What do you think?
Rate this book
TimeFrame #2
The Age of God Kings : 3000 - 1500 B. C.
Photographs and text describe the birth of civilization in Sumer, the Pharaohs in Egypt, the Aegean Empire, and civilization in Asia.
176 pages, Hardcover
Published January 1, 1987
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
April 3, 2018
A really good general survey of civilizations of this era. I especially enjoyed the chapter on Sumeria. I've found Time-Life books to be excellent presentations on a fairly superficial level, most appealing to those like myself who are not "professional" historians but are fascinated by the events of the past.
July 23, 2013
I read this book along with all of the others in the TimeFrame series as my initial introduction to history. They run from Pre-History up to the early 1990's in a chronological manner spanning some 25 volumes.
Reading this series will make your entire study of history much more meaningful and rewarding. It is perfect for anyone who needs an overarching understanding of how the different periods of human history developed and how each period and event relates to the next.
I knew almost nothing of history when I found this series of books and I thoroughly devoured them.
This series of books provides a fantastic blueprint of the history of the world. It lays out the chronology and the geography of the major themes and events of world history in a very coherent, organized structure. Using this series as a starting place, every other aspect of history you will subsequently learn about will only add to what you've read here as you fill out your knowledge. Reading history books is not necessarily meaningful or intriguing without the ability to place what you're reading into a wider context. After reading this series you will be able to understand any element of history much better by realizing how it relates to the whole.
In sum, I cannot recommend these books enough for anyone wanting a compelling and comprehensive overview of world history.
Reading this series will make your entire study of history much more meaningful and rewarding. It is perfect for anyone who needs an overarching understanding of how the different periods of human history developed and how each period and event relates to the next.
I knew almost nothing of history when I found this series of books and I thoroughly devoured them.
This series of books provides a fantastic blueprint of the history of the world. It lays out the chronology and the geography of the major themes and events of world history in a very coherent, organized structure. Using this series as a starting place, every other aspect of history you will subsequently learn about will only add to what you've read here as you fill out your knowledge. Reading history books is not necessarily meaningful or intriguing without the ability to place what you're reading into a wider context. After reading this series you will be able to understand any element of history much better by realizing how it relates to the whole.
In sum, I cannot recommend these books enough for anyone wanting a compelling and comprehensive overview of world history.
Read
July 11, 2026Dit boek vormt het tweede deel in de Engelstalige TimeFrame-reeks. Ik las echter de Nederlandse vertaling, die het eerste van twintig (in plaats van vijfentwintig) delen vormt in de Nederlandstalige wereldgeschiedenisreeks van Time-Life. De Nederlandse titel luidt De vroegste beschavingen: 3000–1500 v.Chr.
Net als alle andere Time-Life-delen is dit boek in de eerste plaats niet voor academici geschreven, maar voor de ‘gewone Nederlander’, zeg maar Henk en Ingrid. Al ben ik meteen bevooroordeeld bij het horen van dit duo: zouden Henk en Ingrid eigenlijk wel van lezen houden? Maar dat is een ander verhaal.
Kennelijk houd ik meer van illustraties en foto’s bij een tekst dan ik normaal gesproken durf toe te geven, want deze verrijkten het boek behoorlijk. Veel informatie uit dit boek had ik al eerder in andere boeken gelezen, al zou ik niet alles uit mijn hoofd kunnen opdreunen. Mede dankzij de mooie vormgeving vormt dit boek daarom een waar feest van herkenning.
Vooral de eerste twee à drie hoofdstukken – over de Sumeriërs, de Egyptenaren en, in iets mindere mate, de Kretenzische beschaving – boden mij weinig echt nieuwe informatie, op de prachtige foto’s na dan. Het vierde hoofdstuk ging over de ‘ontwikkelingen in Azië’. Hier lag de focus op drie regio’s: de Indusbeschaving, het gebied rond de Mekong in Zuidoost-Azië en het gebied rond de Gele Rivier in China.
Dat Zuidoost-Azië als een van de bakermatten van de vroege beschaving werd genoemd, verraste mij eerlijk gezegd wel enigszins. Maar goed: de bewoners van deze regio hebben natuurlijk wel rijst gedomesticeerd. Daarnaast bleek uit het verhaal dat zij ook bedreven waren in pottenbakken en het vervaardigen van bronzen voorwerpen. Deze regio bracht in deze periode echter geen grote steden voort en kende evenmin het schrift.
Dit boek stelde absoluut niet teleur. Ik heb meerdere boekenseries in fysieke vorm aangeschaft om de komende jaren te lezen, maar deze eerste Time-Life-serie zou weleens mijn favoriet kunnen worden.
Net als alle andere Time-Life-delen is dit boek in de eerste plaats niet voor academici geschreven, maar voor de ‘gewone Nederlander’, zeg maar Henk en Ingrid. Al ben ik meteen bevooroordeeld bij het horen van dit duo: zouden Henk en Ingrid eigenlijk wel van lezen houden? Maar dat is een ander verhaal.
