5/10. Uzbekistan to Syria. The rarely visited trading domes of Uzbekistan and Fire Temple of Azerbaijan get an incisive Dan Cruickshank appraisal, before he moves on to scale a cliff face towards arguably the biggest archaeological puzzles of the 19th century: the Bisitun carvings. The historian also takes in the remains of the great city of Persepolis in modern-day Iran, explores the exotic souk in Syrian capital Damascus, and then indulges himself with some pampering at a hammam - the local steam bath. Series producer Tim Dunn ; Executive producer Basil Comely
Repeated next Saturday RT DIRECT: Around the World in 80 Treasures (hardback), E17 (RRP E20) incl p&p. To order call [number removed] (national rate)