{"title":"Series: Cities of the Ancient World","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eCities of the Ancient World\u003c\/em\u003e invites readers to explore the rich tapestry of urban life in bygone eras, revealing the complex interplay of culture, politics, and society that shaped early civilisations. The series offers insightful narratives and thoughtful reflections, appealing to those curious about history’s enduring legacies.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eWhether delving into the strategic importance of ancient metropolises or uncovering the human stories behind monumental developments, this collection provides a compelling window into the past. Ideal for enthusiasts of \u003cstrong\u003eHistory \u0026amp; Military\u003c\/strong\u003e and \u003cstrong\u003eTravel \u0026amp; Adventure\u003c\/strong\u003e, it blends scholarly depth with engaging storytelling.\u003c\/p\u003e","products":[{"product_id":"aleppo-by-ross-burns-9780815367987","title":"Aleppo","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eShortlisted for the 2018 British-Kuwait Friendship Society Book Prize\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eAleppo\u003c\/em\u003e is one of the longest-surviving cities of the ancient and Islamic Middle East. Until recently, it enjoyed a thriving urban life—in particular, an active traditional suq, with a continuous tradition going back centuries. Its tangle of streets still follows the Hellenistic grid, and above it looms the great Citadel, which contains recently-uncovered remains of a Bronze\/Iron Age temple complex, suggesting an even earlier role as a ‘high place’ in the Canaanite tradition.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eIn the Arab Middle Ages, Aleppo was a strongpoint of the Islamic resistance to the Crusader presence. Its medieval Citadel is one of the most dramatic examples of a fortified enclosure in the Islamic tradition. In Mamluk and Ottoman times, the city took on a thriving commercial role and provided a base for the first European commercial factories and consulates in the Levant. Its commercial life funded a remarkable building tradition, with some hundreds of the 600 or so officially-declared monuments dating from these eras. Its diverse ethnic mixture, with significant Kurdish, Turkish, Christian, and Armenian communities, provides a richer layering of influences on the city’s life.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eIn this volume, Ross Burns explores \u003cem\u003eAleppo\u003c\/em\u003e's rich history from its earliest history through to the modern era, providing a thorough treatment of this fascinating city history, accessible both to scholarly readers and to the general public interested in a factual and comprehensive survey of the city’s past.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Taylor \u0026 Francis","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47604967211244,"sku":"9780815367987","price":82.99,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/9780815367987-aleppo.jpg?v=1778117160"},{"product_id":"palmyra-by-michael-sommer-9780415720021","title":"Palmyra","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003ePalmyra: A History\u003c\/i\u003e examines Palmyra, the city in the Syrian oasis of Tadmur, from its beginnings in the Bronze Age, through the classical period and its discovery and excavation, to the present day. It aims at reconstructing Palmyra’s past from literary accounts – classical and post-classical – as well as material evidence of all kinds: inscriptions, coins, art and, of course, the remains of Palmyra’s monumental architecture.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eAfter exploring the earliest inhabitation of Tadmur, the volume moves through the Persian and Hellenistic periods, to the city’s zenith. Under the Romans, Palmyra was unique among the cities of the empire because it became a political factor in its own right in the third century AD, when the Roman military was overpowered by Sassanian invaders and Palmyrene troops stepped in. Sommer’s assessment of Palmyra under Rome therefore considers how Palmyra achieved such an exceptional role in the Roman Near East, before its demise under the Umayyad Empire.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe volume also examines the century-long history of archaeological and historical research at Palmyra, from its beginnings under Ottoman rule and the French mandate in the 1920s to the recent satellite-based prospection carried out by German archaeologists. A closing chapter examines the occupation of the site by ISIS during the Syrian conflict, and the implications of the destruction there on the ruins, the archaeological finds, future investigations, and heritage in Syria more broadly.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003ePalmyra\u003c\/i\u003e offers academics, students, and the interested reader alike the first full treatment in English of this fascinating site, providing a comprehensive account of the city’s origins, rise, and fall.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Taylor \u0026 Francis","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47607315103980,"sku":"9780415720021","price":341.0,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/9780415720021-palmyra.jpg?v=1778161488"}],"url":"https:\/\/bookhero.co.nz\/collections\/series-cities-of-the-ancient-world.oembed","provider":"Book Hero","version":"1.0","type":"link"}