De Cleopatra's: de vergeten koninginnen van Egypte

THE PERSIANS is a definitive new history of the Persian Empire, the world's first superpower.The Great Kings of Persia ruled over the largest Empire of antiquity, stretching from Libya to the Steppes of Asia, and from Ethiopia to Pakistan. At the heart of the Empire was the fabled palace-city of Persepolis where the Achaemenid monarchs held court in unparalleled grandeur. From here, Cyrus the Great, Darius, Xerxes, and their heirs passed laws, raised armies, and governed their multicultural Empire of enormous diversity.The Achaemenids, however, were one of the great dysfunctional families of history. Brothers fought brothers for power, wives and concubines plotted to promote their sons to the throne, and eunuchs and courtiers vied for influence and prestige.Our understanding of the Persian Empire has traditionally come from the histories of Greek writers such as Herodotus - and as such, over many centuries, our perspective has been skewed by ancient political and cultural agendas. Professor Llewellyn-Jones, however, calls upon original Achaemenid sources, including inscriptions, art, and recent archaeological discoveries in Iran, to create an authentic 'Persian Version' of this remarkable first great empire of antiquity - the Age of the Great Kings.

'A book that's rich with meticulous scholarship, illuminated by sharp wit, and full of subtle judgment. Babylon is quite simply enthralling'¿¿¿¿¿ TELEGRAPH'Intimate and immensely detailed. I've never encountered a work of ancient history so finely drawn'THE TIMES'Rollicking story of a city with a biblically bad reputation . . . highly readable'LONDON STANDARD'One of our greatest scholars of the ancient world . . . a remarkable feat of urban resurrection'WILLIAM DALRYMPLE'Compelling and authoritative . . . an exhilarating portrait of one of the world's greatest cities'SIMON SEBAG MONTEFIORE'A masterpiece'TRISTAN HUGHES______________Babylon often appears more myth than history. Purportedly the site of the Hanging Gardens and the Tower of Babel, its infamous presence in the Bible has made it a byword for sinful decadence. But Babylon was a real place teeming with life, a bustling mega-city on the Euphrates where schoolteachers, artisans, priests, slaves, prostitutes and soldiers rubbed shoulders in maze-like streets and busy marketplaces.The city was home to some extraordinary rulers, from Hammurabi the great lawgiver to Nebuchadnezzar II, the conqueror-king, under whose reign the city glistened in gold and lapis lazuli.In Babylon, Lloyd Llewellyn-Jones brings the city vividly to life, tracing its foundation through to its world domination, and subsequent decline, fall and ruin into dust. From ribald drinking songs to acerbic letters between rival kings, the extraordinary ancient sources help inform what is both a stunning work of scholarship and a fascinating evocation of a long-lost world.More praise for BABYLON:'Engrossing and informative'DR. ERIC H. CLINE'Sweeps you up and carries you off like the River Tigris itself!'IRVING FINKEL'Babylon is brought brilliantly to life . . . highly engaging'BUZZ MAGAZINE