nature documentary films to watch online & streaming free

Civilization Documentaries

The term "civilization" can be used in a normative manner as well: in societal contexts where complex and urban cultures are assumed to be superior to other "savage" or "barbarian" cultures, the concept of "civilization" is used as a synonym for "cultural (and often ethical) superiority of certain groups." In a similar sense, civilization can mean "refinement of thought, manners, or taste". This normative notion of civilization is heavily rooted in the thought that urbanized environments provide a higher living standard, ecompassed by both nutritional benefits and mental potentialities. Excerpt from Wikipedia

Our civilization documentaries cover all of the early advances when humans first organized themselves into cities, which closely followed the essential first element of controlled agriculture, without which, civilization could never exist. Enjoy our range of Civilization Documentaries are available now to watch online and streaming free!


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Acclaimed writer and historian, Michael Wood’s ‘ten thousand year epic’ uncovers the fabulous sights, sounds and dazzling achievements of the world’s oldest and most influential civilisation. In this captivating six-part adventure, Wood chronicles the history of the subcontinent, the incredible richness and diversity of its peoples, cultures and landscapes, the intense drama of its past and the originality and continuing relevance of its...
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It’s hard to believe that while the European continent was entrenched in the horrors of the Dark Ages, the Mayan culture was thriving. Not only did the Mayans create a complicated written language, they had far exceeded the Europeans in their study and mapping of the stars and planets, mathematics, and architecture. What happened to the Mayan people? How did they come to be? Why was this isolated culture so advanced? These questions and many...
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There is another side of Egypt that is not so widely known. Egypt is also the land of secrets. Another history, a secret history, tells of Egypt as the inheritor of deep wisdom and magical ability from an even earlier culture. It is the account of the Egyptians themselves. This alternate history is echoed by parallel accounts from the myth and history of other ancient cultures, as well as myriad secret societies and occult sources. The...
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We humans have been on the Earth for more than a million years, but civilization – life in cities – has come about only in the last 5,000. Through history civilizations have rose and fell, carved out of nature, dependent on nature, in the end – nature took them back. But in the past few hundred years, one form of civilization – that of the West – has changed the balance of nature forever. And now it is civilization itself that has...
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In 1911, Hiram Bingham, famed American explorer, stumbled across a remote Inca city atop a high peak in the Andes. The site was called Machu Picchu – perhaps the most famous ruin in the world. What was its purpose? Was it, like Bingham believed, a military fortress? Or did this glorious ruin have a secret purpose? From the mountains of Peru, Josh will follow in the footsteps of Hiram Bingham. He builds a log bridge across a raging river,...
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The Mysteries of Asia three-part video series was originally produced for the Learning Channel. During this segment, historians and others examine temples built in India more than 1,000 years ago. They remain quite intriguing, though today’s tourists rarely visit them. Records reveal that trained elephants had to drag millions of stone blocks to help erect these structures. The program notes that due to the temples’ size, the U.S. Senate,...
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The rise of Islam is one of the most important events in world history. In the 7th century, Mohammed’s intention was to unite the divided Arabs through a new religion. A century after his death, he’d succeeded in producing a medieval superpower. The Arabs and Moors had spread through Spain towards the Pyrenees. Cordoba became renowned as one of the greatest and wealthiest cities in Europe. Moorish cities such as Toledo and Seville were famed...
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India is one of the oldest and richest civilizations in the world. It is home to the world’s first planned cities, where every house had its own bathroom and toilet five thousand years ago. The Ancient Indians have not only given us yoga, meditation and complementary medicines, but they have furthered our knowledge of science, maths – and invented Chaturanga, which became the game of chess. According to Albert Einstein, they “taught us how...
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Ten years in the making, this award-winning feature-length documentary was filmed during nine journeys throughout Tibet, India and Nepal. Cry of the Snow Lion brings audiences to the long-forbidden “rooftop of the world” with an unprecedented richness of imagery… from rarely-seen rituals in remote monasteries, to horse races with Khamba warriors; from brothels and slums in the holy city of Lhasa, to magnificent Himalayan peaks still...
