I’ve previously read and recommended 1177 B.C.: The Year Civilization Collapsed, so was excited to see a continuing volume on the subject.

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What to expect

Having dealt with the collapse of the networked societies of the Mediterranean and Near East at the end of the Late Bronze Age (and how uncannily the conditions are similar to our own times!), Cline now turns to survey how these societies fared in the following centuries.

Cline first sets the scene about the collapse of civilisations, and poses the question whether there is anything we could learn from history that will be relevant to today’s challenges.

He surveys what happened the the previous great powers and their spheres of influence in Egypt and the Southern Levant, in Assyria and Babylonia, Phoenicia and Cyprus, Anatolia and Northern Syria, and finally the Aegean Region.

Having examined which societies completely disappeared, which managed to limp along, and which transformed and thrived, he contrasts and compares with modern understanding of resilience in the face of extreme risks.

What I Liked

I love how Cline makes an academic subject very accessible. In his review of archaeological evidence and putting it in context, one gets to feel like one naturally knows the ancient Assyrian rulers without the feeling of schoolboy memorisation of foreign names and dates.

One also gets to feel empathy with the archaeologists playing detective piecing the broken pieces (ha!) together. For example, in his review of ancient Egyptian burials and the moving of mummies between graves (to avoid grave-robbery, a sign of the decline of power), one gets the feeling that in Ancient Egypt they liked to play musical chairs with buried mummies. Future archaeologists opening sarcophagi must feel like the pasties in 3-card monte. As said, very accessible writing, not compromising on linking to original sources and research papers for those interested.

What to be aware of

While the book can be read by itself, I would highly recommend reading 1177 B.C.: The Year Civilization Collapsed first. If you’re just interested in an overview, you can watch Cline lecture on the subject on YouTube. For example this video – just skip about 13 minutes in:

Summary

Highly recommended for anyone with an interest in the history, archaeology, and classics of the Mediterranean and Near East from pre-history to late antiquity. Perhaps surprisingly, I’d also recommend this to readers and authors of post-apocalyptic and dystopian literature — one can learn a lot from previous collapses!

Bonus!!!

The book also reminded me of this meme, with which I’m sure Mr Cline would agree:

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Why do I read about ancient history? It helps me write! Check out the free short stories and full novels!