Hidden Histories Collection Signature Edition

Every object around us has a story.

We use paper, books, coffee, chocolate, calendars, compasses, coins and hundreds of other everyday objects without ever wondering where they came from or how they transformed the course of civilisation. Yet behind each of them lies an extraordinary journey shaped by curiosity, ingenuity, trade, conflict and centuries of human innovation.

The Origin of Things invites you to explore the hidden history of the objects that quietly shaped our world. Travelling from ancient Mesopotamia and Egypt to imperial China, classical Greece, Rome and beyond, this book uncovers the remarkable origins of inventions and ideas that most of us take for granted.

Rather than presenting history as a sequence of dates and events, Juan Carlos Villegas Príncipe tells the story of civilisation through the objects that changed everyday life. Each chapter combines rigorous historical research with engaging storytelling, revealing how seemingly ordinary inventions transformed commerce, science, education, exploration and human progress itself.

Discover how paper preserved knowledge across generations, how the compass opened new worlds, why coffeehouses became centres of intellectual revolution, how chocolate travelled from sacred ritual to global obsession, and why some of history’s greatest innovations emerged from the simplest human needs.

Written in a clear, accessible and engaging style, The Origin of Things offers a fresh perspective on world history through the inventions that continue to shape our lives every single day.

Once you discover the hidden history behind ordinary objects, you will never look at them in quite the same way again.