The Archaeology Podcast Network Feed

This week we interview classicist and author Dr. Philip Matyszak about his new book, "Sacred Places of the Ancient World," which presents a thematic survey of sacred sites across regions known to the Greeks and Romans. Matyszak explains how the book traces changing expressions of spirituality from naturally sacred landscapes to temples as divine “dwellings,” and discusses how he balanced lesser-known locations with essential sites like Delphi and the Acropolis. They highlight examples including Göbekli Tepe’s implications for early urbanism and religion, the debated Tomb of Achilles near Troy, the Grove of Egeria outside Rome, and the long-revered Tomb of Cyrus, along with the book’s photos and bibliography.LinksSacred Places of the Ancient WorldContactChris [email protected] [email protected] (Instagram)ArchPodNetAPN Website: https://www.archpodnet.comAPN Discord: https://discord.com/invite/CWBhb2T2edAPN on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/archpodnetAPN on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/archpodnetAPN on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/archpodnetAPN ShopAffiliatesMotion Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

We enjoyed the last movie we watched from director Ken Russell so much that we decided to watch another: Altered States (1980) tells the story of a man who had to take years of hallucinogenic drugs and devolve into a monkey before he could say “I love you” to his wife. In this episode we talk drugs, primates, drugs, academia, drugs, evolution, and drugs.LinksDrugs, drugs, drugs!Watch Altered States (1980) for free on Internet ArchiveSawbones Podcast: Little People HallucinationsThe mysterious mushroom that makes you see tiny peopleStoned Ape TheoryLemurs getting high on millipedesMelissa Maffeo (2026) Science of the SupernaturalMutations link Autism, Schizophrenia: StudyCharles TartRobert OrnsteinArthur DeikmanJohn C. LilyTimothy LearyRandolph Nesse (2019) Good Reasons for Bad FeelingsBaboon hunting gazelleWissenschaftContactWebsiteBlueskyFacebookLetterboxdEmailArchPodNetAPN Website: https://www.archpodnet.comAPN on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/archpodnetAPN on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/archpodnetAPN on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/archpodnetAPN StoreAffiliatesMotion Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

In this episode David sits down with Zach Lindsay, a Mayanist archaeologist and board member of the Institute of Maya Studies, to explore the intersection of Mesoamerican archaeology, art, mythology, and—of course—dogs! From the monumental pyramids of Teotihuacan to the symbolic underworld journeys of ancient Maya souls, Zach brings a journalist’s curiosity and an archaeologist’s precision to one of the world’s oldest human–dog relationships.TranscriptsFor a rough transcript head over to: https://www.archaeologypodcastnetwork.com/ethnocynology/48Links: davidianhowe.comDavidianhowe.com/storeArchPodNetAPN Website: https://www.archpodnet.comAPN on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/archpodnetAPN on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/archpodnetAPN on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/archpodnetAPN ShopAffiliatesMotion Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

