"Sacred Places of the Ancient World" with Philip Matyszak - TAS 345
This week we interview classicist and author Dr. Philip Matyszak about his new book, "Sacred Places of the Ancient World," which presents a thematic survey of sacred sites across regions known to the Greeks and Romans. Matyszak explains how the book traces changing expressions of spirituality from naturally sacred landscapes to temples as divine “dwellings,” and discusses how he balanced lesser-known locations with essential sites like Delphi and the Acropolis. They highlight examples including Göbekli Tepe’s implications for early urbanism and religion, the debated Tomb of Achilles near Troy, the Grove of Egeria outside Rome, and the long-revered Tomb of Cyrus, along with the book’s photos and bibliography.
Links
Contact
Chris Webster
Rachel Roden
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Altered States - Screens 141
We enjoyed the last movie we watched from director Ken Russell so much that we decided to watch another: Altered States (1980) tells the story of a man who had to take years of hallucinogenic drugs and devolve into a monkey before he could say “I love you” to his wife. In this episode we talk drugs, primates, drugs, academia, drugs, evolution, and drugs.
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The Maya, Dogs, and Cuteness with Zac Lindsey - Ethno 48
In this episode David sits down with Zach Lindsay, a Mayanist archaeologist and board member of the Institute of Maya Studies, to explore the intersection of Mesoamerican archaeology, art, mythology, and—of course—dogs! From the monumental pyramids of Teotihuacan to the symbolic underworld journeys of ancient Maya souls, Zach brings a journalist’s curiosity and an archaeologist’s precision to one of the world’s oldest human–dog relationships.
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Welcome to the Grave - DiA 22
Tracing the infamous grave marker from ancient origins through the “western world,” across Europe to New England, and its portrayal in modern art through the TV show Over the Garden Wall.
Links
Read along, Pictures, and Citations: Detours in Artaeology
Contact
Printify Shop - shirts, stickers, and mugs, oh my!
My YouTube channel - where you can find all my episodes too
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Join my Patreon (It's free :D)
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Music
'Chronicle' by Scott Buckley - released under CC-BY 4.0. Scott Buckley - Composer
'Filaments' by Scott Buckley - released under CC-BY 4.0. Scott Buckley - Composer
'In This Moment' by Scott Buckley - released under CC-BY 4.0. Scott Buckley - Composer
'Awakening' by Scott Buckley - released under CC-BY 4.0. Scott Buckley - Composer
'A Dragon's Lullaby (Original)' by Scott Buckley - released under CC-BY 4.0. Scott Buckley - Composer
'Hiraeth' by Scott Buckley - released under CC-BY 4.0. Scott Buckley - Composer
'I Walk With Ghosts' by Scott Buckley - released under CC-BY 4.0. Scott Buckley - Composer
'She Moved Mountains' by Scott Buckley - released under CC-BY 4.0. Scott Buckley - Composer
'Static' by Scott Buckley - released under CC-BY 4.0. Scott Buckley - Composer
'The Long Way Home' by Scott Buckley - released under CC-BY 4.0. Scott Buckley - Composer
'Tears In Rain' by Scott Buckley - released under CC-BY 4.0. Scott Buckley - Composer
Weaving New Futures with Chris Aslan - EXARC 76
Chris Aslan originally moved to Uzbekistan in the 1990s to write a tourist guide. Yet in his time there he worked with UNESCO to revive the dying art of silk carpet weaving, opening a workshop that is still running today. Host Jess Shaw explores with Chris his experiences of reviving an ancient craft, from experimenting with natural dyes to studying 15th century manuscripts to rediscover lost carpet designs. Chris then went on to found other craft workshops, and continues to revisit Central Asia, a place that has captured his heart.
Chris is a writer, running tours and giving lectures about his varied experiences in Central Asia. He established an UNESCO workshop reviving silk carpet making in Khiva, Uzbekistan and wrote a book about his experiences called ‘A Carpet Ride to Khiva’. He has since written Únravelling the Silk Road’ about his later experiences working with Kyrgys Yak herders and working in the world's largest walnut forest, also in Kyrgyzstan
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Rose Spring Revisited with Dr Robert Yohe (Part 2) - Rock Art 176
In Part 2 of this conversation, Alan continues his discussion with Dr. Robert Yohe about the archaeological record at the Rose Spring site and what it reveals about human activity in the Owens Valley. They examine how earlier interpretations of the site have been refined through additional excavations, radiocarbon dating, and new analyses of archaeological materials. Drawing on his own excavation experience and expertise in flintknapping, Yohe explains how closer analysis of artifacts can provide a more detailed picture of life at Rose Spring.
