Visit our homepage to subscribe, to find us on social media, and to contact us by email:

1. https://havetogawilltravel.com

Links

1. David Keys, “Roman Invasion Beach Found in Kent”, The Independent (Friday October 3, 2008).

----------

00:11 - Introduction

01:58 - The Romans in Britain, from Caesar to Hadrian

1. 02:22 - Caesar’s campaigns in Gaul and Britain, and their aftermath
2. 03:35 - Claudius “defeats” Caratacus and conquers southern England
3. 13:37 - Boudicca’s Rebellion
4. 18:54 - Vespasian and the governorship of Agricola
5. 22:05 - Hadrian visits the frontier

23:31 - Building Hadrian’s Wall

1. 23:25 - The route: from Segedunum to Maia
2. 25:41 - The wall and its features: stone, turf, milecastles, turrets, and outworks
3. 28:57 - Why build part in stone and part in turf?
4. 29:28 - The legions and the process of building the wall
5. 32:25 - Changing plans: wall gauges, wall forts, and turf replaced by stone

37:56 - The Purpose of Hadrian’s Wall

1. 38:25 - Some puzzling features of Rome’s northern frontier
2. 39:07 - A zone of transition: the Roman Empire and British social structures
3. 44:22 - The Romans, the Wall, and the transformation of Britain

46:24 - The Wall after Hadrian

1. 46:42 - The Wall from Antoninus Pius to Septimius Severus
2. 49:04 - The Wall in the time of Bede
3. 51:17 - The 17th and 18th centuries: Hadrian’s Wall and the Military Road
4. 53:19 - John Clayton
5. 54:39 - The National Trust and UNESCO

55:20 - Wrap-up

Visit our homepage to subscribe, to find us on social media, and to contact us by email:

1. https://havetogawilltravel.com

Cover photo adapted from an image by Grufo (Wikimedia Commons).

----------

00:11 - Introduction

01:54 - Monty Python: A Primer

1. 02:25 - Five Brits and an American: Monty Python comes together (probably at a bar)
2. 04:00 - The Pythons venture into feature-length films

06:56 - Production, Release, Reception

1. 06:58 - On location in Tunisia
2. 08:00 - The man they call Brian: the basic plot of the movie
3. 09:52 - George Harrison to the rescue!
4. 11:13 - Brian banned!
5. 12:08 - The peculiar case of Aberystwyth, Wales

13:38 - Some cringey bits: viewer beware!

1. 13:53 - Blackface and ethnic slurs
2. 15:20 - Stan / Loretta: mildly transphobic, or surprisingly progressive?
3. 16:56 - Some ableist-seeming jokes

19:02 - The Pythons do history hilariously

1. 20:45 - Women and agency
2. 22:59 - Businesspeople and professional pride
3. 24:36 - Gladiator games, Python-style
4. 28:10 - British and Roman imperialism, or what have the Romans ever done for us?
5. 32:54 - Ridiculous resistance groups (Splitters!)
6. 37:33 - Everyday acts of genuine resistance
7. 41:21 - Prophets, saviors, and messiahs—in Roman Judea and elsewhere

45:08 - The Pythons as PhDs of Comedy

1. 45:42 - Learned spoofs of literature and film: The Iliad and Spartacus
2. 48:15 - Silly costumes, silly names, silly plots: the Pythons pay homage to Plautus and Aristophanes
3. 54:39 - Romanes eunt domus!
4. 56:55 - The art of nudity: the Pythons spoof Zeffirelli

59:14 - Wrap-up

Visit our homepage to subscribe, to find us on social media, and to contact us by email:

1. https://havetogawilltravel.com

Links

1. Our Blog Post on the Serpent Column.
2. The first episode in this series (The Persians and the Greeks, Part I: The Rise of the Persian Empire).
3. The second episode in this series (The Persians and the Greeks, Part II: Darius, Great King, King of Kings).
4. The third episode in this series (The Persians and the Greeks, Part III: Xerxes and the Road to Thermopylae).

----------

00:12 - Introduction

00:58 - Xerxes on the Acropolis

1. 01:18 - The aftermath of Thermopylae and Artemision: Xerxes in Central Greece
2. 04:22 - The Athenians face a dilemma
3. 07:03 - The Pythia, the wall of wood, and the evacuation of Athens
4. 12:46 - The Persians in Athens

14:52 - Blessed Salamis

1. 15:26 - Dissension among the Greeks
2. 19:21 - Xerxes, his commanders, and Artemisia the wise advisor
3. 24:29 - Themistokles’ Gambit
4. 32:21 - The Battle of Salamis
5. 36:17 - Xerxes puts Mardonius in charge and heads for home

39:15 - The Campaign and Battle of Plataea

1. 39:19 - Mardonius, Alexander, and an offer to the Athenians
2. 41:11 - Spring 479: Mardonius’ capture of Athens, and its aftermath
3. 43:23 - All roads lead to Plataea
4. 48:21 - The Battle of Plataea

