Podcasts by The Ancient World

Episode C11 – The House of David from 2022-02-13T17:24:45

Synopsis: In the latter half of the 11th century BC, southern Syria witnessed the increasing prominence of semi-nomadic Semitic peoples – including the Edomites, Moabites, Ammonite...

Episode C10 – These Are Not Foolish Travels from 2022-01-30T19:42:46

Synopsis: The fracturing and diminishment of Egyptian power in the early Iron Age is captured in “The Report of Wenamun.”







I found (King Zakar-b...

Episode C9 – Horse to Horse, Army to Army from 2022-01-16T01:07:56

Synopsis: In the mid-11th century BC, the Hittite kingdoms of northern Syria are joined by others– in the Philistine pentapolis, the Amuq plain and the region of Classical Cilicia – with...

Episode C8 – The Heirs of Hatti from 2022-01-02T01:42:52

Synopsis: The Great Kings of Carchemish continue ruling over a Hittite rump state in northern Syria as they support the region’s recovery.  After an attack by the Assyrian king Ashur-bel...

Episode C7 – The Heirs of Babylon from 2021-12-19T01:40:24

Synopsis: Even as Anatolia, Syria and Egypt confronted the Bronze Age Collapse, the eastern kingdoms of Assyria, Babylonia and Elam continued their ancient cycle of dynastic conflict. Listen

New Episodes Coming Soon from 2021-12-12T08:50:06

Episode C6 – The Splendid Flame from 2021-06-25T00:36:25

Synopsis: In the wake of the Sea Peoples, the Hittite Great King Kuzi-Teshub focuses on rebuilding and strengthening his kingdom.  A powerful new threat soon emerges in the form of King ...

From Bronze to Iron from 2021-06-06T15:39:08

First off I really hope you’ve been enjoying “The Ancient World – Carchemish.”  From the beginning I’ve touted this as a series on the Neo-Hittite kingdoms.  But since the first Neo-Hitt...

Episode C5 – The Sea Peoples from 2021-06-04T00:11:21

Synopsis: The Sea Peoples cut a swath of devastation across the Levant before their final confrontation with the pharaoh Ramesses III of Egypt. The Hittite Great King Suppiluliuma II aba...

Episode C4 – The Great Kings from 2021-05-21T00:23:51

Synopsis: The Great King Tudhaliya’s sons, Arnuwanda and Suppiluliuma, take power in a time of growing famine.  The collapse of Mycenaean Greece intensifies the predations of Aegean...

Episode C3 – The Eternal Treaty from 2021-05-07T00:24:51

Synopsis:  Hattusili III’s diplomacy with the pharaoh Ramesses II culminates in the world’s first peace treaty.  After his death, his son Tudhaliya IV drives out the Ahhiyawans, then def...

The Bronze Age – Update from 2021-04-28T20:27:58

I just wanted to give you a quick update about my “The Bronze Age” course on avid.fm.  First off, I’m happy to report that we’ve exceeded the threshold for launching the course – so it i...

Episode C2 – Tarhuntassa from 2021-04-22T22:43:24

Synopsis:  King Muwatalli II relocates the Hittite capital to the new royal city of Tarhuntassa near the Mediterranean coast, then faces off against the young pharaoh Ramesses II in the ...

The Bronze Age from 2021-04-16T20:29:54

Hi everyone!  As you likely know, I really enjoyed making the original “Ancient World” podcast series – especially the parts covering the Bronze Age Near East and eastern Mediterranean. ...

Episode C1 – Carchemish from 2021-04-09T02:41:19

Synopsis:  In the late 14th century BC, the Hittite Great King Suppiluliuma wrested Syria from the grip of the Hurrian kingdom of Mitanni.  Two of his sons would succeed him to the thron...

A Young Man’s Fancy from 2021-03-22T01:16:58

Episode S5 – Ordeal by Fire from 2020-10-23T15:14

Synopsis:  In the 4th century AD, the Ethiopian kingdom of Axum converted to Christianity even as the neighboring Himyarites of Yemen converted to Judaism.  Centuries later, Ax...

Episode S4 – Children of the Moon from 2020-10-09T16:20:36

Synopsis:  The Sabaeans and Himyarites leveraged their control over south Arabian aromatics into a lucrative trade that spanned the ancient world.  The region’s remoteness, wea...

