7pm 28th August at The Poly​​ £8, £6 concs

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William Dalrymple is one of Britain’s great historians and the bestselling author of many books on India. His latest, ‘The Golden Road’, explains India’s often forgotten role in shaping the ancient world.

 

For more than 1500 years, India exported a vast empire of ideas to the rest of the world. Indian art, religions, technology, astronomy, music, dance, literature, mathematics and mythology blazed a trail along a Golden Road that stretched from the Red Sea to the Pacific.

Inspired by discovering an abundance of Indian historical influences on a visit to Cambodia, William Dalrymple set out on a journey to investigate 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 world. From the largest Hindu temple in the world at Angkor Wat to the Buddhism of China, from the trade that helped fund the Roman Empire to the creation of the numerals we use today (including zero), India transformed the culture and technology of its ancient world - and our world today as we know it.

 

Join William Dalrymple for a fascinating event as he explains how India has helped lay the foundations of the world as we know it.

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​Praise for The Golden Road by William Dalrymple

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“With a mind-boggling mastery of sources, Dalrymple weaves a thrilling tale of India's cultural hegemony.” — Spectator

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“A terrific story, told with tremendous brio.” — The Times

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“The most compelling retelling we have had for generations.” — Financial Times

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“Not just a historical study but also a love letter – to a lost syncretic world.” — Guardian

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“Dalrymple's book is both contemporary and altogether foreign.” — New Statesman

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