The year one

"Two thousand years ago, artworks of astonishing variety were being created in far-flung regions of the world. Although some of the cultures flourishing in the Year One, such as that of Rome, are well known, others may be less familiar.". "More than 150 works of art that exemplify all these societies at the Year One are illustrated in color and explained in this volume. Historical summaries accompanied by maps briefly describe the nature of each culture and the flow of power and peoples during the period centering around the Year One. An introductory essay offers both an overview and an account of the startling degree to which the ancient world was an interconnected one, crisscrossed by intrepid traders and adventurers who journeyed both east and west to bring back coveted goods and tantalizing scraps of information about exotic lands."--BOOK JACKET.