What happened to the places that history forgot – the cities submerged under water, decimated by invading armies or swallowed up by the sands of time? Where are they, and what can they tell us about our past?
From the sunken city of Thonis off the coast of Egypt to the deep cave dwellings of Derinkuyu in Turkey, Philip Matyszak brings to life the cities that time forgot, exploring sites from across Europe, the Middle East and Asia and covering four thousand years of human history.
Matyszak reveals a dynamic network of peoples and cultures who fought and traded between themselves, exchanging inventions, ideas and philosophies, with the result that peoples as far apart as Çatalhöyük in Turkey and Skara Brae in the Orkney Islands shared much of a common heritage. Where archaeological remains and artefacts have vanished completely, Matyszak turns to ancient texts to discover what happened to the cities that have never been found. The trials, tribulations and triumphs that they faced, including how they coped with the challenges of climate change, displacement and conflict, have lessons for the present.
From the sunken city of Thonis off the coast of Egypt to the deep cave dwellings of Derinkuyu in Turkey, Philip Matyszak brings to life the cities that time forgot, exploring sites from across Europe, the Middle East and Asia and covering four thousand years of human history.
Matyszak reveals a dynamic network of peoples and cultures who fought and traded between themselves, exchanging inventions, ideas and philosophies, with the result that peoples as far apart as Çatalhöyük in Turkey and Skara Brae in the Orkney Islands shared much of a common heritage. Where archaeological remains and artefacts have vanished completely, Matyszak turns to ancient texts to discover what happened to the cities that have never been found. The trials, tribulations and triumphs that they faced, including how they coped with the challenges of climate change, displacement and conflict, have lessons for the present.
Extent: 288 pp
Format: Hardback
Illustrations: 192
Publication date: 2023-10-12
Size: 24.0 x 17.0 cm
ISBN: 9780500025659
Introduction: Ghosts of the Past
The Oldest Cities
1. Çatalhöyük
2. Skara Brae
3. Akkad
4. Pavlopetri
5. Zoar
6. Hattusa
7. Mardaman
8. Thebes
9. Phaistos
From Troy to Rome
10. Troy
11. Thonis
12. Mycenae
13. Seleucia-on-the-Tigris
14. Sybaris
15. Plataea
16. Taxila
17. Tigranocerta
18. Persepolis
19. Numantia
Across the Roman Empire
20. Glanum
21. Falerii Novi
22. Cyrene
23. Tipasa
24. Baiae
25. Volubilis
26. Stabiae
27. Maiden Castle
28. Timgad
29. Antinopolis
The Empire’s Edge and Beyond
30. Palmyra
31. Waldgirmes
32. Sarmizegetusa Regia
33. Gerasa
34. Venta Silurum
35. Dura-Europos
36. Beta Samati
37. Derinkuyu
Epilogue
The Oldest Cities
1. Çatalhöyük
2. Skara Brae
3. Akkad
4. Pavlopetri
5. Zoar
6. Hattusa
7. Mardaman
8. Thebes
9. Phaistos
From Troy to Rome
10. Troy
11. Thonis
12. Mycenae
13. Seleucia-on-the-Tigris
14. Sybaris
15. Plataea
16. Taxila
17. Tigranocerta
18. Persepolis
19. Numantia
Across the Roman Empire
20. Glanum
21. Falerii Novi
22. Cyrene
23. Tipasa
24. Baiae
25. Volubilis
26. Stabiae
27. Maiden Castle
28. Timgad
29. Antinopolis
The Empire’s Edge and Beyond
30. Palmyra
31. Waldgirmes
32. Sarmizegetusa Regia
33. Gerasa
34. Venta Silurum
35. Dura-Europos
36. Beta Samati
37. Derinkuyu
Epilogue
Press Reviews
Antiquity
Nature
About the Author
Philip Matyszak has a doctorate in Roman history from St John’s College,
Oxford. He is the author of numerous books on the ancient world, including
Forgotten Peoples of the Ancient World (2020), The Greek and Roman Myths (2010) and Ancient Magic (2019), all published by Thames & Hudson.
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