Bettany Hughes' Treasures of the World
★ 6.5 · 2021 · 47m · Documentary
Bettany Hughes take viewers on armchair travels to explore household-name treasures and new finds from across the world.
Episodes
1. Treasures of Greece47m · The historian presents a guide to ancient artefacts from around the world. The first episode focuses on Greece, including a visit to the archaeological dig at the site of Alexander the Great's birthplace in Aegae. Her journey also takes her to Athens, Nafplio, Sparta and Olympia, and to a dig at Epidaurus, where an underground snake pit used for healing has been discovered and an ancient theatre turns out to still be acoustically perfect.
2. Treasures of Malta47m · The historian travels to Malta in search of ancient artefacts, and leads the first TV crew to be allowed to film in the Hypogeum, a recently discovered underground temple that provided a burial place for up to 7000 individuals. Before a major restoration project starts, Bettany is invited to film in the Queen and Prince Philip's romantic hideaway, the Villa Guardamangia, and explores in a series of underground tunnels from the Second World War.
3. Gibraltar47m · The historian explores Gibraltar, encountering the world's first evidence of Neanderthal art, and handles the first report of Admiral Nelson's death in the Gibraltar Chronicle. She also explores the colourful natural formations of the underground pleasure gardens, and discovers where Victorian officers left messages carved into cave walls.
4. Mediterranean Islands47m · Bettany embarks on a Mediterranean voyage, beginning at its mouth with a recently discovered mask of Medusa, identified from fragments in Gorham's Cave on Gibraltar. Charting a course east, Bettany journeys to the strategic Island of Malta, where a Punic tomb has just been discovered. She reveals contents that prove these Phoenicians originated from North Africa. In the countryside, Bettany discovers how farmers grow three citrus crops a year with a special tour of an ancient Arabic underground irrigation system called `The Invention of Summer'.
5. Istanbul47m · The historian visits a dig in Istanbul containing artefacts from multiple eras, and follows in the footsteps of one of her heroes, Byzantine empress Theodora. She visits the restoration of the 6th-century Basilica Cistern, a marble-columned water reservoir under the city's streets, Topkapi Palace, and Europe's largest wooden building, Prinkipo Orphanage, which was once home to more than 1000 children.More Like This
Duels of History
2023
From Lucrezia Borgia to Malinche to Marie Curie: Women’s contributions have often been downplayed or misrepresented in the history books. Duels of History (re)tells their stories.
More info →
Titanic Sinks Tonight
2025 · ★ 7.3
Minute by minute - the night the unsinkable ship sank. Vivid first-hand accounts from passengers and crew tell the story of the most infamous disaster in maritime history.
More info →
Lost Treasures of the Maya
2019 · ★ 8.3
A new "treasure map" of the Maya world is transforming what we thought we knew of one of the world most mysterious ancient civilizations.
More info →
Picasso: The Beauty and the Beast
2023
His art changed the way we see the world - now change the way you see the artist. An unflinching look at Picasso's legacy, and the horror and brilliance of what he left behind. Family, friends and experts reassess the tumultuous artistic and personal life of Pablo Picasso, one of the greatest and most provocative artists of all time.
More info →
Emancipation Road
2014
From The Creators Of The Best-Selling Documentary Series "Up From Slavery"... A 7-Part Compelling Journey Through America's Greatest Saga. In 1860, the nation founded upon an idea that all men are created equal and endowed by their creator with the inalienable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness had as many as four hundred thousand slave-owners and almost four million slaves. By denying these rights to more than twelve percent of its population, America would soon pay with the blood of a generation. The story of African Slavery in America started with the first permanent English Colony in the 17th century... and ended with the Civil War. But those two hundred and fifty years of struggle were just the beginning. The beginning of a journey down the long Emancipation Road...
More info →
