Civilisations: Rise and Fall — a gripping, very BBC-ish study of the collapse of ancient worlds
The declines of Rome, Egypt, the Aztecs and Japan are dealt with in BBC2’s old-school history series
Related reading
The clash within civilisations
The important conflicts today take place inside cultural-religious blocs, not between them
Our love affair with ancient Egypt will never die
Egyptomania is a cultural craze that keeps coming back, from Hawksmoor to the masters of polychromatic postmodernism
After Nations — empires and the making of our shifting world order
Rana Dasgupta’s globe-spanning history focuses on the US, China, Britain and France — but overlooks Russia and the impact of war
In search of Albion — the folklore, myths and magic that built British culture
Three books take a tour through history to unpick the facts and fictions that still inform the national sense of identity
Surviving Rome — the surprising truths about everyday life in the empire
Kim Bowes’s history examines in thrilling detail the finances, food and working practices of ordinary Romans
Inside Rome’s catacombs, a hidden world of history and faith
Descend into a sacred subterranean realm where echoes of the ancient past and early Christianity still linger