Episode S3 – Queen Mavia from 2020-07-10T15:10:15

Synopsis:  A century after Queen Zenobia, another Syrian Arab warrior queen rises to challenge the power or Rome – and succeeds.  The story of Queen Mavia of the Tanukh.


...

Episode T18 – Tigranes from 2020-04-10T15:04:40

Synopsis:  The death of King Philip I marks the official end of the Seleucid line.  Invited by the Antiochenes to rule them, King Tigranes II of Armenia proceeds to conquer all...

Episode T17 – The Sons of Grypus from 2020-03-27T15:16:43

Synopsis: With Rome encroaching from the north and south, the sons of Grypus battle Parthians, usurpers and local powers to keep their hold on Syria.





Listen

Episode T16 – The Sons of Thea from 2020-03-13T14:59:26

Synopsis: While the Ptolemies intrigue in Coele Syria, Antiochus VIII Grypus and his half-brother Antiochus IX Cyzicenus struggle for seventeen years to win control of the north.  A...

Episode T15 – Grypus from 2020-02-28T20:05:08

Synopsis: Cleopatra Thea convinces her son Antiochus VIII Grypus to return to Syria and share the throne.  But once Zabinas is defeated and the kingdom secure, Grypus decides to ave...

Episode T14 – Zabinas from 2020-02-15T00:31

Synopsis: Demetrius II returns to Syria, but his unpopularity – and support for the Egyptian Queen Cleopatra II – results in a usurper named Alexander Zabinas taking most of his kingdom...

Episode T13 – Eunus from 2019-12-13T23:55

Synopsis: A Syrian man from Apamea, enslaved on the island of Sicily, renames himself King Antiochus and launches the first large-scale slave rebellion against the Roman Republic.

 
...

Episode T12 – Sar Matati from 2019-11-30T01:13

Synopsis: After Mithridates is struck down by an illness, his son Phraates II defends Parthian gains against the army of Antiochus VII.  Forced to retreat to Hyrcania, Phraates sets events in motio...

Episode T11 – Euergetes from 2019-11-16T00:48

Synopsis: Ongoing strife in Anatolia and Egypt allows Antiochus VII to campaign east against the Parthians.  His early successes inspire hopes of a resurgent Seleucid Empire, hopes shattered by his...

Episode S2 – The Bactrian Kingdom from 2019-10-11T23:09

“In this battle, Antiochus’ horse was wounded and killed, and the king himself was struck through the mouth and lost some of his teeth.  On the whole, he acquired on that occasion the greatest repu...

Episode S1 – Alexander in Bactria from 2019-09-13T22:55

“I am engaged in a land of a leonine and brave people, where every foot of the ground is like a wall of steel confronting my soldiers.  You have brought only one Alexander into the world, but every...

Episode T10 – Sidetes from 2019-08-24T13:31

Synopsis: Cleopatra Thea marries Demetrius II’s brother, Antiochus VII, becoming the simultaneous queen of two Seleucid kings. While Antiochus crushes Tryphon’s revolt and recovers former Seleucid ...

Episode T9 – Tryphon from 2019-08-09T23:48

Synopsis: The Seleucid rebel Diodotus Tryphon uses Thea and Alexander Balas’ young son, Antiochus VI, to capture most of Syria.  Though paralyzed at home, Demetrius II embarks on a bold plan to cha...

Episode T8 – The City from 2019-07-26T23:17

Synopsis: The rediscovery of Ai Khanoum testified to the wealth and power of the Bactrian Kingdom.  Mithridates’ conquest of Babylonia is countered by an unlikely coalition.

“The cities o...

Episode T7 – Blazing From Afar from 2019-07-13T06:52

Synopsis: On the eastern frontiers of the Seleucid Empire, Parthia, Bactria and the Indo-Greeks struggle for regional supremacy.  The stalemate in Syria and murder of Eucratides advance the fortune...

Episode T6 – Philometor from 2019-02-28T23:48

Synopsis: With Syria beset by regional enemies, three kings face off at the Battle of the Oenoparos River.  The lone survivor, King Demetrius II, inaugurates his reign with the violent destruction ...

Episode T5 – Balas from 2019-02-16T00:10

Synopsis: Demetrius struggles to preserve his throne but ends up falling in battle.  Alexander Balas begins his reign by marrying Ptolemy’s daughter, Cleopatra Thea.  While the sons of Demetrius re...

Episode T4 – Soter from 2019-02-02T01:21

Synopsis: Demetrius seizes the Syrian throne and stems immediate threats from Media and Judaea.  But deposed officials and regional rulers conspire to engineer his downfall.



