The Hellenistic Age Podcast

Dr. Nikolaus Overtoom joins us to discuss the Parthians and the Arsacid dynasty, a group that emerged from the Central Asian Steppes to come into conflict with the Seleucids and Hellenistic kingdoms during early-middle 3rd century B.C.  We talk about Dr. Overtoom's work regarding early Parthian history, the adaptability of a steppe society ruling over a heavily urbanized Greco-Persian one,  and his upcoming book "Reign of Arrows: The Rise of the Parthian Empire in the Hellenistic Middle East", which seeks to answer the question of how the Parthians managed to turn from small nomadic tribe to one of the most powerful empires of the ancient world. Title Theme: Seikilos Epitapth with the Lyre of Apollo, played by Lina Palera (https://soundcloud.com/user-994392473) Show Links Website/Episode Notes: (https://hellenisticagepodcast.wordpress.com/2020/04/02/interview-on-the-parthian-empire-w-dr-nikolaus-overtoom/) Reign of Arrows: The Rise of the Parthian Empire in the Hellenistic Middle East – 30% Off Discount Code [AAFLYG6] for pre-orders through Oxford University Press (release date May 1st, 2020) – Link to page on Oxford University Press Website (https://global.oup.com/academic/product/reign-of-arrows-9780190888329?cc=us&lang=en&) Social Media: Twitter (https://twitter.com/HellenisticPod) Facebook (www.facebook.com/hellenisticagepodcast/) Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/hellenistic_age_podcast/) Discord (https://discord.gg/VJcyUcN) Show Merchandise: Etsy (https://www.etsy.com/shop/HellenisticAgePod) Donations: Ko-Fi (https://ko-fi.com/hellenisticagepodcast) Amazon Book Wish List (https://tinyurl.com/vfw6ask)

The First Punic War, lasting from 264 to 241 B.C., was the longest uninterrupted war in the ancient world, fought between the Roman Republic and the Phoenician city-state of Carthage. Exploring the origins of the conflict is essential, tracing the earliest instances of Romano-Punic relations to the intervention of Rome on the behalf of the Mamertines in 264. While the Romans may be able to hold their own in land engagements, will they be able to meet the awesome nautical power of Carthage and emerge victorious in the clash off Cape Ecnomus, the  largest naval battle in the ancient world? Title Theme: Seikilos Epitapth with the Lyre of Apollo, played by Lina Palera (https://soundcloud.com/user-994392473) Show Links Website/Episode Notes: (https://hellenisticagepodcast.wordpress.com/2020/03/29/042-the-first-punic-war-the-sicilian-wrestling-ground/) Social Media: Twitter (https://twitter.com/HellenisticPod) Facebook (www.facebook.com/hellenisticagepodcast/) Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/hellenistic_age_podcast/) Discord (https://discord.gg/VJcyUcN) Show Merchandise: Etsy (https://www.etsy.com/shop/HellenisticAgePod) Donations: Ko-Fi (https://ko-fi.com/hellenisticagepodcast) Amazon Book Wish List (https://tinyurl.com/vfw6ask)

Polybius of Megalopolis (~200 - 118 B.C.) was a Greek nobleman and high ranking member of the Achaean League, whose political career was prematurely ended when he was taken as a political hostage to Rome. Rather than disappearing into obscurity, Polybius took it upon himself to compose a "universal" history, so as to explain to his fellow Greeks how the Romans managed to conquer the inhabited world in only 50 years. In this episode, we are going to spend time discussing the life and works of Polybius, who provides us with not only the best written account from the Hellenistic period, but is also one of the finest historians the Greco-Roman world has ever produced. Title Theme: Seikilos Epitapth with the Lyre of Apollo, played by Lina Palera (https://soundcloud.com/user-994392473) Show Links Website/Episode Notes: (https://hellenisticagepodcast.wordpress.com/2020/03/14/041-polybius-of-megalopolis-historian-of-the-hellenistic-age/) Social Media: Twitter (https://twitter.com/HellenisticPod) Facebook (www.facebook.com/hellenisticagepodcast/) Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/hellenistic_age_podcast/) Discord (https://discord.gg/VJcyUcN) Donations: Ko-Fi (https://ko-fi.com/hellenisticagepodcast) Amazon Book Wish List (https://tinyurl.com/vfw6ask)

