A revised version of an earlier episode, now with historical commentary following the story! The Titanomachy has begun! War rages between the Titans and the Olympian gods as the story of Zeus' rise to kingship continues. The Olympians battle to establish their reign against Cronus, the other Titans, and finally the fearsome monster Typhon, the very embodiment of primal chaos. A story from Greek mythology, based on Hesiod's Theogony, featuring: Zeus, the Titans, Typhon, the Hecatonchires (Cottus,...
Jul 04, 2025•21 min
A revised version of an earlier episode, now with historical commentary following the story! The origin of Zeus, king of the gods, is a tale of danger and deception. How did his father, the Titan Cronus, come to reign as king of the cosmos, how was Zeus born, and how did he free his brother and sister Olympians to usher in a new age? A story from Greek mythology, based on Hesiod's Theogony, featuring: Zeus, Cronus, Rhea, Gaia, Uranus, Metis, the Titans - - - CREDITS Music by Kevin MacLeod Thumbn...
Jun 06, 2025•25 min
A revised version of an earlier episode, now with historical commentary following the story! Julius Caesar stands at the Rubicon river, as the Roman Republic teeters on the brink of civil war. Will he cross the Rubicon, march on Rome against his rival Pompey the Great and the Roman senate, and plunge the Republic into civil war? A story from Roman history (Late Roman Republic, Civil Wars, 49 BC), featuring: Gaius Julius Caesar, Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus (Pompey the Great), Marcus Licinius Crassus -...
May 02, 2025•26 min
A revised version of an earlier episode, now with historical commentary following the story! The Greek myth of the Great Flood ends with Deucalion and Pyrrha, the last mortals left alive, who struggle to survive as Zeus looks on. How was humanity created again after the deluge? A story from Greek mythology, based on Ovid's Metamorphoses (Book 1), featuring: Deucalion, Pyrrha, Zeus, Themis - - - CREDITS Music by Kevin MacLeod Thumbnail Image: Deucalion and Pyrrha (Baldassare Peruzzi, 16th century...
Apr 04, 2025•22 min
A revised version of an earlier episode, now with historical commentary following the story! The tale of the Great Flood from Greek mythology continues, as the gods and goddesses of Olympus decide how to end human injustice...and Zeus and Poseidon unleash the great flood that destroys the world. A story from Greek mythology, based on Ovid's Metamorphoses (Book 1), featuring: Zeus, Poseidon - - - CREDITS Music by Kevin MacLeod Sound effects from YouTube Audio Library Thumbnail Image: Bronze statu...
Mar 07, 2025•18 min
A revised version of an earlier episode, now with historical commentary following the story! The Greek myth of the Great Flood begins, as Zeus informs the other Olympian gods of his encounter on earth with the evil king Lycaon. What were Lycaon's crimes, how was he punished, and what does this portend for the fate of humanity as Zeus and the gods sit in council? A story from Greek mythology, adapted from Ovid's Metamorphoses (Book 1), featuring: Zeus, Lycaon, the Olympian gods - - - CREDITS Musi...
Feb 07, 2025•27 min
A revised version of an earlier episode, now with historical commentary following the story! The Roman emperor Nero's murder of his own mother, the empress Agrippina the Younger, is among his most shocking crimes. A lurid tale of power, conspiracy, and violence emerges as the unstable Nero plots the death of an empress. A story from Roman history (Early Imperial Period, Julio-Claudian dynasty, 59 AD), based on Tacitus' Annals, featuring: Agrippina the Younger (Julia Agrippina), Nero, Seneca, Bur...
Jan 03, 2025•37 min
A revised version of an earlier episode, now with historical commentary following the story! The Spartan lawgiver Lycurgus creates a new law code and way of life in ancient Sparta—revered thereafter as the Laws of Lycurgus—that pave the way for Sparta's rise as one of the greatest city-states in Greece. A story from Greek history (Early Sparta, Archaic Period, c. 800 BC), based on Plutarch's Life of Lycurgus - - - CREDITS Music by Kevin MacLeod Thumbnail Images: Statue of Lycurgus: c. 1880, Pala...
Dec 06, 2024•17 min
A revised version of an earlier episode, now with historical commentary following the story! Actaeon, a young hunter, unexpectedly meets the goddess Artemis in the forests of Boeotia near the ancient city of Thebes. What will happen to Actaeon when Artemis unleashes her power, and the hunter becomes the prey? A story from Greek mythology, based on Ovid's Metamorphoses (Book 3), featuring: Actaeon, Artemis - - - CREDITS Music by Kevin MacLeod Thumbnail Images: Roman statue of Diana/Artemis (1st/2...
Nov 01, 2024•23 min
A revised version of an earlier episode, now with historical commentary following the story! Phaethon, a young demigod and son of Helios, the Greek god of the Sun, meets his divine father at the ends of the earth. Recklessly eager to prove himself, he takes a terrifying ride across the heavens in his father's chariot. As the earth faces total destruction by an out-of-control sun, Phaethon's fate offers a timeless lesson in knowing your limits. A story from Greek mythology, based on Ovid's Metamo...
