The Ancients

Traditionally believed to be ‘windows to the soul’, the health of eyes in the Roman Empire could be compromised by lamentable hygiene practices, unclean public baths and dusty roads. But without modern medical remedies, how did the Romans look after their sight? Dr Nick Summerton is a practicing doctor and author of ‘Greco-Roman Medicine and What it Can Teach Us Today’, published by Pen & Sword. H...

Occupied since around 3000 BC, the Ancient city of Corinth is not unique in its transition from a Pagan, Greco-Roman state to a Christian one. What makes it stand out, however, is the incredible evidence that allows us to track this city’s journey throughout this time period, in literature, architecture and art. In this episode, Dr. Amelia Brown outlines Corinth’s administration and its move towar...

The Huns! The name of this ancient people triggers a multiplicity of responses and evokes a number of images (nearly all of them negative). They have been portrayed as a savage people, who contributed little to world history. But is this really the case? In this podcast, Tristan was joined by Professor Hyun Jin Kim to talk about the emergence of the Huns in the west in the late 4th century, and th...

The most famous sporting event in the world is upon us, so it's only right that we consider what do we know about the ancient origins of the games in Olympia, ancient Greece? Even back then it was absolutely central to everybody's imagination about what a sporting event should be. Ancient history legend and author of ‘Olympia: The Story of the Ancient Olympic Games’ Robin Waterfield joins Tristan...

Caesar Octavian, Mark Antony, Decimus Brutus and Cicero: the Battle of Mutina, April 43 BC, was a clash of giants. It also became the beginning of the end for one of Ancient Rome’s greatest orators, Cicero. For this episode, Steele Brand came back to take Tristan through the battle, and to explain how this event featured in Cicero's fall and represents the renowned orator's last great gamble. Stee...

We know all about the battles of the Roman Empire: the opposing sides, their weapons and incentives. But if history is written by the winners, what happened if you lost? In this episode, Dr Jo Ball, battlefield archaeologist at the University of Liverpool, helps to fill in this gap. Jo takes us through the options of the victorious army; to release, kill or capture; and then discusses the treatmen...

Here on The Ancients, we think that you will love Leonardo , the official podcast accompanying the murder-mystery period drama starring Aidan Turner. Leonardo takes a deep dive behind the scenes with the cast and crew, as well as discovering more about Da Vinci’s art and life from the curators and historians who know him best. This new podcast, hosted by television presenter and Leonardo enthusias...

Ever since its occurence in 480 BC, the Battle of Thermopylae has been the stuff of legend. Echoes of this battle, reportedly fought between a seven thousand strong Greek army and a Persian force of anywhere between 100 thousand and one million, can be found dotted across the literature and history of Ancient Greece and Rome. Professor Chris Carey from University College London has written a book...

Described as one of the most complete cavalry forts that survives in Britain, Chesters Roman Fort is also home to the best preserved military baths on the island. In this episode, English Heritage Curator Dr Frances McIntosh takes Tristan around the site, and explains how it can tell us more about everyday life on this far flung frontier. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information...

A plague which affects people from across society, mass exodus from city centres and numerous opinions on how best to stay well ... all familiar to people today, but also to the people of the 2nd century AD. In this fascinating chat with Dr Nick Summerton, we explore the causes and effects of the Antonine Plague, the guides to healthy living from Galen, Marcus Aurelius and Aristides, and whether t...

The Persepolis Fortification Tablets / Texts are the who’s who of the Ancient Achaemenid Empire, a unique insight into the administrative workings of this jurisdiction emerging from present day Iran. 30,000 of these clay tablets, inscribed in cuneiform, have so far been identified. Each forms a new piece of evidence for who the people of the Achaemenid Empire under Darius I were, where they were,...

According to the Gospels, Jesus died and was removed from the cross on the eve of the Jewish Sabbath (Friday afternoon), before his body was placed in the family tomb of Joseph of Arimathea. For 'three days and three nights', Jesus’s body was entombed. But do the accounts of his burial correlate with the archaeology? Do they accurately reflect the manner in which the Jews of ancient Jerusalem buri...

Between the 3rd century BC and the 1st century AD, the Xiongnu inhabited the area surrounding Mongolia. They influenced the later Hun Empire, and had connections with Ancient China and Persia, but what do we know about them? Bryan Miller has been investigating the society, hierarchy and expansion of the Xiongnu, and in this episode he shares his findings from the archaeology and historical documen...

