Bettany Hughes

Una ciudad con tres nombres Bizancio, Constantinopla, Estambul que en sus seis mil años de historia ha sido capital de cuatro imperios el de Roma, el bizantino, el imperio latino de los cruzados y el otomano y sede tanto del patriarcado cristiano como del califato islamico. Un punto de encuentro entre oriente y occidente donde se han establecido, en diversas epocas, fenicios, griegos, venecianos o vikingos. Bettany Hughes ha conseguido transformar esta historia en un relato enormemente entretenido y basado en una impecable investigacion, en palabras de Peter Frankopan, por donde desfilan los mas diversos personajes, desde Pausanias hasta Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, pasando por Constantino, Justiniano, Teodora o Suleiman el Magnifico, y donde la narracion de los grandes acontecimientos historicos y de las mas fascinantes anecdotas configura lo que la critica ha calificado como una magistral biografia colectiva.

Una ciudad con tres nombres Bizancio, Constantinopla, Estambul que en sus seis mil años de historia ha sido capital de cuatro imperios el de Roma, el bizantino, el imperio latino de los cruzados y el otomano y sede tanto del patriarcado cristiano como del califato islamico. Un punto de encuentro entre oriente y occidente donde se han establecido, en diversas epocas, fenicios, griegos, venecianos o vikingos. Bettany Hughes ha conseguido transformar esta historia en un relato enormemente entretenido y basado en una impecable investigacion, en palabras de Peter Frankopan, por donde desfilan los mas diversos personajes, desde Pausanias hasta Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, pasando por Constantino, Justiniano, Teodora o Suleiman el Magnifico, y donde la narracion de los grandes acontecimientos historicos y de las mas fascinantes anecdotas configura lo que la critica ha calificado como una magistral biografia colectiva.

La historia del mundo antiguo a través de sus siete grandes maravillasSiglos después de su construcción, sus nombres e historias aún nos fascinan: la Gran Pirámide de Guiza, los Jardines Colgantes de Babilonia, el templo de Artemisa en Efeso, la estatua de Zeus en Olimpia, el mausoleo de Halicarnaso, el Coloso de Rodas y el faro de Alejandria. Las siete maravillas del mundo antiguo fueron creaciones de asombrosa audacia y pruebas del alcance de la imaginacion humana. Aunque hoy solo queda en pie la Gran Piramide, la escala y majestuosidad de las siete maravillas sigue cautivandonos.En una narracion apasionante y llena de color, basada en los ultimos descubrimientos arqueologicos, la celebre historiadora Bettany Hughes nos traslada a los paisajes de la Antiguedad. De su mano, nos embarcaremos en un grandioso viaje por la historia. ¿Como era visitar la Gran Piramide en la Antiguedad, cuando el Nilo fluia muy cerca de ella? ¿Por que los Jardines Colgantes de Babilonia eran un verdadero paraiso? ¿Que sentia un navegante al divisar a lo lejos el Coloso de Rodas?Magistral ejemplo de historia narrativa, Las siete maravillas del mundo antiguo es una demostracion de que, en ocasiones, los seres humanos somos capaces de hacer realidad lo imposible.

Tres nombres y miles de historias en una sola ciudad: EstambulUna ciudad con tres nombresBizancio, Constantinopla, Estambulque en sus seis mil años de historia ha sido capital de cuatro imperios distintos (el de Roma, el bizantino, el imperio latino de los cruzados y el otomano) y sede tanto del patriarcado cristiano como del califato islamico. Un punto de encuentro entre oriente y occidente donde se han establecido, en diversas epocas, fenicios, griegos, venecianos o vikingos. Bettany Hughes ha conseguido transformar esta historia en un relato enormemente entretenido y basado en una impecable investigacion, en palabras de Peter Frankopan, por donde desfilan los mas diversos personajes, desde Pausanias hasta Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, pasando por Constantino, Justiniano, Teodora o Suleiman el Magnifico, y donde la narracion de los grandes acontecimientos historicos y de las mas fascinantes anecdotas configura lo que la critica ha calificado como una magistral biografia colectiva.

