Step back in time to discover how the world was shaped by the ancient Chinese, the Mesopotamians, the Arabs and even the Ancient Britons. Adam Hart-Davis presents an epic history of ancient inventions and is joined by his team of roving reporters on the move around the globe as they delve into the beginnings of civilization.
Who invented beer, bread and the wheel? How did the Egyptians align the pyramids so accurately? Did you know the ancient Greeks measured the circumference of the earth, invented robots and the first computer?
This epic new series begins in the Middle East with a set of amazing inventions from The Islamic World and the series finishes with the Britons. Along the way we will meet the Chinese, the Aztecs, Maya & Incas, the Romans, the Indians, the Mesopotamians, the Egyptians, the Greeks.
Nine programmes examining the military, technological, social, architectural and medical advances of each era and its peoples, What the Ancients Did for Us traces some of the defining moments in history and the key inventions that shaped our world today.
What The Ancients Did For Us in more depth:
Medicine in ancient Greece and Rome
OU
Hippocrates' four humours, Roman hygiene, the first hospitals and home remedies. The second in our articles on ancient medicine describes practices in Greek and Roman... Read more : Medicine in ancient Greece and Rome
Today's ancient pharmacists
Production team
The pharmaceutical-rich shelves of modern Western chemists and hospitals filled with sophisticated technologies seem far removed from the home remedies and medicines of the past,... Read more : Today's ancient pharmacists
OU on the BBC: What The Ancients Did For Us - The Aztecs, Maya & Incas
Production team
Find out more about The Aztecs, Incas and Mayans programme, part of the BBC/OU's 'What the Ancients Did for Us' TV series Read more : OU on the BBC: What The Ancients Did For Us - The Aztecs, Maya & Incas
OU on the BBC: What The Ancients Did For Us - The Britons
Production team
Find out more about The Ancient Britons programme, part of the BBC/OU's 'What the Ancients Did for Us' TV series Read more : OU on the BBC: What The Ancients Did For Us - The Britons
OU on the BBC: What The Ancients Did For Us - The Chinese
Production team
Find out more about the China programme, part of the BBC/OU's 'What the Ancients Did for Us' TV series Read more : OU on the BBC: What The Ancients Did For Us - The Chinese
OU on the BBC: What The Ancients Did For Us - The Egyptians
OU
Find out more about The Ancient Egyptians programme, part of the BBC/OU's 'What the Ancients Did for Us' TV series Read more : OU on the BBC: What The Ancients Did For Us - The Egyptians
OU on the BBC: What The Ancients Did For Us - The Greeks
Used with permission
Find out more about The Ancient Greeks programme, part of the BBC/OU's 'What the Ancients Did for Us' TV series Read more : OU on the BBC: What The Ancients Did For Us - The Greeks
OU on the BBC: What The Ancients Did For Us - The Indians
Production team
Find out more about The India programme, part of the BBC/OU's 'What the Ancients Did for Us' TV series Read more : OU on the BBC: What The Ancients Did For Us - The Indians
OU on the BBC: What The Ancients Did For Us - The Islamic World
Production team
Find out more about The Moslem World programme, part of the BBC/OU's 'What the Ancients Did for Us' TV series Read more : OU on the BBC: What The Ancients Did For Us - The Islamic World
OU on the BBC: What The Ancients Did For Us - The Mesopotamians
Used with permission
Find out more about The Mesopotamians programme, part of the BBC/OU's 'What the Ancients Did for Us' TV series Read more : OU on the BBC: What The Ancients Did For Us - The Mesopotamians
OU on the BBC: What The Ancients Did For Us - The Romans
OU
Find out more about The Romans programme, part of the BBC/OU's 'What the Ancients Did for Us' TV series Read more : OU on the BBC: What The Ancients Did For Us - The Romans
![Polling Station signage [Image: kagey b under CC-BY-NC-ND licence]](/openlearn/files/ole/ole_images/places/general-urban-scenes/polling-station-sign/polling station sign_0_0.jpg)
Login or Register to post comments
What The Ancients Did For Us
A major new series on BBC TWO on Wednesday nights at 8pm - Adam Hart-Davis explores the footprints of our forbears we can find in everyday life.