Kennelijk houd ik meer van illustraties en foto’s bij een tekst dan ik normaal gesproken durf toe te geven, want deze verrijkten het boek behoorlijk. Veel informatie uit dit boek had ik al eerder in andere boeken gelezen, al zou ik niet alles uit mijn hoofd kunnen opdreunen. Mede dankzij de mooie vormgeving vormt dit boek daarom een waar feest van herkenning.
Vooral de eerste twee à drie hoofdstukken – over de Sumeriërs, de Egyptenaren en, in iets mindere mate, de Kretenzische beschaving – boden mij weinig echt nieuwe informatie, op de prachtige foto’s na dan. Het vierde hoofdstuk ging over de ‘ontwikkelingen in Azië’. Hier lag de focus op drie regio’s: de Indusbeschaving, het gebied rond de Mekong in Zuidoost-Azië en het gebied rond de Gele Rivier in China.
Dat Zuidoost-Azië als een van de bakermatten van de vroege beschaving werd genoemd, verraste mij eerlijk gezegd wel enigszins. Maar goed: de bewoners van deze regio hebben natuurlijk wel rijst gedomesticeerd. Daarnaast bleek uit het verhaal dat zij ook bedreven waren in pottenbakken en het vervaardigen van bronzen voorwerpen. Deze regio bracht in deze periode echter geen grote steden voort en kende evenmin het schrift.
Dit boek stelde absoluut niet teleur. Ik heb meerdere boekenseries in fysieke vorm aangeschaft om de komende jaren te lezen, maar deze eerste Time-Life-serie zou weleens mijn favoriet kunnen worden.
October 7, 2019
This has been my breakfast read for the past month or so. I like to read history but rarely go back this far to 3000-1500 A.D. This Time-Life book described the history of four major civilizations, the Minoans of Crete, the Egyptians from the earliest organization of their civilization, Sumer in Mesopotamia and broad coverage of the Indus Valley, southeast Asia and China. The Minoans were the most surprising. They were a peaceful people, and to quote the book, "Perhaps because of their isolation, the people of Crete gave far less thought to weapons and war than did their contemporaries in Egypt and Mesopotamia. Unlike the Egyptians, who covered the walls of their tombs with scenes of official pomp and pageantry, or the Sumerians , who left a visual record of their conquests, Crete's artists painted idyllic scenes of people at leisure or engages in sports. They decorated walls with pictures of flowers, fish, birds and dolphins. The Cretans were a people who seemed joyously immersed in the present, in the wonders of life on their small island. And when at last, after 1000 years, they succumbed to earthquake and invasion, they left no decipherable record of their history and few other traces of their times."
February 2, 2023
I thought that it was very good, and had historical chapters that showed the same info as other books. But there were some societies, where I wondered where did they get that info? They could have shown more about how a huge volcanic eruption in the mediteranean affected different societies and even brought about their downfall.
But by and large, I think that it was very good, and showed sides of people's lives in that time period verywell.
But by and large, I think that it was very good, and showed sides of people's lives in that time period verywell.
July 15, 2023
A very informative read. This book belonged to my dad, and as a kid, was obviously way over my head. Reading it now as an adult, I am reminded of things I learned from high school in my Humanities class and Art History class by my teacher for both those classes, Ms. Garcia.
It focuses on the ancient civilizations in Mesopotamia, Egypt, Mediterranean (Crete/Minoan), and Asia, specifically from 3000-1500BC.
It focuses on the ancient civilizations in Mesopotamia, Egypt, Mediterranean (Crete/Minoan), and Asia, specifically from 3000-1500BC.
January 10, 2018
A nice summary of events in this period, extending to civilization development in southeast Asia that was new information to me.
December 3, 2021
Read this as a teenager.
February 19, 2020
Sort of a primer on the earliest "grand" civilizations of man (Sumer in Mesopotamia; Egypt of the pharaohs; Crete in the Aegean sea.....) but so clearly written and beautifully presented and illustrated that it should gain some new fans for ancient history (or maybe even archaeology), or just allow those who are already fans to appreciate these places all over again and wish they could step into a time machine.
September 23, 2010
A good overview of prehistory in five different areas. The first part is about Mesopotomia's rise and fall. The next part is about The Land of the Nile; Egypt.
The third part was about the Minoan civilization on Crete and then onto India and China.
There is also a small section on the Magaliths in Europe.
The book contained some good pictures of artifacts and artist representations of what some buildings and cities would look like.
The third part was about the Minoan civilization on Crete and then onto India and China.
There is also a small section on the Magaliths in Europe.
The book contained some good pictures of artifacts and artist representations of what some buildings and cities would look like.
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews