historical political boundaries

[Joe Bussell]

Just for fun I was toying with the idea of playing history back for my 
son by demonstrating the changing political boundaries.  Are there data 
sets available for political boundaries for the ancient world?   How 
about pre-WW1 or WW-2?  How about military buildup like the position of 
Napoleon's army over time, or the extent of Atilla's military reach over 
time.  Or Phiilip of Macedon and later his son Alexander's land 
acquisitions, and the later breakup as the satraps and princes struggled 
for primacy and the resulting divided principalities.

Can you imagine watching the world's history playing out in an 
interactive map application?  This would be very cool.

Has this been done before professionally or privately?

Cordially,

Joe Bussell