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It’s one of the greatest stories ever told. The legend of Helen of Troy has enchanted audiences for the last three thousand years. In May this year a Hollywood film staring Brad Pitt and Orlando Bloom will be launched in Britain. But is there any reality to the myth? Horizon has unprecedented access to the scientist with the answers. Since 1988 Professor Manfred Korfmann has been excavating the site of Troy. He has never before spoken at this...
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Travel to a land of breathtaking beauty and ancient intellect, where science, art and inspiration from the gods combined to produce some of the world’s greatest marvels of architecture and design. From prehistoric palaces to bold symbols of victory, explore the seven ancient wonders that stir spectators to this day: the Theatre of Epidaurus, the statue of Zeus at Olympia, Apollo’s Temple at Delphi, the Colossus of Rhodes, the settlement at...
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In 1542, the Spanish Conquistador, Francisco de Orellana ventured along the Rio Negro, one of the Amazon Basin’s great rivers. Hunting a hidden city of gold, his expedition found a network of farms, villages and even huge walled cities. At least that is what he told an eager audience on his return to Spain. The prospect of gold drew others to explore the region, but none could find the people of whom the first Conquistadors had spoken. The...
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Join British historian Bettany Hughes as she examines a long-buried chapter of European history–the rise and fall of Islamic culture in what is now Spain and Portugal. Although generations of Spanish rulers have tried to expunge this era from the historical record, recent archeology and scholarship now shed fresh light on the Moors who flourished in Al-Andalus for more than 700 years. This fascinating documentary explodes old stereotypes and...
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In the early years of anno domini, China experienced one of its most formidable and brilliant rulers in the personage of Qin Shi Huang, or ‘The First Emperor of Qin.’ By all accounts a visionary, Huang is now credited with laying the groundwork for the Chinese empire, setting forth the plans for the Great Wall (the first ruler to do so) and establishing the largest burial site on Earth, a site guarded by an “army” of 7,000 terracotta...
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This is a pyramid that ranks as one of the largest in the world, period. It’s one that covers on the surface of the mound it covers like 15 football fields. The volume of it is some, we calculate something like two million cubic metres of material. The magnificent ancient city of pyramids at Caral in Peru hit the headlines in 2001. The site is a thousand years older than the earliest known civilization in the Americas and, at 2,627 BC, is as...
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The Bosnian Pyramid of the Sun with its’ height of 220 meters, it’s much higher than the Great Pyramid of Egypt, which was originally 147. The Bosnian Pyramid of the Moon, 190 meters, also higher than the Keopsove Pyramid. The third, the Bosnian Pyramid of the Dragon, with the other two – the sun and the moon – form the perfect triangle with the distance of 2.2 kilometers. The 45-year-old is so certain two pyramids are hidden in Visoko...
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Between 17,000 years ago and 7000 years ago, at the end of the last Ice Age, terrible things happened to the world our ancestors lived in. Great ice caps over northern Europe and north America melted down, huge floods ripped across the earth, sea-level rose by more than 100 metres, and about 25 million square kilometres of formerly habitable lands were swallowed up by the waves. Marine archaeology has been possible as a scholarly discipline for...
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At 57m long, 6m wide and 20m high, the Great Sphinx at Giza is the largest single-stone sculpture in the world. But who built it? Dr Vassil Dobrev, from the French Institute in Cairo, is on the verge of cracking the riddle of the Sphinx! In Ancient Egyptian mythology, a sphinx is a zoomorphic figure, usually depicted as a recumbent lioness or lion with a human head, but occasionally as a lion with the head of a falcon, hawk, or ram. The figure...
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Awe inspiring and enigmatic, the sacred sites and holy places of ancient man have stood mute for millennia – their secrets seemingly vanished with the civilisations that built them. Yet what mysteries would they reveal if they could speak? Is there something that connects these sites – a hidden key that will once and for all disclose the riddles of our past? What is the startling archaic connection entwining the sacred places of our world?...