“W...

Episode T3 – Thea from 2019-01-18T07:58

Synopsis: Lysias attempts to exercise control through the young King Antiochus V, but a deadly incident with a Roman delegation gives hope to the captive Demetrius.  Ptolemy Physcon challenges his ...

Episode T2 – Megas from 2019-01-05T00:44

Synopsis: Antiochus the Great restores Seleucid fortunes, but his son Antiochus IV sews the seeds of the Empire’s destruction.



“On (Antiochus IV), after reading the dispatch, s...

Episode T1 – Nicator from 2018-12-22T00:12

Synopsis: Seleucus I Nicator forges the Seleucid Empire, and his descendants spend the next century struggling to preserve his legacy.



“In Asia, after the defeat of Demetrius a...

The Rest of My Interview from 2018-07-11T09:03

with Drew from the Wonders of the World Podcast, where we talk about Palmyra, Odaenathus, and (of course) Queen Zenobia.  Enjoy!

Just Did My First Interview from 2018-06-26T13:29

with the lovely and talented Drew from the Wonders of the World podcast, where we talk about the exotic Roman Emperor Elagabalus, the amazing temple complex at Baalbek, and lots of other fun stuff....

Episode B54 – Efqa from 2018-03-23T22:36

Synopsis:  Monotheism, modern Syria, the world’s first romance story, and the end of the Bloodline.

“The oasis and town of Palmyra owe their existence to the plentiful spring that runs fr...

Episode B53 – Memento Mori from 2018-03-09T23:10

Synopsis: Aurelian returns East to crush Palmyrene revolts in Syria and Egypt. The sources relate differing accounts of Zenobia’s ultimate fate.



“To the tumultuous throng which...

Episode B52 – Palmyra from 2018-02-24T08:35

Synopsis:  Boxed in by Aurelian’s siege, Zenobia makes a desperate attempt to enlist the support of the Persians.



“Palmyra was the last resource of the widow of Odaenathus.  Sh...

Episode B51 – Emesa from 2018-02-09T23:41

Synopsis:  After a crushing defeat at the Battle of Emesa, Zenobia retreats to Palmyra.  Aurelian has a divine encounter at the Temple of Elah Gabal.

“After this, the whole issue of the w...

Episode B50 – Augusta from 2018-01-27T05:06

Synopsis:  Aurelian’s vision compels him to spare the defiant citizens of Tyana.  As the Romans advance through Anatolia, Zenobia concentrates her forces in Syria, and the two sides finally clash a...

Episode B49 – Nemesis from 2018-01-13T02:27

Synopsis:  Zenobia orders her general Zabdas to capture Anatolia.  After subduing the Marcomanni and the Goths, Aurelian makes preparations to reclaim the East.





“(Au...

Episode B48 – 270 from 2017-11-24T23:48

Synopsis:  Zenobia’s armies successfully capture Arabia Petraea and Egypt.  The death of Claudius and his brother Quintillus pave the way for the Emperor Aurelian.

“Zenobia began to think...

Episode B47 – Zenobia from 2017-11-10T23:36

Synopsis:  Following the murder of the Emperor Gallienus, Zenobia successfully defends Palmyra against both Roman and Persian aggression. 

“Zenobia then took upon her the administration ...

Episode B46 – Melek Melek from 2017-10-27T23:02

Synopsis:  Odaenathus declares himself King of Kings, twice besieges the Sasanid capital, and combats Gothic pirates on the Black Sea coast.  At the height of his power he’s betrayed and murdered, ...

Episode B45 – Odaenathus from 2017-10-14T00:19

Synopsis:  Odaenathus helps drive the Persians from Syria and preserve Gallienus’ throne.  After his peace offering is spurned by Shapur, Odaenathus prepares to invade the Sasanid Empire.

Listen

Episode B44 – Edessa from 2017-09-29T23:12

Synopsis:  After his humiliating defeat at the hands of Shapur, Valerian joins tens of thousands of Roman captives deported to the heartland of Persia. 

“Going without consideration to S...

Episode B43 – Sibylline from 2017-06-16T23:44

Synopsis:  Samsigeramus saves Emesa from Sasanid destruction, then proclaims himself Augustus.  The arrival of Valerian marks the end of his reign and the elevation of Odaenathus to provincial gove...

