The Oxford History of Historical Writing is a five-volume series that explores representations of the past from the beginnings of writing to the present day and from all over the world. Volume I offers essays by leading scholars on the development and history of the major traditions of historical writing, including the ancient Near East, Classical Greece and Rome, and East and South Asia from their origins until c. AD 600. It provides both anauthoritative survey of the field and an unrivalled opportunity to make cross-cultural comparisons.