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Archaeology of Music with Dr Graeme Lawson (part 1) - Teabreak 64
What’s the difference between a small-town murder mystery and the study of archaeological musical instruments? As it turns out, not that much! Join Jess and Matilda as they chat with Dr Graeme Lawson all about the archaeology of music, and maybe you might even hear some sounds from the past…
Links
For the Sound Tracks (US/Canada edition) page at Penguin/Knopf
ISGMA: International research and outreach hub for music archaeology, based in Vienna
Contact the Host
Matilda’s Contact Details
Email: matilda@thearchaeologiststeacup.com
insta: @the_archaeologists_teacup
twitter: @ArchaeoTeacup
Jess’s Contact Details
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CRM Drama, The Lighthouse at Alexandria and Neanderthal Woodworking - TAS 344
This week we cover 3 recent archaeology news stories. First up we discuss the recent dissolution of one of the largest CRM firms in the country, and what that short and long term impacts of that closure could be. Then we head over to Egypt where a recently uncovered signet ring depicts the Lighthouse at Alexandria (or a Dalek?!?). And then finally new evidence at a sight in Spain shows that Neanderthals were making tools out of wood.
Links
Segment 1
Segment 2
Segment 3
Contact
Chris Webster
Rachel Roden
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Spooky Season Special! Tilly's Ghost Stories! - Trowel 76
We continue our Spooky Season Special with Ash and Tilly! In this episode, Tilly dives into the world of nautical spectres, haunted ships, and bumps in the… coral?
From the ghostly stories surrounding Pearl Harbor to other haunted wrecks from around the world, join the team as they explore some of history’s most spine-tingling maritime tales!
Books mentioned:
Ghosts of the British Museum (Noah Angell)
The Salvage (Anbara Salam)
The Shadowy Horses (Susanne Kearsley)
Links
Contact
Email: andmytrowel@gmail.com
Instagram: @and.my.trowel
Transcripts
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Diving into Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump with Dr. Shawn Bubel and Dr. Kevin McGeough Part 2 - Plains 53
Carlton and Chris reunite with Drs. Shawn Bubel and Kevin McGeough of the University of Lethbridge to continue their discussion of Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump UNESCO World Heritage Site. If you missed Part 1, listen to it before turning to Part 2, in which Shawn and Kevin discuss their recent Plains Anthropologist article, “Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump: The Durative Power of Keystone Institutions and Embedded Knowledge.” In both the article and this episode, they move beyond archaeological and behavioral-ecological models that view buffalo jumps primarily as meat factories to explore the sites’ broader social and cultural significance. What are “keystone institutions” in hunter-gatherer archaeology, and how can archaeologists identify them? What is embedded knowledge, and how is it expressed at Head-Smashed-In? What happens to a cultural system when the institutions that sustain it are suddenly taken away? And how have the Blackfoot reclaimed some of this embedded knowledge in the recent past?
Article Citation:
Transcript
Links
Imagining Head-Smashed-In: Aboriginal Buffalo Hunting on the Northern Plains by Jack Brink (2008)
The Archaeology of the North American Great Plains by Douglas B. Bamforth (2021)
Archaeology on the Great Plains Edited by W. Raymond Wood (1998)
Contact
Instagram: @pawnee_archaeologist
APN
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The Vanderbilt Report is Right! - CRMArch 343
Today, Heather and Andrew discuss the recent “Vanderbilt Report” which said that anthropology needed to be a bit less activist, a bit more approachable to normal humans, and use a bit less jargon. The American Anthropological Association disagreed, and then Heather and Andrew disagreed with the AAA!
Transcripts
Links
Blogs and Resources:
Bill White: Succinct Research
Doug Rocks-MacQueen: Doug’s Archaeology
Chris Webster: DIGTECH LLC
Andrew Kinkella
ArchPodNet
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The Lair of the White Worm (1988) - Screens 140
It’s still spooky month, so we watched The Lair of the White Worm (1988), an unhinged Bram Stoker adaptation about a sexy immortal snake woman sacrificing virgins to a larger and more phallic snake, and an intrepid “Scotch” archaeologist who saves the day with a snakecharming bagpipe song and magic sporran. Excuse me: “Scots”. As usual we talk a little about archaeology, a lot about cryptids, and after five years still struggle to figure out this whole Zoom thing.
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Tolkien and Dogs With Ash and Tilly - Ethno 47
In this episode, David is joined by fellow APN hosts Ashleigh Airey and Tilly Siebrecht to discuss all things Tolkien, but mainly the dogs in the Tolkien Legendarium.
The first discusses how they got into Tolkien and the Peter Jackson trilogy as kids, and how it grew into a lifelong love of the stories, and the episode quickly details from there.
Once they return from a break, the 3 hosts then get on track about the dogs of the Tolkien universe, including Huan from The Silmarillion, the wargs of Isengard, and the various wolves controlled by Sauron, as well as the dogs owned by Farmer Maggot.
They then wrap up by discussing lots more about Tolkien and the 3 trilogies, plus the new Rings of Power show.