56:09 - Epilogue: the Serpent Column, from Delphi to Istanbul

61:07 - Wrap-up

Visit our homepage to subscribe, to find us on social media, and to contact us by email:

1. https://havetogawilltravel.com

Links

1. The first episode in this series (The Persians and the Greeks, Part I: The Rise of the Persian Empire).
2. The second episode in this series (The Persians and the Greeks, Part II: Darius, Great King, King of Kings).
3. Our episode on Aeschylus’ Persians (Aeschylus’ “Persians”: The OG Greek Tragedy).
4. Our episode on heroes in the ancient Greek world (Holding Out for a Hero—in Ancient Greece).

----------

00:12 - Introduction

01:18 - The Last Years of Darius

02:38 - Xerxes, King

1. 02:59 - Xerxes and the Many Sons of Darius
2. 04:57 - Xerxes Quells Rebellions in Egypt and Babylon

05:39 - Xerxes’ Project: The Invasion of Greece

1. 06:08 - Herodotus’ Understanding of Xerxes’ Motivations
2. 08:47 - A Persian Perspective?

10:31 - Planning Xerxes’ Campaign

1. 11:00 - The Mt Athos Canal and Supply Depots in the Northern Aegean
2. 12:39 - Ships and Cables
3. 14:07 - Mustering the Army

14:28 - Xerxes Travels from Susa to Sardis

1. 16:59 - Early Greek Responses to Xerxes’ Plans
2. 17:15 - Initial Rumors
3. 18:02 - Xerxes Demands Earth and Water
4. 20:00 - The Range of Greek Responses: Submission, Accommodation, Resistance
5. 25:35 - Greek Spies in Sardis
6. 26:04 - Strategy and the Problems of Interstate Rivalries

27:28 - The Coming Storm

1. 27:54 - Xerxes Crosses the Hellespont: the Pontoon Bridges
2. 29:51 - Xerxes Counts his Forces (and why we should doubt Herodotus’ numbers)
3. 34:27 - The March to Therma and the Kingdom of Macedonia
4. 37:14 - The Greeks at Tempe and the Submission of the North

39:46 - Thermopylae and Artemision: Greek Plans and Preparations

1. 40:10 - The Geography of Thermopylae and Artemision (with a digression on “300”)
2. 43:04 - The Greek Forces

48:33 - Thermopylae and Artemision: The Battles

1. 48:58 - Spartan Hairstyles and Xerxes’ Frustrations
2. 51:56 - The First Day of Fighting: Stalemate
3. 43:30 - The Second Day of Fighting: Xerxes, Ephialtes, and the March of the Immortals
4. 57:23 - The Third Day of Fighting: The Last Stand

65:12 - Wrap-up

Visit our homepage to subscribe, to find us on social media, and to contact us by email:

1. https://havetogawilltravel.com

Episode Links

1. The first episode in this series (The Persians and the Greeks, Part I: The Rise of the Persian Empire).
2. Part I of our series on the Athens Marathon, which includes a discussion of the Battle of Marathon and the legend of Pheidippides.
3. Wikipedia’s article on Darius’ Bisitun Inscription, which includes photos.

Image credits:

1. Cover / instagram image adapted from a photo by Lee van Dorp (Wikimedia Commons), which shows a closeup of Darius as he is depicted on the Bisitun Inscription.
2. Social sharing image adapted from a photo by Korosh091 (Wikimedia Commons), which shows the Bisitun Inscription's main relief.

----------

00:13 - Introduction

01:31 - Sources for the reigns of Cambyses and Darius

1. 01:49 - Herodotus’ Persian stories
2. 02:41 - Inscriptions and papyri documenting Persian kings

03:01 - Cambyses, son of Cyrus: portraits of his Reign

1. 03:27 - Herodotus’ take on Cambyses: a mad and murderous king
2. 11:59 - A more sympathetic take: the Apis inscriptions, the Udjahorresnet inscription, and what they tell us about Cambyses

16:35 - The Death of Cambyses and the rise of Darius

1. 17:01 - Herodotus’ tale of the usurper Smerdis and the (Persian) Magnificent Seven
2. 21:06 - Darius’ Bisitun Inscription and the “Official” story of his rise to power

28:02 - Darius and the Greeks

1. 28:41 - Darius’ Scythian Expedition and the Greeks of Ionia and Aeolia
2. 32:01 - The Ionian Revolt and its causes: Aristagoras and Naxos, plus the problem of tyranny, tribute, and triremes
3. 39:39 - The Athenians and the sack of Sardis
4. 43:00 - The Marathon Campaign: Darius seeks revenge

44:58 - Wrap-up

Visit our homepage to subscribe, to find us on social media, and to contact us by email:

1. https://havetogawilltravel.com

Cover photo adapted from an image by Jakub Hałun (Persian Warriors, Pergamon University, Berlin)

----------

00:12 - Introduction

01:07 - Who were the Persians?

