The Hellenistic Age Podcast

It's never easy coming up with your own origin story, and the ascendant Hellenistic dynasties tried their best to justify their legitimacy in an age of shifting alliances. PhD candidate Angus Jacobson joins the show to discuss the "Flight of Seleucus" story presented to us by Libanius of Antioch (314-392 A.D.), offering insights as to how the Successors used (or manipulated) events in their royal propaganda, and the challenges of separating fact from fiction. Episode Notes: (https://hellenisticagepodcast.wordpress.com/2024/07/30/interview-the-flight-of-seleucus-and-dynastic-propaganda-with-angus-jacobson/) Social Media: Twitter (https://twitter.com/HellenisticPod) Facebook (www.facebook.com/hellenisticagepodcast/) Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/hellenistic_age_podcast/) Twitch (https://www.twitch.tv/hellenisticagepodcast) Show Merchandise: Etsy (https://www.etsy.com/shop/HellenisticAgePod) Redbubble (https://www.redbubble.com/people/HellenisticPod/shop?asc=u) Donations: Patreon (https://patreon.com/TheHellenisticAgePodcast) Ko-Fi (https://ko-fi.com/hellenisticagepodcast) Amazon Book Wish List (https://tinyurl.com/vfw6ask)

Discover the practical applications of theoretical mathematics in the Hellenistic period, from new war weapons like catapults to enormous ships. Learn about the Colossus of Rhodes, the earliest known robots, and the precursor of the steam engine by Alexandrian inventors. Explore innovative technologies that continue to fascinate viewers today.

Delve into the world of Hellenistic mathematics with a focus on Euclid's 'Elements' and the intriguing life of Archimedes. Explore the legacy of key figures like Pythagoras and Thales, and their contributions to mathematical innovation. Learn about conic sections, Cartesian geometry, and the enduring impact of Hellenistic mathematicians on modern scholars.

As the first episode in our series on science and technology, we begin by looking at the advancements in medicine during the Hellenistic Age. In Alexandria, Herophilus and Erasistratus became the first doctors to practice human dissections in any significant capacity until the Middle Ages, greatly improving our understanding of anatomy and physiology. Developments in pharmacology followed the botanical work of Theophrastus, while Mithridates VI of Pontus performed diabolical experiments with poisons and antidotes. From OBGYN to trepanation, there is bound to be something in here that will make you squeamish. Episode Notes: (https://hellenisticagepodcast.wordpress.com/2024/04/29/096-hellenistic-science-medicine-and-the-healing-arts/) Episode Transcript: (https://hellenisticagepodcast.files.wordpress.com/2024/04/096-hellenistic-sciences-medicine-and-the-healing-arts-transcript.pdf) Social Media: Twitter (https://twitter.com/HellenisticPod) Facebook (www.facebook.com/hellenisticagepodcast/) Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/hellenistic_age_podcast/) Twitch (https://www.twitch.tv/hellenisticagepodcast) Show Merchandise: Etsy (https://www.etsy.com/shop/HellenisticAgePod) Redbubble (https://www.redbubble.com/people/HellenisticPod/shop?asc=u) Donations: Patreon (https://patreon.com/TheHellenisticAgePodcast) Ko-Fi (https://ko-fi.com/hellenisticagepodcast) Amazon Book Wish List (https://tinyurl.com/vfw6ask)

