Skip Channel4 main Navigation
Find out more
Interested in working for a museum?
learndirect is an excellent place to start. Here you can read a job profile for a museum curator, search for courses (for example, enter ‘museum’ in the search engine) and much more.
To find out how one British Museum curator began her career, go to Becoming a curator.
Mesopotamia
Websites
Mesopotamia
www.mesopotamia.co.uk/menu.html
A British Museum website that examines three civilisations that prospered here: Assyria, Babylonia and Sumer.
Internet Ancient History Sourcebook: Mesopotamia
www.fordham.edu/halsall/ancient/asbook03.html
Portal site with a massive number of links to excellent history sources on all aspects of Mesopotamian civilisation and society.
Books
The Cultural Atlas of Mesopotamia and the Ancient Near East edited by Michael Roaf (Facts on File, 1991)
An exploration of the geography, history, archaeology and anthropology of the Middle East from pre-history to 330 BC. Coverage includes early farming, the move towards civilisation, the urban explosion, warring states, trade, international empires and conquerors from East and West.
Get this book
Mesopotamia: The invention of the city by Gwendolyn Leick (Penguin, 2002)
Examines everyday life as it was in ten Mesopotamian cities, beginning with Eridu, the Mesopotamian Eden, and ending with Babylon, the first true metropolis.
Get this book
For local maps on Mesopotamia click here.
Rome
Websites
Time Traveller’s Guide to the Roman Empire
www.channel4.com/history/microsites/H/history/ guide03/index.html
Everything you need to make your way through the vast Roman empire and avoid its pirates, plagues, fires, conspiracies and, above all, wars.
Illustrated History of the Roman Empire
www.roman-empire.net
This enthusiast’s site contains a huge amount of information, plus maps, photographs of re-enactments and even a paper Roman legionary helmet that you can buy to wear!
Books
Chronicle of the Roman Emperors: The reign-by-reign record of the rulers of imperial Rome by Chris Scarre (Thames & Hudson, 1995)
The history of 80 Roman emperors, using timelines and visual aids. Includes biographical portraits of the 56 principal emperors from Augustus to Constantine, with a concluding section on the later ones.
Get this book
The Fall of the Roman Empire by Michael Grant (Weidenfeld & Nicolson, 1997)
In his reinterpretation of these cataclysmic events, Grant identifies 13 defects within Roman society responsible for the fall of the Roman empire. These flaws set Roman against Roman, dividing the nation and thereby destroying its ability to resist invasion.
Get this book
For local maps on Rome click here.
China
Websites
The First Emperor
www.channel4.com/history/microsites/H/history /e-h/firstemperor.html
The life of Qin Shi Huang, the first emperor of China, and what the excavations of his tomb and the Terracotta Army that protects it can tell us about life in China in the 3rd century BC.
The Silk Route
www.channel4.com/history/microsites/H/history /n-s/silkroute.html
This website takes you along the Silk Route in terms of both geography and time – from its beginning in Dunhuang in China to its end in the Middle East, with exotic stopovers along the way.
Ancient China: The Middle Kingdom
http://wsu.edu/~dee/ANCCHINA/ANCCHINA.HTM
Part of a World Civilization course from Washington State University, this is very thorough and easy to read.
Books
The Cambridge Illustrated History of China by Patricia Buckley Ebrey (Cambridge University Press, 1999)
An account of more than 8,000 years of Chinese civilisation – from prehistoric times through the rise of Confucianism, Buddhism and the imperial dynasties to the modern Communist state.
Get this book
A Brief History of the Dynasties of China by Bamber Gascoigne (Constable & Robinson, 2003)
By focusing on the key colourful characters of the eight major dynasties, Gascoigne brings to life 3,500 years of Chinese civilisation.
Get this book
For local maps on China click here.
Greece
Websites
Ancient Greece
www.ancientgreece.com
Covers art and architecture, geography, history, mythology, the Olympics, people and wars. Lots of links.
The Spartans
www.channel4.com/history/microsites/H/history /n-s/spartans.html
A complete history of the rise and fall of one of the most extreme societies in history.
The Minoans: A beginner’s guide
www.channel4.com/history/microsites/H/history /i-m/minoans.html
A selection of websites covering all aspects of Minoan history and civilisation, which flourished on Crete from 2000 to 1500 BC.
Books
Ancient Greece: A political, social and cultural history by Sarah B Pomeroy, Stanley M Burstein, Walter Donlan, Jennifer Tolbert Roberts (Oxford University Press, 1999)
The history and civilisation of ancient Greece in all its complexity and variety, from its first beginnings in the Bronze Age (c. 3000 BC) to the Hellenistic era (c. 150 BC).
Get this book
The Greek World, 479–323 BC by Simon Hornblower (Routledge, 3rd ed. 2002)
As well as a close examination of Athens, Sparta and the other great city-states of Greece itself, there is coverage of the broader Mediterranean world in which Greek culture flourished.
Get this book
For local maps on Greece click here.
Anglo-Saxon England
Websites
A Brief History of Anglo-Saxon England
www.regia.org/history.htm
A dense but readable account of the Anglo-Saxon period, from the re-enactment society Regia Anglorum.
1000 AD
www.channel4.com/history/microsites/0-9/1000ad/
This website invites you to step back in time to 1000 AD and presents an A–Z survival guide to Anglo-Saxon life.
In the Footsteps of King Harold
www.channel4.com/history/microsites/H/history /e-h/harold.html
Follow the life of the last Anglo-Saxon king and find out what can still be seen today.
Books
The Anglo-Saxons, edited by James Campbell (Penguin, 1991)
This introduction looks at the political history of the era, as well as religious, cultural, social, legal and economic themes. The authors make use of chronicles, charters, manuscripts and coins, works of art, archaeological remains and surviving buildings.
Get this book
The Blackwell Encyclopaedia of Anglo-Saxon England, edited by Michael Lapidge, John Blair, Simon Keynes and Donald Scragg (Blackwell, 2000)
This contains articles on a huge range of topics – people, places, texts, manuscripts, modern scholars, culture, artefacts – providing easy-to-access information on all aspects of Anglo-Saxon life.
Get this book
For local maps on Anglo-Saxon England click here.
Egypt
Websites
Ancient Egypt: A beginner’s guide
ww.channel4.com/history/microsites/H/history /e-h/egypt.html
A selection of the best websites and books to help you discover all facets of this intriguing society.
The Ancient Egypt Site
www.ancient-egypt.org
A Belgian enthusiast’s site that more than makes up for its bad design with the huge amount of information it contains.
Books
The Penguin Historical Atlas of Ancient Egypt by Bill Manley (Penguin, 1996)
Charts the progress of this civilisation from early times, through the expansion of the empire, the construction of the pyramids and the decline culminating in the Persian occupation, to the rise of the Ptolemys and Egypt’s absorption into the Roman empire.
Get this book
The World of the Pharaohs: A complete guide to ancient Egypt by Christine Hobson (Thames & Hudson, 1990)
Through the work of pioneer archaeologists, all aspects of Egypt's rich culture are examined, including tombs, temples and pyramids, hieroglyphs and mummies. A gazetteer of sites to visit is provided, along with a list of pharaohs and a comparative chronology.
Get this book
For local maps on Egypt click here.
Cox & Kings are the Codex prize sponsors and the amazing destinations include Peru, Egypt, China, Jordan and India. The world's longest established travel company organises high quality group tours, private journeys, family trips and tailor-made travel to the world's most exotic destinations.
Cox & Kings website
Advertisement
