The Herodotus Podcast

Ted Graham

The Herodotus Podcast is a podcast devoted to ”The Histories” by the ancient Greek historian Herodotus. Join us as we delve into his epic narrative of the Persian Empire‘s attempt to conquer the Greeks, and their struggle to preserve their freedom. Stick around for the captivating, sometimes outrageous stories that go along with the narrative: murders, ghosts, magic dolphins, and giant gold-digging ants.

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16 episodes
Avg 20 min
English

Episodes 16

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#16
August 18 · 23 min
Episode 16: The Unseen King (1.95-101)
We begin the Median logos by considering how to go from being a judge to a god-king. Also: what color is your ziggurat?
#15
Aug 12, 2025 · 22 min
Episode 15: A Look at Lydia (1.93-94)
Herodotus plays tour guide/ethnographer and gives us a glimpse of the land of Lydia and its people. But should we believe him? The Tomb of Alyattes today Some ancient knucklebones Ajax and Achilles maybe playing pessoi
#14
Jun 29, 2025 · 17 min
Episode 14: Croesus Considered
One last look at our favorite Lydian before moving on: why does Herodotus spend so much time talking about him, and why put his story at the start of the entire Histories? Please consider supporting my work at www.patreon.com/herodotuspodcast. The first bonus episode is in the pipeline!
#13
May 28, 2024 · 15 min
Episode 13: Croesus on the Pyre (1.85-92)
Staring death in the face, Croesus channels his inner sage, and saves his own life.
#12
Feb 22, 2024 · 19 min
Episode 12: The Fall of Sardis (1.79-84)
Cyrus uses the power of camels to defeat Croesus, and a botched prophecy allows him to capture Sardis. Plus, Spartan hair styles!
#11
Jun 30, 2023 · 30 min
Episode 11: Crossing the Halys (1.71-78)
Croesus makes his opening move against the Persians—guess how well that goes? Plus cannibalism, a solar eclipse, and ancient hydraulics.
#10
Feb 22, 2023 · 20 min
Episode 10: Grave Concerns at Sparta (1.65-70)
We get a look at how Sparta became the militarized city-state that we know and love(??), and Croesus picks his Greek ally.
#9
Oct 18, 2022 · 26 min
Episode 9: The Tyrant of Athens (1.56-64)
As Croesus chooses between the Athenians and the Spartans as allies against the Persians, Herodotus introduces us to Pisistratus, the tyrant of Athens, who used trickery to conquer Athens on three separate occasions. We also explore what it meant to be a tyrant and what Herodotus actually thought of the whole tyranny thing.
#8
Jul 19, 2022 · 25 min
Episode 8: Turtle Soup (1.46-56)
Croesus decides to play Bachelor with some Greek oracles to figure out which is the True One, and so we take a long look at the Delphic Oracle. Plus, the voice of Apollo!
#7
May 11, 2022 · 20 min
Episode 7: Unfortunate Son (1.34-45)
Croesus meets with tragedy.
#6
Mar 24, 2022 · 26 min
Episode 6: A Fool, and His Money (1.26-35)
In this episode, we finally meet Croesus, hear about his domination of Anatolia, and witness his schooling by the sage Solon of Athens. We'll also learn more about Lydia, and take some time to talk about the origin of money.
#5
Feb 23, 2022 · 24 min
Episode 5: War on Land and Music at Sea (1.15-25)
We look at King Alyattes of Lydia's novel war tactics and Arion's magic dolphin ride. Also: what really happened to Gyges?
#4
Nov 19, 2021 · 15 min
Episode 4: Naked Ambition (1.6-14)
We delve into the family history of King Croesus of Lydia, whom Herodotus identifies as the first Easterner to wage war on Greeks. Croesus' great-great-grandfather, Gyges, takes the Lydian throne in an unexpected way, setting the stage for tragedy five generations in the future.
#3
Oct 7, 2021 · 19 min
Episode 3: Myth Understandings (1.1-5)
We start digging into the text of the Histories: in a shocking twist, Herodotus opens his text in the realm of myth, not history, and begins by turning to Persian, not Greek, sources. With this surprising beginning, the historian gives us a taste of his methods and his historical philosophy—and a reminder to expect the unexpected! You can find the map illustrating the myths in this episode here. This episode's artwork is a detail from a Roman mosaic of the abduction of Europa from Byblos, today found in the National Museum of Beirut, Lebanon.
#2
Aug 27, 2021 · 14 min
Episode 2: First Principles - The Prologue
Beginnings are important, and in this episode, we delve deep into the first sentence of the Histories. In it, Herodotus identifies himself, gives his reasons for writing, and lays out his topic. A close reading, however, brings out some important nuance.
#1
Aug 8, 2021 · 13 min
Episode 1: Introduction
Welcome to the Herodotus Podcast! This episode is a brief introduction about who Herodotus was, what The Histories is all about, and what makes it so special (and so fun).

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