Images

Kunti leads the blindfolded Gandhari and a blind Dhritarashtra, parents of the 100 Kauravas, into exile in a scene from the Mahabharata. 16th century CE print by Dhanu.

Large scale terracotta sculpture depicting the Apollo of Veii (the Etruscan Aplu). From the roof of the Portonaccio Temple at Veii (Italy), around 510 BCE. (National Etruscan Museum of Villa Giulia, Rome)

The ruins of this fortress (Bayazit Kalesi) and tomb date back to the 9th century BCE Kingdom of Urartu just outside present-day Dogubayazit, Turkey. The Kingdom of Urartu was centered in modern-day eastern Turkey, southwest Armenia, and...

A reconstruction showing how amphorae were packed in sailing vessels for transportation across the ancient Mediterranean. (Empuries Archaeological Site Museum, Spain)

A reconstruction of a Roman wine press. (Empuries Archaeological Site, Spain)

A 1st century CE Roman plaque depicting the transportation of wine in barrels by boat. Discovered on farmland at Cabrières d'Aigues, France. (Brotte Wine Museum, Chateauneuf-du-Pape, France)

Dancing celestial attendant (apsara). From India (Uttar Pradesh). Early 12th century CE. Sandstone. H. 331/2 in. (85.1 cm) Promised Gift of Florence and Herbert Irving (L 1993.88.2) Metropolitan Museum of Art, NYC.

The Plague at Athens' by Nicolas Poussin depicting the infamous plague which struck ancient Athens in 430-427 BCE. (Gallery of Sir Frederick Cook, Richmond, UK)

Map of the Persian Royal Road from Susa to Sardes.

The cuneiform inscription gives the name and genealogy of Adad-nirari III (reigned 810-783 BCE) and was written in doorways of a palace built during his reign. Assyrian, 9th-8th centuries BCE. From Nimrud (ancient Kalhu, Mesopotamia), Upper...