National Geographic Atlas of the Ancient World: Exploring Great Civilizations

by National Geographic Society

National Geographic Atlas of The Ancient World Issue 67

Genres: History, Nonfiction

116 pages, Paperback

Published October 28, 2016

About the author

The National Geographic Society (NGS), headquartered in Washington, D.C., United States, is one of the largest nonprofit scientific and educational organizations in the world.
Founded in 1888, its interests include geography, archaeology, and natural science, the promotion of environmental and historical conservation, and the study of world culture and history. The National Geographic Society's logo is a yellow portrait frame—rectangular in shape—which appears on the margins surrounding the front covers of its magazines and as its television channel logo. Through National Geographic Partners (a joint venture with The Walt Disney Company), the Society operates the magazine, TV channels, a website, worldwide events, and other media operations.

Reviews

[Elessar · Rating 3 out of 5]

3,5/5

Este interesante atlas del mundo antiguo publicado por la National Geographic destaca principalmente por lo que lo convierte en atlas: los mapas. Cada página viene ilustrada por uno, o varios, que —me imagino— son exclusivos para la edición. Dividido en cuatro grandes bloques: Egipto, Próximo Oriente, Grecia y Roma, no se nos cuenta la historia de cada uno de ellos, sino que cada página consiste en un pequeño vistazo a un momento estelar de la civilización en cuestión. Encontraremos, por tanto, unas 10 o 12 entradas por bloque ordenadas cronológicamente para acontecimientos que nunca antes había visto ilustrados por mapas. Un libro interesante, pero que aportará poco para aquellos con conocimientos previos en el tema.

[Amy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Okay, it was sold like a magazine, but this is a great "Brief History of the World." They included very interesting details of Eastern empires, as well. I also loved the photographs of architecture and artifacts.

[Bob Newman · Rating 3 out of 5]

a very general introduction

National Geographic has been famous for writing about science and far away places (or places close to home) in an interesting manner, accessible to millions. It has also been rightly famous for its maps and atlases. This work, which I bought at my local supermarket, is a combination of maps and history. If it were just for the maps, I would say it's worth a lot, because as usual, they are of high quality and very interesting. As for the history, it's an attempt to cover the world from Mesopotamia, Egypt, Greece, Rome and China to the Mayas, Australian Aborigines, and Cahokia. In a slim magazine-type volume of 111 pages, loaded with (great) photos and some paintings, such an attempt was doomed to mediocrity. I'm not saying you can't learn anything from it. Maybe it would be good for kids, but for anyone who has read some history, it's just too brief. I found a few mistakes and contradictory dates etc. So, maps=5 stars, "exploring great civilizations"=3 stars. As for the illustrations, up to the usual great standard.

[David Raz · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was pleasantly surprised by National Geographic's Atlas of the Ancient World. Unlike some of their earlier books, which felt directionless and oddly edited, this one offers a coherent structure and a clear sense of purpose. The diagrams and maps—always a strong point for NG—are exceptionally well done, and for once, they're paired with informative, well-written text. Even the photo selection, which I’ve found haphazard in past volumes, seems thoughtfully curated and of much higher quality. I've already returned to this book twice to look up forgotten facts, which is a good sign it will stay in use—unlike its predecessors. Four out of five stars.

[Eric · Rating 3 out of 5]

A collection of historical summaries, comprised of the great leaders and civilizations of our past. Nothing revelatory here. My biggest criticism: many of the photos and maps aren’t explained and lack context. A light read, just for fun.

[Mary · Rating 3 out of 5]

Bough primarily for the detailed maps of the Holy Land and surrounding territory.

[Elizabeth · Rating 5 out of 5]

National Geographic Atlas of the Ancient World: Exploring Great Civilizations by National Geographic Society – A cool collection of maps and facts! Happy Reading!

[hannah rosenman · Rating 4 out of 5]

history major activities

[Joe Sampson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Concise discussion of ancient civilisations throughout the world.

[Rebecca · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an interesting and informative magazine about the ancient world. Despite being limited by its magazine format, it makes a good summary on information about ancient civilizations.

NatGeo offers enough information on various aspects of the ancient world for a layman to get a good grasp on it, without getting into details that would be too much for a magazine. I feel that NatGeo is trying to appease some very different demographics, mostly younger readers interested in women’s perspectives and non-European civilizations and older readers who read NatGeo because of inertia and want to know about Bible times. And of course, I mostly read it for the maps. I loved the maps.

National Geographic again produces a great magazine for readers who both want to know more about ancient history and armchair historians who want to nitpick the data. It contains the most updated historical knowledge—for 2016. And I enjoyed reading it. It’s a crash course on the ancient world.