The Umayyad dynasty was one of the longest and the most legendary dynasties in Mediterranean history. From 661 to 750, this dynasty of Caliphs governed the Muslim world, which extended from Central Asia to Spain. Mohammed and the Umayyads shared a common ancestor ?Abd Manaf ibn Quayy. His son Hašim was the founder of the Banu Hašim clan, to which the prophet belonged, while his other son ?Abd Šams was the founder of the Umayyad dynasty through his son ?Umayya.

Occupied since Neolithic times, the site was first built on by the Seleucids in the Hellenistic era. They were veterans of the army of Alexander the Great, who had conquered Syria, and – according to legend – named it Gerasa (the city of the Gerontes). Put under pressure by the Nabateans, then the Jews, Gerasa adapted to the Roman conquest. Conquered by Pompey in 63 BC, the town fell into the hands of the Romans, and with the alliance of the Décaople (Dekapolis), became one of the ten principal cities of the Roman empire.

At the heart of a valley, surrounded by mountains, the site of Petra was occupied in about the 6th century BC by the Nabateans. The town prospered, largely thanks to its location on the trade route for caravans transporting incense, spices and other luxury products around Egypt, Syria, Southern Arabia, and the Mediterranean. By the 4th century BC, the town covered an area of more than 10km.

Petra, located in a valley bordered by mountains, was occupied around the 6th century BC by the Nabataeans. They made it prosper thanks to its ideal trading location, on the caravan trails transporting incense, spices and other luxury products between Egypt, Syria, Southern Arabia and the Mediterranean. In the 4th century BC, the town spread over 10 kilometres.
Al-Siq, the long, narrow and sinuous natural passageway, is the entrance to the antique city. Its largest breadth is only a few metres, and is tens of metres in height, making it a strategic defence point.

Much of the beauty of Laos lies in its fragility. The country’s history is both long and rich. The Plain of Jars testifies to activity here before the Christian Era. A country touched by a range of different influences, both Hindu and Buddhist cultures have left their mark here. The country’s history really began in around the 12th century, when Tai populations arrived from Southern China. In 1353 the « Country of a million elephants » was founded by Fa Ngum, the first.

The Phoenician city of Baalbek was once the Roman settlement Heliopolis. 
Located between two of most civilized regions of the era, and between the Nile and Euphrates rivers, the town was a key strategic point. The site is largely composed of Greco-Roman ruins, with a few traces of earlier Semitic settlements, and it includes the only Temple of Jupiter in the world.

The Incas did not leave any written word. The only testimony comes from the first conquistadores who collected the natives’ tales. Successors, among others, to brilliant civilisations preceding them, the Incas were originally a small tribe from the Quechua region on the bank of Lake Titicaca, between Peru and Bolivia. They are part of a confederation of several groups, occupying at first a subordinate rank.

The Aztecs, or Mexicas (from their capital city’s name, Mexico-Tenochtitlan) settled around the beginning of the 14th century. In the 16th century, the Aztec Empire had a flourishing economy, represented by the wealth of its capital city, Tenochtitlan, the current Mexico-city. Human sacrifice was a common and essential ritual. It held multiple political and religious functions.

The Mayan civilization extended mainly over parts of Mexico, Belize, Guatemala, the Honduras and el Salvador. Established at the end of the 3rd millennium BC, Mayan civilization peaked between the 6th century and 9th century of our era, before declining and disappearing at the time of the Spanish conquest in the 16th century. With the Aztecs and the Incas, it was one of the three great pre-Columbian civilizations which shaped the New World before the arrival of Europeans.

A long forgotten culture, the Maya civilisation’s past is filled with myths, scientific discoveries and impressive constructions. We invite you to discover the five most beautiful Maya cities, the only remaining keys to decrypt this legendary civilisation. Chichen Itza was probably the main religious centre of Yucatan. Many mysteries remain about its chronology and the identity of the Itza.

The greater part of Morocco’s history is found in the country’s heart, in the imperial cities. Each succeeding sultan and emperor from the Moroccan dynasties chose his own capital city. With a 12-century rich history, Fes is the city to discover remnants of Andalusia’s culture. Both modern and traditional, the city, founded by sultan Idris the 1st, combined contemporary elements with 13th century relics edified by the Marinids.

The Umayyad dynasty was one of the longest and the most legendary dynasties in Mediterranean history. From 661 to 750, this dynasty of Caliphs governed the Muslim world, which extended from Central Asia to Spain. 
Mohammed and the Umayyads shared a common ancestor ?Abd Manaf ibn Quayy. His son Hasim was the founder of the Banu Hašim clan, to which the prophet belonged, while his other son ?Abd Sams was the founder of the Umayyad dynasty through his son Umayya.

To visit Carthage is to walk in the footsteps of Hannibal, in a quest to discover over 3000 years of history. The ancient Punic city, destroyed and then rebuilt by the Romans who proclaimed it capital of the African proconsular province, has now become a trendy Tunis suburb. The Carthaginian Empire was reputed for its size, its territory spread throughout the entire Mediterranean region, but it was in Carthage that important events took place, and political affairs were decided.

Istanbul is a mysterious city with many different identities. Byzantium for the Byzantines, Constantinople for the Oriental Roman Empire, Catholic for the Crusaders, and Muslim for the Ottomans, it has long been the refuge of the most powerful empires of the planet. From 1299 to 1923, it was the centre of the Ottoman Empire, which spread right up to the borders of Europe.