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A review by vanessakm
A History of the World in 100 Objects by Neil MacGregor
5.0
This is a collection of the transcripts of all 100 episodes of the excellent BBC 4 series of the same name hosted by Neil MacGregor, the Director of the British Museum. I can't give it less than 5 stars because the content is so good-although it really is enlivened by MacGregor's presentation.
The concept was simple-take 100 objects from the Museum's collection ranging from some stone tools that are nearly 2 million years old (yeah, we're getting Homo habilis up in here) found in present-day Tanzania to a solar-powered lamp made in China in 2010. MacGregor describes the objects but he also places them in context and makes them relatable and current: a gold coin from Turkey leads to a discussion of standarized weights and how leaders declare their legitimacy by appearing on currency, the defeat of the Vikings in Britain is brought up with some buried artifacts found by metal detecting hobbyists in York, society's changing views on sexuality as explored through a Roman drinking vessel with homosexual tableaux carved on it, the high price of pepper and spices in the Roman Empire is discussed while describing a gold figurine that is also a pepper shaker (and also found buried in the UK-I'm starting to see why so many people there have metal detectors.)
The book has multiple pictures of the objects and a map of where they were found. One of the British Museum's most famous artifacts, the Rosetta Stone, also is featured. MacGregor had stated that he intended to talk about world history, not the history of other cultures only when they intersected with Europeans so fittingly the objects span the globe, time and cultures. I loved the series so I'm glad to have this written record of it. It additionally gave me a new and vivid appreciation for the Paleolithic artifacts that I used to scurry by in museums en route to flashier exhibits.
(the series is still available online and in iTunes. The BBC's website also has lots of extra content, including videos of the objects that allow you to see them in a 360 view, so you should go check that out.)
The concept was simple-take 100 objects from the Museum's collection ranging from some stone tools that are nearly 2 million years old (yeah, we're getting Homo habilis up in here) found in present-day Tanzania to a solar-powered lamp made in China in 2010. MacGregor describes the objects but he also places them in context and makes them relatable and current: a gold coin from Turkey leads to a discussion of standarized weights and how leaders declare their legitimacy by appearing on currency, the defeat of the Vikings in Britain is brought up with some buried artifacts found by metal detecting hobbyists in York, society's changing views on sexuality as explored through a Roman drinking vessel with homosexual tableaux carved on it, the high price of pepper and spices in the Roman Empire is discussed while describing a gold figurine that is also a pepper shaker (and also found buried in the UK-I'm starting to see why so many people there have metal detectors.)
The book has multiple pictures of the objects and a map of where they were found. One of the British Museum's most famous artifacts, the Rosetta Stone, also is featured. MacGregor had stated that he intended to talk about world history, not the history of other cultures only when they intersected with Europeans so fittingly the objects span the globe, time and cultures. I loved the series so I'm glad to have this written record of it. It additionally gave me a new and vivid appreciation for the Paleolithic artifacts that I used to scurry by in museums en route to flashier exhibits.
(the series is still available online and in iTunes. The BBC's website also has lots of extra content, including videos of the objects that allow you to see them in a 360 view, so you should go check that out.)