The Mongols lived on the flat, grassy steppes of Asia, wandering with their herds of sheep, goats and cattle. They carried their tent-like, felt homes, called yurts, around with them. Mongolian herdsmen of today share the same lifestyle as that of their ancestors with life revolving around their yur... Read More
The Silk Road was a group of ancient trade routes that connected China and Europe. The Silk Road flourished primarily from 100 BCE to AD 1500. The routes stretched across about 8,050 km (5,000 miles) of mountains and deserts in central Asia and the Middle East between eastern China and the Mediterra... Read More
A hippodrome was the place for horse and chariot races. The ancient Greeks built hippodromes with seats in rows, or tiers. The seats surrounded a long race course, and curved around one end of it. A wall in the middle divided the course, and it was usually from 180 to 240 m (600 to 800 feet) long. T... Read More
Only wealthy Romans could afford to own private baths, but the city had many public ones. During the time of the emperors, the public baths became luxurious meeting places. They looked like large square or rectangular swimming pools, and were surrounded by gardens, columned marble alcoves and librar... Read More
The first gladiator games were held in a Roman cattle market in 264 BCE at the funeral of an aristocrat. At the Colosseum in Rome, wild beasts fought in the morning., and the gladiators fought in the afternoon. These cruel battles were justified as hardening Roman citizens to the sight of human bloo... Read More
Etruria was an area of Italy, known today as Tuscany, Umbria and Latium. Etruria extended from the Arno River in the north to the Tiber River in the south, and from the Apennine Mountains in the east to the Tyrrhenian Sea in the west. It is believed that the Etruscans migrated to Etruria in about 80... Read More