Episode B42 – Iotapian from 2017-05-27T00:59

Synopsis:  The revolt of Iotapian shows Eastern nobles the possibilities among the chaos.  Shapur’s invasion of Syria drives Samsigeramus to make a bold stand.

“As there were at that time...

Episode B41 – Samsigeramus from 2017-05-12T22:40

Synopsis:  Shortly after Hatra’s destruction, Shapur inherits the Persian Empire.  Gordian’s invasion the following year ends in defeat and humiliation for Rome.

“When at first we had bec...

Episode B40 – Uranius from 2017-04-29T04:07

Synopsis:  After the death of Elagabalus, Uranius Antoninus served as High Priest of Elah Gabal in Emesa.  From this vantage, he witnessed the birth of Ardeshir’s Persia and the changing fortunes o...

Episode B39 – Excidium from 2016-12-03T00:35

Synopsis:  Alexander marches East to counter Ardeshir’s invasion, but the conflict ends in a stalemate.  A short time later, a legionary rebellion along the Rhine brings the Severan regime to a blo...

Episode B38 – The Last Severan from 2016-11-12T09:03

Synopsis:  Overseen by his mother and grandmother, Severus Alexander’s early reign was marked by wisdom and temperance.  A decade later, a Sasanid invasion would test both Rome and its emperor.
Listen

Episode B37 – Shahanshah from 2016-10-28T22:54

Synopsis:  Ardeshir defeats Artabanus in battle and claims the Parthian Empire for the Sasanids.  After a failed attempt to conquer Armenia, he sets his sights on the Roman East.

“Then (A...

Episode B36 – The Black Stone from 2016-09-24T00:50

Synopsis:  Elagabalus spearheads a religious revolution in Rome, but his unpopular rule drives Julia Maesa to enact a back-up plan.

“To this temple, as to the common center of religious w...

Episode B35 – Bassus from 2016-09-09T23:44

Synopsis:  Deception, good fortune, and Macrinus’ failings allow the Severans to retake the Roman throne.  As Emperor, Elagabalus makes plans to install the black stone of Elah Gabal in the Capital...

Episode B34 – Keepers of the Fire from 2016-08-26T23:31

Synopsis:  King Artabanus of Parthia gathers his forces to seek revenge on Rome.  Usurpation and war gain the Sasanids control over the southern territory of Fars.

“Macrinus, seeing that ...

Episode B33 – Semiramis from 2016-08-06T00:34

Synopsis:  Caracalla cuts a murderous path through Rome, and provokes a dangerous war with Parthia.  After his murder, Julia Domna is forced to contend with a would-be usurper.

“Julia Dom...

Episode B32 – The Fourth Caesar from 2016-07-22T22:40

Synopsis:  Severus’ close friendship with Plautianus estranges him from his family.  In his final years, a rebellion in Britannia provides one last opportunity to shape his legacy.

“The c...

Episode B31 – Perish in Blood from 2016-04-30T07:51

Synopsis:  Severus confronts Albinus at Lugdunum, then launches a war against the Parthians.  At the pinnacle of his power, the oracle of Zeus Belos reveals his family’s fate.

“The youth ...

Episode B30 – Mater Castrorum from 2016-04-15T23:55

Synopsis:  Severus defeats Niger and wages a limited Eastern campaign.  While Julia Domna is hailed as Mother of the Camps, Caracalla’s elevation to Caesar prompts a second civil war.

“Th...

Episode B29 – 193 from 2016-04-01T23:04

Synopsis:  After Pertinax and his successor are killed in the same year, Severus’s claim to the Empire is contested by two rivals. 

“Pertinax was one of those men to whom no except...

Episode B28 – Bestiarius from 2016-03-19T02:12

Synopsis: Julia Domna marries Septimius Severus and gives birth to Caracalla and Geta. Left behind in Rome with her young children, Julia watches as Commodus re-founds the Empire in his own image.<...

Episode B27 – Lucifugus from 2016-03-05T09:58

Synopsis:  Julia Domna was daughter of the Emesene High Priest, destined to marry a king.  Then she met Septimius Severus.

“Our history now descends from a kingdom of gold to one of...

Episode B26 – Emanes from 2016-02-20T01:03

Synopsis:  The revolt of Avidius Cassius.

“There is only one thing I fear, fellow-soldiers…and that is that (Avidius Cassius) may either kill himself because ashamed to come into ou...

