The Histories

Although Herodotus knew fame and celebrity in his own lifetime, biographical details about him are scarce. He was probably born in Halicarnassus, on the western coast of modern-day Turkey, in around 485 BCE at the height of the Persian Wars he would later document. He settled in a Greek colony in southern Italy and lived until around 425 BCE. Ultimately, our impression of him comes from the pages of The Histories: fiercely intelligent and self-confident, curious and opinionated; a hybrid of novelist, academic and adventurer; and above all, a fascinating guide and companion.

In his original Greek text, the very first word of The Histories is Herodotus’ own name. Giving himself such prominence was extremely unusual for an ancient author and a deliberate act on Herodotus' part. He knew that the authority of his writings stemmed directly from his ground-breaking working method – which was to draw on personal observations and the oral testimony he had gathered during his travels to the Black Sea, Egypt, the Near East and within the Greek world.

This is his story, as he constantly reminds us, intervening in his narrative to express doubt, make disclaimers and court controversy. Immediately recognised as a masterwork, The Histories came to be so highly regarded that even critics of its content were unanimous in their praise of Herodotus' skill as a storyteller, whilst amongst his admirers, Cicero named him ‘the father of history’.

I appreciated the darkness of the period - half pagan and half animist - and representing a world with a genuine belief in gods

1. Nick Hayes

Each of the nine ‘books’ that make up The Histories opens with a magnificent double–page image produced by printmaker, graphic novelist, environmentalist and ‘professional trespasser’ Nick Hayes. Created using modern digital technology, these atmospheric illustrations simultaneously evoke the muscular figures and geometric designs of ancient Greek decorative pottery, recall the British linocut tradition embodied by Edward Bawden and Eric Ravilious, and reflect Hayes’ own love of landscape and the natural world. His integrated illustrative scheme also includes gold-patterned motifs for the endpapers and slipcase lining, powerful black and gold images on the binding and slipcase, and an arresting frontispiece portrait of Herodotus based on an 18th–century sculpture.

Historians often like to think that they follow in Herodotus' footsteps; but this magnificent volume is not just an inspirational book - it is a thing of beauty too

1. Peter Frankopan

Let us begin with the sumptuous full-grain leather of the binding, tanned using only vegetable products, aniline-dyed a magnificent teal and meticulously hand-polished by Harmatan and Oakridge in Northamptonshire, the traditional heartland of British leather production. The experts at Smith Settle in Yorkshire undertook the binding and the text was printed not far away in Sheffield. The green of the two-colour printing complements the binding perfectly and the paper is of course FSC certified, sourced only from responsibly managed forests. In addition to the illustrations, binding and slipcase designs, Nick Hayes has coloured the two maps by Kevin Freeman, to make them both more beautiful and more legible, something which Herodotus himself would surely have appreciated, having complained that 'not one of all the people who have drawn maps of the world has set it out sensibly'. And Peter Frankopan’s engaging new introduction is exclusive to this edition.

Herodotus wrote The Histories before the 'rules' of prose-writing had been established, and intended it for live public recitation as much as for private reading. Robin Waterfield's acclaimed translation is widely regarded as the authoritative modern rendering, balancing fluency with fidelity to the original text, capturing Herodotus' distinctive authorial voice while keeping him highly readable, and allowing ancient characters to talk directly to us across the millennia. This engaging text was originally published with an introduction by Professor Carolyn Dewald, and this is included here too along with a judicious selection from her notes and a helpful timeline by Peter O’Neill.

Each copy has been signed by three of our contributors – translator, illustrator and introducer – on a gold-blocked limitation label tipped on by hand facing Nick Hayes fabulous frontispiece portrait of Herodotus, based on an 18th–century sculpture. The resulting volume will be a pleasure to look at and to hold, as well as to read, for many years to come.