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Decorated Pottery Jar from Abu Hamid
This type is similar to the ones used for infant burials, but this one is painted with red strips using iron oxide (hematite), material already known during the Neolithic period for coloring plaster. The Jar was carefully made on a straw...
Video
UNESCO Archives Film Collection - The World Saves Abu Simbel (1972)
Digitized by the UNESCO Archives. A production of UNESCO and the Abu Simbel Joint Venture. When the work began on the High Aswan Dam in Upper Egypt, the two temples of Abu Simbel, carved in the living rock which rises from the banks of...
Definition
Abbasid Dynasty
The Abbasids were an Arabic dynasty that initially ruled over most of the Islamic empire (save some western parts) after assuming the caliphate in 750 CE, later on, their empire fragmented, however, they retained spiritual supremacy as caliphs...
Definition
Tamar of Georgia
Tamar was the queen of Georgia from 1184 to 1213 CE. She is considered one of the greatest of medieval Georgia's monarchs, and she presided over its greatest territorial expansion, taking advantage of the decline of other major powers in...
Definition
Ibadat Khana
The House of Worship or the Ibadat Khana was established by Mughal Emperor Akbar (1542-1605 CE) for conducting religious debates and discussions among theologians and professors of different religions. Abu'l-Fath Jalal-ud-din Muhammad Akbar...
Video
Nubian Monuments from Abu Simbel to Philae (UNESCO/NHK)
This outstanding archaeological area contains such magnificent monuments as the Temples of Ramses II at Abu Simbel and the Sanctuary of Isis at Philae, which were saved from the rising waters of the Nile thanks to the International Campaign...
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Ten Great Persian Poets
Persian literature derives from a long oral tradition of poetic storytelling. The first recorded example of this tradition is the Behistun Inscription of Darius I (the Great, r. 522-486 BCE), carved on a cliff-face c. 522 BCE during the period...
Definition
Shahnameh
The Shahnameh (“Book of Kings”, composed 977-1010 CE) is a medieval epic written by the poet Abolqasem Ferdowsi (l. c. 940-1020 CE) in order to preserve the myths, legends, history, language, and culture of ancient Persia. It is the longest...
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Ferdowsi
Abolqasem Ferdowsi (l. c. 940-1020 CE, also given as Abul-Qasem Ferdowsi Tusi, Firdawsi, Firdausi) is the author of the Shahnameh (The Persian Book of Kings), one of the greatest works of world literature and the national epic of Iran. He...
Definition
Ancient Egyptian Architecture
Ancient Egyptian architecture is often associated closely with the pyramids of Giza but was actually quite diverse, taking a number of forms in the construction of administrative buildings, temples, tombs, palaces, and the private homes of...