Episode B25 – Discindo from 2016-02-06T01:25

Synopsis:  The overthrow of King Gaius Julius Sohaemus of Armenia leads to war between Parthia and Rome.

“For Vologases had begun war by assailing on all sides the Roman camp under ...

Episode B24 – The Yona Kings from 2015-11-19T09:08

Synopsis:  The Macedonian kingdoms of Central Asia endured for centuries before being absorbed into the Kushan Empire.  Hadrian’s actions in Judea spark a third Jewish Revolt.

“Has ...

Episode B23 – Parthicus from 2015-11-07T10:28

Synopsis:  At the far point of his campaign, Trajan’s Eastern conquests begin to slip from his fingers.

“Thence he came to the (Persian Gulf) itself, and when he had learned its nature an...

Episode B22 – Optimus from 2015-10-23T23:19

Synopsis:  Silas guides Emesa in its transition to a pilgrimage site.  The death of King Tiridates I of Armenia brings Rome and Parthia into conflict.

“(Parthomasiris) greeted him, took o...

Episode B21 – Betrayal from 2015-10-10T11:02

Synopsis:  Gaius Julius Sohaemus is compelled to help the Romans conquer Commagene.

“Petus…fell upon Commagene before Antiochus and his people had the least expectation of his coming.  He...

Episode B20 – The God of Dusk from 2015-09-25T08:40

Synopsis:  The destruction of Jerusalem.

Shalim (semetic):  Caananite god of dusk and the evening star, paired with Shahar, god of dawn and the morning star.  Root of Hebrew shalom and Ar...

Episode B19 – The Prefect from 2015-09-11T23:12

Synopsis:  Tiberius Julius Alexander throws Egypt’s backing behind Vespasian’s bid for the throne.

“Accordingly, in order to overthrow John (of Gischala), they determined to admit Simon (...

Episode B18 – The Josephus Problem from 2015-08-28T23:38

Synopsis:  Joseph ben Matityahu fought the Romans as a Jewish General before becoming a trusted advisor to the Flavians. 

The Josephus Problem (mathematics):  Given a group of n men arra...

Episode B17 – The Valley from 2015-06-26T15:07

Synopsis:  Nero crowns Tiridates King of Armenia.  A succession of brutal and corrupt procurators set Judea on the path to revolt.

“Go forth unto the valley of the son of Hinnom (Gehenna)...

Episode B16 – Burn from 2015-06-12T20:56

Synopsis:  The birth of Drusilla and Sohaemus’ son Gaius Julius Alexio.  The Empire confronts the revolt of Boudica, renewed warfare in Armenia, and the Great Fire of Rome.

“Rome shall pe...

Episode B15 – God of the Mountain from 2015-05-29T23:35

Synopsis:  Drusilla marries the Emesene Priest-King Gaius Julius Sohaemus.  Rome and Parthia go to war over Armenia. 

“Our ancestors worshipped the Sun, and they were not that foolish. Listen

Episode B14 – The Just from 2015-05-15T10:18

Synopsis:  The divorce of Felix and Drusilla.  James and Paul struggle for the soul of early Christianity. 

“And then it was that the sicarii, as they were called, who were robbers, grew ...

Episode B13 – Zealot from 2015-05-03T08:55

Synopsis:  The early life of Drusilla of Mauretania, and her marriage to Marcus Antonius Felix, Roman Procurator of Judea 

“This Judas, having gotten together a multitude of men of a prof...

Episode B12 – Antonii from 2015-03-28T02:05

Synopsis:  The death of Tiberius, elevation of Caligula, and final years of King Ptolemy I.

“Ptolemy, whom (Caligula) invited from his kingdom, and received with great honors, he suddenly...

Episode B11 – Caedis from 2015-03-14T00:52

Synopsis:  The end of Tacfarinas, and the bloody co-rule of Tiberius and Sejanus. 

“Then, as the campaign had demonstrated Ptolemy’s good-will, an old-fashioned distinction was revived, a...

Episode B10 – Insurgo from 2015-02-28T05:19

Synopsis:  The ongoing rebellion of Tacfarinas, and the death of Juba.

“For Tacfarinas, in spite of many repulses, having first recruited his forces in the heart of Africa, had reached su...

Episode B9 – Germanicus from 2015-02-14T01:29

Synopsis:  Germanicus travels to Syria to assume his Eastern Imperium.

“‘The prime duty of friends is not to follow their dead with passive laments, but to remember his wishes and carry o...