We'll be joined here on the history forum while the series is showing by Dave Barber and Eleanor Betts, two of the experts who helped out on the programme website.
They'll be on hand to answer your questions and queries about the ancient world.
What the Ancients.... final questions/comments
Just a note to say that Dave and I will be signing off early next week, so if you have any other questions or comments about the 'What the Ancients...' series, which you'd like us to answer, please post them soon!
Thanks for all your contributions - plenty of good questions and equally fascinating comments. I've enjoyed participating.
Eleanor
What The Ancients Did For Us
A quick tip - the series What The Ancients Did For Us is going to be shown on BBC TWO on Tuesdays from 8.30
http://www.open2.net/whattheancients/aboutseries.html
Re: What The Ancients Did For Us
When will the Chiense programme be airing?
Re: What The Ancients Did For Us
The Chinese programme is going to be the first in the series, so it's on tonight [Tuesday 16th] at 8.30pm
Re: What the Ancients.... final questions/comments
Thanks Eleanor,
I'd like to endorse that statement, i have enjoyed the series and reading your comments has proved to be very stimulating. We had some very frank views about the series and i feel that this goes to show how much more material there is to explore and how much scope there is for the development of future programmes of this kind. Oveall it seems that a good proportion of people really enjoyed the episodes they watched and, for me, it is gratifying to see that ancient history still has the power to engage and inspire a wider group than a few professional academics.
Dave
Re: What The Ancients Did For Us
Hi simon and all the other visitors to this forum. Looking forward to hearing your thoughts on tonight's episode. The image that started the programme tonight, of night time journys in the arabic desert, struck me as a very affecting one.
Re: What The Ancients Did For Us
Enjoyed the show tonight. One question - there was a brief close up of the astrolabe and it looked as though the numbers on the outside (indicating time, I think) were Roman numerals rather than Arabic. Was I right? If so, why?
Re: What The Ancients Did For Us
Hi Rod, You've got sharper eyes than me and I'm afraid I can't confirm that...perhaps someone from the production team will comment. Roman numerals were doubtless known in the Arabic world. In many regions they would have survived on decaying monuments and inscriptions. However, the Arabic/Indian counting system was far more elegant and it is hard to imagine that the Roman system would have been preferred. One might argue thast in numbering the hours of the day it was not necessary to represent 0, one of the principal advantages of the Arabic system, Roman numerals may even have been easier to inscribe, although in valuable and decorative items this was unlikely to be a consideration of tremendous significance. You can follow this link to see an astrolabe with arabic characters.
http://www.zakariya.net/images/gallery/fullsize/Aramco-Astrolabe-Face.jpg
The BBC and the Open University are not responsible for the content of external websites
Re: What The Ancients Did For Us
On this same subject, why did the script last night (Feb 16) explicitly claim that the words astrolabe and camera were Arabic, when they are plainly both Greek? And the text that the presenter was reading and running her finger along (as an example of Islamic scientific writing) was clearly Latin. Was the script trying to overemphasise the originality of Islamic science, and to blur the extent to which it was a repetition or rediscovery of the science of the Greek world that the Islamic empire had overrun?
Message was edited by: steveii
Message was edited by: steveii
Re: What The Ancients Did For Us
Hi Stevii,
Yes, you're right, both are Greek words. Here's another good astrolabe site, which suggests that Arabic treatises were often based on Greek texts:
http://www.hps.cam.ac.uk/starry/isaslabe.html. This may account for the Greek names being transliterated into Arabic.
Eleanor
The BBC and the Open University are not responsible for the content of external websites.
Re: What The Ancients Did For Us
Can anyone help me find a copy of the video on what the arabs did for us, on tape or dvd, or even for download. I would desperately like a copy of the program.... thanks
Re: What The Ancients Did For Us
Can anyone help me find a copy of the video on tape or dvd, or even for download. I would desperately like a copy of the program.... thanks