Ancient World
Sappho of Lesbos (c. 630 BC): The Lyric Poet and Her Fragments
Sappho's lyric poetry, admired throughout antiquity, survives mainly in fragments, with new pieces still being recovered from ancient papyri.
Region
Europe
Ancient World
Draco's Law Code (621 BC): The First Written Laws of Athens
Athens received its first written law code; most of it was repealed by Solon about 594 BC, but Draco's homicide law stayed in force for centuries.
Ancient World
Cloaca Maxima: Ancient Rome's Great Sewer and Its History
The drain made the Forum valley usable and became the trunk of Rome's sewer system; parts of it still carry water today.
Ancient World
Roman Forum: The Political Heart of Ancient Rome
The Forum became the political, religious and legal centre of Rome and is now one of the world's best-known archaeological sites.
Ancient World
Reforms of Solon (594 BC): Laying the Foundations of Athens
Debt slavery was abolished, debts secured on land were cancelled and citizens were ranked by wealth instead of birth, though civil strife continued and Athens fell to tyranny in 561 BC.
Ancient World
Eclipse of Thales (585 BC): The Birth of Greek Philosophy
Thales' reputation for predicting the eclipse made him the first celebrated Greek thinker, and his search for natural explanations began the Milesian school of philosophy.
Ancient World
Ishtar Gate of Babylon: Nebuchadnezzar's Glazed Brick Gateway
The gate became the best-known monument of ancient Babylon; its front section was reconstructed in Berlin, while its foundations remain at the site in Iraq.
Ancient World
Pisistratus (561 BC): The Tyrant Who Rebuilt Ancient Athens
Pisistratus ruled Athens as tyrant until his death in 528/527 BC; his son Hippias was expelled in 510 BC, opening the way to the reforms of Cleisthenes.
Ancient World
Paestum (c. 550 BC): The Greek Temples of Poseidonia in Italy
Three monumental Doric temples survive almost intact, making Paestum one of the most important sites for understanding Greek architecture.
Ancient World
Theatre of Dionysus (c. 534 BC): Birthplace of Greek Tragedy
The theatre became the home of the City Dionysia, where tragedy and comedy took their classical form; it was rebuilt in stone in the 330s–320s BC and remained in use into Roman times.
Ancient World
Hochdorf Chieftain's Grave: An Untouched Celtic Princely Burial
One of the very few unrobbed Hallstatt princely graves, giving a complete picture of an Early Celtic elite burial.
Ancient World
Pythagoras and His School at Croton (c. 530 BC)
Pythagoras' community became a powerful religious and political brotherhood in Magna Graecia and gave rise to a philosophical tradition that linked mathematics, music and the soul.