Episode B8 – Scelus from 2015-01-31T00:50

Synopsis:  The death of Octavian, elevation of Tiberius, and early military careers of Germanicus and Ptolemy.

“Even during the years when he lived at Rhodes, in ostensible retirement and...

Episode B7 – Tropaion from 2015-01-17T00:50

Synopsis:  The death of Gaius Caesar, and Juba’s return to Mauretania. 

Tropaion (Greek):  A battlefield monument, erected at the “turning point” where the enemy’s phalanx broke.

Episode B6 – Eurus from 2015-01-03T12:26

Synopsis: Juba accompanies Gaius Caesar on his Eastern expedition. 

“Tigranes…marched forth with an army of such huge proportions that he actually laughed heartily at the appearance of th...

Episode B5 – Eclipsis from 2014-12-20T00:54

Synopsis: The birth of Juba and Selene’s children, Ptolemy and Drusilla, and the death of Cleopatra Selene.

“The moon herself grew dark, rising at sunset,

Covering her suf...

Episode B4 – Limitem Mundi from 2014-12-06T00:28

Synopsis: Juba and Selene begin their rule of Mauretania.

“Cato said…they must make no prayer for him; prayer belonged to the conquered, and the craving of grace to those who had done wro...

Episode B3 – Ephebus from 2014-11-24T09:36

Synopsis: Juba accompanies Octavian during the conquest of Egypt.

“Thus was Egypt enslaved.” – Cassius Dio, Rome, Book LI

Octavian Family Tree:

Listen

Episode B2 – Rex Socius Amicusque from 2014-11-07T08:29

Synopsis: The early years of Juba II, fostered in the family of Octavian and Octavia.

“(Scipio) increased the honor by observing, that among the Romans there was nothing more magnificent...

Episode B1 – Triumph from 2014-10-24T08:27

Synopsis: The early years of Cleopatra Selene, daughter of Cleopatra and Mark Antony.

“And herein particularly did he give offense to the Romans, since he bestowed the honorable and solem...

Episode R10 – The Bull and the Aten from 2014-09-06T04:16

“I am a faithful servant of the king, and I have not rebelled and I have not sinned, and I do not withhold my tribute, and I do not refuse the requests of my commissioner.  Now they wickedly slande...

Episode R9 – The Flood from 2014-08-09T08:15

“Surpassing all kings, powerful and tall

beyond all others, violent, splendid,

a wild bull of a man, unvanquished leader,

hero in the front lines, beloved of his soldi...

Episode R8 – The Thousand Year Gap from 2014-07-26T11:45

“Whilst fully recognizing his enterprise, devotion, and energy in carrying out these excavations, I cannot but express the regret that Dr. Schliemann should have allowed the ‘enthusiasm,’ which, as...

Episode R7 – The Man Who Sold Troy from 2014-07-12T05:28

“Who will persuade me, when I reclined upon a mighty tomb, that it did not contain a hero? – its very magnitude proved this.  Men do not labour over the ignoble and petty dead – and why should not ...

Episode R6 – The Heroic Age from 2014-06-28T01:55

“I should weary the reader, were I to describe, step by step, the progress of the work, and the discoveries gradually made in various part of the great mound.  The labours of one day resembled thos...

Episode R5 – Behistun Hat-Trick from 2014-05-24T01:06

“The Major constantly and indefatigably employed himself, from daylight to dark, revising, restoring and adding to his former materials.  This was a work of great irksomeness and labour in the conf...

Episode R4 – Dwelling of the Lions from 2014-05-17T09:51

“What can all this mean?  Who built this structure?  In what century did he live?  To what nation did he belong?  Are these walls telling me their tales of joy and woe?  Is this beautiful cuneiform...

Episode R3 – The Place of God from 2014-05-03T09:06

“My antiquarian studies go on quietly and smoothly, and despite the taunt which you may remember once expressing, of the presumption of an ignoramus like myself attempting to decipher inscriptions ...

Episode R2 – Arabia Felix from 2014-04-19T00:34

“His Majesty…has dispatched a few days ago by the vessel Greenland a group of scholars, who will travel by way of the Mediterranean to Constantinople, and thence through Egypt to Arabia Felix, and ...

Episode R1 – The Broken Stone from 2014-04-04T23:32

“To speak the name of the dead is to make them live again.” – Ancient Egyptian saying

Rediscovered two millennia after its creation, the Rosetta Stone provided two brilliant scholars with...

