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Explore every episode of the podcast Past Lives

Dive into the complete episode list for Past Lives. Each episode is cataloged with detailed descriptions, making it easy to find and explore specific topics. Keep track of all episodes from your favorite podcast and never miss a moment of insightful content.

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1–31 of 31

TitlePub. DateDuration
Freedmen, Work, and Race in Colonial Philadelphia: Interview with Professor Keith Pluymers28 Jan 202600:42:05

My dear friend Professor Keith Pluymers joins me to discuss a man listed in a Philadelphia city account book as "Negro Joe," and we try to reconstruct what his life, work, and experience of the city would have been.


Become a member now at www.patreon.com/cw/PastLivesMedia. You'll get access to the Past Lives Discord server and four pieces of bonus content per month (including a historian interview, book club, Q and A, and a sources and evidence discussion). Past Lives is a 100-percent independent production, and your support is what allows us to make this show. So, thank you.

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Saint Patrick, Slavery, and the Fall of the Roman Empire21 Jan 202600:26:49

Saint Patrick is one of the most famous individuals who lived in the late Roman Empire, but long before he became the apostle of the Irish, he was a Romano-British teenager who was abducted from his home and enslaved for six years.


Become a member now at www.patreon.com/cw/PastLivesMedia. You'll get access to the Past Lives Discord server and four pieces of bonus content per month (including a historian interview, book club, Q and A, and a sources and evidence discussion). Past Lives is a 100-percent independent production, and your support is what allows us to make this show. So, thank you.

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Introducing Past Lives03 Dec 202500:19:56

Most of the history we're taught revolves around "Great Men," the Napoleons and Alexander the Greats of the world, but they're hardly typical of the human experience. History actually revolves around advisors, merchants, laborers, farmers, and slaves, the common clay of humanity and the raw material for any good story of our shared past.

Become a member now at www.patreon.com/cw/PastLivesMedia. You'll get access to the Past Lives Discord server and four pieces of bonus content per month (including a historian interview, book club, Q and A, and a sources and evidence discussion). Past Lives is a 100-percent independent production, and your support is what allows us to make this show. So, thank you.

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Coming Soon: Past Lives12 Nov 202500:02:37

From Patrick Wyman (host of Fall of Rome and Tides of History) comes Past Lives, a brand new podcast! Every week, we’ll focus on the lived experiences of real people from the past, bringing their stories to life.

The first season of Past Lives is available December 3rd! Be sure to subscribe to the feed now so you get our first three episodes delivered straight to you on the same day for our series premiere drop.

Become a member now at www.patreon.com/cw/PastLivesMedia. You'll get access to the Past Lives Discord server and four pieces of bonus content per month (including historian interview, book club, Q and A, and a sources and evidence discussion).

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Abbas and the Roman Slave Trade (Parthia, Second Century AD)14 Jan 202600:26:39

On May 24th, 166 AD, a seven-year-old boy was sold for the price of 200 denarii in the city of Seleucia Pieria. How did Abbas get there, and what happened to him afterward? The answers shed a great deal of light on how the Roman slave trade actually worked in practice.

Become a member now at www.patreon.com/cw/PastLivesMedia. You'll get access to the Past Lives Discord server and four pieces of bonus content per month (including a historian interview, book club, Q and A, and a sources and evidence discussion). Past Lives is a 100-percent independent production, and your support is what allows us to make this show. So, thank you.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Eurysaces’ Bakers and the Hell of Roman Industry07 Jan 202600:25:48

Standing just outside Rome's Porta Maggiore is a unique funeral monument to a successful baking entrepreneur named Eurysaces, who was proud of his occupation and his prosperity. But Eurysaces' wealth rested on the brutalized laborers who worked in his hellish industrial bakery, and through Eurysaces, we can understand them.

