Roads: Did you mean...?

The discovery of diamonds in 1867 in Griqualand ultimately transformed the entire region of Southern Africa. Huge European financial investment and significant immigration followed. The diamonds led to Britain taking over Griqualand and the...

The Hymn to Inanna (also known as The Great-Hearted Mistress) is a passionate devotional work by the poet and high priestess Enheduanna (circa 2300 BCE), the first author in the world known by name. The poem is significant as one of the oldest...

Emperor Augustus (27 BCE – 14 CE) accomplished much during his time on the Roman throne, far more than many of his successors. According to historian Mary Beard in her book SPQR, he transformed the structures of Roman Empire, including its...

Ancient Roman culture affected vast numbers of people across the known world of its time, beginning with the rise of the Roman Republic (509-27 BCE) and throughout the duration of the Roman Empire (27 BCE - c. 476 CE in the West and 1453...

The discovery of gold at Witwatersrand in Transvaal in 1886, coupled with that of diamonds at Kimberley in 1867, transformed the entire region of Southern Africa. The 'Rand' proved to be the largest gold deposit in the world, and it led to...

The ancient site of Megiddo was the scene of a number of battles in antiquity and is best known as the source of the word armageddon, the Greek rendering of the Hebrew Har-Megiddo ('Mount of Megiddo') from the biblical Book of Revelation...

The Inca civilization (c. 1400-1533 CE) is among the most vital of South America in terms of its cultural influence and legacy. The Inca began as a small tribe who steadily grew in power to conquer other peoples all down the coast from Columbia...

The first tunnels in the Mediterranean were built to transport water from distant springs and mountains to arid areas and cities. They also ensured the constant supply of water when cities were under siege. For example, the 533 m (583 yards...

The Battle of Eylau (7-8 February 1807) was a bloody but inconclusive military engagement during the Napoleonic Wars (1803-1815). Fought on the snowy fields of Poland, the two-day battle resulted in a draw. Eylau marked the first serious...

As a superpower in its own right and in competition with Rome, Parthia's empire - ruling from 247 BCE to 224 CE - stretched between the Mediterranean in the west to India in the east. Not only did the Parthians win battles against Rome they...