Europe's past is littered with states and kingdoms, large and small, that are scarcely remembered today, and while their names may be unfamiliar - Aragon, Etruria, the Kingdom of the Two Burgundies - their stories should change our mental map of the past. In this evocative account of fourteen European kingdoms, noted British author Norman Davies (Europe: A History) peers through the cracks in the mainstream accounts of modern-day states to find the extraordinary stories of barely remembered pasts, and of the traces they left behind.

The history of humanity is a history of invention and innovation. In this original and thought-provoking book - featuring more than 150 color photographs - the director of the British Museum has selected 100 man-made artifacts, each of which gives us an intimate glimpse of an unexpected turning point in human civilization. From the very first hand axe to the ubiquitous credit card, each item has a story to tell; together they relate the larger history of mankind, revealing who we are by looking at what we have made. One of our favorite books of the year!

Certain questions are common to all of us as human beings, transending time and place, religion and culture - What's important in life? How do I know the right thing to do? How can I change? - and in this book the author presents the insights of different cultures throughout history who have grappled with the same kinds of life questions.  From Hinduism, Buddhism, Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, universal truths are highlighted that show how each spiritual tradition brings a special gift to the art of living.

Featuring 132 color photographs along with a DVD documentary, this book travels through 3,000 years of the history of chocolate. The cacao tree has been at the center of Mesoamerican mythology for thousands of years, serving not only as the source of chocolate beverages but also as a repository of cosmic powers enabling a dialogue between humans and their gods. Through archaeological and other ethnohistoric research, the authors document the importance of chocolate to gods, kings, and everyday people down through the ages.

This is a wide-ranging cultural and conceptual history of monsters - how they have evolved over time, what functions they have served for us, and what shapes they are likely to take in the future.  Asma shows how the presence of monsters and demons in myth and folklore reflect the ways in which societies handle uncertainty, ambiguity, and insecurity.

In ancient Egypt, The Book of the Dead was buried with the deceased to assist the spirit in its journey to eternal life. This special edition of the classic text comes packaged in a beautiful gold foil-stamped, embossed gift box along with a colorful scarab amulet. Translated by the eminent Egyptologist Raymond O. Faulkner, the book features hundreds of photos of jewelry, tomb paintings, amulets, papyrus scrolls, and more.

More livelihoods depended on the pungent traffic of spices, more nations participated in it, more wars were fought for it, and more discoveries resulted from it than from any other global exchange. Epic in scope, marvelously detailed, and laced with drama, this new title spans three millennia and cricles the world to chronicle the history of the spice trade: ancient Egyptians who pioneered maritime trade to fetch the incense of Arabia, Greco-Roman navigators who made their way to India for peppers and ginger, Magellan who, like Columbus and de Gama, sailed across uncharted seas in search of spices.

Seeds have influenced evolution of all life on earth, and for millennia they have influenced and sometimes determined where and how we humans live. This book, written by a pioneer conservationist and early proponent of the Millennium Seed Bank, relates the history of how, after centuries of investigation, we finally discovered what seeds do and how they have influenced the course of human civilization. In addition to the work of eccentric amateurs, explorers, and professional researchers, the book also shows that seeds have their own story and appear to have personalities, ambitions, and "stratagems" of their own.  

In the 60's and early 70's, Jose Maria "Curro" Fuentes produced many of the most important Colombian musicians and orchestras on his own Discos Curro imprint. His hand-picked bands mixed homegrown cumbias, porros, and mapales with electric bass-driven hard salsa and descargas to create a unique and thunderous sound. These legendary recordings are here released for the first time ever outside of Colombia.

Re-defining the folk traditions of their native Tuva, the four brilliant singers and multi-instrumentalists of Huun Huur Tu transform ancient and modern musical forms into a rich tapestry. Bonus: this group offers some of the best throat-singing in the world!

Composed and performed on traditional Near Eastern instruments by accomplished Arab artist Ali Jihad Racy, this CD is a musical tribute to the ancient treasures and religious symbolism of the Egyptian Book of the Dead.

This lacy sterling silver mandala pendant hosts a faceted gemstone in each corner:  garnet, amethyst and peridot. Fair Trade import from a small jewelry craftsman in Jaipur India, available in limited quantities.

One of our most popular jewelry lines are these one-size-fits all stretch bracelets, coming in a variety of styles and colors, and affordably priced for all ages.

Egyptian Wall Painting focuses on two-dimensional depictions in ancient Egypt, examining them as part of an elaborate code that was designed to maintain the Maat—or Cosmic Order, Truth-Justice, and Universal Harmony—and that figured intimately in Egyptian lives and beliefs. The text conducts this examination through two different lenses: that of Western rational analysis, with its emphasis on methods and techniques, and that of ancient Egyptian spirituality, which these complex works have handed down to our own time. Handsomely illustrated with 350 color plates, including numerous full-page details printed on a special matte paper designed to simulate the feel of the stuccoed limestone on which the original images were painted, Egyptian Wall Painting illuminates an art, language, and culture of extraordinary richness. 

What would Apollo's online profile look like? What would Aphrodite say if she had her own blog? Greek mythology hall of famers meet the modern age in a new series called Mtyhlopedia that brings the superstars of Greek and Roman myth to life. In this book, monsters are highlighted:  a goddess produces a Minotaur, the Cyclopes dine on heroes. Also available in this series: All in the Family is a family tree of classical myth, She's All That looks at goddesses, and Oh My Gods! provides an overview of gods. For ages 9-12.

During the run of the exhibition Monsters, Demons & Winged-Beasts, the bookshop will be overrun with wild mythological creatures: chimeras, dragons, phoenixes, medusas, minotaurs, and more. Individual action figures are 5" to 8" long, and a collection of several smaller figures are available packed in our Mythical Realms Toob for $10.95  (All figures are lead-free and phthalate-free.)

Weak and silent, young Sunjata is unable to walk, unable even to pull a bow, but a prophesy foretold that his mother would bear a son who will become the mansa of all the Mande people—the greatest king ever to rule. Sunjata sets out to find the strength and courage to fulfill his birthright and to overcome the plotting of a rival queen and the sorcery of the terrible tyrant Sumanguru. For ages 9-14.

Here are 30 of the most powerful myths ever written, stories of gods such as Jove, Apollo, Juno, Venus, and Mercury, recreated from Ovid's classic in the form of stories, ballads, and headline news that makes these ancient legends sing aloud on the page. Colorful and inventive art transform myths into a living, breathing children's classic to bewitch a new generation raised in a world of digital special effects. For ages 9-12.

NOVA travels to a temple built some 3500 years ago for the femal pharaoh Hatshepsut to investigate a journey depicted on one wall, a journey supposedly undertaken to a mysterious, treasure-laden land called Punt.  Did Punt exist and, if so, where was it? Did the ancient Egyptians have the expertise to embark on long sea voyages? Archaeologists and boat builders reconstruct the vessel shown on the temple carving and then launch it into the Red Sea on a unique voyage of discovery.

This beautifully photographed documentary fully captures the creation of the sacred Kalachakra (Wheel of Time) sand mandala by Tibetan monks from the Dalai Lama's personal monastery, constructing this minutely detailed "model of the cosmos" over the course of a month, from the first chalk lines to the ritual dismantling ceremony and pouring of the blessed sand into the rapids of Niagra Falls. The mandala, a universal motif and archetype, is explored on a myriad of levels by experts versed in physics, philosophy, architecture, psychology, and art, with numerous examples depicted and described.