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Five thousand years ago there began the most momentous revolution in human history. Starting in Mesopotamia, city civilization emerged for the first time on earth, to be followed in Egypt, India, China and the Americas. The ideals of these ancient civilizations still shape the lives of the majority of mankind. In Search of the First Civilizations (previously published as Legacy) asks the intriguing question: what is civilization? Did it mean the same to the Chinese, the Indians and the Greeks? What can the values of the ancient cultures teach us today? And do the ideals of the West - a latecomer to civilization - really have universal validity? In this fascinating historical search, Michael Wood explores these ancient cultures, looking for their essential character and their continuing legacy. A brilliant exploration. Sunday Times Well-written, gorgeous and guaranteed to induce thought... Wood takes great care to put everything in a large historical perspective, which is actually more disturbing than comforting. New York Post
About the Author
Michael Wood is a highly acclaimed, best-selling author and TV presenter, as well as a regular contributor to BBC History magazine. The BBC have published Michael's previous TV tie-in titles: In Search of the Dark Ages, In Search of the Trojan War, Domesday, In the Footsteps of Alexander the Great, Conquistadors and In Search of Shakespeare. Michael Wood was born in Manchester and was educated at Manchester Grammar School and Oriel College, Oxford, where he went on to do post-graduate research in Anglo-Saxon history. He has worked as a journalist, broadcaster and film-maker with over fifty documentary films to his name, the most recent of which is the acclaimed BBC television series Conquistadors and In Search of Shakespeare. Other recent films by Michael include Legacy and Saddam's Killing Fields, an account of the destruction of the Marsh Arabs of southern Iraq.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
23 of 23 people found the following review helpful
This interesting book was adapted from the script of a popular TV series. Ambitious in scope, it attempts to describe the first 5000 years of our known civilizations. In its six chapters, the author provides a broad historical portrait of various cultures in order to find their legacy and spirit.
Iraq: The Cradle Of Civilization, explores the fertile crescent of the Sumerians, Babylonians and others, up to modern times and including the golden age of Baghdad. The chapter India: Empire Of Spirit, includes the early cultures of the Indus and the Ganges, plus religions that originated there, like Buddhism, Jainism and Hinduism. It includes the periods of Islamic and British rule in the subcontinent.
There are illuminating passages on Confucius, Taoism and the contact with the West in the chapter China: Mandate Of Heaven, whilst Egypt: Habit Of Civilization, deals with the early dynastic period, the pyramid era, the spread of Christianity, the end of Paganism and the Islamic era. The achievements of the Aztecs, Maya and Olmecs are explored in Central America: Burden Of Time.
The last chapter is titled The Barbarian West. It contains information on, amongst other, the legacy of Greece, the rise of Rome, the Dark Ages, the Enlightenment and the roots of the Modern West. Plenty of maps throughout the text place the history in geographical context and are a great asset. In addition, there are 16 pages of colour plates with impressive photographs.
The book is for the lay reader as of course, no study of 6 civilizations can go into any great depth in one short book. It nevertheless provides enjoyable reading and much food for thought. The book concludes with a bibliographic essay discussing sources by theme, and an index.
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful
When I first brought this book I assumed it would describe the Early Civilisations of Sumer, Egypt, India, and the Americas, perhaps in the same vein as Glyn Daniel's 'The First Civilisations: The Archaeology of their origins'. I was therefore surprised and slightly disappointed to see that this was actually a quick trip through 5,000 years of Human history, from Ancient Sumeria to Saddam Hussein. But whatever disappointment I first had with the book began to disappear as I continued to be drawn in by the author's stirring prose. Michael Wood explains the origins of these early civilisations, and how they developed and grew into the modern societies that exist today. He analyses the history of Iraq, India, China, Egypt, Central America and the 'Barbarian' West in order to capture something of the essence and spirit of these cultures, and how they defined Civilisation. He also shows how the pendulum of history swings, by explaining how the powerful ancient civilisations of Iraq, Egypt, and China were overtaken and surpassed by Western Europe, a process that didn't get fully into swing until the 16th century AD. In order to give you an idea on the breadth of this book, in the last chapter, the Barbarian West, which is around 25 pages long, it explains the history of the West from the Greeks and Romans to the Dark Ages and Medieval period, the Renaissance, the Enlightenment, the Founding of the USA, the Industrial Revolution, right up to the 21st century. As you can imagine, you cannot do justice to 2,500 years worth of continental history in only 25 pages, but Wood does not give you chronological guide to the period, but instead shows how Western Culture, be it arts, music, or science, came to dominate the world. This is not the best book Wood has written, but it's still better than most other History textbooks. Wood is an erudite writer, and he does a brilliant job of explaining and putting these historical periods in perspective. If you want a relatively quick guide through human history and the meaning and essence of Civilisation, then this book is a definite must have. Note: This book has been printed under another title, 'Legacy: Search for the Origins of Civilisation', based on the Michael Wood BBC Television Series of the same name.
18 of 20 people found the following review helpful
The book freely admits that it is a beefed-up set of film scripts, reflecting the BBC series of the same name, so readers looking for something more robust may have to look elsewhere. It did have the feel of a series of essays, and Mr Wood does indulge in the occasional academic critique which would be more at home in a more formal text book. The book claims that it does not seek to give a full picture of the civilizations it investigates, only that it should act as a teaser for wider reading. I agree. Of course a 200 odd page book was never going to be big enough to deal in detail with the ancient Sumerians, Indians, Egyptians, Chinese, Americans and even the Barbarian West. Perhaps where the book may concern, is that it forgets to go back to base-one. It is perhaps too keen to impress with its pseudo-political points, and forgets to give a cohesive outline of what happened, when, where and why. However, if you have a vague idea of the general chronology and major players in ancient history, the book is an easy and useful addition to the library.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
InSearch of The First Cicilizations
This is a great read also a learning curve. As always Michael Woods
provides boundless iformation which makes the reader want to know more............A. Read more
provides boundless iformation which makes the reader want to know more............A. Read more
Published 14 months ago by britkaty
In Search of the First Civilizations
I originally purchased this book on a whim and it has re-awakened my love of history. It has been some considerable time since I attended school, and over the years, I have watched... Read more
Published on 23 May 2009 by Mr. N. Hill
Dazzling overview
In the ‘barbarian west’ we seem to view other eastern and older cultures as being less-advanced, less ‘civilised’. Read more
Published on 26 Jan 2006 by "juls178"
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