The city-state of Carthage , founded by Phoenician settlers in modern Tunisia during the 9th century B.C., was a premier power of the western Mediterranean. Stretching their reach from North Africa into Spain, Sicily and Sardinia, the Carthaginians managed to establish a formidable economic empire thanks to their nautical prowess, eventually leading to their clash for dominance with the up-and-coming Roman Republic. In this episode, we will trace Carthage from its foundation to the 1st Punic War, and look at issues such as its government, human sacrifice, and its complicated relationship with the Greco-Roman world. Title Theme: Seikilos Epitapth with the Lyre of Apollo, played by Lina Palera (https://soundcloud.com/user-994392473) Show Links Website/Episode Notes: (https://hellenisticagepodcast.wordpress.com/2020/03/01/040-carthage-the-forgotten-mediterranean-empire/) Social Media: Twitter (https://twitter.com/HellenisticPod) Facebook (www.facebook.com/hellenisticagepodcast/) Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/hellenistic_age_podcast/) Discord (https://discord.gg/VJcyUcN) Show Merchandise: Etsy (https://www.etsy.com/shop/HellenisticAgePod) Donations: Ko-Fi (https://ko-fi.com/hellenisticagepodcast) Amazon Book Wish List (https://tinyurl.com/vfw6ask)

Though initially a critical failure upon release, subsequent re-cuts of the 2004 "Alexander" film by director Oliver Stone has been more positively received, and it has been praised as one of the most historically accurate films to depict the ancient world thanks to the historical consultant Robin Lane Fox. In this loosely-structured episode, we are joined by Trevor Culley of the "History of Persia Podcast" to give our thoughts on the movie and analyze it from both a technical and (more importantly) a historical perspective. Title Theme: Seikilos Epitapth with the Lyre of Apollo, played by Lina Palera (https://soundcloud.com/user-994392473) Show Links Website/Episode Notes: (https://hellenisticagepodcast.wordpress.com/2020/02/17/on-oliver-stones-alexander-w-trevor-culley-the-history-of-persia-podcast/) The History of Persia Podcast Website: (https://historyofpersiapodcast.com/) iTunes: (https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/history-of-persia/id1452677220) Twitter: (https://twitter.com/HistoryofPersia) Social Media: Twitter (https://twitter.com/HellenisticPod) Facebook (www.facebook.com/hellenisticagepodcast/) Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/hellenistic_age_podcast/) Discord (https://discord.gg/VJcyUcN) Ko-Fi (https://ko-fi.com/hellenisticagepodcast)

In Greek Sicily, the rule of law was dominated by the tyrant, and no tyrant was more infamous than Agathocles (361 - 289 B.C.). For over three decades he ruled the city of Syracuse as both a tyrant and king, bringing it into a golden age. At the same time, Agathocles enacted political massacres and acts of brutality to ensure his control, and he waged war against the Phoenician city-state of Carthage, taking the battle to the shores of Africa in a bloody campaign that served as a precursor to the Punic Wars. Title Theme: Seikilos Epitapth with the Lyre of Apollo, played by Lina Palera (https://soundcloud.com/user-994392473) Show Links Website/Episode Notes: (https://hellenisticagepodcast.wordpress.com/2020/02/13/039-agathocles-of-syracuse-tyrant-king/) Mare Nostrum Podcast iTunes: (https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/mare-nostrum/id1486126746) Stitcher: (https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/mare-nostrum) Twitter: (https://twitter.com/MarePodcast) Social Media: Twitter (https://twitter.com/HellenisticPod) Facebook (www.facebook.com/hellenisticagepodcast/) Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/hellenistic_age_podcast/) Discord (https://discord.gg/VJcyUcN) Ko-Fi (https://ko-fi.com/hellenisticagepodcast)