Oct 04, 2024•36 min
A revised version of an earlier episode, now with historical commentary following the story! The hero Odysseus meets Circe, a powerful sorceress, on her mysterious island in this story from Homer’s epic Odyssey. Will Odysseus outwit Circe, rescue his crewmates from the sorceress, and survive to complete his journey home to Ithaca? A story from Greek mythology, based on Homer's Odyssey (Book 10), featuring: Odysseus, Circe, Hermes, Eurylochus - - - CREDITS Music by Kevin MacLeod Thumbnail Images:...
Sep 06, 2024•40 min
Many legends were spun around the life of the Persian king Cyrus the Great, including how he met his end. The Greek historian Herodotus reports a tale that he deemed "most trustworthy," of the great king's last war in the distant steppes of central Asia--how he clashed with a fearsome tribe of mounted warriors called the Massagetae, led by a queen who defied the power of the new Persian Empire. A story adapted from the Greek historian Herodotus (Histories Book 1, 201-214), featuring: Cyrus the G...
Apr 20, 2024•33 min
When the god Apollo wins the mortal king Admetus permission to evade death through the sacrifice of another, Admetus' beloved wife Alcestis willingly dies in his place. Death is cheated, and Admetus is devastated. But as Alcestis' funeral begins, fate takes a surprising turn when a famed hero arrives in town... A story from Greek mythology, based on the tragedy Alcestis by Euripides (staged in 438 BC), featuring: Admetus, Alcestis, Heracles, Apollo, Thanatos (Death) Original story contributed by...
Dec 30, 2023•17 min
Archimedes' life and achievements gained mythic stature in ancient times, and his reputation for genius endures today. Past the equations and feats of engineering was a man committed to finding answers--whether in contemplating the physics of water, or resisting the power of Rome. A story from ancient history, based on Vitruvius ( De Architectura , Book 9), Polybius ( Histories , Book 8), and Plutarch ( Life of Marcellus ), featuring: Archimedes, Hiero II, Marcus Claudius Marcellus, Hieronymus O...
Dec 30, 2023•18 min
Hippolytus is the young prince of Athens, son of the king and famed hero Theseus, and stepson of Phaedra, the queen. When Aphrodite, goddess of love, makes the innocent Phaedra a weapon of her divine wrath against Hippolytus, a tragic tale of lust, deceit, and death ensues as the royal family of Athens is torn apart. A story from Greek mythology, based on the tragedy Hippolytus by Euripides (staged in 428 BC), featuring: Hippolytus, Phaedra, Theseus, Aphrodite, Artemis, Phaedra's Nurse Original ...
Dec 30, 2023•16 min
The Second Punic War between Rome and Carthage saw one of the most daring strategies of ancient times: the Carthaginian general Hannibal Barca leading an army fully equipped with horses, elephants, and pack animals across the dangerous peaks of the Alps, to attack the Roman Republic from its northern Italian borders. Hannibal remembers this legendary mountain march, and describes it in his own words. A story from Carthaginian and Roman history (218 BC), based on Livy's Histories (Book 21) featur...
Jun 21, 2023•16 min
Despite its fame in ancient myth and history, the city of Troy was long lost to the ages, as the real site immortalized in Homer's Iliad faded from the landscape of western Anatolia. But in a series of astonishing excavations in the late 19th century, the mythical world of Greek epic came back to life at the hands of Heinrich Schliemann, a businessman-turned-archaeologist with a lifelong passion for the tales of the Trojan War. More information on the sites excavated by Schliemann can be found h...
May 24, 2023•18 min
Sailing beyond the Mediterranean Sea, a man named Lucian and his comrades are suddenly transported to the moon, where they find themselves in the middle of a great war between the Sun and the Moon. Recorded with eyewitness accuracy in his novel “A True Story,” Lucian recalls the fantastical sights of this epic star war—and leaves to the world one of the earliest works of science fiction. A story from Greek literature (2nd century AD), based on Lucian of Samosata's "A True Story," featuring: Luci...
Apr 26, 2023•18 min
Isolated and betrayed in the heart of the Persian Empire, the mercenary army of ten thousand Greeks is faced with a grim future. But against the odds, they undertake a grueling journey north to reach the Black Sea, their avenue to return to Greece at last--yet their march will be anything but easy. A story from Greek history (401 BC), based on Xenophon's Anabasis (Books 3-4), featuring: Xenophon, Cheirisophos, Soteridas, Tissaphernes --- FREE COMMENTARY PODCASTS now available for every story on ...
Jan 26, 2023•14 min
A mercenary army of ten thousand Greek troops, contracted by an ambitious prince of the Persian Empire, presses deep into the heartland of Mesopotamia in pursuit of riches and glory. But a series of startling events lands them in a battle they weren't expecting to fight. A story from Greek history (401 BC), based on Xenophon's Anabasis (Books 1-2), featuring: Xenophon, Clearchus, Proxenos, Cyrus the Younger, Artaxerxes II, Tissaphernes, Ariaeus, the philosopher Socrates --- FREE COMMENTARY PODCA...
