A History of the World in 100 Objects

Director of the British Museum, Neil MacGregor, narrates 100 programmes that retell humanity's history through the objects we have made.

Radio 4,101 episodes

Episodes

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From The World to America: Neil MacGregor meets Roman Mars
Roman Mars & Neil MacGregor on the new US spinoff: A History of the U.S. in 100 Objects.
13 Jul 2026,35 mins
Mass Production, Mass Persuasion (1780 - 1914 AD)
Ship's chronometer from HMS Beagle
Neil MacGregor with a chronometer that accompanied Darwin to South America.
11 Oct 2010,14 mins
Mass Production, Mass Persuasion (1780 - 1914 AD)
Early Victorian tea set
Neil MacGregor tells the story of the global trade in tea - with a Victorian tea set.
12 Oct 2010,14 mins
Mass Production, Mass Persuasion (1780 - 1914 AD)
Hokusai's The Great Wave
Neil MacGregor with a familiar image - Hokusai's The Great Wave.
13 Oct 2010,14 mins
Mass Production, Mass Persuasion (1780 - 1914 AD)
Sudanese slit drum
Neil MacGregor with a wooden drum from Sudan that Kitchener presented to Queen Victoria.
14 Oct 2010,14 mins
Mass Production, Mass Persuasion (1780 - 1914 AD)
Suffragette-defaced penny
Neil MacGregor with a penny coin defaced by suffragettes with the words "Votes for women".
15 Oct 2010,14 mins
Exploration, Exploitation and Enlightenment (AD 1680-1820)
Akan Drum
Neil MacGregor with an African drum taken to America during the slave trade
04 Oct 2010,14 mins
Exploration, Exploitation and Enlightenment (AD 1680-1820)
North American Buckskin Map
Neil MacGregor with a buckskin map from North America
06 Oct 2010,14 mins
Exploration, Exploitation and Enlightenment (AD 1680-1820)
Australian Bark Shield
Neil MacGregor with a bark shield brought from Australia by Captain Cook
07 Oct 2010,14 mins
Exploration, Exploitation and Enlightenment (AD 1680-1820)
Jade bi
Neil MacGregor with an object from the 18th-century Chinese Enlightenment - a jade disc
08 Oct 2010,14 mins
Tolerance and Intolerance (AD 1550-1700)
Shi'a Religious Parade Standard
Neil Macgregor with a powerful symbol from Shia Iran.
27 Sep 2010,14 mins
Tolerance and Intolerance (AD 1550-1700)
Miniature of a Mughal Prince
Neil MacGregor with a miniature painting from Mughal India.
28 Sep 2010,14 mins
Tolerance and Intolerance (AD 1550-1700)
Shadow Puppet of Bima
Neil MacGregor explores religion and politics in South East Asia through a shadow puppet.
29 Sep 2010,14 mins
Tolerance and Intolerance (AD 1550-1700)
Mexican Codex Map
Neil MacGregor explores the Spanish religious conquest of Mexico with a map.
30 Sep 2010,14 mins
Tolerance and Intolerance (AD 1550-1700)
Reformation Centenary Broadsheet
Neil MacGregor with a souvenir of the 100th anniversary of the Protestant Reformation.
01 Oct 2010,14 mins
The First Global Economy (1450 - 1600 AD)
The mechanical galleon
Neil Macgregor with a clockwork galleon designed for a grand dinner table.
20 Sep 2010,14 mins
The First Global Economy (1450 - 1600 AD)
Benin plaque - the Oba with Europeans
Neil MacGregor with some of the best examples of African art, the great plaques of Benin.
21 Sep 2010,14 mins
The First Global Economy (1450 - 1600 AD)
Double-headed serpent
Neil MacGregor with one of the stars of the British Museum - an Aztec serpent
22 Sep 2010,14 mins
The First Global Economy (1450 - 1600 AD)
Kakiemon elephants
Neil MacGregor with porcelain white elephants from Japan.
23 Sep 2010,14 mins
The First Global Economy (1450 - 1600 AD)
Pieces of eight
Neil MacGregor with the first truly global money - silver pieces of eight.
24 Sep 2010,14 mins
The Threshold of the Modern World (1375-1550 AD)
Tughra of Suleiman the Magnificent
Neil Macgregor with the personal monogram of Suleyman the Magnificent.
13 Sep 2010,14 mins
The Threshold of the Modern World (1375-1550 AD)
Ming banknote
Neil MacGregor with a 14th century bank note - from Ming Dynasty China.
14 Sep 2010,14 mins
The Threshold of the Modern World (1375-1550 AD)
Inca gold llama
Neil MacGregor with a model of a llama - the animal behind the Inca Empire.
15 Sep 2010,14 mins
The Threshold of the Modern World (1375-1550 AD)
Jade dragon cup
Neil MacGregor with a jade cup that belonged a great leader of the Timurid Empire.
16 Sep 2010,14 mins
The Threshold of the Modern World (1375-1550 AD)
Durer's Rhinoceros
Neil MacGregor with Durer's extraordinary image of a rhino - an animal he had never seen.
17 Sep 2010,14 mins
Meeting The Gods (1200 - 1400 AD)
Holy Thorn Reliquary
Neil MacGregor with a reliquary made for a thorn from Christ's crown of thorns.
05 Jul 2010,14 mins
Meeting The Gods (1200 - 1400 AD)
Icon of the Triumph of Orthodoxy
Neil MacGregor with a 14th century icon from the Byzantine Empire.
06 Jul 2010,14 mins
Meeting The Gods (1200 - 1400 AD)
Shiva and Parvati sculpture
Neil MacGregor with a stone sculpture of the Hindu deity Shiva and his consort Parvati.
07 Jul 2010,14 mins
Meeting The Gods (1200 - 1400 AD)
Statue of Huastec goddess
Neil MacGregor with the sculpture of a goddess made by the Huastec people of Mexico.
08 Jul 2010,14 mins
Meeting The Gods (1200 - 1400 AD)
Hoa Hakananai'a Easter Island statue
Neil MacGregor with one of the extraordinary giant figures from Easter Island.
09 Jul 2010,14 mins