China and Rome were the two great economic superpowers of the Ancient World. Yet their empires were separated by thousands of miles of inhospitable terrain, dramatically reducing the opportunities for direct communication. Raoul McLaughlin investigates.
Clive Foss introduces the Kharijites, a radical sect from the first century of Islam based in southern Iraq and Iran, who adopted an extreme interpretation of the Koran, ruthless tactics and opposed hereditary political leadership. After causing centuries of problems to the caliphate, they survive in a quietist form in East Africa and Oman.
After the Crucifixion, writes J.K. Elliott, the disciples had a vivid and personal feeling that Jesus was in some sense still with them.
Anthony Grafton remembers Theodor Mommsen, the great German historian of the Roman republic and literary giant of his day.
Helen Strudwick, Curator of the Egyptian galleries at the Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge, explains the new refurbishment at the museum and the opportunities it has afforded.
Ray Laurence considers how children were seen in ancient Rome and looks at some of the harsher aspects of childhood – sickness, violence and endless work.
Bryan Ward-Perkins finds that archaeology offers unarguable evidence for an abrupt ending.
The beauty of Sirmione, which lies at the southern tip of Lake Garda in Italy, has proved an inspiration for poets since 56 BC, as T.P. Wiseman explains.
Adrian Mourby visits the site of a city that continues to inspire grandiose visions, as it has done for almost 3,000 years.
Danny Wood visits Carranque Archaeological Park, near Madrid, recently opened to the public.
