Amazon.com description: Product Description: Beginning with prehistory and continuing to the brink of the European Renaissance, this broad-based reference set offers readers comprehensive coverage of a diversity of ancient and medieval civilizations and cultures. In addition to the Greeks and Romans, readers will be introduced to the Egyptians, Mesopotamians, Phoenicians, Jews, Hittites, Chinese, and Persians, among many others. Readers will also learn about the development of religions, economies, governments, politics, the arts, and cultures. The 11 volumes arranged chronologically; Origins of Humanity; Egypt and Mesopotamia; Ancient Cultures; The Ancient Greeks; Greece and Rome; The Roman Empire; Religions of the World; Christianity and Islam; The Middle Ages; Medieval Politics and Life; and, Empires of the Ancient World. The Additional index volume includes: individual volume indexes, time lines, glossaries, and further readings Although this set focuses on the development of Western civilization, it also provides ample coverage of Egypt, Mesopotamia, Asia, Africa, and the Americas to give readers a balanced picture of the premodern world. The Volume 12 includes: comprehensive index; and thematic indexes - Arts and Culture, Customs and Everyday Life, Government and Politics, Major Geographical Locations, Religion, Trade and Economy, and Wars and Battles. It also includes comprehensive chronicles of history, time line, and glossary. Accessibly written and profusely illustrated with striking colour photographs and artwork, this reference gives readers factual detail and comprehensive perspective on the distant past.