Images

The interior of a three-aisled vaulted Roman cistern at the ancient town of Aptera, Crete. It had three barrel-vaulted aisles divided by two rows of four longitudinal arched piers. In the absence of water sources on the hill of Aptera, the...

The remains of the ancient theatre at Aptera in Crete. The structure dates back to the early Hellenistic period and was modified during the Roman period (from the 1st century CE to the 3rd century CE). The theatre had the typical structure...

The reconstruction of the Venus of Milos as proposed by Ravaisson (1890 CE) of the Venus of Milos together with the Borghese Mars (left); an older presentation in the Louvre (1855-1875 CE) with a plinth identifying the statue as “Venus Victrix”...

Headless, 2.5-metre tall (8.2 feet) granite statue of Darius I (r. 522-486 BCE) originally made to be set up in Egypt and found in 1972 in Susa on the west side of the Gate of Darius. Darius the Great is dressed in the Persian robe but in...

The Apadana (audience hall) of the Palace of Darius in Susa (Iran) was a large hypostyle room of 36 columns. Measuring 109 metres (357 feet) on each side, it was very similar to that of Persepolis in plan and dimensions with distinctive Persian...

The foundations of the Palace of Darius the Great at Susa (Iran), the capital of Elam and of the Achaemenid Empire. The palace was built on a 12-hectare (29.6 acres) artificial platform and occupied five hectares (12.3 acres). It consisted...

Saint Mary Magdalene by Gregor Erhart around 1515-1520 CE. Sculpted in Linden wood, this statue shows the naked Mary Magdalene repenting her sins in the Grotto of Sainte-Baume (France), where she died and was believed to have been transported...

A metal armlet or anklet from Hausaland, northern Nigeria. Hausaland was composed of a group of city-states which flourished from the 15th to 18th century CE. Length: 16 cm. (British Museum, London)

The early-15th century CE minaret of Gobarau in Katsina, northern Nigeria. The city was one of the city-states of Hausaland (15-18th century CE).

This coin was issued by the Maukhari king Ishanavarman (c. sixth century CE). It shows a diademed bust on one side, with a crescent on the diadem, probably representing the king himself. The other side has a peacock with its head turned left...