In this book A. Asimov writes about one of the most ancient and beautiful cities in the world, founded by Emperor Constantine. It was called the "golden bridge between Europe and the West," through the capital of the East there was trade in Western Europe with the Black Sea region, Iran, India, China. It was a cultural center with its own university, a city where crafts flourished. The future Christian world was gaining strength here. Envious eyes were drawn to the capital of Byzantium by the European and eastern conquerors, he was threatened by the Huns, Arabs, Slavs, Normans, Seljuk Turks, he was attacked and subjected to long sieges. But the most terrible test was the Crusades, the last of them became fatal for the city.