In the fundamental work of the historian Karl Friedrich Becker, written at the end of the eighteenth century, the entire historical path of the Ancient World is traced—from the biblical Moses to the fall of the Roman Empire in the 5th century CE. A detailed presentation of events and rich illustrative material allow the reader to see almost firsthand occurrences separated from us by many thousands of years.
The name of the German historian Karl Friedrich Becker means little to the modern reader. Meanwhile, in pre-revolutionary Russia Becker was widely known among the educated public as the author of the monumental work “Ancient History.” This book was known to every gymnasium student. Traces of having read it can be found in works by Soviet writers who had a gymnasium education—for example, in Lev Kassil’s “The Country of Schwambrania,” in “The Twelve Chairs” by I. Ilf and E. Petrov, in Mikhail Zoshchenko’s “The Blue Book,” and in many others.