Transcripts
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Cultural Beliefs and Symbolism in the Archaeological Record with David Bruner - Rock Art 175
In this episode, Alan speaks with Dr. David Bruner about the connections between cultural beliefs, symbolism, and the interpretation of the archaeological record. They explore the Bakongo cosmogram and its possible expression in African American burial traditions, including reversed writing on grave markers and pipes placed in graves. The conversation also draws parallels between street art in New Orleans and prehistoric petroglyphs at Little Petroglyph Canyon, considering how personal rivalries, cultural differences, and changing beliefs may influence the creation, alteration, and erasure of imagery. Highlighting the importance of cultural context and multiple perspectives in understanding and preserving the past.
Transcripts
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Creationism! - Pseudo 193
Let’s go old school today and talk creationism! The idea that not only did god make the world, but that it should be taught in biology class alongside evolution! I know which doctor I would prefer…
Transcripts
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Archaeology from an Greenlandic Inuit Perspective - HeVo 110
On this month’s episode, Jessica speaks with Pauline Knudsen (Assistant Professor in the Department of Cultural and Social History at the Institute of Culture, Language and History at Ilisimatusarfik- the University of Greenland). The two discuss Pauline’s journey from being fascinated during a museum visit to working in museums as a curator to ultimately becoming an archaeologist. Pauline explains the context of doing archaeological work as a professional in Greenland and how climate change affects the archaeological features themselves. She also provides several examples of different ways her projects have centered the interests of local communities and incorporated local Indigenous knowledge into archaeological interpretation, including how oral history, archaeology, anthropology, and historical research came together to tell the story of a hunter from the eighteenth century who has been viewed as either a murderer or a hero depending on the storyteller and time period. Lastly, Jessica and Pauline discuss an Antiquity article that Pauline co-authored that showed the greater navigational sophistication and heavier integration of Early Paleo-Inuit people into the environment than previously understood in a region of Greenland that is still difficult to access today.
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Historic pigment-making with Caroline Nicolay (part 2) - Teabreak 63
It’s time for part 2 of Matilda’s chat with experiential archaeologist Caroline Nicolay all about the topic of ancient pigments. Listen in as they discuss specialisation in the iron age, the link between wall papers and ancient houses in France, and how a bunch of supermarket spices changed Caroline’s life forever!
Transcripts
Links
Contact the Host
Matilda’s Contact Details
Email: matilda@thearchaeologiststeacup.com
insta: @the_archaeologists_teacup
twitter: @ArchaeoTeacup
Jess’s Contact Details
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Mammoths and Empires with Todd Braje - TAS 343
Chris interviews archaeologist and author Todd Braje about his upcoming book, “Mammoths and Empires” from Pegasus Books. We discuss some of the bigger themes in the book and his motivation for writing it.
Links
Transcripts
Contact
Chris Webster
Rachel Roden
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Archaeologist Commentary: Rise of the Tomb Raider pt 1 - DiA 21
Welcome to Rise of the Tomb Raider, the second game of the Survivor series. This is the first episode, with plenty of background information. Join us as we introduce the game’s story and shoot down some of the development mistakes.
Links
Read along, Pictures, and Citations: Detours in Artaeology
Contact
Printify Shop - shirts, stickers, and mugs, oh my!
My YouTube channel - where you can find all my episodes too
Follow me on Instagram @FlyingSepiida
Join my Patreon (It's free :D)
Follow me on LinkedIn: LinkedIn
ArchPodNet
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Music
'Home Was You' by Scott Buckley - released under CC-BY 4.0. Scott Buckley - Composer
'Anabasis I' by Scott Buckley - released under CC-BY 4.0. Scott Buckley - Composer
'Katabasis_II' by Scott Buckley - released under CC-BY 4.0. Scott Buckley - Composer
'With These Hands' by Scott Buckley - released under CC-BY 4.0. Scott Buckley - Composer
'Unraveling-' by Scott Buckley - released under CC-BY 4.0. Scott Buckley - Composer
'Shoulders Of Giants' by Scott Buckley - released under CC-BY 4.0. Scott Buckley - Composer
'There Was A Time' by Scott Buckley - released under CC-BY 4.0. Scott Buckley - Composer
'Phoenix' by Scott Buckley - released under CC-BY 4.0. Scott Buckley - Composer
'Hyperion' by Scott Buckley - released under CC-BY 4.0. Scott Buckley - Composer
'Convergence' by Scott Buckley - released under CC-BY 4.0. Scott Buckley - Composer
Spooky Season Special! Ash's Ghost Stories! - Trowel 75
It’s Spooky Season! In these two special episodes, Ash and Tilly share some of their favourite spooky stories from the world of archaeology.
First up is Ash, with two tales of spectral figures seemingly just getting on with their daily lives—one burning the late-night oil at a historic brewery, and another haunting the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Hadrian’s Wall!
Books mentioned:
The Shadowy Horses by Susanna Kearsley
Links
Contact
Email: andmytrowel@gmail.com
Instagram: @and.my.trowel
Transcripts
ArchPodNet
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