How Has the Ancient World Been Appropriated in Modernity?

Nobody owns the past, but many have sought to use it to their own ends. The use, and abuse, of ancient history has been ever-present.

Persepolis Parade
Parade commemorating the 2500th anniversary of the Persian Empire, held amid the ruins of Persepolis. Iran, October 1971. Rolls Press/Popperfoto/Getty Images.

‘Cyrus the Great is portrayed as a religious man and a forerunner of monotheism’

Ali Ansari, Professor of History at the University of St Andrews

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