A revelatory new history of the ancient world told through its seven greatest monuments by bestselling author and TV historian Bettany Hughes

Uma notável biografia de uma cidade fascinanteDo Alcorão a Shakespeare, esta cidade dos três nomes – Bizâncio, Constantinopla, Istambul – foi o centro do mundo, durante grande parte da sua história,

THE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLERLife-filled and life-affirming history, steeped in romance and written with verveGUARDIANRichly entertaining and impeccably researched Peter FrankopanIstanbul has always been a place where stories and histories collide and crackle, where the idea is as potent as the historical fact. From the Quran to Shakespeare, this city with three names - Byzantium, Constantinople, Istanbul - resonates as an idea and a place, and overspills its boundaries - real and imagined. Standing as the gateway between the East and West, it has served as the capital of the Roman, Byzantine, Latin and Ottoman Empires. For much of its history it was known simply as The City, but, as Bettany Hughes reveals, Istanbul is not just a city, but a story. In this epic new biography, Hughes takes us on a dazzling historical journey through the many incarnations of one of the worlds greatest cities. As the longest-lived political entity in Europe, over the last 6,000 years Istanbul has absorbed a mosaic of micro-cities and cultures all gathering around the core. At the latest count archaeologists have measured forty-two human habitation layers. Phoenicians, Genoese, Venetians, Jews, Vikings, Azeris all called a patch of this earth their home. Based on meticulous research and new archaeological evidence, this captivating portrait of the momentous life of Istanbul is visceral, immediate and scholarly narrative history at its finest.

As soon as men began to write, they made Helen of Troy their subject; for nearly three thousand years she has been both the embodiment of absolute female beauty and a reminder of the terrible power that beauty can wield. Because of her double marriage to the Greek King Menelaus and the Trojan Prince Paris, Helen was held responsible for both the Trojan War and enduring enmity between East and West. For millennia she has been viewed as an exquisite agent of extermination. But who was she?Helen exists in many guises: a matriarch from the Age of Heroes who ruled over one of the most fertile areas of the Mycenaean world; Helen of Sparta, the focus of a cult which conflated Helen the heroine with a pre-Greek fertility goddess; the home-wrecker of the Iliad; the bitch-whore of Greek tragedy; the pin-up of Romantic artists.Focusing on the real Helen - a flesh-and-blood aristocrat from the Greek Bronze Age - acclaimed historian Bettany Hughes reconstructs the context of life for this elusive pre-historic princess and places her alongside the heroes and heroines of myth and history. Through the eyes of a young Mycenaean woman, Hughes examines the physical, historical and cultural traces that Helen has left on locations in Greece, North Africa and Asia Minor. Vivid and compelling, this remarkable book brilliantly unpacks the facts and myths surrounding one of the most enigmatic and notorious figures of all time.

Lively THE TIMESEngrossing THE SPECTATORStunning WOMAN & HOMEMarvellous BBC HISTORY MAGAZINEThrough ancient art, evocative myth, intriguing archaeological discoveries and philosophical explorations, Bettany Hughes takes us on a voyage of discovery to reveal the truth behind Venus, and why this immortal goddess is so much more than nudity, romance and sex. It is both the remarkable story of one of antiquitys most potent forces, and the story of human desire - how it transforms who we are and how we behave.

Its your LUCKY day! Youve stumbled across an ancient treasure chest in your school that was buried THOUSANDS of years ago by achild living in ancient Egypt. And the chest is packed with 20 strange and curious items that tell us so much about their life, such as: The OLDEST cheese in the world A special lunch box shaped like a DUCK Slippers worn by the YOUNGEST ever Pharaoh MAGICAL spells written on ancient tombs!Unpack the treasure chest and discover the objects that a child just like YOU was using thousands of years ago. Youll uncover fascinating facts and true tales about their school, family life, clothes, games, favourite snacks and so much more.The true, real-life experiences of children in ancient times is a part of history that has been neglected for far too long award-winning historian, broadcaster and bestselling author Bettany Hughes is here to dig up this newly discovered information for young budding historians everywhere