1. 01:11 - The ancient Persians, the ancient Iranians, and the Indo-European dispersion
2. 02:52 - The Old Persian language (and a digression on Persian names)
3. 08:35 - Zoroastrianism and the religion of the ancient Persians

13:59 - The Rise of the Persian Empire

1. 14:23 - The Middle East in the 6th Century BCE: Persia and its neighbors
2. 16:29 - Herodotus and the legend of Cyrus the Great
3. 20:06 - Cyrus the Great and his conquests
4. 24:04 - Cyrus’ successors: Cambyses and Darius
5. 24:48 - The Persian Empire in 500 BCE

25:12 - The Structure of the Persian Empire

1. 25:25 - Cooperative local elites and the obligations of empire
2. 26:35 - Satraps, provinces, and the Iranian diaspora

28:45 - The Ideology of the Persian Empire

1. 29:04 - Cyrus as champion of local gods in Babylon and Judah
2. 30:49 - Darius as champion of Ahura Mazda

32:47 - The Mechanics of Empire in the Age of Darius

1. 32:52 - Imperial ideology and imperial violence
2. 34:00 - Local elites and imperial entanglements: the story of Syloson of Samos

38:04 - Wrap-up

Visit our homepage to subscribe, to find us on social media, and to contact us by email:

1. https://havetogawilltravel.com

Cover photo adapted from an image of the Salamis Soldiers' monument, by Ziegler175:

1. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:SalamisPaloukiaSchlacht2.jpg

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00:10 - Introduction

01:43 - Aeschylus and his historical context

1. 01:56 - The subject of the play (and its peculiarity)
2. 03:06 - The Battle of Salamis and the Persian Wars
3. 05:10 - Aeschylus’ Career

06:22 - The Persians in performance

1. 06:30 - The Dionysia of 472 BCE and Aeschylus’ tetralogy
2. 08:35 - Pericles as producer (choregos)
3. 09:09 - A synopsis of the play
4. 11:12 - The structure of Greek Tragedies (or, how do we know that the Persians only needs two actors apart from the chorus?)

14:03 - Interpreting the play: sympathy for the Persians?

1. 15:06 - The survival of the play: evidence of its popularity?
2. 16:04 - Triumphalism vs. a recognition of common experience
3. 17:06 - Differences between Greek and Persians in the play: archers vs. spearmen, autocracy vs. autonomy, proskynesis and lamentation
4. 20:36 - Aeschylus argues for common experiences: the Persians as Homeric heroes, the horrors and the costs of battle, and Aeschylus’ rejection of the “effeminate Persians” trope

26:37 - The play’s main theme: empire and hubris

1. 27:00 - Xerxes and his bad decisions
2. 27:56 - The gods’ desire to punish Xerxes
3. 28:53 - The hubris of Xerxes, or the hubris of the Empire? (Featuring Emily’s rant about hubris in ancient and modern thought)
4. 34:27 - Aeschylus, the gods, and Athenian imperialism
5. 36:55 - The social function of tragedy: thinking through big problems
6. 37:28 - What staging the Persians can tell us about the play

39:12 - Wrap-up

The Theater of Dionysus as Aeschylus, Sophocles, and Euripides knew it was very different than the theater whose remains you see today in Athens. Listen to Emily and Cam walk you through the development of the space, and through the creation of the genre associated most strongly with it: Greek tragedy.

Visit our homepage to subscribe, to find us on social media, and to contact us by email:

1. https://havetogawilltravel.com

For images of the Theater and Sanctuary of Dionysus, visit our blog:

1. https://havetogawilltravel.com/blog/the-sanctuary-and-theater-of-dionysus

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00:10 - Introduction

01:37 - Visiting the Theater and Sanctuary

1. 01:42 - Where to find the Theater and Sanctuary
2. 02:16 - Don’t confuse it with the Odeion of Herodes Atticus!
3. 03:26 - An overview of the physical remains

04:01 - The Origins of the Sanctuary, the Theater, and the Festival

1. 04:02 - The Sanctuary, the Festival, and the Temples of Dionysus
2. 04:58 - The Theater through Time: The Fifth Century, the Lycurgan Theater, the Hellenistic Theater, and the Roman Theater
3. 07:59 - The Festivals of Dionysus: The Origins of the City Dionysia and celebrations for Dionysus in Ikaria and other demes

11:44 - The Origins of Scripted Drama in Athens

1. 11:50 - The Dithyramb
2. 12:41 - The legend of Thespis, the first actor
3. 13:15 - The importance of the chorus in Greek drama
4. 14:10 - Masking and actors playing multiple characters
5. 14:30 - The Development of the Three-Actor Model in the Age of Aeschylus, Sophocles, and Euripides

19:09 - The City Dionysia

1. 19:42 - The Schedule: The Procession and its Ithyphallic Floats; the Dithyrambic Competitions; the Dramatic Competitions
2. 22:50 - Dionysus, the most important spectator
3. 23:48 - The Organization of the Dramatic Competitions: Tragedies, Satyr Plays, Choruses, and Choregoi!