Twenty years of chaos in the Ptolemaic kingdom come to an end during the reign of Ptolemy V Epiphanes (204-180). His marriage to the Seleucid princess Cleopatra I Syra confirmed the loss of Coele Syria to Antiochus III, yet she proved to be a good match and helped secure the future of the dynasty. Haronnophoris and the Great Revolt are finally put down in 186, but the Alexandrian government is forced to give concessions to the Egyptians, as the Ptolemies must now come to terms with their new status as a second-class power in the Mediterranean. We also delve into the history of the Rosetta Stone, the Hellenistic period's most famous document, and its role in the decipherment of Ancient Egyptian. Episode Notes: (https://hellenisticagepodcast.wordpress.com/2024/03/10/095-ptolemaic-egypt-the-two-lands-restored/) Episode Transcript: (https://hellenisticagepodcast.files.wordpress.com/2024/03/095-ptolemaic-egypt-the-two-lands-restored-transcript.pdf) Ptolemy V Family Tree: (https://hellenisticagepodcast.files.wordpress.com/2024/03/reign-of-ptolemy-v.pdf) Autocrat Podcast: Website (http://www.autocratpodcast.wordpress.com/) Spotify (https://open.spotify.com/show/30Muilr1O66yA4UDcj76SW?si=c6648d9db9b3446c) Social Media: Twitter (https://twitter.com/HellenisticPod) Facebook (www.facebook.com/hellenisticagepodcast/) Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/hellenistic_age_podcast/) Twitch (https://www.twitch.tv/hellenisticagepodcast) Show Merchandise: Etsy (https://www.etsy.com/shop/HellenisticAgePod) Redbubble (https://www.redbubble.com/people/HellenisticPod/shop?asc=u) Donations: Patreon (https://patreon.com/TheHellenisticAgePodcast) Ko-Fi (https://ko-fi.com/hellenisticagepodcast) Amazon Book Wish List (https://tinyurl.com/vfw6ask)

Rome hoped that the Peace of Apamea would instill some sort of order over the eastern Mediterranean, allowing them to return to Italy after decades of warfare. Yet the vacuum of power left behind in a post-Seleucid Asia Minor would lead to fierce competition, with those like Eumenes II of Pergamon and Pharnaces I of Pontus waging war against their neighbors. The desire of the Achaean League to dominate the Peloponnese would lead to the end of an independent Sparta and the butting of heads with the Republic. While this was happening abroad, the consequences of Rome’s new role as hegemon over the Mediterranean would begin to rear its ugly head on the Senate floor, and the final years of the 180s would see the departure of three key figures of the day: Hannibal Barca, Philopoemen of Megalopolis, and Scipio Africanus. Episode Notes: (https://hellenisticagepodcast.wordpress.com/2024/01/22/094-the-senate-vs-scipio-africanus/) Episode Transcript: (https://hellenisticagepodcast.files.wordpress.com/2024/01/094-the-senate-vs-scipio-africanus-transcript.pdf) Social Media: Twitter (https://twitter.com/HellenisticPod) Facebook (www.facebook.com/hellenisticagepodcast/) Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/hellenistic_age_podcast/) Twitch (https://www.twitch.tv/hellenisticagepodcast) Show Merchandise: Etsy (https://www.etsy.com/shop/HellenisticAgePod) Redbubble (https://www.redbubble.com/people/HellenisticPod/shop?asc=u) Donations: Patreon (https://patreon.com/TheHellenisticAgePodcast) Ko-Fi (https://ko-fi.com/hellenisticagepodcast) Amazon Book Wish List (https://tinyurl.com/vfw6ask)

The defeat at the Battle of Magnesia brings the war between Antiochus III and the Roman Republic to a close. Forced to evacuate all territory north of the Taurus Mountains and saddled with an enormous indemnity, Antiochus' career comes to an abrupt end in Elymais after an unprecedented 35 years on the throne, leaving the Seleucid Empire at a crossroads for the coming generations. Episode Notes: (https://hellenisticagepodcast.wordpress.com/2023/12/05/093-the-seleucid-empire-the-peace-of-apamea/) Episode Transcript: (https://hellenisticagepodcast.files.wordpress.com/2023/12/093-the-seleucid-empire-the-peace-of-apamea-transcript.pdf) Reign of Antiochus III - Family Tree: (https://hellenisticagepodcast.files.wordpress.com/2023/12/reign-of-antiochus-iii-part-2.pdf) Social Media: Twitter (https://twitter.com/HellenisticPod) Facebook (www.facebook.com/hellenisticagepodcast/) Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/hellenistic_age_podcast/) Twitch (https://www.twitch.tv/hellenisticagepodcast) Show Merchandise: Etsy (https://www.etsy.com/shop/HellenisticAgePod) Redbubble (https://www.redbubble.com/people/HellenisticPod/shop?asc=u) Donations: Patreon (https://patreon.com/TheHellenisticAgePodcast) Ko-Fi (https://ko-fi.com/hellenisticagepodcast) Amazon Book Wish List (https://tinyurl.com/vfw6ask)

