Podcast Episodes

The Greco-Persian Wars, Part 3: Athens in Flames and the Battle of Salamis

Season 5 Episode 45

The Persian invasion of Greece aimed to do one thing above all else: punish Athens for its transgressions against the Great King. After defeating Leonidas, the vast army descended on Attica and burne…

Published on 2 years, 2 months ago

The Greco-Persian Wars, Part 2: Xerxes and the Invasion of Greece

Season 5 Episode 44

In 480 BC, the Persian Great King Xerxes descended on mainland Greece with one of the largest armies and navies the world had ever seen. The Persians swept through the approaches to Greece, winning a…

Published on 2 years, 2 months ago

The Greco-Persian Wars, Part 1: The Ionian Revolt to the Battle of Marathon

Season 5 Episode 43

The wars between the Persians and the Greeks have become a cornerstone of the idea of "Western Civilization," a defining moment when Greeks became Greeks in opposition to the outside world. But this …

Published on 2 years, 2 months ago

Thinking Like a Persian King: Professor John Hyland on the Persian Perspective of the Greco-Persian Wars

Season 5 Episode 42

When we think about the wars between the Persians and the Greeks, our perspective is quite explicitly that of the Greeks. But how did the Persians view these conflicts, and what were they after? Prof…

Published on 2 years, 3 months ago

Persia Ascendant

Season 5 Episode 41

While Cyrus the Great built the Persian Empire from the ground up, his successors expanded it until the new state stretched from the Indus Valley of Pakistan to the Upper Nile, Kazakhstan to the Aege…

Published on 2 years, 3 months ago

Midas, Croesus, and the Lost Kingdoms of Iron Age Anatolia

Season 5 Episode 40

The kingdoms of Iron Age Anatolia survive only as whispers in the archaeological and historical record; others exist through enigmatic references and legends in the writings of foreigners; and still …

Published on 2 years, 3 months ago

The Archaeology of Ancient Israel and Judah: Interview with Professor Avraham Faust

Season 5 Episode 39

What was life like in the ancient kingdoms of Israel and Judah? Few people are better qualified to answer that question than Professor Avraham Faust, who has excavated and written extensively about t…

Published on 2 years, 3 months ago

Patrick is Hosting a New Show! Check out the "Pursuit of Dadliness" Now!

Welcome to "The Pursuit of Dadliness." This is a podcast for folks who want to enjoy their passions and their hobbies, whatever those might be, and genuinely strive to get better at doing stuff and m…

Published on 2 years, 3 months ago

Cyrus the Great and the Rise of the Persian Empire

Season 5 Episode 38

The Persians were unlikely successors to the Assyrians and Babylonians, a fringe people of no particular importance, until Cyrus the Great became the most successful conqueror the world had ever seen…

Published on 2 years, 4 months ago

Theocracy, Fragmentation, and the Kushite Kings: Egypt after the New Kingdom

Season 5 Episode 37

Egypt's New Kingdom, the peak of its monumental building and international power, ended in the aftermath of the Bronze Age Collapse. Once again, Egypt fragmented into multiple smaller states. Yet mil…

Published on 2 years, 4 months ago