definition
King William's War - The First Great Colonial War Between England and France
King William’s War (1688-1697) was the first of four major colonial conflicts fought between England, France, and their respective Native...
Definition
Festival of the Federation
The Festival of the Federation (Fête de la Fédération) was a celebration that occurred on the Champ de Mars outside Paris on 14 July 1790, the first anniversary of the Storming of...
Definition
Mary II of England
Mary II of England (r. 1689-1694) ruled jointly with her husband William III of England (r. 1689-1702) until her death from smallpox. While William suffered a xenophobic reaction to his...
Interview
Interview: Pre-Raphaelites: Modern Renaissance
Pre-Raphaelites: Modern Renaissance marks the first multidisciplinary exhibition in Italy to examine the profound impact of Italian Renaissance art on the Pre-Raphaelite...
Article
Weapons of the Conquistadors
The Iberian conquistadors ("conquerors") were the first military men to explore, attack, and conquer territories in the Americas and Asia that would then become a part of the Spanish...
Modern Period
Article
Old Woman's Water and the Buffalo Cap
Old Woman's Water and the Buffalo Cap is a Cheyenne tale of the two great culture heroes Standing-on-the-Ground and Sweet Medicine and how they brought back the buffalo...
Article
Hidatsa Sun Dance Ritual
The Hidatsa Sun Dance Ritual (also known as Hidatsa Sun Dance) is a Native American story of the Hidatsa nation illustrating the practice of an individual initiating the Sun Dance...
Article
Why Japan's Kamikaze Attacks Failed in WWII
Kamikaze attacks were made by Japanese servicemen throughout the final, desperate year of the Second World War (1939-45). Planes, piloted rockets, and boats were packed...
Definition
Alexander Hamilton
Alexander Hamilton (1755/57-1804) was a lawyer and politician, often recognized as a Founding Father of the United States. He served as George Washington's aide-de-camp during the American...
Definition
Portuguese Brazil
With a wealth of natural resources, Brazil was by far the most important colony in the Portuguese empire and was, at one time or another, the world’s leading producer of sugar, diamonds...
Article
The Paris Impressionist Exhibitions, 1874-86
The impressionist exhibitions in Paris through the final quarter of the 19th century were organised by a group of avant-garde artists who struggled to have their innovative...
Definition
U-Boat - Germany's Submarines of WWI & WWII
The U-boat, short for Unterseeboot (undersea boat), was the name for submarines used by the German Navy during the First World War (1914-18) and Second World War (1939-45...
Definition
Romani
Romani is an umbrella term used to describe a diverse ethnolinguistic group of people with a historical presence in Europe and West Asia. The historically common term 'Gypsy' is based on the myth...
Prehistoric Period
Article
Legends of the Rollright Stones, Oxfordshire
The Rollright Stones is the collective name for a group of enigmatic prehistoric monuments located next to an ancient ridgeway known as the Jurassic Way, on the border...
Definition
Newgrange
Newgrange is a Neolithic monument located in the region of Bru na Boinne, County Meath, Ireland. The name is fairly modern and comes from the 'newer' grange (farm) of the monks of Mellifont Abbey...
Definition
Paleolithic
The Palaeolithic ('Old Stone Age') makes up the earliest chunk of the Stone Age – the large swathe of time during which hominins used stone to make tools – and ranges from the first known tool...
Definition
Dolmen
A dolmen is a megalithic structure typically formed from a large horizontal stone slab resting on two or more upright slabs. The oldest European examples are found in Brittany, northern France...
Definition
Pre-Colonial North America
Pre-Colonial North America (also known as Pre-Columbian, Prehistoric, and Precontact) is the period between the migration of the Paleo-Indians to the region between 40,000-14,000...
Article
The Neanderthal-Sapiens Connection
In May 2010, after years of intense discussions surrounding possible fossils of mixed Homo sapiens and Neanderthal descent floating around the scientific community, a team...
Image Gallery
A Gallery of Historical Maps
This gallery of 30 maps traces the history of cartography, with examples of maps made by cultures from the Paleolithic to the early modern period. The maps cover cities, states...
Definition
Clava Cairns - Monuments to Memory and More
Clava Cairns is an early Bronze Age site in Scotland, located east of the city of Inverness, consisting of three well-preserved cairns (two of which are passage graves...