Its your LUCKY day! Youve stumbled across an ancient treasure chest in your garden that was buried THOUSANDS of years ago by a child living in ancient Rome. And the chest is packed with 20 strange and curious items that tell us so much about their life, such as: Armour made of REAL crocodile skin Twinkling TREASURE said to protect its wearer from evil A fun game made of a PIGS KNUCKLE Evidence of the worlds first PIZZA! Unpack the treasure chest and discover the objects that a child just like YOU was using thousands of years ago. Youll uncover fascinating facts and true tales about their school, family life, clothes, games, favourite snacks and so much more.The true, real-life experiences of children in ancient times is a part of history that has been neglected for far too long award-winning historian, broadcaster and bestselling author Bettany Hughes is here to dig up this newly discovered information for young budding historians everywhere.

We think the way we do because Socrates thought the way he did. His aphorism The unexamined life is not worth living may have originated twenty-five centuries ago, but it is a founding principle of modern life. For seventy years Socrates was a vigorous citizen of Golden Age Athens, philosophising in the squares and public arenas rather than in the courts of kings, before his beloved city turned on him, condemning him to death by poison.Socrates lived in and contributed to a city that nurtured key ingredients of contemporary civilisation - democracy, liberty, science, drama, rational thought - yet, as he wrote almost nothing down, he himself is an enigmatic figure. In The Hemlock Cup, acclaimed historian Bettany Hughes gives Socrates the biography he deserves, painstakingly piecing together Socrates life and using fresh evidence to get closer to the man who asked how should we live? - a question as relevant now as it has ever been.

The Sunday Times BestsellerA wondrous wonderful achievement STEPHEN FRYLonglisted for The Anglo-Hellenic League Runciman Award 2025The Seven Wonders of the World were staggeringly audacious impositions on our planet. They were also brilliant adventures of the mind, test cases for the reaches of human imagination. Now only the great pyramid remains fully standing, yet the scale and majesty of these seven wonders still enthral us today. In a thrilling, colourful narrative enriched with the latest archaeological discoveries, bestselling historian Bettany Hughes walks through the landscapes of both ancient and modern time. This is a journey whose purpose is to ask why we wonder, why we create, why we choose to remember the wonder of others. She explores traces of the Wonders themselves, and the traces they have left in history. A magisterial work of historical storytelling, The Seven Wonders of the Ancient World reinforces the exciting and nourishing notion that humans can make the impossible happen.Fantastic...a joy from the outset PETER FRANKOPANFascinating...all told with Bettanys natural sense of wonder and adventure SIMON SEBAG MONTEFIORE

A revelatory new history of the ancient world told through its seven greatest monuments by bestselling author and TV historian Bettany Hughes

THE 1 SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER When you want to sort medical fact from medical fiction Dr Karan is your man This is the only book that will have you laughing and learning in equal measure Dr Julie Smith bestselling author of Why Has Nobody Told Me This Before In a world of charlatans and social media snake oil salesmen Dr Karan provides a voice of reason his health hacks may save your life Mail on Sunday The hilarious myth busting survival guide to the human body from TikTok s favourite General Surgeon Though the odds are stacked against us the human body has an extraordinary tendency to survive Full of hard learned lessons and health hacks from Dr Karan Rajan s years working the hospital wards This Book May Save Your Life is a head to toe ode to our amazing bodies warts and all that will help you to worry less and live better for longer Here Dr Karan explains the weird and wonderful bodily functions that keep us going and offers practical advice to help you thrive when things go wrong including THE DANGERS OF PLUCKING YOUR NOSE HAIRSYOUR UNTAPPED NATURAL REFLEXES TO COMBAT STRESSHOW TO MANAGE PAIN WITH SIMPLE MIND TRICKSAND WHY YOU SHOULD NEVER HOLD IN A FART I ll never look at my an