Become a member now at www.patreon.com/cw/PastLivesMedia. You'll get access to the Past Lives Discord server and four pieces of bonus content per month (including a historian interview, book club, Q and A, and a sources and evidence discussion). Past Lives is a 100-percent independent production, and your support is what allows us to make this show. So, thank you.

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Crixus: Gladiators, the Spartacus Rebellion, and Resisting Slavery31 Dec 202500:26:53

The Spartacus Rebellion is one of the most famous events in all of human history, told and retold time and again. But how and why did it happen, and who participated in it aside from Spartacus himself? Here we focus on Crixus, one of Spartacus's lieutenants, and what we can know about the life of an enslaved gladiator who had had enough.

Become a member now at www.patreon.com/cw/PastLivesMedia. You'll get access to the Past Lives Discord server and four pieces of bonus content per month (including a historian interview, book club, Q and A, and a sources and evidence discussion). Past Lives is a 100-percent independent production, and your support is what allows us to make this show. So, thank you.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Terence, Slavery, and Ancient Rome's First Literature24 Dec 202500:25:47

Terence was one of ancient Rome's most popular playwrights and a founder of Latin literature, read by schoolchildren for centuries to come. He had also been enslaved in his youth, and when we look closely, it turns out that early Roman writers were mostly outsiders just like Terence.

Become a member now at www.patreon.com/cw/PastLivesMedia. You'll get access to the Past Lives Discord server and four pieces of bonus content per month (including a historian interview, book club, Q and A, and a sources and evidence discussion). Past Lives is a 100-percent independent production, and your support is what allows us to make this show. So, thank you.

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Neaira (Prostitute, Corinth and Athens, 4th Century BC)17 Dec 202500:26:25

Sex work is work, and it has a long history. In ancient Athens, prostitution was everywhere, but what do we know about the people who chose or were more often forced to engage in it? Neaira is one of the few sex workers whose life story we know, and it tells us more than we could dream about real lives in ancient Greece.

Become a member now at www.patreon.com/cw/PastLivesMedia. You'll get access to the Past Lives Discord server and four pieces of bonus content per month (including a historian interview, book club, Q and A, and a sources and evidence discussion). Past Lives is a 100-percent independent production, and your support is what allows us to make this show. So, thank you.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Sosias, Silver Mining, and the Wealth of Classical Athens10 Dec 202500:25:40

Slavery is often considered a throwback to an older, less efficient way of organizing an economy, but that couldn't be further from the truth. Sosias, a mining overseer from Thrace, was one of the most expensive slaves ever sold in classical Athens. What made him worth so much money? The answer reveals a great deal about classical Athens, its economy, and slavery's place in a sophisticated economic world.

Become a member now at www.patreon.com/cw/PastLivesMedia. You'll get access to the Past Lives Discord server and four pieces of bonus content per month (including a historian interview, book club, Q and A, and a sources and evidence discussion). Past Lives is a 100-percent independent production, and your support is what allows us to make this show. So, thank you.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Nanaya-ila’i and Her Daughter (Assyria, 7th Century BC)03 Dec 202500:24:21

Nearly 2,700 years ago, a woman and her daughter were ripped away from their homes in what is now Iran by the soldiers of the Assyrian Empire. Nanaya'ila'i was one of thousands upon thousands of people to experience the violence that accompanied conquest, but she's one of the very few whose name we know and life we can reconstruct.

Become a member now at www.patreon.com/cw/PastLivesMedia. You'll get access to the Past Lives Discord server and four pieces of bonus content per month (including a historian interview, book club, Q and A, and a sources and evidence discussion). Past Lives is a 100-percent independent production, and your support is what allows us to make this show. So, thank you.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

On Slavery03 Dec 202500:19:33

Slavery was there at the beginning of recorded history in Mesopotamia more than 5,000 years ago, and it's still with us today. But how should we make sense of an institution that has defined the lives of hundreds of millions of people all across the world? Are there better and worse varieties of slavery? How important did slavery have to be before it defined a society? These are the big-picture questions that will help us understand the experiences of enslaved people over the millennia.