In Part 2 of this conversation, Alan continues his discussion with Dr. Robert Yohe about the archaeological record at the Rose Spring site and what it reveals about human activity in the Owens Valley. They examine how earlier interpretations of the site have been refined through additional excavations, radiocarbon dating, and new analyses of archaeological materials. Drawing on his own excavation experience and expertise in flintknapping, Yohe explains how closer analysis of artifacts can provide a more detailed picture of life at Rose Spring.TranscriptsFor a rough transcript head over to: https://www.archaeologypodcastnetwork.com/rockart/176ContactDr. Alan [email protected]. Alan Garfinkel’s WebsiteSupport Dr. Garfinkel on PatreonArchPodNetAPN Website: https://www.archpodnet.comAPN on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/archpodnetAPN on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/archpodnetAPN on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/archpodnetAPN ShopAffiliates and SponsorsMotion Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Chris Aslan originally moved to Uzbekistan in the 1990s to write a tourist guide. Yet in his time there he worked with UNESCO to revive the dying art of silk carpet weaving, opening a workshop that is still running today. Host Jess Shaw explores with Chris his experiences of reviving an ancient craft, from experimenting with natural dyes to studying 15th century manuscripts to rediscover lost carpet designs. Chris then went on to found other craft workshops, and continues to revisit Central Asia, a place that has captured his heart. Chris is a writer, running tours and giving lectures about his varied experiences in Central Asia. He established an UNESCO workshop reviving silk carpet making in Khiva, Uzbekistan and wrote a book about his experiences called ‘A Carpet Ride to Khiva’. He has since written Únravelling the Silk Road’ about his later experiences working with Kyrgys Yak herders and working in the world's largest walnut forest, also in KyrgyzstanTranscriptsFor a rough transcript of the show head over to https://www.archaeologypodcastnetwork.com/exarc/76ContactAll episodes of The EXARC ShowEXARC on InstagramARCHPODNETAPN Website: https://www.archpodnet.comAPN on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/archpodnetAPN on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/archpodnetAPN on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/archpodnetAPN ShopAffiliatesMotion Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Tracing the infamous grave marker from ancient origins through the “western world,” across Europe to New England, and its portrayal in modern art through the TV show Over the Garden Wall.LinksRead along, Pictures, and Citations: ⁠Detours in Artaeology⁠Contact⁠Printify Shop⁠ - shirts, stickers, and mugs, oh my!⁠My YouTube channel⁠ - where you can find all my episodes tooFollow my ⁠BlueSky⁠Follow me on Instagram ⁠@FlyingSepiida⁠Join my ⁠Patreon⁠ (It's free :D)Follow me on LinkedIn: ⁠LinkedIn⁠ArchPodNetAPN Website: https://www.archpodnet.comAPN on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/archpodnetAPN on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/archpodnetAPN on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/archpodnetAPN ShopAffiliatesMotionMusic'Chronicle' by Scott Buckley - released under CC-BY 4.0. Scott Buckley - Composer'Filaments' by Scott Buckley - released under CC-BY 4.0. Scott Buckley - Composer'In This Moment' by Scott Buckley - released under CC-BY 4.0. Scott Buckley - Composer'Awakening' by Scott Buckley - released under CC-BY 4.0. Scott Buckley - Composer'A Dragon's Lullaby (Original)' by Scott Buckley - released under CC-BY 4.0. Scott Buckley - Composer'Hiraeth' by Scott Buckley - released under CC-BY 4.0. Scott Buckley - Composer'I Walk With Ghosts' by Scott Buckley - released under CC-BY 4.0. Scott Buckley - Composer'She Moved Mountains' by Scott Buckley - released under CC-BY 4.0. Scott Buckley - Composer'Static' by Scott Buckley - released under CC-BY 4.0. Scott Buckley - Composer'The Long Way Home' by Scott Buckley - released under CC-BY 4.0. Scott Buckley - Composer'Tears In Rain' by Scott Buckley - released under CC-BY 4.0. Scott Buckley - Composer Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

What’s the difference between a small-town murder mystery and the study of archaeological musical instruments? As it turns out, not that much! Join Jess and Matilda as they chat with Dr Graeme Lawson all about the archaeology of music, and maybe you might even hear some sounds from the past…LinksFor the Sound Tracks (US/Canada edition) page at Penguin/KnopfFor listings of all my other publicationsFor details of the runner-up prize awarded to the UK edition of Sound Tracks at the British Academy Book Prize last autumn (out of 260 entries)Music & Politics in the Ancient World (Berlin: Edition Topoi 2019), explores with my co-researchers the relationship between ancient musicianship and power, and can be downloaded FREE in PDF from the Freie Universitaet Berlin Repository atISGMA: International research and outreach hub for music archaeology, based in ViennaEnquiries (US and Canada) to my NYC literary agentEnquiries (rest of the world) to my literary agentGraeme LawsonContact the HostMatilda’s Contact DetailsEmail: [email protected]://www.thearchaeologiststeacup.cominsta: @the_archaeologists_teacupfb: /TheArchaeologistsTeacuptwitter: @ArchaeoTeacupJess’s Contact DetailsEmail: [email protected] Website: https://www.archpodnet.comAPN on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/archpodnetAPN on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/archpodnetAPN on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/archpodnetAPN ShopAffiliatesMotion Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

