Ohhhh, bob, you've fit on a question that very much appeals to me.
"My" main period and place: history of the Ancient Near East... the "land between", from the palæolithic to the end of the Iron Age III. Inevitably, though, that spills over into Egyptian history and Greek history. Ancient and Classical Greek history studies were my first.
I also love early mediæval Russian history, from roughly the founding of Novgorod onwards in particular.
English history from its Roman occupation, through its Anglo-Saxon times, to the Norman conquest, its increasing "Englishness" from Chaucer to Shakespeare - irresistible.
South of France (esp. Languedoc-Roussilon région) from its time as Roman provinces, with the rise and fall of Kingdoms - the Roman, Visigothic, Merovingian and Carolingian - as well as the enormous influence of the Burgundians and other Germanic tribes...
My favourite period of history in terms of collecting things is English Georgian. The architecture of the time deeply appeals to me - graceful lines, beautiful proportions, just enough embellishment to give charm without overwhelming... The silverwork is ravishing and skilled.
If I could go back in time, I don't think I could restrict myself to one person or one era. There are so many things we do not know, but it's not just the important and noteworthy figures who have things to reveal. What of the average person in ancient Sumer? What of the "man in the street" in England in 1122? What sort of underwear did people really wear in 400 A.D. in Bath? When was the actual constellation that we refer to nowadays as the Christmas Star? How did the builders of the pyramids really feel about their work? What was the standard of literacy in Novgorod in 1370? How were the Coffin Texts pronounced contemporaneously?