30:09 - The Performance Space and its Evolution

1. 30:20 - The Fifth-Century Theater: the Orchestra, the Skēnē, and the Paradoi
2. 33:30 - Technical Innovations: the ekkyklēma and the mechanē
3. 36:36 - The Deus Ex Machina in ancient Drama
4. 37:34 - Changes over time in the layout of the theater and in the role of the Chorus

41:01 - Final Thoughts on the Importance of Tragedy

44:15 - Wrap-up

Visit our homepage to subscribe, to find us on social media, and to contact us by email:

• https://havetogawilltravel.com

For images of the Museum of the Forma Urbis, visit our blog post:

• https://havetogawilltravel.com/blog/the-museum-of-the-forma-urbis

Links to some of the places we mention in this episode:

• Athena’s Cook
• Paradosiako Serron
• Noctua Brewing
• Esthio
• Βαυβώ (Vafvo)
• Hotel Santa Maria
• San Clemente Archaeological Zone
• Museum of the Forma Urbis

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00:10 - Introduction

01:25 - Our second walk through the Athens Marathon

• 01:38 - Faliro: tourist sites, getting there, and the Marathon Expo
• 05:06 - Carb loading before the Marathon
• 06:32 - The trip to Marathon and the wait in the Stadium
• 09:27 - The race itself (drinking tsipouro in the footsteps of Spiridon Louis!)

15:19 - Our stay in Athens

• 15:41 - How we travel
• 17:11 - Old neighborhoods (Plaka and Monastiraki) and ancient sites (the Acropolis and the Theatre of Dionysus)
• 19:01 - A field trip to Ilion (the Athens suburb, not Troy!) to eat at Paradosiako Serron
• 21:06 - Modern Athens: Pangrati
• 23:23 - Modern Athens: Koukaki and its restaurants (including Esthio) and our view of the Acropolis
• 29:36 - Modern Athens: Neos Kosmos and Βαυβώ

33:41 - Our Stay in Rome

• 33:53 - Rome’s “feel” compared to Athens: geography and tourism
• 35:39 - Trastevere and the Hotel Santa Maria
• 37:12 - Culture shock: coffee and language issues
• 40:01 - The Archaeological Zone at San Clemente
• 43:45 - Castel Sant’Angelo
• 44:42 - The Museum of the Forma Urbis
• 46:34 - Wandering the city (and the Temple of Vibia Sabina and Hadrian)
• 49:30 - Hangin’ on the Janiculum

50:26 - Wrap-up

Visit our homepage to subscribe, to find us on social media, and to contact us by email:

• https://havetogawilltravel.com

Some plays of Plautus referenced in this episode:

• Pseudolus
• Mostellaria
• Miles Gloriosus
• Menaechmi

Cover Image:

• Mosaic of Masks. Second or third century CE. Found on the Aventine, possibly on the site of the ancient Thermae Decianae; now held in the Capitoline Museums. Photo by Carole Raddato, Wikimedia Commons.

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00:11 - Introduction

• 00:38 - A Funny thing Happened on the Way to the Forum: Sonheim’s Musical and the 1966 film

03:19 - Our approach to reviewing adaptations of ancient literature

05:20 - Plautus and Roman Comedy

• 05:29 - What we know about Plautus himself (his dates, his name, his background)
• 09:41 - Plautus' style: Roman comedy, exotic settings, stock plots, and stock characters

17:56 - A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum: Plautus on Screen

• 18:51 - The setting: “A less fashionable suburb of Rome”
• 19:44 - The characters (Pseudolus, Hysterium, Marcus Lycus, Hero, Philia, Miles Gloriosus, and others)
• 23:33 - The plot, in all of its messiness
• 27:15 - The movie’s sources: Plautus’ Pseudolus, Mostellaria, Miles Gloriosus, and other plays
• 33:01 - Metatheatre in Plautus and in A Funny Thing
• 36:25 - The movie’s departures from Plautus: More is more! (Expansive sets, elaborate scenes, and exaggerated physical comedy)

43:36 - Cam and Emily discuss their reactions (and we learn the dirty secrets of Emily’s history with this film!