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Stonehenge, located on the Salisbury Plain in Southern England, has long been associated with Druids, a group of wise men present in England more than 2000 years ago. Still today at Summer Solstice, the longest day of the year, Druid celebrations are held at Stonehenge. But were they the actual designers? Excavations underneath the stones have revealed artifacts, like antler horns, carbon dated at 4000 years ago. Bodies found buried nearby are...
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This one hour program is divided into five chapters. The Forgotten Maya Temples. In 1774, Spanish explorer Jose Calderon rediscovers the temples of Palenque and the ancient hieroglyphs of the Maya, a people whose culture was decimated by the Spanish conquistadors. A Hidden History: Toiling away in the basement of Harvard’s Peabody Museum, archeologist Tatiana Proskouriakoff discovers that Maya monuments contain a decipherable history rather...
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Originally intended as a four-part miniseries, Kingdom of David: The Saga of the Israelites made its U.S. debut as a two-part PBS special on May 14 and 21, 2003. Narrated by Keith David, with character voices provided by an impressive lineup of prominent actors, the program is dedicated to the thesis that the Israelites and the Jewish faith changed human history “as much as any empire that ever existed.” Persecuted and slaughtered for...
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Two thousand years ago, the world was ruled by Rome. From England to Africa and from Syria to Spain, one in every four people on earth lived and died under Roman law. The Roman Empire in the first century AD mixed sophistication with brutality and could suddenly lurch from civilization, strength and power to terror, tyranny and greed. Leader of the pack. At the head of the pack were the emperors, a strange bunch of men (always men). Few were...
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Discover how ancient Egyptians used nautical experience, ingenuity, and unwavering faith to raise massive 500-ton granite monoliths that have stood for thousands of years in tribute to their unparalleled early civilization. Travel to Easter Island to discover the secrets of this vanished civilization through the “moai,” the massive headstones that these ancient islanders created to achieve peace and harmony, yet resulted in geological...
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Over 3,500 years ago, Rome was no more than a soggy marsh and the Acropolis was just an empty rock, but Egypt was on the brink of its greatest age – the New Kingdom. There was an explosion of creativity, wealth and power in Egypt that would make it the envy of the world. After defeating the Hyksos invaders, successive Pharaohs expanded and maintained their Empire through both force and diplomacy. In the process, they won Egypt vast amounts of...
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A highly sophisticated restoration team is painstakingly reassembling the Parthenon of Athens—a classic Greek building that has suffered from wars, earthquakes, and disastrous previous restoration attempts. The Parthenon’s builders created dauntingly precise yet subtle curves throughout the structure, giving the building its legendary grace. Etched in the marble itself, the restoration team discovers traces made by the ingenious tools the...
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Before Leonardo da Vinci painted “The Last Supper,” Tibetan craftsmen were creating stunning artistry of their deities in the remote Himalayan kingdom of Mustang. In Lost Treasures of Tibet, NOVA goes behind the scenes with the first conservation team from the West, as it undertakes the painstaking restoration of these ancient masterpieces and the beautiful monasteries that house them. Located in present-day Nepal, Mustang contains some of...
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Commanding shoguns and fierce samurai warriors, exotic geisha and exquisite artisans – all were part of a Japanese renaissance between the 16th and 19th centuries when Japan went from chaos and violence to a land of ritual refinement and peace. But stability came at a price: for nearly 250 years, Japan was a land closed to the Western world, ruled by the shogun under his absolute power and control. Japan: Memoirs of a Secret Empire brings to...
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2,500 years ago Persia was a great empire regarded as the forerunner of the Roman Empire. However in spite of its size and strength it had an adversary that would seal its doom. Persia’s nemesis was a smaller empire – Macedonia; ruled by Alexander The Great. This documentary shows how the failure of one king can lead to the downfall of a whole empire and how Alexander could manage to win against his superior enemy – The Persians. The...
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The region now known as Iraq has always been, in many ways, world history’s ground zero. From this rich territory sprang the earliest cities and empires, earliest armies, and earliest tyrants. The Kings: From Babylon To Baghdad tells the story of Iraq through the history of its rulers, from Sargon the Great to Saddam Hussein. This feature-length documentary explores the connections and relevance between ancient and modern Iraq and between Iraq...

