Selected Ancient Sources in Translation:

- Discourses on salt and iron : a debate on state control of commerce and industry in ancient China / Chapters i-xxviii translated from the Chinese of Huan K'uan with introduction and notes by Esson M. Gale. 1931 Leiden, and 1967 Taipei : Ch'eng-Wen Publishing Co.

- McCrindle . (2012). The Periplus Maris Erythraei : text with introduction, translation, and commentary

- Hill, J E 2009 Through the Jade Gate to Rome (Chapter on the Western Regions from the Hou Han Shu)

- B. Watson 1961 Records of the Grand Historian Sima Qian (vols 1-3)

- D D Leslie and K. Gardiner 1996 The Roman Empire in Chinese Sources (Studi Orientali)

- Dubs, Homer H. The History of the Former Han Dynasty. 3 vols. Baltimore: Waverly, 1938-55

- G. Coedes (revised by J. Sheldon) 2010 Texts of Greek and Latin Authors on the Far East

On line resources:

- See the Syllabus page for links to particular online primary source materials

- In addition, see the following online interviews that may be of interest:

Dr Sarah Derbew (Harvard) talks about blacks in antiquity and the decolonisation of classical curricula.

General Bibliography:

Comparative Studies:

- M. Sim 2007 Remastering morals with Aristotle and Confucius

- W. Scheidel (ed.) 2009 Rome and China: Comparative Perspectives on Ancient World Empires;
- H. Jin Kim 2009 Ethnicity and Foreigners in Ancient Greece and China;
- L. Raphals 1992 Knowing Words: Wisdom and Cunning in Classical Traditions of China and Greece;
- S. Shankman and S. Durrant (eds.) 2002 Early China/ Ancient Greece: Thinking through comparisons
- D. Gera 1998 Judea and Mediterranean Politics: 219-161 BC;

- P. de Souza 2004 The Ancient World at War
- X. Liu 1994 Ancient India and Ancient China: trade and religious exchanges;

- S. Sharot 2001 A Comparative Sociology of World Religions: Virtuosos, Priests and Popular Religion;
- B. Wang & T. Sen (eds) 2011 India and China: interactions through Buddhism and Diplomacy;

- W. Scheidel (ed.) 2015 State power in Ancient China and Rome;
- F. Mutschler & A Mittag (eds) 2008 Conceiving the empire: Rome and China compared.
- G. Lloyd 1996 Adversaries and Authorities: Investigations into ancient Greek and Chinese Science
- G Lloyd 2002. The Ambitions of Curiosity: Understanding the World in Ancient Greece and China. Cambridge:
- G. Lloyd and N. Sivin 2002 The Way and the Word: Science and Medicine in Early China and Greece
- G. Lloyd 2004. Ancient Worlds, Modern Reflections: Philosophical Perspectives on Greek and Chinese Science and Culture
- G. Lloyd 2005. The Delusions of Invulnerability: Wisdom and Morality in Ancient Greece, China and Today. London:
- G. Lloyd 2006. Principles And Practices in Ancient Greek And Chinese Science

- W. Teh-Yao 1978 Confucius and Plato’s ideals on a Republic

China:

- J. Roberts 1999 A History of China
- F. Michael 1986 China through the Ages
- L. Jun 1996 Chinese Civilisation in the Making: 1766-221 BC;
- D. Keightley (ed.) 1983 The Origins of Chinese Civilisation;
- D. C. Lau 1970 Mencius;
- B. Watson 1963 Hsün-Tzu: Basic Writings;
- X. Yuanxiang 2006 Confucius: a philosopher for the ages;
- L. Dian Rainey 2010 Confucius and Confucianism: the essentials;
- L. Stover 2005 Imperial China and the State Cult of Confucius;
- P. Goldin 2005 After Confucius: Studies in Early Chinese Philosophy;
- L. Shihlien Hsü 1975 The Political Philosophy of Confucianism;
- L von Falkenhausen 2006 Chinese Society in the Age of Confucius 1000-250 BC: the archaeological evidence;

- T. J. Barfield 1989 The Perilous Frontier: Nomadic Empires and China 221 BC to AD 1757;
- N. Di Cosmo 2002 Ancient China and its enemies: the rise of nomadic power in East Asian history;
- H. M. Tanner 2009 China: A History;
- Chu-Shu Chang 2007 The Rise of the Chinese Empire Volume 2: Frontier, Immigration and Empire in Han China 130 BC-AD 157;
- P. Nancarrow 1978 Early China and the Wall;
- J. Man 2008 The Terracotta Army: China’s First Emperor and the Birth of a Nation;
- M. Edward Lewis 2007 The Early Chinese Empires Qin and Han;
- Li Feng 2013 Early China: a social and cultural history;
- P. Ropp 2010 China in world history;
- W.L. Idema, E. Zürcher (eds.) 1990 Thought and law in Qin and Han China: studies dedicated to Anthony Hulsewé on the occasion of his eightieth birthday;

