c. 12th century BCE★★★★★
Late Bronze Age collapse
Many Eastern Mediterranean states, including the Hittite Empire, collapse or decline sharply during a prolonged period of upheaval.
PoliticsWar· Turkey, Syria, Egypt, Greece
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Events this year
c. 12th century BCE – c. 4th century BCE★★★★★
Rise of the Olmec civilization
The Olmecs develop the earliest known complex civilization of Mesoamerica along Mexico's Gulf Coast, known for their colossal stone heads.
Culture· Mexico
Ongoing
c. 16th century BCE – c. 5th century BCE★★★★★
Lapita culture spreads across the western Pacific
Bearers of the Lapita culture, known for their dentate-stamped pottery, settled islands from the Bismarck Archipelago to Fiji, Tonga and Samoa, laying the foundations of Polynesian societies.
ExplorationCulture· Papua New Guinea, Fiji, Tonga, Samoa
c. 16th century BCE – c. 11th century BCE★★★★★
Mycenaean civilization emerges in Greece
Mycenaean civilization, the first advanced civilization of mainland Greece, develops fortified palace centres and Linear B writing.
Culture· Greece
c. 16th century BCE – c. 11th century BCE★★★★★
Shang dynasty rules the Yellow River valley
The Shang is the earliest Chinese dynasty confirmed by archaeology, leaving oracle-bone script and sophisticated bronzes.
DynastyCulture· China
c. 15th century BCE – c. 12th century BCE★★★★★
Composition of the Rigveda
The hymns of the Rigveda, the oldest text of Hinduism, are composed in Vedic Sanskrit and transmitted orally for generations.
ReligionCulture· India, Pakistan
c. 15th century BCE – c. 1st century★★★★★
Nok culture in West Africa
The Nok culture flourished in present-day central Nigeria, known for its terracotta sculptures and as one of the earliest iron-smelting cultures in sub-Saharan Africa.
CultureTechnology· Nigeria