Human origins and evolution
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The First Hominins
Our ancestors before Sapiens, from ~7 million to ~4.4 million years ago: Sahelanthropus tchadensis (Toumai), Orrorin tugenensis, Ardipithecus kadabba and Ardipithecus ramidus. The first steps toward bipedalism, fossil by fossil.
The Australopithecines
Our African cousins, from ~4.2 to ~1.2 million years ago: 11 species presented (anamensis, afarensis known as Lucy, africanus, sediba, Paranthropus boisei and robustus...), with their skulls, distribution and contribution to the story of bipedalism.
The Lower Palaeolithic
The first humans, from ~2.4 million to ~200,000 years ago: Homo rudolfensis, habilis, ergaster, erectus, georgicus, heidelbergensis and antecessor. The first tools, mastery of fire and the exit from Africa.
Middle and Upper Palaeolithic
Human diversity and the flowering of symbolic thought, from ~430,000 years ago to today: Neanderthals, Homo naledi, Denisovans, floresiensis, longi, luzonensis and sapiens. Burials, ornaments, art and language.
Human Evolutionary Tree
Illustrated phylogeny of the genus Homo and our hominin ancestors: from Australopithecus afarensis to Homo sapiens, via Homo habilis, Homo erectus and Homo neanderthalensis. The major branches of our evolutionary history at a glance.
Prehistoric life and techniques
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Lithic Industry
Illustrated overview of major stone-knapping traditions from the Early Palaeolithic to the Bronze Age: Oldowan, Acheulean, Mousterian, Gravettian and beyond. A visual guide to understanding the evolution of lithic techniques and cultures over 3 million years.
Prehistoric Dwellings
Caves, tents, huts and camps, from 2.5 million years ago to the end of the Palaeolithic: the five main dwelling types, how a camp was organised, the materials used and the major sites (Terra Amata, Molodova, Mezhyrich, Dolni Vestonice).
Prehistoric Animals
Visual guide to iconic prehistoric megafauna: woolly mammoths, woolly rhinoceroses, saber-toothed cats, megaloceros and other extinct species. Each species is presented with its key characteristics and time period.
Prehistoric Art
Map and typology of major prehistoric rock art sites: cave paintings, engravings, Venus figurines and portable art. From the caves of Chauvet and Lascaux to Altamira, a panorama of humanity's earliest artistic expressions.
Neolithic and megaliths
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Megalithism
Raising stones to celebrate, honour and remember, from ~7000 to ~1500 BC: dolmens, menhirs, alignments, cairns, cromlechs and tumuli. How these stones were quarried, moved and raised, why, and where (Carnac, Stonehenge, Gavrinis, Newgrange).
First civilisations
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The Greatest Civilisations
Comparative table of the great civilisations up to 0 BC: Egypt, Mesopotamia, the Indus, China, Greece, Persia and Rome. Period, region, major contributions and iconic achievements, with a synthesis timeline.
The Mesopotamian Civilisation
From 3500 BC to 0, between the Tigris and the Euphrates: cuneiform writing, the wheel, the first law codes, ziggurats and the Epic of Gilgamesh. A ten-period chronology, deities, society and legacy.
The Indus Civilisation
3300 to 1300 BC, South Asia's first great urban civilisation: grid-planned cities, sewers and ritual baths, standardised weights, a still-undeciphered script. Mohenjo-daro, Harappa, Dholavira.
Ancient China (Xia, Shang, Zhou)
About 2100 to 0 BC, at the roots of a millennia-old civilisation: oracle bones and the birth of writing, ritual bronzes, chariots, irrigated farming and the emergence of classical thought.
Ancient Egypt
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The Dynasties of Ancient Egypt
More than 3,000 years of history in a single table: from the predynastic Naqada period to Ptolemaic Egypt, with the dynasties, dates, key features and landmark sites of each period.
The Greatest Pharaohs
Ten rulers who shaped Egypt, from Narmer to Cleopatra VII, including Djoser, Khufu, Hatshepsut, Thutmose III and Ramesses II: reign, achievements, legacy and why they are remembered.
Iconic Buildings of Ancient Egypt
From 3100 BC to 0: the Giza pyramids, Abu Simbel, Karnak, Luxor, Deir el-Bahari and the Valley of the Kings. Materials, craftsmanship, building functions and key figures of Egyptian architecture.
Ancient worlds: Greece, Persia, Rome
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Ancient Greece
From 1200 to 0 BC, the cradle of democracy, philosophy and the arts: from the Mycenaean palaces to the Roman conquest, in six major periods, with the city-states, beliefs, art and legacy.
The Persian Empire
From 550 to 330 BC, antiquity's first universal empire: satrapal administration, religious tolerance, the Royal Road and postal service, from Cyrus II to its fall before Alexander.
The Achaemenid Empire
550 to 330 BC, the largest empire of the ancient world before Alexander: the six great kings from Cyrus II to Darius III, the satrapy system, Persepolis, Zoroastrianism and a multinational army.
Rome (Republic)
509 to 27 BC: five centuries of expansion and ingenuity. Republican institutions, social struggles, the Punic Wars, roads and aqueducts, society and values, up to the final crisis.
Rome (Empire)
From 27 BC to the threshold of our era: the Roman peace, engineering, law and architecture serving a unified world. A chronology of the imperial periods, society, army and legacy.
The 7 Wonders of the Ancient World
Built between the 6th and 3rd centuries BC: the Great Pyramid of Giza, the Hanging Gardens, the Temple of Artemis, the Statue of Zeus, the Mausoleum at Halicarnassus, the Colossus of Rhodes and the Lighthouse of Alexandria.
Timelines
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Prehistoric Timeline
Complete visual timeline of Prehistory: from Ardipithecus ramidus 4.4 million years ago to the first civilizations. All the major milestones of the human adventure placed on a clear, documented timeline.
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