The Ancients

The Bronze Age Mediterranean was a world of immense wealth, it's ships laden with goods sailing between powerful kingdoms. But those same sea lanes were stalked by pirates...so who were these armed raiders who descended on merchant ships and coastal settlements, stealing precious cargo, taking captives and leaving destruction in their wake?

Tristan Hughes is joined by Dr Jorrit Kelder, expert on the Bronze Age Aegean to investigate. How dangerous were these ancient pirates? How widespread were their raids? And could their exploits have helped inspire some of the ancient world's greatest legends, from Odysseus to the Trojan War?

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Mycenae: Cradle of the Bronze Age
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Pirates of the Mediterranean
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The Ancients is now on YouTube! Watch here: @TheAncientsPodcast

Presented by Tristan Hughes. Video editor is Aidan Lonergan. Produced by Joseph Knight and McKenna Fernandez. The senior producer is Anne-Marie Luff.
All music courtesy of Epidemic Sounds
The Ancients is a History Hit podcast.
History Hit is part of Little Dot Studios, a Certified B Corp™

Want even MORE Ancients? Sign up to History Hit for hundreds of hours of original documentaries, with a new release every week, PLUS ad-free, early access podcasts AND exclusive subscriber-only Ancients episodes. Sign up at https://www.historyhit.com/subscribe.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

How do thousands of massive, two-meter-tall stone jars end up scattered across the remote mountains of Laos? And more importantly, what were they used for?

Deep in a landscape still shadowed by unexploded bombs, the Plain of Jars remains one of Earth's greatest archaeological puzzles. Tristan Hughes joins archaeologists Charlie Cooper and Dr. Nick Skopal to unearth groundbreaking new discoveries, ancient human remains, and the startling truth behind this megalithic mystery.

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The Bronze Age Collapse
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Bronze Age Burials at Stone Henge
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The Ancients is now on YouTube! Watch here: @TheAncientsPodcast

Presented by Tristan Hughes. Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Produced by Joseph Knight. The senior producer is Anne-Marie Luff.
All music courtesy of Epidemic Sounds
The Ancients is a History Hit podcast.
History Hit is part of Little Dot Studios, a Certified B Corp™

Want even MORE Ancients? Sign up to History Hit for hundreds of hours of original documentaries, with a new release every week, PLUS ad-free, early access podcasts AND exclusive subscriber-only Ancients episodes. Sign up at https://www.historyhit.com/subscribe.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

How do you celebrate the New Year in ancient Rome? With an assassination and a bloody free-for-all for the imperial throne, of course.

Following the murder of the gladiator emperor Commodus on New Year’s Eve 192, a chaotic succession battle erupted. Tristan Hughes and Dr. Simon Elliott unpack the infamous Year of the Five Emperors; a riotous drama where mad, honourable, and ruthless men seize and lose the world’s greatest empire.

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Commodus: The Gladiator Emperor
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The Rise of Julius Caesar
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The Ancients is now on YouTube! Watch HERE

Presented by Tristan Hughes. Editor is Aidan Lonergan. Produced by Robin McConnell and McKenna Fernandez. The senior producer is Anne-Marie Luff.
All music courtesy of Epidemic Sounds
The Ancients is a History Hit podcast.
History Hit is part of Little Dot Studios, a Certified B Corp™

Want even MORE Ancients? Sign up to History Hit for hundreds of hours of original documentaries, with a new release every week, PLUS ad-free, early access podcasts AND exclusive subscriber-only Ancients episodes. Sign up at https://www.historyhit.com/subscribe.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

What was it like to share Britain with Neanderthals and cave hyenas 40,000 years ago?

Tristan Hughes ventures deep underground to Kents Cavern, a glittering labyrinth affectionately known as Britain’s first home. He's joined by archaeological scientist Dr. Helen Fewlass on a live, groundbreaking excavation. Together they discover how cutting-edge science and ancient stone tools are rewriting the story of the first Homo sapiens.

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Britain's First Dog
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Ice Age Britain: Finding the First Homo sapiens
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Presented by Tristan Hughes. Edited by Aidan Lonergan. Produced by Joseph Knight. The senior producer is Anne-Marie Luff.
All music courtesy of Epidemic Sounds
The Ancients is a History Hit podcast.
History Hit is part of Little Dot Studios, a Certified B Corp™

Want even MORE Ancients? Sign up to History Hit for hundreds of hours of original documentaries, with a new release every week, PLUS ad-free, early access podcasts AND exclusive subscriber-only Ancients episodes. Sign up at https://www.historyhit.com/subscribe.

The Arrival project is funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the PI only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or European Research Council. Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

They built the great fortresses of the Bronze Age, developed a mysterious writing system and, according to Homer, led the Greek assault on Troy. But how much of the legend is rooted in reality? Was Agamemnon a real Mycenaean king?

Tristan Hughes is joined by Dr Steve Kershaw to explore the world of the Mycenaeans. Who were these formidable Bronze Age Greeks, and what do their extraordinary palaces, tombs and undeciphered history reveal about the civilisation behind the legends?

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The Trojan War
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Bronze Age Cataclysm: The Minoan Eruption
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The Ancients is now on YouTube! Watch HERE

Presented by Tristan Hughes. Editor is Aidan Lonergan. Produced by Joseph Knight and McKenna Fernandez. The senior producer is Anne-Marie Luff.
All music courtesy of Epidemic Sounds
The Ancients is a History Hit podcast.
History Hit is part of Little Dot Studios, a Certified B Corp™

Want even MORE Ancients? Sign up to History Hit for hundreds of hours of original documentaries, with a new release every week, PLUS ad-free, early access podcasts AND exclusive subscriber-only Ancients episodes. Sign up at https://www.historyhit.com/subscribe.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.