- M. Loewe 1973 Everyday life in early imperial China during the Han period, 202 BC-AD 220;
- L. Yang 2012 (ed.) China's terracotta warriors: the first emperor's legacy

- F. Sheng 2012 Chinese History;

- J. C. Watt (ed.) 2004 China: Dawn of a Golden Age 200-750 AD;

Mediterranean and West Asia:

- V. Karageorghis (ed.) 2002 The Greeks Beyond the Aegean: from Marseilles to Bactria.
- Z. Archibald and J K Davies (eds) 2011 The Economies of Hellenistic Societies, 3rd – 1st centuries BC;
- A. M. Eckstein 2006 Mediterranean Anarchy, Interstate War and the Rise of Rome;
- A. M. Eckstein 2008 Rome Enters the Greek East: From Anarchy to Hierarchy in the Hellenistic Mediterranean 230-170 BC;

- Croom, A 2000 Roman Clothing and Fashion

- A. Dalby 2000 Empire of Pleasure: Luxury and Indulgence in the Roman World
- J. D. Grainger 2002 The Roman War of Antiochus the Great;

- D. Gera 1998 Judaea and Mediterranean Politics: 219-161 BC
- J. Ma 1999 Antiochus III and the Cities of Western Asia Minor;
- F. Walbank 1957-79 A Historical Commentary on Polybius (3 volumes);
- M. J Taylor 2013 Antiochus the Great;
- P. Green 1990 Alexander to Actium: the historical evolution of the Hellenistic Age;

- Grainger, J 2013 Rome, Parthia and India

- M. Sartre 2005 The Middle East under Rome
- J. Lerner 1999 The Impact of Seleucid Decline on the Eastern Iranian Plateau

- V. Minorsky and C. Bosworth 1970 Hudud-Al-‘Alam: The Regions of the World, A Persian Geography 372 AD – 982 AD

- J. Miller 1969 The Spice Trade of the Roman Empire 29 BC to AD 641
- M. Wheeler 1954 Rome beyond the Imperial Frontiers

- G. F. Hourani 1963 Arab Seafaring in the indean Ocean in Ancient and Early Medieval Times

Central Asia

- B. A. Litvinsky (ed.) 1996 History of Civilizations of Central Asia (vols 1-3);
- C. Beckwith 2009 Empires of the Silk Road: a history of Central Eurasia from the Bronze Age to the Present;
- D. Anthony 2007 The horse, the wheel and language: a history of Central Eurasia from the Bronze Age to the Present;
- P. Hermann and J. Cribb (eds.) 2007 After Alexander: Central Asia before Islam
- F. Holt 1989 Alexander the Great and Bactria;
- F. Holt 1999 Thundering Zeus: the making of Hellenistic Bactria;
- F. Holt 2012 Lost World of the Golden King;
- H. Sidky 2000 The Greek Kingdom of Bactria from Alexander to Eucratides the Great;
- W. McGovern 1939 The Early Empires of Central Asia;
- W. W. Tarn 1966 The Greeks in Bactria and India;
- A. K. Narin 1957 The Indo-Greeks;
- G. M. Cohen 2013 The Hellenistic Settlements in the East from Armenia and Mesopotamia to Bactria and India;

- K. Czeglédy 1983 From East to West: the age of Nomadic Migrations in Eurasia;
- J. R. Gardiner-Garden 1987 Apollodorus of Artemita and the Central Asian Skythians;;
- P. Golden 2011 Central Asia in World History;

- C. Baumer 2014 The History of Central Asia Volumes I-II.
- Allchin, F. and Hammond N. (eds) 1978 The Archaeology of Afghanistan from Earliest Times to the Timurid Period

- Yu, Y. 1967 Trade and Expansion in Han China: a study in the structure of Sino-barbarian Economic relations.

- R. Brentjes 1996 Arms of the Sakas;

- A. Khazanov and A Wink (eds) 2001 Nomads in the Sedentary World.

