A revolutionary new history of the diffusion of Indian ideas, from the award-winning, bestselling author and co-host of the chart-topping Empirepodcast

‘Richly woven, highly readable … Written with passion and verve’ Spectator
‘Dazzling … Not just a historical study but also a love letter’ Guardian
‘An outstanding new account … The most compelling retelling we have had for generations‘ Financial Times

India is the forgotten heart of the ancient world.

In the millennium and a half from c. 250 BC to 1200 AD, Indian art, religion, technology, astronomy, music, dance, literature, mathematics and mythology blazed a trail across the world – a Golden Road that stretched from the Red Sea to the Pacific.

Here, 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 culture and technology of not only its ancient world, but of the world as we know it today.