This week we cover 3 recent archaeology news stories. First up we discuss the recent dissolution of one of the largest CRM firms in the country, and what that short and long term impacts of that closure could be. Then we head over to Egypt where a recently uncovered signet ring depicts the Lighthouse at Alexandria (or a Dalek?!?). And then finally new evidence at a sight in Spain shows that Neanderthals were making tools out of wood.LinksSegment 1The Nation’s Largest Archaeology Firm Abruptly Shut Down. The 600-Plus Layoffs Aren’t the Biggest ConcernSegment 2This One-of-a-Kind Bronze Ring Offers a Tantalizing Glimpse at the Lighthouse of Alexandria, a Lost Wonder of the Ancient WorldSegment 3Archaeologists Uncover Unprecedented Evidence of Neanderthal Woodworking SkillsContactChris [email protected] [email protected] (Instagram)ArchPodNetAPN Website: https://www.archpodnet.comAPN Discord: https://discord.com/invite/CWBhb2T2edAPN on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/archpodnetAPN on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/archpodnetAPN on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/archpodnetAPN ShopAffiliatesMotion Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

We continue our Spooky Season Special with Ash and Tilly! In this episode, Tilly dives into the world of nautical spectres, haunted ships, and bumps in the… coral?From the ghostly stories surrounding Pearl Harbor to other haunted wrecks from around the world, join the team as they explore some of history’s most spine-tingling maritime tales!Books mentioned:Ghosts of the British Museum (Noah Angell)The Salvage (Anbara Salam)The Shadowy Horses (Susanne Kearsley)LinksIs the British Museum Haunted? with Noah AngellTuk Lagoon’s shipwreckHeritage voices podcastDigventures blog postThe Salvage bookAPN Discord serverPrevious episode on ghostsArticle on nitrogen narcosisAcoustic regeneration of coral reefsContactEmail: [email protected]: @‌and.my.trowelTranscriptsTranscriptArchPodNetAPN Website: https://www.archpodnet.comAPN on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/archpodnetAPN on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/archpodnetAPN on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/archpodnetAPN StoreAffiliatesMotion Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Carlton and Chris reunite with Drs. Shawn Bubel and Kevin McGeough of the University of Lethbridge to continue their discussion of Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump UNESCO World Heritage Site. If you missed Part 1, listen to it before turning to Part 2, in which Shawn and Kevin discuss their recent Plains Anthropologist article, “Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump: The Durative Power of Keystone Institutions and Embedded Knowledge.” In both the article and this episode, they move beyond archaeological and behavioral-ecological models that view buffalo jumps primarily as meat factories to explore the sites’ broader social and cultural significance. What are “keystone institutions” in hunter-gatherer archaeology, and how can archaeologists identify them? What is embedded knowledge, and how is it expressed at Head-Smashed-In? What happens to a cultural system when the institutions that sustain it are suddenly taken away? And how have the Blackfoot reclaimed some of this embedded knowledge in the recent past?Article Citation:Shawn Bubel and Kevin McGeough (04 Jun 2026) Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump: The Durative Power of Keystone Institutions and Embedded Knowledge. Plains Anthropologist, in press.TranscriptFor rough transcripts of this episode go to https://www.archaeologypodcastnetwork.com/great-plains-archaeology/53TranscriptLinksImagining Head-Smashed-In: Aboriginal Buffalo Hunting on the Northern Plains by Jack Brink (2008)Plains Anthropological Society WebsitePlains Anthropologist Online Journal AccessThe Archaeology of the North American Great Plains by Douglas B. Bamforth (2021)Archaeology on the Great Plains Edited by W. Raymond Wood (1998)Carlton's KU Anthropology Faculty BioChris’s PCRG BioContactInstagram: @‌pawnee_archaeologistEmail: [email protected] Website: https://www.archpodnet.comAPN on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/archpodnetAPN on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/archpodnetAPN on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/archpodnetAPN ShopAffiliatesMotion Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.