49:01 – Wrap-up

Visit our homepage to subscribe, to find us on social media, and to contact us by email:

• https://havetogawilltravel.com/

For more information about Herakles and about “heroes” in Ancient Greece, listen to our previous episode:

• https://havetogawilltravel.com/episode/holding-out-for-a-hero-in-ancient-greece

Key literature mentioned in this episode:

• Joseph Campbell, The Hero with A Thousand Faces
• David Adams Leeming, Mythology: The Voyage of the Hero
• Maureen Murdock, The Heroine’s Journey
• Valerie Estelle Frankel, From Girl to Goddess

—————

00:11 - Introduction

01:28 - Reprise: The Hero’s Journey

• 01:47 - Campbell’s “Everyman” model
• 04:06 - Leeming’s “Chosen One” model
• 06:04 - Herakles and Eleven as Leeming-style, “Chosen One” Heroes
• 08:24 - Gender and the Hero’s Journey: Maureen Murdock and Valerie Estelle Frankel

11:29 - Eleven’s Heroic Journey so far: Eleven as Herakles with a Gendered Twist

• 11:59 - Stranger Things: An Overview
• 13:10 - Season One: Eleven as a character in the model of Obi Wan?
• 16:54 - Season Two: Eleven emerges as a Hero on a Leeming-style journey, with elements of Murdock’s and Frankel’s models
• 25:11 - Season Three: the (metaphorical) death of the hero, Eleven
• 28:21 - Season Four: Eleven descends to the underworld, and is reborn?
• 33:28 - Recap: Leeming’s model and the stages of Eleven’s Heroic Journey

37:30 - Predictions for Season Five: How will Eleven’s Heroic Journey end?

• 38:14 - The three basic possibilities: (1) Eleven as superhero; (2) Eleven as Campbell-style “Everyman” hero; (3) Eleven as a “Chosen One” hero
• 41:52 - What Herakles’ journey tells us about Eleven and about Stranger Things

43:26 - Wrap-up

Visit our homepage to subscribe, to find us on social media, and to contact us by email:

• https://havetogawilltravel.com

Links:

• NYPL’s list of “Heroines in Fairytales, Folklore, Fables and Legends for Young Readers”

Cover Image:

Pylades, Orestes, and Elektra perform rites at the tomb of Agamemnon. Painted in the late fourth century BCE on an amphora made in one of the Greek cities of southern Italy (which is now held at the MFA in Boston). Photo by Emily.

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00:11 - Introduction

01:15 - What is a hero?

• 01:33 - Some modern definitions of hero
• 02:52 - The roots of the word “hero” in ancient Greek (and maybe earlier)
• 04:12 - The various meanings of “hero” in ancient Greece: leaders, godlike heroes, and mortals given divine honors
• 13:09 – The flexibility of the hero concept in ancient Greece, and some examples: Achilles, Sarpedon, Theagenes of Thasos, and Kleomedes of Astypalaia
• 20:15 – Death and the hero in ancient Greece, and some strange cases: Asklepios and Herakles

26:51 - The stories we tell about heroes

• 27:39 – Two models of the “hero’s journey”: Joseph Campbell, “The Hero with a Thousand Faces”, and David Adams Leeming, “Mythology”
• 30:57 - A digression on problematic treatments of gender in hero studies
• 33:40 - Odysseus as the Cambell-style “everyman” hero
• 36:00 - Herakles as the Leeming-style “Chosen One”
• 42:26 – Coda: Alexander the Great and Herakles

44:17 - Wrap-up and teaser for our next episode on Stranger Things’ “Eleven”

The Athenian Acropolis had a long life both before and after the construction of the Parthenon in the fifth century BCE. Join Emily and Cam as they explore the long history of Athens’ most iconic landmark.

Visit our homepage to subscribe and to find us on social media:

• https://havetogawilltravel.com

Cover Image: Illustration from Atene Attica Descritta da suoi Principii sino all’acquisto fatto dall’Armi Venete nel 1687, by Francesco Fanelli. (Venice, Antonio Bortoli, 1695 edition.)

Links:

• Our short blog post featuring pictures of Bronze Age remnants on the Acropolis.
• Parthenon, by Costa-Gavras. A short video depicting the Parthenon and its evolution through time (featuring Byron’s poem about Elgin).
• The Acropolis of Athens, 3500 BC – 2010 AD, by Ancient Athens 3D. Another short video, this one depicting the evolution of the Acropolis as a whole.
• A concept drawing of Schinkel’s vision for the new royal palace on the Acropolis.
• A ground plan of Schinkel’s vision for the new royal palace on the Acropolis.