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Civilization Documentaries

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Acclaimed writer and historian, Michael Wood’s ‘ten thousand year epic’ uncovers the fabulous sights,...
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It’s hard to believe that while the European continent was entrenched in the horrors of the Dark Ages, the...
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There is another side of Egypt that is not so widely known. Egypt is also the land of secrets. Another...
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We humans have been on the Earth for more than a million years, but civilization – life in cities – has...
Image
In 1911, Hiram Bingham, famed American explorer, stumbled across a remote Inca city atop a high peak in the...
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The Mysteries of Asia three-part video series was originally produced for the Learning Channel. During this...
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The rise of Islam is one of the most important events in world history. In the 7th century, Mohammed’s...
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India is one of the oldest and richest civilizations in the world. It is home to the world’s first planned...
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Ten years in the making, this award-winning feature-length documentary was filmed during nine journeys...
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It’s one of the greatest stories ever told. The legend of Helen of Troy has enchanted audiences for the...
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Travel to a land of breathtaking beauty and ancient intellect, where science, art and inspiration from the...
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In 1542, the Spanish Conquistador, Francisco de Orellana ventured along the Rio Negro, one of the Amazon...
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Join British historian Bettany Hughes as she examines a long-buried chapter of European history–the rise...
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In the early years of anno domini, China experienced one of its most formidable and brilliant rulers in the...
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This is a pyramid that ranks as one of the largest in the world, period. It’s one that covers on the...
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The Bosnian Pyramid of the Sun with its’ height of 220 meters, it’s much higher than the Great Pyramid of...
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Between 17,000 years ago and 7000 years ago, at the end of the last Ice Age, terrible things happened to the...
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At 57m long, 6m wide and 20m high, the Great Sphinx at Giza is the largest single-stone sculpture in the...
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Awe inspiring and enigmatic, the sacred sites and holy places of ancient man have stood mute for millennia...
Image
Stonehenge, located on the Salisbury Plain in Southern England, has long been associated with Druids, a group...
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This one hour program is divided into five chapters. The Forgotten Maya Temples. In 1774, Spanish explorer...
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Originally intended as a four-part miniseries, Kingdom of David: The Saga of the Israelites made its U.S....
Image
Two thousand years ago, the world was ruled by Rome. From England to Africa and from Syria to Spain, one in...
Image
Discover how ancient Egyptians used nautical experience, ingenuity, and unwavering faith to raise massive...
Image
Over 3,500 years ago, Rome was no more than a soggy marsh and the Acropolis was just an empty rock, but Egypt...
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A highly sophisticated restoration team is painstakingly reassembling the Parthenon of Athens—a classic...
Image
Before Leonardo da Vinci painted “The Last Supper,” Tibetan craftsmen were creating stunning artistry of...
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Commanding shoguns and fierce samurai warriors, exotic geisha and exquisite artisans – all were part of a...
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2,500 years ago Persia was a great empire regarded as the forerunner of the Roman Empire. However in spite of...
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The region now known as Iraq has always been, in many ways, world history’s ground zero. From this rich...

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The Bosnian Pyramid of the Sun with its’ height of 220 meters, it’s much higher than the Great Pyramid of Egypt, which was originally 147. The Bosnian Pyramid of the Moon, 190 meters, also higher than the...
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