Without recordings, and with notation and instruments long forgotten, how can we possibly know what music soundtracked Ancient Greek life? James Lloyd from the University of Reading has been studying Ancient Greek music, in particular its role in Ancient Sparta. In this episode James tells Tristan how it has been possible to recreate songs and instruments from antiquity. He takes us into the mytho...

Cicero is often considered to be one of the greatest orators of Ancient Rome. But how did he reach prominence in Roman politics? Why are his speeches so well remembered and what makes them extraordinary? Catherine Steel from the University of Glasgow joined Tristan to talk through the ascent of this statesman, lawyer and scholar from the Late Roman Republic. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy...

The Iceni warrior who led a revolt against the Roman Empire around 60 AD often stands alone in our memory of ancient queens in Britain, but in this episode we explore Boudica’s portrayal in comparison to her contemporaries. In this second half of Tristan’s chat with Caitlin Gillespie, author of ‘Boudica: Warrior Woman of Roman Britain’, she also examines Boudica’s legacy, and the outcome of her re...

A city of caves, temples and tombs, Petra gains its nickname from the pink sandstone from which it was carved. In this second part of his conversation with Tristan, Professor David Graf, who directed excavations in the ancient Nabataean city, describes the finer details of the architecture and artefacts found there. David and Tristan discuss Petra’s position on trade routes, its leadership and cul...

In 44 BC, the Ides of March took on a new significance. Previously observed as the first full moon of the new year, the 15 March is today remembered as the anniversary of the assassination of Julius Caesar. In this episode, Dr Emma Southon talks Tristan through the events leading up to the Caesar’s assassination: was he forewarned with omens in the days preceding his death? Who was involved in the...

Kara Cooney has been studying 6 of the remarkable female pharaohs of Ancient Egypt. In this episode she explains why many of them have been forgotten, and others regularly misrepresented. Professor of Egytian Art and Archaeology at UCLA, Kara introduces us to the lives and rules of Merneith, Neferusobek, Hatshepsut, Nefertiti, Tawosret and Cleopatra, and explains how their reigns were used as tool...

Boudica has become a hero of British folklore. Her leadership of the Iceni in an uprising against the forces of the Roman Empire in around 60 AD is echoed around school classrooms. But what evidence do we have for her actions, appearance and eventual defeat? Caitlin Gillespie is the author of ‘Boudica: Warrior Woman of Roman Britain.’ In this first of two episodes, she speaks to Tristan about the...

Popular discussions of human history are punctuated with conflict, but when did warfare begin? To discuss this massive question, Professor Nam Kim has returned to the Ancients. Taking in examples from Ancient Germany, Britain, Kenya and Vietnam, Nam uses Anthropological Archaeology to decipher whether Ancient societies were involved in warfare before the birth of nation states, and to explore the...

Cheddar Man is the oldest almost complete skeleton of a Homo sapien ever found in Britain and, for this fantastic episode, Tristan spoke to the scientist who has drilled a (very small) hole in him. Dr Selina Brace is a biologist who works with ancient and degraded DNA. At the Natural History Museum in London, where Cheddar Man currently resides, Selina and her team have been able to examine this i...

The assumption had once been that they were nomads until the Romans came. But more recent archaeological work in modern day Jordan is dispelling this myth about the ancient Nabataeans. In this first episode in another two part podcast, Tristan was joined by Professor David Graf from the University of Miami to talk about the early history of the Nabataeans and their close links to the extraordinary...

In 197 AD, the armies of Septimius Severus and Clodius Albinus met at Lugdunum, on the site of present day Lyon. If we believe the numbers given in Cassius Dio, this was the greatest and bloodiest clash between two Roman armies in history. 300,000 soldiers were present in total, according to Dio. The numbers are debated, but nevertheless the titanic scale of this clash in ancient history is clear...

Palmyra features in headlines today as a casualty of IS destruction, but during its heyday it was a monumental city set on an oasis in the Syrian desert. First mentioned in the second millennium BC, it gained wealth from the caravan trade which moved goods across the desert. What makes it unique, however, is not its wealth but its multicultural, multilingual nature. Buildings in Palmyra featured i...