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00:11 - Introduction

02:24 - The Acropolis in the Bronze Age

• 02:29 - An overview of the Bronze Age in Greece
• 03:15 - The Bronze Age citadel on the Acropolis
• 04:43 - Traces of the Bronze Age on the Acropolis today

06:36 - The Acropolis in the Archaic Period

• 06:37 - The Bronze Age Collapse
• 07:29 - Ancient interpretations of Bronze Age monuments
• 08:48 - The great temples of the Archaic period: what can we know?
• 11:45 - The Pre-Parthenon

13:34 - The Hellenistic and Roman Acropolis

• 13:43 - Post-classical Athens as a cultural center
• 14:40 - Alexander the Great, the Hellenistic rulers of Pergamon, and the Romans
• 15:57 - Pausanias visits the Acropolis in the 2nd century CE

17:11 - The Byzantine period and the coming of Christianity

• 17:17 - The Parthenon: from temple, to church, to the Cathedral of Theotokos Atheniotissa
• 18:28 - Medieval architectural modifications to the Parthenon
• 20:09 - The ancient metopes of the Parthenon defaced
• 21:51 - The Parthenon as a site of Christian pilgrimage

22:28 - The Fourth Crusade and its impact in Athens

• 22:41 - The crusaders sack Constantinople and conquer Greece
• 23:24 - The Acropolis in the era of the Franks

25:12 - The Acropolis under Ottoman Rule

• 25:19 - Mehmet II and the conquest of Greece
• 25:44 - The Parthenon becomes a mosque
• 26:23 - The Venetian siege of Athens and the explosion heard round the world
• 29:34 - Lord Elgin removes many of the Parthenon’s sculptures

37:38 - The Acropolis after the Greek War of Independence

• 38:14 - The new king of the Hellenes and plans for the Acropolis
• 39:24 - The “restoration” of the fifth-century BCE Acropolis
• 42:12 - Modern work on the Acropolis
• 42:32 - The ethics of archaeological site preservation and presentation

45:03 - Wrap-up: the enduring significance of the Acropolis

Visit our homepage to subscribe and to find us on social media:

• https://havetogawilltravel.com

Episode Links:

• Our short blog post featuring pictures of Nashville’s replica of the Athena Parthenos statue.

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00:11 - Introduction

02:05 - Visiting the Acropolis: the modern experience

• 02:32 - The geography of Attica
• 03:41 - Our first impressions of the Acropolis (and how Goethe did it better)
• 05:45 - What visiting the Acropolis is like: sacred and profane space; the temple of Athena Nikē (and aspects of the gods); the Propylaia; the Parthenon; the Erectheion; the Dörpfeld Foundations

14:23 - What visiting the Acropolis was like in the fifth century BCE

• 14:30 - The ramp
• 16:28 - Athena Promachos
• 17:01 - Colorful temples
• 17:38 - Dedications everywhere (and why dedications mattered)

20:20 - How and when the structures on the Acropolis came to be

• 20:25 - The basic context: Darius, Xerxes, and the Persian invasions of Greece
• 22:20 - The Oath of Plataia: the Greeks swear not to rebuild their temples
• 23:59 - What changed? War in the Aegean, the Peace of Kallias, and the Athenian Empire

29:01 - The Parthenon

• 29:26 - The basics of the Parthenon and Greek architectural orders
• 32:38 - The Parthenon’s pediment sculptures: the west pediment group and the east pediment group
• 37:31 - The metopes: the Amazonomachy (west), the Trojan War (north), the Gigantomachy (east), Lapiths vs. Centaurs (south)
• 40:37 - The Ionic frieze and various interpretations of its imagery
• 43:53 - Pheidias’ statue of Athena and its decoration
• 46:04 - The meaning of the Parthenon’s sculpture: the Athenians, their empire, and their imperial mission

49:41 - The Erechtheion

• 49:49 - The fundamental weirdness of the Erechtheion
• 52:08 - Why is it so strange? The persistence of ancient ritual.
• 52:54 - The most sacred image of Athena: the Xoanon
• 54:08 - Is the building we call the Erechtheion the building the ancient Athenians (and Pausanias) called the Erechtheion? Or is it the temple of Athena Polias?
• 56:48 - Emily delivers a fine rant about the perils of “received wisdom” in Classics
• 1:01:08 - Cam footnotes Emily’s rant with a digression on horror vacui

1:02:02 - Wrap-up 

• Cover image: Vincenzo Vela, Spartacus (1848); photograph by Rama (Wikimedia commons)

Links:

• “I am Spartacus”: an iconic scene from Kirk Douglas’ 1960 film
• Pepsi’s “Spartacus” commercial
• “The Son of Spartacus”: an unofficial 1962 sequel to the Kirk Douglas movie, starring Steve Reeves

Visit our homepage to subscribe and to find us on social media:

• https://havetogawilltravel.com

----------

00:10 - Introduction

01:11 - The sources: what can we know about Spartacus?

