The English version of the "Der Neue Pauly", published by Verlag J.B. Metzler since 1996. This is the first of 15 volumes which are devoted to Greco-Roman antiquity and cover over 2000 years of history, ranging from the second millennium BC to early mediaeval Europe. Special emphasis is given to the interaction between Greco-Roman culture on the one hand, and Semitic, Celtic, Germanic and Slavonic culture, and ancient Judaism, Christianity and Islam, on the other. Five volumes (Classical Tradition, I-V) are concerned with the long and influential aftermath of antiquity and the process of continuous reinterpretation and re-evaluation of the ancient heritage, including the history of classical scholarship.