- D. Keller and R. Schorta (eds) 2001 Fabulous Creatures from the Desert Sands: Central Asian Woolen Textiles from the 2nd century BC to the 2nd c AD
- V. Sarianidi 1985 The Golden Hoard of Bactria

India:

- I. Habib and V. Jha 2004 Mauryan India;
- U. Kiran Jha 2011 Some Aspects of Mauryan Society;
- G. M. Bongard-Levin 1985 Mauryan India;
- N. M. Khilnani 1981Panorama of Indian Diplomacy;
- I. Habib 2012 Post-Mauryan India 200BC-AD300;

- V. Smith 1999 Early India;
- A. Agarwai 1989 The Rise and Fall of the Imperial Guptas;
- U. Singh 2008 A History of Ancient and Medieval India from the stone age of the 12th century;
- R. Majumda 1977 Ancient India;
- H. Raychaudhuri 1972 Political History of Ancient India;
- L. Sharma 1992 A History of Ancient India;

- Parker G 2008 The Making of Roman India
- A. Bachan 1991 The Origin and Development of Hinduism;
- B. Stein 1998 A History of India;
- J. Auboyer 1968 Daily Life in Ancient India;
- M. Willis 2009 Archaeology of Hindu Ritual, Temples and the Establishment of the Gods;
- J. Williams 1982 The Art of Gupta India: Empire and Province;
- S. Wolpert 2009 A New History of India;
- R. Thapar 2002 Early India – from the origins to AD 1300;
- A. Bhattacharjee 1988 A History of Ancient India;
- J. Harle 1996 Gupta Sculpture: Indian sculpture of the fourth to sixth centuries AD;
- M. Banerjee 1976 A Study of Important Gupta Inscriptions;
- B. Smith (ed). Essays on Gupta Culture;
- S. Goyal 1967 A History of the Imperial Guptas;
- S. Goyal 2005 The Imperial Guptas: a multidisciplinary political study;
- S. Upadhyaya 1974 The Kama Sutra of Vatsyayana;

- T. Weiming & D. Ikeda 2011 New Horizons in Eastern Humanism: Buddhism, Confucianism and the Quest for Global Peace;

- M. Wangu 2006 Buddhism;

Silk Roads Trade and Interaction:

- S. Whitefield 1999 Life along the Silk Road;

- Y. Kumar 2005 A History of Sino-Indian Relations 1st century AD to 7th century AD;

- Begley, V. and De Puma, R. D. 1991. Rome and India: The ancient sea trade. Madison, Wis., University of Wisconsin Press.

- De Romanis, F. (ed) 1997 Crossings: Early Mediterranean Contacts with India

- Young, G. K. 2001. Rome’s Eastern Trade. International Commerce and Imperial Policy 31 BC – AD 305. London and New York, Routledge

- R. McLaughlin 2016 The Roman Empire and the Silk Routes
- R. McLaughlin 2014 The Roman Empire and the Indian Ocean
- R. MCLaughlin 2010 Rome and the Distant East

- Tomber, R. 2008. Indo-Roman trade: from pots to pepper. London, Gerald Duckworth & Co. Ltd

- Cimino, R. (ed.) 1994 Ancient Rome and India: Commercial and Cultural Contacts between the Roman world and India.
- Suresh, S. 2004. Symbols of trade: Roman and pseudo-Roman objects found in India. New Delhi, Manohar.

- Sidebotham, S. E. 2011. Berenike and the Ancient Maritime Spice Route. Berkeley, Los Angeles and London, University of California Press.

- Miller, J.I 1969 The Spice Trade of the Roman Empire 29 BC-AD641.

- V. Hansen 2012 The Silk Road: A New History

- X. Liu 2010 The Silk Road in World History

- X. Liu 1988 Ancient India and China: Trade and Religious exchanges AD1-600

- De Romanis, F. (ed) 1997 Crossings: Early Mediterranean Contacts with India

- S. Reid 1994 The Silk and Spice Routes: Exploration by Sea

- Boulnois, L 2012 Silk Road: Monks, Warriors and Merchants

- Liu, X. 2007 Connections across Eurasia

- Liu, X. 1996 Silk and Religion: An exploration of material life and thought of people, AD 600-1200 1996

- M. Scott 2016 Ancient Worlds
- Franck, I. and D. Brownstone 1986 The Silk Road: A History 1986
- R. Folk 1999 Religions of the Silk Road: overland trade and Cultural exchanges from Antiquity to the 15th century
- P. Frankopan 2015 The SIlks Roads: A New History of the World

- B. Hildebrandt (ed) 2017 Silk: Trade and Exchange along the Silk Roads between Rome and China in Antiquity

- N. di Cosmo and M. Maas (eds) 2018 Empires and Exchanges in Eurasian Late Antiquity: Rome, China, Iran and the Steppe ca. 250-750.

-S. Lieu and G. Mikkelsen (eds) 2016 Between Rome and China: History, Religions and Material Culture of the Silk Road

- C. Benjamin 2018 Empires of Ancient Eurasia: The First Silk Roads Era 100 BCE-250CE.