◆ Atlas of Human History ◆
Civilizations
From the Nile to the Aegean to the heart of Rome — explore the cultures that shaped human history.
3100 BCE – 30 BCE
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Ancient Egypt
A civilization of the Nile famed for pyramids, pharaohs, and a profound culture of the afterlife.
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800 BCE – 146 BCE
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Ancient Greece
City-states that shaped philosophy, science, democracy, and Western art.
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27 BCE – 476 CE
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Roman Empire
A vast empire whose law, engineering, and language still shape the world.
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3500 BCE – 539 BCE
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Mesopotamia
The land between the rivers — Sumer, Akkad, and Babylon, and the first cities.
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1600 BCE – 220 CE
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Ancient China
Dynasties that gave the world paper, the compass, gunpowder, and lasting philosophy.
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2000 BCE – 1500 CE
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Maya Civilization
Mesoamerican masters of astronomy, mathematics, and writing.
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550 BCE – 330 BCE
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Persian Empire
The Achaemenid empire — the largest the world had yet seen, ruled with roads and tolerance.
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3300 BCE – 1300 BCE
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Indus Valley Civilization
One of the earliest urban cultures, with planned cities and advanced drainage.
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1438 CE – 1533 CE
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Inca Empire
The largest empire in pre-Columbian America, masters of mountain engineering.
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1345 CE – 1521 CE
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Aztec Empire
A powerful Mesoamerican empire centered on the island-city of Tenochtitlan.
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794 CE – 1868 CE
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Feudal Japan
An age of emperors, samurai, and shoguns that shaped Japanese culture.
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793 CE – 1066 CE
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The Viking Age
Norse seafarers, traders, and explorers who reached from America to Asia.
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330 CE – 1453 CE
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Byzantine Empire
The eastern Roman empire that endured a thousand years from Constantinople.
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802 CE – 1431 CE
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Khmer Empire
A Southeast Asian empire that built Angkor, the largest religious monument on Earth.
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43 CE – 410 CE
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Roman Britain
Three centuries of Roman rule that left roads, baths, and walled cities across Britain.
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800 CE – 888 CE
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Carolingian Empire
Charlemagne’s Frankish empire that revived learning and crowned a new Western emperor.
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711 CE – 1492 CE
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Al-Andalus
A brilliant Muslim civilization in Iberia famed for science, poetry, and architecture.
Explore962 CE – 1806 CE
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Holy Roman Empire
A sprawling realm of German-speaking states that endured for a thousand years.
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882 CE – 1240 CE
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Kievan Rus’
The first East Slavic state, knit together by river trade and Orthodox faith.
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1206 CE – 1368 CE
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Mongol Empire
The largest contiguous land empire in history, forged by Genghis Khan.
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100 CE – 940 CE
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Kingdom of Aksum
An African trading power that minted its own coins and raised towering stelae.
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1235 CE – 1670 CE
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Mali Empire
A West African empire of gold and scholarship, home to Timbuktu’s libraries.
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1070 BCE – 350 CE
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Kingdom of Kush
Nubian kings who ruled Egypt and built more pyramids than their northern neighbours.
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312 BCE – 106 CE
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Nabataean Kingdom
Desert traders who carved the rose-red city of Petra from living rock.
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1047 BCE – 586 BCE
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Ancient Israel & Judah
The kingdoms that gave the world one of its most enduring spiritual traditions.
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1351 CE – 1767 CE
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Kingdom of Ayutthaya
A cosmopolitan Siamese kingdom of golden temples and global trade.
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1293 CE – 1527 CE
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Majapahit Empire
A Javanese maritime empire that united much of the Indonesian archipelago.
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939 CE – 1804 CE
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Đại Việt
A resilient Vietnamese state that repelled empires and shaped a lasting culture.
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1392 CE – 1897 CE
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Joseon Dynasty
A long-lived Korean dynasty that gave the world the Hangul alphabet.
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1180 CE – 1897 CE
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Benin Empire
A West African kingdom renowned for its guild artists and intricate bronzes.
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1100 CE – 1450 CE
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Kingdom of Great Zimbabwe
Builders of a vast dry-stone city at the heart of a gold-trading realm.
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100 CE – 1300 CE
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Ancestral Puebloans
Cliff-dwelling builders of the American Southwest and master astronomers.
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600 CE – 1540 CE
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Muisca Confederation
Andean goldsmiths whose rituals inspired the legend of El Dorado.
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550 CE – 1000 CE
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Tiwanaku
A highland Andean civilization that flourished beside Lake Titicaca.
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