The Golden Peninsula: Culture and Adaptation in Mainland Southeast Asia has long been recognized as the best all-around introduction to the diverse cultural traditions found in Burma, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, and Vietnam. First published in 1977, it continues to offer useful insights to students and travelers to the region. In five well-defined and succinct chapters, Professor Keyes, a leading specialist in the field, offers a jargon-free, copiously annotated synthesis of knowledge about the cultural history of tribal, Theravada Buddhist, and Vietnamese societies. He combines analysis of traditional cultural practices with examination of cultural conflict in the colonial and post-colonial periods. The book remains unique in providing a detailed examination of urban life as well as of life in rural communities.

In 1880, Isabella Bird visited the Malay Peninsula - romantically dubbed "The Golden Chersonese" - and was still able to refer to it as an almost unknown land. The world's most famous female travel writer of the nineteenth century set sail from Japan and called at Hong Kong, Canton and Saigon before reaching Singapore. Bearing letters of introduction to the elite of Malacca and Penang, Bird was able to observe life on the west coast of the peninsula before steaming upriver through mangrove swamps to explore the interior of the land. From courtroom to elephant back, from the grandeur of Malacca's Stadthuys to the jungle calm of a picturesque Malay village on stilts, this indefatigable Victorian explorer offers invaluable descriptions and delightful hand-drawn sketches of life in late nineteenth-century Singapore and the Malay Peninsula.

For those who visit the United Arab Emirates (UAE), staying in its the lavish hotels and browsing in the ultra-modern shopping malls of Abu Dhabi or Dubai, the country can be a mystery, a glass and concrete creation that seems to have sprung from the desert overnight. Keepers of the Golden Shore looks behind this glossy façade, illuminating the region’s history, which stretches from the ancient Arabian tribes who controlled a desolate but economically important shoreline to the ostentatious architectural wonders—bankrolled by a massive wealth of oil—that characterize it today. As Michael Quentin Morton recounts, the region now known as the UAE likely began as a trading post between Mesopotamia and Oman, and since that time has been the stage of important economic and cultural exchanges. It has seen the rise and fall of a thriving pearl industry, piracy, invasions and wars, and the arrival of the oil age that would make it one of the richest countries on earth. Since the early 1970s, when seven sheikhs agreed to enter into a union, it has been a sovereign nation, carrying on the resourceful spirit—with resplendent fervor—that the brutally inhospitable landscape has long demanded of the people. Ultimately, Morton shows that the country is not only rich in oil and money but in an extraordinarily deep history and culture.

A thorough examination of the history of the Templars in Spain and Portugal • Explores the mysteries surrounding the location of Templar enclaves • Examines the Templar connections to the Cathars and to the troubadour culture • Looks at the Order’s influence in the kingdoms of Aragon and Catalonia and the Spanish monarchy itself The rise and fall of the Templar Order constitutes a fundamental and decisive episode in medieval history, and the destruction of the Order constitutes a pivotal point that fundamentally altered the direction of society. While much is known about the history of the Templar Order in France, home of its chief commandery in Paris, and in the Latin States of the Middle East, their contribution to events on the Iberian peninsula has until now remained obscure and unexplored. Renowned Templar scholar Juan García Atienza reveals here the important role the Templars played in the Reconquista that saw the Moors driven out of Spain and demonstrates the great influence they exerted in the kingdoms of Castille and Navarre and the territories of Catalonia and Aragon. He examines the mysterious connections between the Templars and the Cathars and troubadours as well as the mystery surrounding the location of all the Templar enclaves in the Iberian peninsula. He also unveils the important role the Templars had as teachers of the Spanish king James I, known as the Conqueror, whose attempt to establish a universal theocratic empire may have been a reflection of Templar ambitions, and explores the Order’s suppression in Spain and how it survived in Portugal by simply changing its name.

"The Silla Kingdom, which flourished in Korea from 57 B.C. to 935 A.D., is known for its intricately crafted ornaments, many in resplendent gold, and for the creation of prominent Buddhist temples. Silla focuses on the striking artistic traditions of the Old and Unified Silla Kingdoms (4th-8th century), and is the first publication in English to explore the artistic and cultural legacy of this ancient realm. Among the topics explored are Korea's position as the eastern culmination of the Silk Road in the first millennium A.D. and the character and evolution of Buddhism, as illuminated by objects from major monuments, temples, and tombs. The book also presents new research about Silla's ancient capital, Gyeongju, which is known for the Gyerim-ro Dagger, as well as the pottery, glass, and beads discovered in tombs located there." -- Publisher's description.