GALLERY 3

CIVILISATIONS AND EMPIRES

The first kingdoms began to give way to vast cultural and political groups from around 1000 BCE. The Assyrian and then Persian empires dominated the Middle East, Greek cities became established around the Mediterranean basin while the Nok and Olmec cultures spread across West Africa and Mesoamerica respectively. The evolution, encounters and clashes of these empires stimulated artistic and philosophical fusions, whose influences are still felt today. After setting out from the Greek kingdom of Macedonia in 334 BCE, Alexander the Great forged an unprecedented political union between Europe and Asia, which led to the formation of immense empires. As Rome, in its heyday, expanded its domination over the whole Mediterranean region, the Han Empire expanding across China. The collapse of these empires led to a regeneration of artistic forms that would be used by universal religions to communicate their message.