An immersive, awe-inspiring tour of the ancient sites that kindle our imagination and afford us a glimpse into our shared history

Forty-five centuries ago, tens of thousands of workers teemed across Egypt’s Giza plateau, tirelessly heaving, chiseling, and constructing what would become the largest, tallest edifice on the planet for millennia—all for a single man, a god on earth. What would impel so early a civilization to embark on such a resource-thirsty endeavor? More importantly, what does it say about our forebears and the human will writ large?

Following the spectacular Pyramid of Giza came six more wonders of the ancient world: the Hanging Gardens of Babylon, the Temple of Artemis, the Statue of Zeus, the Mausoleum of Halikarnassos, the Colossus of Rhodes, and the Lighthouse at Alexandria. Not all were created for the benefit of one person. Indeed, one may not have existed at all. But each came to be associated with aesthetic sublimity, ingenious engineering, and sheer, audacious magnitude, imbuing their creators and dedicatees with world-historical significance for time immemorial.

Guiding us through this fascinating history is celebrated historian Bettany Hughes, who has traveled to each of the sites to scour their ruins for clues, uncovered the latest archaeological discoveries, and brought these once breathtaking places back to vivacious, captivating life. Along the way we learn of the diverse people who built them and pilgrimaged to them, the incredible planning and design behind their seemingly flawless execution, and the spellbinding stories surrounding them—of arson, war, and love—that cemented their place in history.

These wonders persist in our minds as totems of the greatness of antiquity, but beneath the familiar images is a surprising, revelatory history. Carried by Hughes’s lyrical, engrossing voice, we begin to see the ancient world, and ourselves, in an entirely new way.