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Book Review
The Ptolemies, Rise of a Dynasty: Ptolemaic Egypt 330–246 BC
In the introduction, Grainger makes the disconcertingly false claim that Ptolemaic Egypt’s political and military affairs were solely the province of Greek immigrants. He further states that no native Egyptian held office “above the level...
Book Review
Persians: The Age of the Great Kings
The central idea of Lloyd Llewellyn-Jones's Persians: The Age of the Great Kings is simple. The Achaemenid Persian Empire, which flourished from the sixth to fourth centuries BCE, was unjustly smeared by its Greek enemies as barbaric and...
Book Review
The Oxford Handbook of the Archaeology of the Levant: c. 8000-332 BCE (Oxford Handbooks)
The Oxford Handbook series has some wonderful history entries such as The Oxford Handbook on the Bronze Age Aegean and The Oxford Handbook on Engineering & Technology in the Classical World, which are essential to any study of those topics...
Book Review
Great Generals of the Ancient World
In Great Generals of the Ancient World, Richard Gabriel explores the military history of nine ancient figures. Stated from the outset, he realizes that many may object to his list of great military generals, asserting that his lifetime of...
Book Review
The Pharaoh’s Treasure: The Origin of Paper and the Rise of Western Civilization
Having completed his Ph.D. in Botany at the University of California at Berkeley, John Gaudet primarily worked as an ecologist throughout his career. His early work focused on studying papyrus in Africa, working as an Africa Region Environmental...
Book Review
Exploring the Life, Myth, and Art of the Ancient Near East
In Exploring the Life, Myth, and Art of the Ancient Near East, Michael Kerrigan attempts to present the cultural depth of the ancient Near East through its myths and art, writing primarily for grades 7-12. He does so by offering summaries...
Book Review
Thinking Big: How the Evolution of Social Life Shaped the Human Mind
Thinking Big: How Evolution of Social Life Shaped the Human Mind, by Drs. Clive Gamble, John Gowlett, and Robin Dunbar, explores the prehistoric and ancient origins of our social lives in a mere 224 pages. Divided into seven chapters, Thinking...
Book Review
Heaven and Earth: Art of Byzantium from Greek Collections
Heaven and Earth: Art of Byzantium from Greek Collections, edited by Anastasia Drandaki, Demetra Papanikola-Bakirtzi, and Anastasia Tourta is the exhibition catalogue of the eponymous exhibit at the National Gallery (Washington, D.C.), the...
Book Review
Yoga: The Art of Transformation
Yoga: The Art of Transformation, edited by Dr. Debra Diamond, Associate Curator of South and Southeast Asia art at the Smithsonian's Freer Sackler Gallery, is exhibition catalogue of the eponymous exhibit at the Freer Slacker Gallery (in...
Book Review
Ancient Rome: A New History
Ancient Rome: A New History, by Dr. David Potter — Professor of Greek, Latin, and Roman history at the University of Michigan and an internationally recognized authority on the Roman Empire — narrates the spectacular evolution of Roman power...
