This 5-volume set offers a fresh perspective on history by examining the development of the arts and humanities in historical time periods. Patterned after Gale's World Eras series, each volume combines chronologies, sidebars, primary documents, biographies, and critical narrative analysis to cover information typically left out of history books. Profiling milestones and movements in the arts, literature, music and religion from a specific period, each volume in this set helps students and researchers understand the various disciplines of the humanities in relation to each other, as well as to history and culture. Each volume begins with an overview of the period and a chronology of major world events. Nine chapters follow covering the major branches of the humanities: architecture and design, dance, fashion, literature, music, philosophy, religion, theater and visual arts. Each chapters starts with a chronology of major events within the discipline followed by articles covering the movements, schools of thought and masterworks that characterize the discipline during the era and biographical profiles of pioneers, masters and other prominent figures in the field.