The year 1000 : when explorers connected the world--and globalization began
(Audiobook CD)

Title from container.

Compact discs.

Read by Cynthia Farrell.

It was long assumed that the centuries immediately prior to AD 1000 were lacking in major cultural developments or geopolitical encounters, that the Europeans hadn't yet discovered North America, that the farthest anyone had traveled over sea was the Vikings' invasion of Britain. But how, then, to explain the presence of blonde-haired people in Mayan temple murals in Mexico? Could it be possible that the Vikings had found their way to the Americas during the height of the Mayan empire? Historian Valerie Hansen historian argues that the year 1000 was the world's first point of major cultural exchange and exploration. Drawing on nearly 30 years of research on medieval China and global history, she presents a compelling account of first encounters between disparate societies. As people on at least five continents ventured outward, they spread technology, new crops, and religion. These encounters, she shows, set the stage for the process of globalization that so dominates the modern era.

AUDIOBOOK CD