• 01:27 - Plutarch, Appian, and their interest in Spartacus
• 02:17 - Sallust: the original source

02:58 - Spartacus: a basic biography

• 03:05 - Spartacus' origin in Thrace, among the Maidi
• 03:16 - Spartacus' brief career as a Roman auxiliary and as a latro
• 03:49 - Spartacus enslaved and sold to the ludus of Lentulus Batiatus
• 04:44 - The gladiators escape from Batiatus’ ludus, seek refuge on Mount Vesuvius, and defeat several forces sent to suppress them
• 07:07 - As the rebellion gathers steam, Spartacus and his supporters drive north, and defeat three Roman armies along the way
• 10:04 - After Spartacus’ army turns south again, winning yet another major battle, the Romans entrust Crassus with the responsibility of ending the rebellion
• 11:49 - The Romans outmaneuver Spartacus and defeat the rebels

15:31 - Why did Spartacus and his supporters rebel?

• 15:51 - Enslaved people and small-scale resistance
• 17:28 - What made large-scale rebellions so difficult
• 18:40 - Poor living conditions as a motivation for rebellion: gladiators, enslaved herdsmen, enslaved agricultural workers
• 21:16 - Poor prospects for winning manumission as a further motivation for rebellion
• 23:03 - Many of the rebels had been enslaved only recently and longed to reclaim their freedom

24:52 - What were Spartacus and his supporters attempting to accomplish?

• 25:15 - To escape from Italy, or not? The sources and the problem of reconstructing Spartacus’ plans
• 27:01 - Modern approaches: (1) The sources had it right; (2) Spartacus had a larger agenda—whether to destroy the hegemony of Rome in Italy, or to end slavery
• 28:15 - A critique of these approaches, and an alternative: staying together was the best guarantee of freedom

31:16 - The ongoing resonance of Spartacus in modern literature, film, and television

• 32:29 - The discovery of Spartacus by French and Italian thinkers in the 18th and 19th centuries
• 33:35 - The Marxist and communist take on Spartacus
• 35:40 - 20th century novels: Koestler’s “The Gladiators” and Fast’s “Spartacus”
• 38:20 - Spartacus goes to Hollywood: Kirk Douglas’ 1960 film and Spartacus as social revolutionary
• 49:08 - A Spartacus for the 20th century: Andy Whitfield as Spartacus

51:05 - Wrap-up

Links:

• The Zliten mosaic (with pictures)
• Gladiator Graffiti near the Porta Nocera in Pompeii (scroll down toward bottom, to the section on tomb 14EN)
• Image of the tombstone of Urbicus the Secutor

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00:10 - Introduction

01:57 - The Games

• 02:14 - Funeral games and the origins and development of gladiator combat
• 06:17 - The games in the age of the Colosseum
• 08:44 - Beast shows and hunters (venatores)
• 11:22 - Public punishments and spectacular executions
• 15:00 - Gladiator combat: gladiator graffiti from Pompeii and the excitement of the matched pair
• 19:52 - Mock battles, naval and otherwise, with a digression on Certamen players and the phrase “we who are about to die salute you”
• 23:13 - Keeping score: gladiator win-loss records, referees, and the possibility of survival
• 26:22 - An underdog story: the victories of Marcus Attilius at Nola
• 28:37 - Gladiators as celebrities (and sex symbols)

31:48 - The Gladiators: who were they, and what were their lives like?

• 32:14 - Who fought as gladiators?
• 33:14 - Gladiator “schools” (ludi) and managers (lanistae)
• 37:02 - Gladiator cemeteries and what they tell us about living conditions (diet, injuries, life expectancy)
• 43:22 - Evidence from tombstones: why did free people fight as gladiators?
• 50:08 - Evidence from tombstones: the lives of enslaved gladiators 

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00:10 - Introduction

• 00:23 - The Colosseum: an iconic remnant of ancient Rome and its gladiator games
• 00:57 - First impressions of the Colosseum in Rome from the exterior
• 03:31 - The Colosseum’s interior: the exhibit spaces in the upper ambulatory and the arena

05:38 - The Colosseum as it was in ancient Rome

• 05:59 - The Colosseum, or the Flavian Amphitheatre?
• 06:58 - What’s an amphitheatre? A southern Italian innovation, influenced by Greek theaters
• 09:04 - The spread of amphitheatres in ancient Italy and elsewhere
• 10:05 - The Roman Colosseum in its heyday: its appearance, its structure, and its amenities

16:08 – Why was the Colosseum built? Vespasian and the legitimacy of the Flavian dynasty

• 16:39 - Augustus and the legitimacy of imperial power
• 19:05 - The fall of Augustus’ dynasty and the rise of Vespasian
• 20:39 - Vespasian and the ideological importance of the Flavian Amphitheatre
• 22:47 - A digression on Nero and his murder of his mother, Agrippina

26:06 - The survival of the Colosseum after antiquity: cycles of destruction and renewal

• 26:46 - Fires and earthquakes and flooding, oh my!
• 27:35 Fit for plunder: the Colosseum as a source of building materials
• 28:37 - Social, political, and economic transformations: the collapse of the Western Roman Empire and the decline of the Colosseum
• 30:17 - New Life in the 11th century: the palaces of the Frangipani and Annibaldi
• 31:15 - A loss of memory: did anyone remember what the Colosseum was for?
• 32:28 - Flavio Biondo and the “rediscovery” of the Colosseum
• 33:05 - The Catholic Church, the Italian government, and restoration

33:54 - Final Thoughts and a meditation by the Venerable Bede

The Return

• Released December 6, 2024
• Starring Ralph Fiennes and Juliette Binoche
• Directed by Uberto Pasolini

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00:34 - Introduction: Pasolini’s movie, “The Return”

• 00:47 - What makes a good movie adaptation of an ancient Greek epic like Homer’s Odyssey?