By 272 B.C., the throne of Macedon now lay firmly in the hands of Antigonus II Gonatas. As a “philosoper-king”, the court of Pella would play host to a great amount of intellectual celebrities of the early Hellenistic period, and peace would return Macedon to a state of prosperity. The situation would be different in Greece, as stirrings of rebellion would break out, first during the Chremonidean War, and later due to the rise of Aratus of Sicyon and the Achaean League. Show Links Website/Episode Notes: (https://hellenisticagepodcast.wordpress.com/2020/01/26/038-antigonid-macedon-a-glorious-servitude/) Family Tree of Antigonus Gonatas Part 2: (https://hellenisticagepodcast.files.wordpress.com/2020/01/reign-of-antigonus-ii-gonatas-part-2.pdf) Ancient History Fangirl Podcast: Website: (http://www.ancienthistoryfangirl.com/) iTunes: (https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/ancient-history-fangirl) Social Media: Twitter (https://twitter.com/HellenisticPod) Facebook (www.facebook.com/hellenisticagepodcast/) Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/hellenistic_age_podcast/) Discord (https://discord.gg/VJcyUcN) Ko-Fi (https://ko-fi.com/hellenisticagepodcast)

Antigonus II Gonatas, son and grandson of Demetrius I Poliorcetes and Antigonus I Monopthalmus, was not of the same military mold as his forebears, traditionally preferring the company of philosophers over the camp. However, it would be left to him to achieve the family dream of taking the throne of Macedon, all the while dealing with the likes of Celtic barbarians, cannibalistic tyrants, and the warrior-king Pyrrhus of Epirus, as he sought to restore order to Macedon after nearly 25 years of anarchy and chaos. Show Links Website/Episode Notes: (https://hellenisticagepodcast.wordpress.com/2020/01/15/037-antigonid-macedon-gonatas-the-macedonian-anarchy/) Family Tree of Antigonus Gonatas Part 1: (https://hellenisticagepodcast.files.wordpress.com/2020/01/reign-of-antigonus-ii-gonatas-part-1.pdf) The Ancient World Podcast: Website: (http://ancientworldpodcast.blogspot.com/) iTunes: (https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-ancient-world/id517589332) Social Media: Twitter (https://twitter.com/HellenisticPod) Facebook (www.facebook.com/hellenisticagepodcast/) Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/hellenistic_age_podcast/) Discord (https://discord.gg/VJcyUcN) Ko-Fi (https://ko-fi.com/hellenisticagepodcast)

We are joined by Dr. Kyle Erickson in order to discuss his work on the Hellenistic period and the Seleucid Empire in particular. We discuss the strategies of the Seleucid rulers in coming to terms with a large and diverse collection of people, the variety (and scarcity) of our sources including coinage, and looking at the ways Seleucid kings and queens broadcast themselves compared to their contemporaries. Show Links Website/Episode Notes: (https://hellenisticagepodcast.wordpress.com/2019/12/30/interview-on-the-seleucid-empire-w-dr-kyle-erickson/) Social Media: Twitter (https://twitter.com/HellenisticPod) Facebook (www.facebook.com/hellenisticagepodcast/) Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/hellenistic_age_podcast/) Discord (https://discord.gg/VJcyUcN) Ko-Fi (https://ko-fi.com/hellenisticagepodcast)

Often neglected in favor of his more glamorous son Alexander the Great, Philip II of Macedon (r. 359 - 336 B.C.) was one of the most important figures of the ancient world. His accession to the throne of a crumbling backwater kingdom would prompt him to not only save Macedon from destruction, but through a series of military and economic reforms, brilliant diplomatic maneuvers, and talented generalship, he would make it into the dominant power of the Greek Peninsula and lay the foundations for Alexander's conquests and the birth of the Hellenistic Age. Title Theme: Seikilos Epitapth with the Lyre of Apollo, played by Lina Palera (https://soundcloud.com/user-994392473) Show Links Website/Episode Notes: (https://hellenisticagepodcast.wordpress.com/2019/12/24/bonus-philip-ii-the-rise-of-macedon/) Social Media: Twitter (https://twitter.com/HellenisticPod) Facebook (www.facebook.com/hellenisticagepodcast/) Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/hellenistic_age_podcast/) Discord (https://discord.gg/VJcyUcN) Ko-Fi (https://ko-fi.com/hellenisticagepodcast)