The Golden Road cover art

The Golden Road

How Ancient India Transformed the World

Preview

£0.00 for first 30 days

Try for £0.00
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection - including bestsellers and new releases.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, celeb exclusives, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
£7.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

The Golden Road

By: William Dalrymple
Narrated by: William Dalrymple
Try for £0.00

£7.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

Buy Now for £14.99

Buy Now for £14.99

Confirm Purchase
Pay using card ending in
By completing your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and authorise Audible to charge your designated card or any other card on file. Please see our Privacy Notice, Cookies Notice and Interest-based Ads Notice.
Cancel

About this listen

Bloomsbury presents The Golden Road written and read by William Dalrymple.

FROM THE AWARD-WINNING, BESTSELLING AUTHOR AND CO-HOST OF THE CHART-TOPPING EMPIRE PODCAST – A REVOLUTIONARY HISTORY OF THE DIFFUSION OF INDIAN IDEAS
‘A master storyteller’ Sunday Times

India is the forgotten heart of the ancient world

For a millennium and a half, India was a confident exporter of its diverse civilisation, creating around it a vast empire of ideas. Indian art, religions, technology, astronomy, music, dance, literature, mathematics and mythology blazed a trail across the world, along a Golden Road that stretched from the Red Sea to the Pacific.

William Dalrymple draws from a lifetime of scholarship to highlight 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.

©2024 William Dalrymple (P)2024 Bloomsbury Publishing Plc
Ancient India South Asia Southeast Asia Ancient History Hinduism Imperialism Nepal Ancient Greece
activate_Holiday_promo_in_buybox_DT_T2

Listeners also enjoyed...

The Anarchy cover art
Return of a King cover art
Emperor of the Seas cover art
Spice cover art
Koh-i-Noor cover art
In Xanadu cover art
A Short History of British Architecture cover art
The Shortest History of India cover art
1177 B.C. (Revised and Updated) cover art
Forged in War cover art
Weavers, Scribes, and Kings cover art
The Pillow Book cover art
Byzantium cover art
Shadow of the Silk Road cover art
Strangeland cover art

What listeners say about The Golden Road

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    27
  • 4 Stars
    2
  • 3 Stars
    0
  • 2 Stars
    1
  • 1 Stars
    0
Performance
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    27
  • 4 Stars
    0
  • 3 Stars
    1
  • 2 Stars
    2
  • 1 Stars
    0
Story
  • 5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    28
  • 4 Stars
    1
  • 3 Stars
    0
  • 2 Stars
    1
  • 1 Stars
    0

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Excellent exploration of the roots of civilisation in India

Another brilliant book by William Dalrymple - fantastic exploration with usual excellent research. a must read and has encouraged me to explore The Golden Road further!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

A whole different view of historical processes

For over 60 years I have had an interest in history. This has made me realise how little I know, and how western centric history has been.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

A superb telling of a wonderful history!

William Dalrymple’s latest book is a tour de force. Being read by Dalrymple himself makes it a pure pleasure to listen to.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

a delightful revelation

this book is packed with delightful threads of history woven into a tapestry of the flow of beliefs, ideas, art, gold and civilization. if you want to know how we got here and why we should thank India and in particular the Buddha, then read or better still read and listen to this book.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Outstanding.

I'm not normally interested in history but this is absolutely fascinating and extremely well written. The narration is absolutely superb too. First book I've ever been inspired to review!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

A MUST READ!

If you are like me, and are super fascinated by Asian, and Indian history you definatley need to pick up this book. William Darlymple read with such passion, and enthusiasm you can tell he loves Indian History.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Brilliant as always

Absolutely brilliant the world needs to rethink the impact of Indian society in the early civilisation

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Brilliant Account

A book that, for me ,connected in a brilliantly coherent way so many strands of the history and geography of India and the world. The reading was as good as it gets.
I was sent to the internet to look up old maps and pictures of stunning architectural remains. There's a magnificent TV series I've just imagined to be made.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

The wonder

The wonder, the passion and the well researched educational info - a great companion to the book and plates.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    2 out of 5 stars

Missing Story line and Coherence

I am a great fan of the writer. However, this book is a bit of a disappointment. It lacks coherence and storyline. After reading all the books, I cannot construct a story or context. Coins and ruins are found here and there and Indian art and literature moved from one place to another, I cannot see context and story. It seems like it was written for history students or academics who already know about the topic and content and give opinions on different historical facts that are dispersed and organized in a rather unorderly way without much context or build-up.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!