02:22 - A Summary of Homer’s Odyssey

• 02:52 - The Telemachy
• 04:02 - From Calypso’s island to the island of the Phaeacians
• 04:39 - Odysseus’ narration of his adventures
• 05:51 - Odysseus’ return to Ithaka

06:56 - Our review of The Return

• 07:06 - The film’s focus and nods to earlier parts of the Odyssey
• 08:50 - Familiar beats: Odysseus in disguise; Eumaeus, Argos, and Eurycleia; Penelope’s loom; the confrontation in the great hall
• 13:19 - Odysseus: a man traumatized by loss and violence
• 17:19 - Penelope: strong, clever, and determined
• 21:38 - Antinoos: a fresh take on a one-note villain
• 24:26 - Odysseus’ bow and the harsh reality of violence and revenge
• 30:44 - Resolution: Odysseus and Penlope together again, Telemachus seeks to find himself

33:08 - Final thoughts

• 33:17 - Referencing Cacoyannis: the location, the cinematography, and the soundscape
• 34:22 - Overall impressions

Links:

• Part I of our photo essay on the Athens Marathon;
• Part II of our phot essay on the Athens Marathon;
• A report in the Greek Times about the 73-year-old Cretan runner, Idomeneas Avramakis.

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00:12 - Introduction

01:04 - The First Modern Marathon

• 01:11 - The early Olympic movement: de Coubertin, Bréal, and the push for a long-distance race
• 03:52 - Picking a route: the major routes from Marathon to Athens, in the ancient world and now (with a digression on the Athenian army in 490 BC and the walk of NGL Hammond)
• 08:28 - The first marathon: the achievements of Spyridon Louis and Stamata Revithi

12:40 - Going the distance: 26 miles, 385 yards

• 13:07 - The impromptu conditions of early marathons
• 14:01 - Refinements at the 1906 intercalated games in Athens
• 14:49 - Setting the official distance at the 1921 IAAF Conference and the story of the 1908 London Olympics

17:34 - The “Authentic” Athens Marathon

• 17:45 - The history of the Athens Marathon from 1955 to the present
• 18:37 - Following in the footsteps of Pheidippes, or footsteps of Grigoris Lambrakis?
• 19:49 - The first 8km: the Marathon plain, the ancient Tomb of the Athenians, and the enthusiasm of the spectators
• 21:30 - The next 10km: the road to Rafina, the statue of the Runners, and the lost statue of Pheidippides
• 23:56 - From 18km to 31km: “The Hill”, and the barefoot runner Idomeneas Avromakis
• 26:27 - The final 10km: the Attic Basin, the statue of the Runner, and the finish in the Panathenaic Stadium of Herodes Atticus

32:22 - Final Thoughts

• 32:36 The road from Marathon: an ancient and historic route
• 32:58 - The ancient sanctuary of Tyche and a prayer for better days ahead

Links:

• Part I of our photo essay on the Athens Marathon;
• Part II of our phot essay on the Athens Marathon;

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• https://havetogawilltravel.com/

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00:11- Introduction

• 00:59 - Why do an episode about the Athens Marathon?
• 02:48 - The Origin Story: The Battle of Marathon and the Run of Pheidippides

05:11 - Is the Pheidippides story true?

• 05:34 - The ancient traditions about Pheidipiddes’ run: Lucian, Plutarch, and Herakleides
• 08:48 - Herodotus on Pheidippides: the run from Athens to Sparta and back, and an epiphany along the way

12:34 - If the Pheidippides story isn’t true, why does it exist?

• 13:09 - The Battle of Marathon offered fertile grounds for the development of legends.
• 13:59 - A battle against enormous odds: ancient Athens and the Persian Empire compared
• 16:24 - The Battle of Marathon as an existential struggle: Darius, Hippias, and the threat to Athenian democracy
• 20:30 - Marathon as an Athenian achievement (with a little help from the Plataians)
• 21:56 - Aeschylus’ tombstone: the impact of the Battle of Marathon on the ancient Athenian imagination

24:33 - In search of the real Marathon story: the desperate march back to Athens

• 26:21 - The Battle of Marathon and its physical and mental toll
• 28:34 - The long march back: the race to save Athens

31:29 – Final thoughts: Ancient history and the modern marathon