Ancient World
Huaca Pucllana: The Lima Culture Adobe Pyramid in Miraflores
A major Lima culture ceremonial centre, later reused as a cemetery, now an excavated archaeological site inside the modern city.
Era · c. 3000 BC – AD 500
Ancient World
The first cities, empires and written records, from the pyramids of Egypt to Greece and the Roman Empire.
Ancient World
Temple of the Feathered Serpent at Teotihuacan and Its Tunnel
A major state temple whose construction involved the sacrifice of well over a hundred people; its sealed tunnel has yielded tens of thousands of offerings.
Ancient World
Pyramid of the Sun: Teotihuacan's Monumental Great Pyramid
The pyramid became the dominant monument of Teotihuacan, the largest city of the ancient Americas, and a lasting sacred landmark for later Mesoamerican peoples.
Ancient World
Battle of Red Cliffs (208): Cao Cao's Defeat on the Yangtze
Decisive allied victory; Cao Cao's attempt to conquer the south failed, ensuring China would split into rival states.
Ancient World
Baths of Caracalla (AD 212-216): Rome's Imperial Bath Complex
Rome gained one of its largest and most lavish public baths, which operated for three centuries and survives as a monumental ruin and summer opera venue.
Ancient World
Constitutio Antoniniana (AD 212): Citizenship for All Free Men
Nearly all free inhabitants of the empire became Roman citizens, ending the old divide between citizens and provincials.
Ancient World
Three Kingdoms Period (220-280): Wei, Shu and Wu Divide China
Wei conquered Shu in 263, the Sima family replaced Wei with the Jin dynasty in 266, and Jin conquered Wu in 280, reuniting China.
Ancient World
Battle of Yiling (222): Lu Xun's Fire Attack Defeats Liu Bei
Decisive Wu victory; Shu lost most of its army, Liu Bei died the next year, and Wu kept Jing province.
Ancient World
Battle of Hormozdgan (224): Ardashir I Founds Sasanian Persia
Ardashir I killed Artabanus IV and overthrew the Parthian Arsacid dynasty, founding the Sasanian Empire, which lasted until 651.
Ancient World
Bakhshali Manuscript: Ancient Indian Mathematics and Zero
The manuscript is the oldest surviving Indian mathematical manuscript and an early witness to a written zero, though its exact date is still debated.
Ancient World
Zhuge Liang's Northern Expeditions (228-234) Against Wei
Shu won some territory and battles but failed to break Wei's hold on the north; Zhuge Liang died in camp in 234.
Ancient World
Crisis of the Third Century (235-284): Empire on the Brink
The empire fragmented and nearly collapsed, but was reunited by Aurelian and reorganised by Diocletian, emerging as a more militarised and centralised state.