The eye-catching format boasts high-quality photos, but the three types of vibrantly and meticulously rendered full-color maps are the highlight of the set. The straightforward, well-researched narrative and instructive sidebars cover the major civilizations in Europe, Africa, the Americas, and Asia. Each book has a glossary and a bibliography.'-Booklist 'This handsomely designed atlas seamlessly blends text and colorful visuals while chronicling the history of civilization from prehistoric times to the present. Colorful maps and crisp photographs of artifacts are useful and attractive. Younger students will find these volumes are a good starting point forresearch.'-Reference Books Bulletin/Booklist, 'Will be helpful to students who need historical overviews comparing major civilizations during specific time periods. The full-color illustrations add to the visual appeal of the set. The maps are easy to use, with keys explaining their presentation. 'Text describes the highlights of each civilization or historical period. THE MEDIEVAL WORLD: AD 1 to 1492Volume 3. THE ANCIENT WORLD: Earliest Times to 1 BCVolume 2. Each volume includes a glossary of terms, suggestions for further reading, and an index.The 4 volumes are:Volume 1. A chronology within each sectionprovides ready reference.

The accompanying text captures the key historical facts of the period, while sidebars focus on art and artifacts to bring each civilization to life. These clear and easy-to-understand maps show how cities have developed,flourished, and declined, how geographical centers have changed, and how civilizations have interacted over time. This state-of-the-art set boasts extensive coverage of the majorcivilizations of Africa, the Americas, Asia, and Europe, which makes it a perfect fit with the global studies and world history curriculum.Each section features a full-page regional map showing such historical events as global migration, wars, and the shift of imperial boundaries, and a highlight map that illustrates a particular aspect of politics or culture.

The World Atlas of the Past combines over 100 newly rendered full-color maps with exquisite art and photographs and engrossing narrative to trace the history of humankind from its tentative beginnings to the present.

World Atlas of the Past by John Haywood