Africa

A gold head, thought to represent the head of an important enemy killed in battle, from the Asante kingdom. The abundance of this precious metal greatly shaped the region's history. (Werner Forman/Universal Images Group/Getty Images)

The Golden Coast

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An 1860s coloured engraving of Lake Victoria’s outflow at the Ripon Falls, which John Speke discovered in 1862 and correctly declared to be the source of the Nile. (Photo by The Print Collector/Print Collector/Getty Images)

Explorers of the Nile

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The end of slavery and headaches in history

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A London Missionary Society (LMS) mission in Papua New Guinea, c1920s. (Photo by Chronicle/Alamy Stock Photo)

Married to a missionary

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A stone relief depicting men bringing gifts to the king, c500 BC. (Getty Images)

General ancient history

The Persian empire: myth vs reality

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The origins of slavery

An engraving depicting London's Piccadilly Circus heaving with crowds on their way to The Great Exhibition of 1851. A banner reading 'God save the Queen and Prince Albert' has been strung across the street. Within the Crystal Palace some 100,000 objects were displayed – taking up ten miles of space – the work of 15,000 contributors. (Photo by Rischgitz/Getty Images)

The decline and fall of the British empire

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A monumental misunderstanding

Map of Algiers, c1700. It was here that Icelanders, including Ólafur Egilsson, were sold into slavery. (Culture Club/Getty Images)

Barbary pirates: kidnapped in Iceland

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Antony and Cleopatra

British soldier, explorer and big game hunter Frederick Selous, pictured in 1914. (Photo by Topical Press Agency/Hulton Archive/Getty Images)

The hunter who became a naturalist

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General ancient history

Historical objects – toilets and medicines

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Lewis Chessmen found on the Isle of Lewis, Outer Hebrides, Scotland, probably made in Norway, about AD 1150-1200. (Photo by RDImages/Epics/Getty Images)

Objects with meanings: How artefacts can give us a new take on global history

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Zulu wars and American presidents, past and present

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