Episode 36 – And Then What Happened? from 2013-10-19T07:12

A little time-travel, a quick world tour, and plenty of thanks all around!

Episode 35 – On The Verge from 2013-09-28T02:07

“Rome was not a monarchy, but a free City, and they had made up their minds to open their gates even to an enemy sooner than to a king.  It was the universal wish that whatever put an end to libert...

Episode 34 – Democracy and Republic, Part 2 from 2013-09-15T11:25

“The Athenians, when ruled by tyrants, were no better in war than their neighbors, but freed from tyrants they were far superior.  This shows that when they were constrained they let themselves be ...

Episode 33 – Democracy and Republic, Part 1 from 2013-08-10T02:12

“He added the Athenian people, who had formally not been in the center of things, to his own party, changed the names of the tribes and increased their number.  He made ten tribal commanders instea...

Episode 32 – Things Fixed, Things Moving from 2013-07-19T06:09

“Black is your path, Agni, changeless, with glittering waves!  When like a bull you rush eager to the trees.

With teeth of flame, wind-driven, through the wood he speeds, triumphant like ...

Episode 31 – Land of Imposters from 2013-07-05T14:23

“After I became king, I fought nineteen battles in a single year and, by the grace of Ahura Mazda, I overthrew nine kings and I made them captive…As to these provinces which revolted, lies made the...

Episode 30 – The Lost Army from 2013-06-21T23:14

“So Darius son of Hystaspes was made king, and the whole of Asia, which Cyrus first and Cambyses after him had conquered, was subject to him…and everything was full of his power. First ...

Episode 29 – A More Perfect Empire from 2013-06-08T08:03

“Remember this lesson well:  Whenever you can, act as a liberator.  Freedom, dignity, and wealth—these three together constitute the great happiness of humanity.  If you bequeath all three to your ...

Episode 28 – When the Mede Came from 2013-05-24T09:28

“In winter, as you lie on a soft couch by the fire,

Full of good food, munching on nuts and drinking sweet wine,

Then you must ask questions such as these:

‘Where do y...

Episode 27 – Count No Man Happy from 2013-05-11T09:09

“But in every matter it behooves us to mark well the end: for oftentimes God gives men a gleam of happiness, and then plunges them into ruin.” – Solon of Athens

Peisistratos’ first ...

Episode 26 – The Last Kings of Babylon from 2013-04-18T07:05

“So it was that the Persians, who had once been the slaves of the Medes, became their masters.“ – Heroditus

Nebuchadnezzar II turned Babylon into the most magnificent city of the ancient...

Episode 25 – The Voyage of Solon from 2013-04-06T15:04

“Ahmose became a lover of the Hellenes; and besides other proofs of friendship which he gave to several among them, he also granted the city of Naucratis for those of them who came to Egypt to dwel...

Episode 24 – A Wolf Among Hounds from 2013-03-21T05:17

“I freed those here who suffered unseemly enslavement and feared the tempers of their masters.  I did this by harnessing force and justice together with power, and I carried through my promises.  I...

Episode 23 – Captives of Babylon from 2013-03-09T15:05

“So they took the king and brought him up to the king of Babylon at Riblah in the land of Hamath, and he pronounced judgment on him.  Then the king of Babylon killed the sons of Zedekiah before his...

Episode 22 – The Fifth Generation from 2013-02-27T13:19

“But when earth had covered this generation also, Zeus the son of Cronos made yet another, the fourth, upon the fruitful earth, which was nobler and more righteous, a god-like race of hero-men who ...

Episode 21 – For the Sake of Distant Days from 2013-02-06T13:11

“Nineveh is laid waste: who will bemoan her?  Whence shall I seek comforters for thee?” – Nahum 3:7

Ashurbanipal spent the end of his reign establishing a library of Mesopotamian knowledg...

Episode 20 – The House of Succession from 2013-01-21T05:03

In the mid-seventh century BC, Nubia and Assyria struggled for control over Egypt before the kingdom regained independence under the pharaoh Psamtik I.  King Gyges of Lydia drove the Cimmerians fro...

Episode 19 – The Destruction of Sennacherib from 2013-01-07T13:06

“The city and its houses, from its foundations to its walls, I destroyed, I devastated, I burned with fire.  The wall and outer wall, temple-tower of brick and earth, temples and gods, and many as ...

