Amazon.com description: Product Description: The Illustrated History of the World set covers the entire sweep of history and offers a highly illustrated portrait of global development. The set gives young people a balanced, global view of the world as it explores civilizations from the Maya of Mexico to the Sumerians of the Middle East. Each volume is organized on a spread-by-spread basis that lets young readers locate subjects with confidence and research topics in considerable depth. Every two-page spread contains a lively, thought-provoking essay accompanied by an array of striking illustrations, full-color reproductions of important artworks, photographs of archaeological finds, detailed maps, and original diagrams. Colorful sidebars on each spread detail concurrent events from around the globe and help develop a chronological and world-wide perspective.