Jan 12, 2023•17 min
In the ancient land of Phrygia, an encounter with the god Dionysus grants King Midas an extraordinary power: to turn anything he touches into gold. But it isn't long before this gift becomes a curse, and Midas learns a costly lesson. A story from Greek mythology, based on Ovid's Metamorphoses (Book 11), featuring: Midas, Dionysus, Silenus --- FREE COMMENTARY PODCASTS now available for every story on the channel! Learn more about the ancient historical and cultural context behind each Wine-Dark S...
Oct 28, 2022•9 min
In one of the greatest natural disasters of the ancient world, the Bay of Naples in Italy was devastated by the volcanic eruption of Mount Vesuvius, destroying the cities of Pompeii, Herculaneum, Stabiae, and others. In a set of letters to his friend, the historian Tacitus, the Roman writer and politician Pliny the Younger recalls his memories of the eruption in living detail, as an eyewitness and victim of the catastrophe. A story from Roman history, based on the Letters of Gaius Plinius Caecil...
Oct 05, 2022•21 min
Legends tell of the hero Hercules' journey through Italy, where he faced off against a fire-breathing monster named Cacus. A generation later, the Trojan hero Aeneas finds himself in the little town that Hercules saved from the monster's fury, and hears the tale from his host, King Evander. Little does Aeneas know that this humble town will one day become the grand city of Rome, the capital of Aeneas' descendants -- and the tale of Hercules' victory will give rise to his worship in Rome for more...
Sep 07, 2022•16 min
Living in Judea after the death of Jesus of Nazareth, the Roman centurion Cornelius receives a vision that leads him to seek the guidance of Simon Peter, once the close companion of Jesus. At the same time, Peter receives a vision of his own, that invites him to spread his teachings outside the Jewish community. The fateful encounter between Cornelius and Peter paves the way for the rise of Christianity across the Roman Empire. A story from Roman Judea, based on The Acts of the Apostles, Ch. 10 ...
Aug 24, 2022•10 min
Agamemnon is the mightiest ruler in Greece, and father of the young princess Iphigenia. When an accident invites the wrath of the goddess Artemis, a dreadful sacrifice is demanded from Agamemnon: the slaughter of his own beloved daughter. A tragedy of anger, deception, and despair envelops the Greek camp at Aulis, with the Trojan War and the life of the princess hanging in the balance. A story from Greek mythology, based on Euripides' tragic play Iphigenia in Aulis (first performed in 405 BC, At...
Aug 10, 2022•20 min
Philemon and his wife Baucis, an elderly couple, live happily in a humble cottage in the land of Phrygia. But a nighttime visit by two weary travelers will change their lives forever...when their guests turn out to be gods in disguise. A story from Greek mythology, based on Ovid's Metamorphoses (8.612-723), featuring: Philemon, Baucis, Zeus, Hermes --- FREE COMMENTARY PODCASTS now available for every story on the channel! Learn more about the ancient historical and cultural context behind each W...
Jul 27, 2022•9 min
Polycrates (r. 540s - 522 BC) rules the Greek island of Samos, feared for his might as much as he is admired for his many achievements. Polycrates' name is synonymous with success...but too much worldly fortune risks the envy of the gods. The ancient legend of Polycrates' ring weaves a tale of the mysterious ways of fate, and the tragic fall of a man at the height of mortal glory. A story from ancient Greece, based on Herodotus' Histories (3.39-43, 122-26), featuring: Polycrates, tyrant of Samos...
Jul 20, 2022•17 min
Terrifying creatures stalked the dead of night in ancient Rome, as a man named Niceros has learned all too well. A guest at a lavish dinner party thrown by the fabulously wealthy Gaius Trimalchio, Niceros reveals a hair-raising encounter from his past: the time he met a dreaded werewolf! A story from ancient Roman literature, based on Petronius' novel Satyricon (mid-1st century AD; 61-62) --- FREE COMMENTARY PODCASTS now available for every story on the channel! Learn more about the ancient hist...
Jul 13, 2022•9 min
The Trojan War is nearing its end, as new champions arrive at Troy to help fight the besieging Greeks: the Amazon queen Penthesilea and her twelve elite guardians. Driven by her quest for glory and a deep sorrow from her past, Penthesilea enters battle to save Troy, and takes on the deadliest of the Greek champions, the godlike warrior Achilles. A story from Greek mythology, based on Quintus of Smyrna's Posthomerica, Book 1 (3rd century AD), featuring: Penthesilea, Priam, Achilles, Ajax, Diomede...
Jul 06, 2022•21 min
Julius Caesar's early life was fraught with danger, as he found himself on the wrong side of violent civil strife in Rome. After spending years in a self-imposed exile to escape his enemies, he returns to Rome to launch a career in politics. But soon he strikes out again on the high seas, in search of the skills he needs to become the top man in Rome...but new dangers await in the Aegean Sea, and a fateful encounter with pirates will test the young Caesar's mettle. A story from ancient Rome, bas...
Jun 30, 2022•14 min
