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300 BC–AD 10

31. Coin with Head of Alexander

32. Pillar of Ashoka

33. Rosetta Stone

34. Chinese Han Lacquer Cup

35. Head of Augustus

PART EIGHT

Ancient Pleasures, Modern Spice

AD 1–500

36. Warren Cup

37. North American Otter Pipe

38. Ceremonial Ballgame Belt

39. Admonitions Scroll

40. Hoxne Pepper Pot

PART NINE

The Rise of World Faiths

AD 100–600

41. Seated Buddha from Gandhara

42. Gold Coins of Kumaragupta I

43. Silver Plate showing Shapur II

44. Hinton St Mary Mosaic

45. Arabian Bronze Hand

PART TEN

The Silk Road and Beyond

AD 400–800

46. Gold Coins of Abd al-Malik

47. Sutton Hoo Helmet

48. Moche Warrior Pot

49. Korean Roof Tile

50. Silk Princess Painting

PART ELEVEN

Inside the Palace: Secrets at Court

AD 700–900

51. Maya Relief of Royal Blood-letting

52. Harem Wall-painting Fragments

53. Lothair Crystal

54. Statue of Tara

55. Chinese Tang Tomb Figures

PART TWELVE

Pilgrims, Raiders and Traders

AD 800–1300

56. Vale of York Hoard

57. Hedwig Glass Beaker

58. Japanese Bronze Mirror

59. Borobudur Buddha Head

60. Kilwa Pot Sherds

PART THIRTEEN

Status Symbols

AD 1100–1500

61. Lewis Chessmen

62. Hebrew Astrolabe

63. Ife Head

64. The David Vases

65. Taino Ritual Seat

PART FOURTEEN

Meeting the Gods

AD 1200–1500

66. Holy Thorn Reliquary

67. Icon of the Triumph of Orthodoxy

68. Shiva and Parvati Sculpture

69. Sculpture of Huastec Goddess

70. Hoa Hakananai’a Easter Island Statue

PART FIFTEEN

The Threshold of the Modern World

AD 1375–1550

71. Tughra of Suleiman the Magnificent

72. Ming Banknote

73. Inca Gold Llama

74. Jade Dragon Cup

75. Dürer’s Rhinoceros

PART SIXTEEN

The First Global Economy

AD 1450–1650

76. Mechanical Galleon

77. Benin Plaque: The Oba with Europeans

78. Double-headed Serpent

79. Kakiemon Elephants

80. Pieces of Eight

PART SEVENTEEN

Tolerance and Intolerance

AD 1550–1700

81. Shi’a Religious Parade Standard

82. Miniature of a Mughal Prince

83. Shadow Puppet of Bima

84. Mexican Codex Map

85. Reformation Centenary Broadsheet

PART EIGHTEEN

Exploration, Exploitation and Enlightenment

AD 1680–1820

86. Akan Drum

87. Hawaiian Feather Helmet

88. North American Buckskin Map

89. Australian Bark Shield

90. Jade Bi

PART NINETEEN

Mass Production, Mass Persuasion

AD 1780–1914

91. Ship’s Chronometer from HMS Beagle

92. Early Victorian Tea Set

93. Hokusai’s The Great Wave

94. Sudanese Slit Drum

95. Suffragette-defaced Penny

PART TWENTY

The World of our Making

AD 1914–2010

96. Russian Revolutionary Plate

97. Hockney’s In the Dull Village

98. Throne of Weapons

99. Credit Card

100. Solar-powered Lamp and Charger

Maps

List of Objects

Bibliography

References

Picture Credits and Text Acknowledgements

Acknowledgements

To all my colleagues at the British Museum

Preface:

Mission Impossible

Telling history through things is what museums are for. And because the British Museum has for over 250 years been collecting things from all round the globe, it is not a bad place to start if you want to use objects to tell a history of the world. Indeed you could say it is what the Museum has been attempting to do ever since Parliament set it up in 1753 and directed that it should be ‘aimed at universality’ and free to all. This book is the record of a series of programmes on BBC Radio 4, broadcast in 2010, but it is also in fact simply the latest iteration of what the Museum has been doing, or attempting to do, since its foundation.

The rules of the game for A History of the World in 100 Objects were set by Mark Damazer, Controller of Radio 4, and they were simple. Colleagues from the Museum and the BBC would choose from the collection of the British Museum 100 objects that had to range in date from the beginning of human history around two million years ago and come right up to the present day. The objects had to cover the whole world,