When you think of Byzantine emperors, you don’t necessarily think of flying thrones, machines and automations, do you?

Long after the Western Empire fell, a Roman emperor returned to Rome. In 663, Constantine II visited the ancient capital under Byzantine rule. His stay became infamous for systematic stripping of ...

On the Conquest of Constantinople is one of the most important historical sources on the Fourth Crusade and the Sack of Constantinople.

We take a look at the unexpected places the Vikings reached, and what remnants of their visits you can still see today.

An ancient skyscraper considered the seventh wonder of the world crumbled to ruin centuries ago. Now an ambitious ...

A new volume published by Baylor University Press presents the first English translation of Ibn al-Layth’s Letter to the King of Rome, an early Islamic apologetic text from the Abbasid–Byzantine era.

In 1081, Alexios Komnenos faced the Normans on the Adriatic as Robert Guiscard and his son Bohemond carved into the empire at its weakest moment. This chapter follows Dyrrhachium, the rise of Bohemond ...

With new technology, smarter tools, and a lot of patient digging, historians and archaeologists are uncovering marvels from every corner of the world. One day it’s an enormous thigh bone from a ...

November 24, 2025 • Our annual reading guide returns with 380+ new titles handpicked by NPR staff and trusted critics. Find 13 years of recommendations all in one place — that's more than 4,000 great ...