On invitation from the Aetolian League, Antiochus III invades the Greek mainland in September 192 and declares war against the Roman Republic. Though he held many victories under his belt, Rome proved to be a fiercer opponent than anticipated, forcing Antiochus to go on the defensive and take the fight back to Asia. A final confrontation on the plains of Magnesia (modern Manisa) would determine who was to be the dominant power of the Hellenistic world. Episode Notes: (https://hellenisticagepodcast.wordpress.com/2023/11/27/092-the-seleucid-empire-magnesia/) Episode Transcript: (https://hellenisticagepodcast.files.wordpress.com/2023/11/092-the-seleucid-empire-magnesia-transcript.pdf) Social Media: Twitter (https://twitter.com/HellenisticPod) Facebook (www.facebook.com/hellenisticagepodcast/) Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/hellenistic_age_podcast/) Twitch (https://www.twitch.tv/hellenisticagepodcast) Show Merchandise: Etsy (https://www.etsy.com/shop/HellenisticAgePod) Redbubble (https://www.redbubble.com/people/HellenisticPod/shop?asc=u) Donations: Patreon (https://patreon.com/TheHellenisticAgePodcast) Ko-Fi (https://ko-fi.com/hellenisticagepodcast) Amazon Book Wish List (https://tinyurl.com/vfw6ask)

The crisis in Egypt enabled Antiochus III to launch another invasion south into Ptolemaic territory, kickstarting the Fifth Syrian War (202-195) that finally delivered Coele Syria into Seleucid hands after almost a century of conflict. Antiochus' ambition to claim the territories of Seleucus I leads him to campaign in Europe, placing him on a collision course with the Roman Republic. Episode Notes: (https://hellenisticagepodcast.wordpress.com/2023/10/15/091-the-fifth-syrian-war/) Episode Transcript: (https://hellenisticagepodcast.files.wordpress.com/2023/10/091-the-fifth-syrian-war-transcript.pdf) Social Media: Twitter (https://twitter.com/HellenisticPod) Facebook (www.facebook.com/hellenisticagepodcast/) Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/hellenistic_age_podcast/) Twitch (https://www.twitch.tv/hellenisticagepodcast) Show Merchandise: Etsy (https://www.etsy.com/shop/HellenisticAgePod) Redbubble (https://www.redbubble.com/people/HellenisticPod/shop?asc=u) Donations: Patreon (https://patreon.com/TheHellenisticAgePodcast) Ko-Fi (https://ko-fi.com/hellenisticagepodcast) Amazon Book Wish List (https://tinyurl.com/vfw6ask)

With the defeat of Philip V at Cynoscephalae, Flamininus was tasked with deciding the fate of Greece in the postwar period. At the Isthmian Games of 196, he declared the freedom and autonomy of the Greeks, but resistance from the Aetolian League and Nabis of Sparta threatened to overturn the Roman-imposed peace, eventually drawing Antiochus III into Europe. Episode Notes: (https://hellenisticagepodcast.wordpress.com/2023/09/10/090-freedom-of-the-greeks/) Episode Transcript: (https://hellenisticagepodcast.files.wordpress.com/2023/09/090-freedom-of-the-greeks-transcript.pdf) Intelligent Speech Conference 2023 Code: HELEN Link: https://intelligentspeechonline.com/event/intelligent-speech-conference-2023/ Social Media: Twitter (https://twitter.com/HellenisticPod) Facebook (www.facebook.com/hellenisticagepodcast/) Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/hellenistic_age_podcast/) Twitch (https://www.twitch.tv/hellenisticagepodcast) Show Merchandise: Etsy (https://www.etsy.com/shop/HellenisticAgePod) Redbubble (https://www.redbubble.com/people/HellenisticPod/shop?asc=u) Donations: Patreon (https://patreon.com/TheHellenisticAgePodcast) Ko-Fi (https://ko-fi.com/hellenisticagepodcast) Amazon Book Wish List (https://tinyurl.com/vfw6ask)