Episode 18 – The Three Pillars from 2012-12-22T15:09

In the west, Phoenician mastery of the Mediterranean was challenged by widespread Greek colonization.  Rome’s first kings established the boundaries and institutions of the early state.  In the Nea...

Episode 17 – The Fall of Israel from 2012-12-03T08:26

“Then the King of Assyria came up throughout all the land, and went up to Samaria, and besieged it for three years.  In the ninth year of Hoshea, the King of Assyria took Samaria.” – II Kings 18:4<...

Episode 16 – The Assyrian from 2012-11-20T12:39

“And Pul, the King of Assyria, came against the land.” – II Kings, 15:19

In 745 BC, Tiglath-pileser III reformed the administrative and military structure of the Neo-Assyrian Empire, and ...

Episode 15 – Holding Action from 2012-10-15T03:20

During the first half of the eighth century BC, Egypt, Babylonia and Assyria all struggled against the forces of entropy and decline.  In the absence of the Aramean threat, Israel and Judah resumed...

Episode 14 – In the Midst of the Seas from 2012-10-01T05:06

“I received the tribute of the kings of the seacoast – namely, the lands of the peoples of Tyre, Sidon, Byblos, Mahallatu, Maizu, Kaizu, Amurru and the city of Arvad, which is in the midst of the s...

Episode 13 – Civil War from 2012-09-16T10:48

“My brother Ashur-danin-apli, in the time of Shalmaneser, his father, acted wickedly, bringing about sedition, rebellion, and wicked plotting, caused the land to rise in revolt, prepared for war, b...

Episode 12 – Legacies of East and West from 2012-09-04T14:00

The Olmec of Mesoamerica and the Chavin of Peru laid strong cultural foundations that would influence regional civilizations down through the first European encounters with the New World. The longe...

Episode 11 – The Rise of Assyria from 2012-08-21T11:12

“I slew 14,000 of their warriors with the sword. Like Adad, I rained destruction on them. I scattered their corpses far and wide, and covered the face of the desolate plain with their wide-spreadin...

Episode 10 – Picking Up The Pieces from 2012-07-30T10:24

At the dawn of the first millennium BC, the collapse of the great Near Eastern powers allowed the cultures of Canaan to flourish.  While the Phoenicians embarked on a bold new era of maritime expan...

Episode 9 – The Other 99 Percent from 2012-06-12T09:55

“Regarding what you wrote me before:  ‘Enemy ships were observed at sea!’  If it is true that ships were observed, reinforce yourself.  Where are your troops and chariots?  Are they not with you?  ...

Episode 8 – Look Upon My Works from 2012-06-05T12:45

“…And on the pedestal these words appear:

‘My name is Ozymandius, King of Kings,

Look on my works, ye Mighty, and despair!’

Nothing beside remains.  Round the decay <...

Episode 7 – Between Lions and Men from 2012-05-29T13:53

“As there are no pacts of faith between lions and men,

nor do wolves and lambs have spirit in kind,…nor for us two

will there be oaths;…

Recollect your every skill.  N...

Episode 6 – The New Kingdoms from 2012-05-19T13:40

After expelling the Hyksos, the rulers of Egypt’s 18th Dynasty led their New Kingdom in an unprecedented drive for territorial expansion.  In Syria and the Levant, they were forced to contend with ...

Episode 5 – Blind-sided from 2012-05-07T13:00

“I was asleep upon my bed, having become weary…like a snake of the necropolis. As I came to, I awoke to fighting, and found that it was an attack of the bodyguard. If I had quickly taken weapons in...

Episode 4 – The Pyramid Builders from 2012-04-30T00:31

“From the heights of these pyramids, forty centuries look down on us.” – Napoleon Bonaparte







The power of Egypt’s Old Ki...

Episode 3 – “Wherever I Went, Let Him Go!” from 2012-04-24T01:30

“Now any king who wants to call himself my equal, wherever I went, let him go!” – Sargon the Great







In 2,334 BC, Sargon of Akk...

Episode 2 – Circles and Labyrinths from 2012-04-16T11:43

Contemporary with early Sumer and Egypt, the Norte Chico thrived along the Peruvian coast, while the Neolithic Britons built their mysterious stone circles. The first European civilization, the Min...

Episode 1 – “Climb the Stone Staircase” from 2012-04-05T07:27

“Climb the stone staircase, more ancient than the mind can imagine” – The Epic of Gilgamesh

The Sumerians of Mesopotamia, the Elamites of the Persian plateau, and the Eg...