The Golden Road

THE INSTANT SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER

A revolutionary new history of the diffusion of Indian ideas, from the award-winning, bestselling author and co-host of the chart-topping Empire podcast

'Richly woven, highly readable ... Written with passion and verve' Spectator 'Dazzling ... Not just a historical study but also a love letter' Guardian 'An outstanding new account ... The most compelling retelling we have had for generations' Financial Times

India is the forgotten heart of the ancient world

In the millennium and a half from c. 250 BC to 1200 AD, Indian art, religion, technology, astronomy, music, dance, literature, mathematics and mythology blazed a trail across the world - a 'Golden Road' that stretched from the Red Sea to the Pacific.

Here, William Dalrymple draws from a lifetime of scholarship to highlight India's oft-forgotten position as the heart of ancient Eurasia. For the first time, he gives a name to this spread of Indian ideas that transformed the culture and technology of not only its ancient world, but our world as we know it today.

A 2024 BOOK OF THE YEAR FOR THE TIMES, SPECTATOR and HISTORY TODAY