The Persian Empire was the world's first hyperpower, with territory stretching from Central Asia to Northeastern Africa and from Southeastern Europe to the Indus Valley. It was the dominant geopolitical force from the later sixth century to its conquest by Alexander in the 330s BCE. Much of the empire's territory was conquered by its founder, Cyrus the Great, who reigned from 559-530 BCE. Cyrus became a legend in his own lifetime, and his career inspired keen interest from Persia's unruly neighbors to the west, the ancient Greeks. The idealized portrait of Cyrus by the Greek Xenophon had a profound impact on ancient, medieval, and early modern debates about rulership.\nKing of the World provides an authoritative and accessible account of Cyrus the Great's life, career, and legacy. While Greek sources remain central to any narrative about Cyrus, a wealth of primary evidence is found in the ancient Near East, including documentary, archaeological, art historical, and biblical material. Matt Waters draws from all of these sources while consistently contextualizing them in order to provide a cohesive understanding of Cyrus the Great. This overview addresses issues of interpretation and reconciles limited material, while the narrative keeps Cyrus the Great's compelling career at the forefront. Cyrus' legacy is enormous and not fully appreciated― King of the World takes readers on a journey that reveals his powerful impact and preserves his story for future generations.

King of the World: The Life of Cyrus the Great

Biographies & Memoirs

Waters, Matt

Historical

Oxford University Press

The Persian Empire was the world's first hyperpower, with territory stretching from Central Asia to Northeastern Africa and from Southeastern Europe to the Indus Valley. It was the dominant geopolitical force from the later sixth century to its conquest by Alexander in the 330s BCE. Much of the empire's territory was conquered by its founder, Cyrus the Great, who reigned from 559-530 BCE. Cyrus became a legend in his own lifetime, and his career inspired keen interest from Persia's unruly neighbors to the west, the ancient Greeks. The idealized portrait of Cyrus by the Greek Xenophon had a profound impact on ancient, medieval, and early modern debates about rulership. King of the World provides an authoritative and accessible account of Cyrus the Great's life, career, and legacy. While Greek sources remain central to any narrative about Cyrus, a wealth of primary evidence is found in the ancient Near East, including documentary, archaeological, art historical, and biblical material. Matt Waters draws from all of these sources while consistently contextualizing them in order to provide a cohesive understanding of Cyrus the Great. This overview addresses issues of interpretation and reconciles limited material, while the narrative keeps Cyrus the Great's compelling career at the forefront. Cyrus' legacy is enormous and not fully appreciated-- King of the World takes readers on a journey that reveals his powerful impact and preserves his story for future generations.

Religion & Spirituality

Christian Books & Bibles

Ctesias’ Persica in Its Near Eastern Context (Wisconsin Studies in Classics)

The Persica is an extensive history of Assyria and Persia written by the Greek historian Ctesias, who served as a doctor to the Persian king Artaxerxes II around 400 bce. Written for a Greek readership, the Persica influenced the development of both historiographic and literary traditions in Greece. It also, contends Matt Waters, is an essential but often misunderstood source for the history of the Achaemenid Persian Empire.             Waters, as a historian of Persia with command of Akkadian, Elamite, and Old Persian languages in addition to Latin and Greek, offers a fresh interdisciplinary analysis of the Persica. He shows in detail how Ctesias’ history, though written in a Greek literary style, was infused with two millennia of Mesopotamian and Persian motifs, legends, and traditions. This Hellenized version of Persian culture was enormously influential in antiquity, shaping Greek stereotypes of effeminate Persian monarchs, licentious and vengeful queens, and conniving eunuchs. Waters’ revealing study contributes significantly to knowledge of ancient historiography, Persian dynastic traditions and culture, and the influence of Near Eastern texts and oral tradition on Greek literature.

Literature & Fiction

History & Criticism

University of Wisconsin Press

The Persica is an extensive history of Assyria and Persia from around 400 BCE. It was written by the Greek historian Ctesias, who served as a doctor to the Persian king Artaxerxes II. In this volume, Matt Waters offers a fresh interdisciplinary analysis of the text. He shows in detail how Ctesias' history, though written in a Greek literary style, was infused with two millennia of Mesopotamian and Persian motifs, legends, and traditions. Waters' revealing study contributes significantly to knowledge of ancient historiography, Persian dynastic traditions and culture, and the influence of Near Eastern texts and oral tradition on Greek literature.

Ancient Persia: A Concise History of the Achaemenid Empire, 550–330 BCE

The Achaemenid Persian Empire, at its greatest territorial extent under Darius I (r. 522-486 BCE), held sway over territory stretching from the Indus River Valley to southeastern Europe and from the western Himalayas to northeast Africa. In this book, Matt Waters gives a detailed historical overview of the Achaemenid period while considering the manifold interpretive problems historians face in constructing and understanding its history. This book offers a Persian perspective even when relying on Greek textual sources and archaeological evidence. Waters situates the story of the Achaemenid Persians in the context of their predecessors in the mid-first millennium BCE and through their successors after the Macedonian conquest, constructing a compelling narrative of how the empire retained its vitality for more than two hundred years (c. 550-330 BCE) and left a massive imprint on Middle Eastern as well as Greek and European history.

History

Ancient Civilizations

Cambridge University Press

Covers the installation, configuration, and operation of simple-routed LAN, WAN, and switched LAN networks. Discusses remote access and integrating dial-up connectivity with traditional, remote LAN to LAN access, as well as supporting the high levels of performance required for new applications such as Internet commerce and multimedia. Demonstrates ways to optimize WAN through Internet solutions that reduce bandwidth and WAN cost.

CCNA Routing and Switching Exam Cram, Second Edition (Exam: 640-507)

Computers & Technology

WATERS

Waters, Jason

Coe, Jeffrey T.

Rees, Matthew J.

Certification

Coriolis Group

Developing a music career as a young artist is not cut and dry. You’re told that if you spend enough time working on your craft in the dusty, grimy boxes that pass for practice rooms, your career will magically materialize. Received wisdom states that you’ll win the position you want, get the gig you want, and gain the respect you want if you spend more time locked away than the next person. Guess what? The real world doesn’t work like that. Practice is just the tip of the iceberg. Beyond that, success will come by developing the personal, business, and performance skills that professional musicians use every day. These skills are the ones that separate you from every other good musician out there. These are the skills that Beyond the Practice Room teaches in an easily digestible format for young musicians.

Beyond the Practice Room: Making Music in the Modern Age

Business & Money

Industries

Independently published

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Books by Waters, Matt