Become a member now at www.patreon.com/cw/PastLivesMedia. You'll get access to the Past Lives Discord server and four pieces of bonus content per month (including a historian interview, book club, Q and A, and a sources and evidence discussion). Past Lives is a 100-percent independent production, and your support is what allows us to make this show. So, thank you.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Sultan Baybars (Mamluk, 13th Century)04 Feb 202600:27:33

Sultan Baybars started his life as a Kipchak Turk on the steppe and ended it as the ruler of the most powerful state in the Islamic world. Slavery - military slavery, the practice of taking boys and training them as soldiers - was his pathway to power, but what did it mean for him and the thousands of others forced into that life?

Become a member now at www.patreon.com/cw/PastLivesMedia. You'll get access to the Past Lives Discord server and four pieces of bonus content per month (including a historian interview, book club, Q and A, and a sources and evidence discussion). Past Lives is a 100-percent independent production, and your support is what allows us to make this show. So, thank you.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Maddalena, the Medici, and Slavery in the Renaissance (Florence, 15th century)11 Feb 202600:26:45

We don't usually think of the Italian Renaissance - the time of Leonardo, Michelangelo, and the Borgias - as a world of slaves, but there were many enslaved people in Florence, Rome, Venice, and Genoa. One of them was Maddalena, whose life took her from the Black Sea to the household of Cosimo de Medici, one of the richest and most powerful men in Europe.

Become a member now at www.patreon.com/cw/PastLivesMedia. You'll get access to the Past Lives Discord server and four pieces of bonus content per month (including a historian interview, book club, Q and A, and a sources and evidence discussion). Past Lives is a 100-percent independent production, and your support is what allows us to make this show. So, thank you.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Olaudah Equiano's Atlantic World25 Feb 202600:29:17

Olaudah Equiano is one of the most fascinating people in human history: enslaved as a child in West Africa, trained as a sailor who traveled from the Equator to the Arctic and everywhere in between, but later in life, one of the most impactful writers of his age. Equiano's autobiography is a firsthand guide to the world of Atlantic slavery and what it did to those whom it touched.

Become a member now at www.patreon.com/cw/PastLivesMedia. You'll get access to the Past Lives Discord server and four pieces of bonus content per month (including a historian interview, book club, Q and A, and a sources and evidence discussion). Past Lives is a 100-percent independent production, and your support is what allows us to make this show. So, thank you.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Moll and the Indian Slave Trade in Colonial America (18th Century)18 Feb 202600:25:11

While the horrors of the Middle Passage are familiar to most, it's less well known that countless indigenous people were trafficked into slavery in the Americas. One of them was Moll, who was abducted in the Carolinas, transported to Boston, and lived for years before eventually making her escape.

Become a member now at www.patreon.com/cw/PastLivesMedia. You'll get access to the Past Lives Discord server and four pieces of bonus content per month (including a historian interview, book club, Q and A, and a sources and evidence discussion). Past Lives is a 100-percent independent production, and your support is what allows us to make this show. So, thank you.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Matilda McCrear, the Clotilda, and the Last Survivors of the Transatlantic Slave Trade04 Mar 202600:28:18

In July of 1860, the last slave ship to reach the United States arrived in Mobile Bay. The Clotilda held 103 captives, Yoruba people from present-day Nigeria. Eighty years later, one of those captives - known by then as Matilda McCrear - died in Alabama. She was the last known survivor of the Middle Passage experienced by more than 12 million Africans.

Become a member now at www.patreon.com/cw/PastLivesMedia. You'll get access to the Past Lives Discord server and four pieces of bonus content per month (including a historian interview, book club, Q and A, and a sources and evidence discussion). Past Lives is a 100-percent independent production, and your support is what allows us to make this show. So, thank you.

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Introducing Season 2: Bodily Experiences25 Mar 202600:23:27

When we think about the past, whether we know it or not we're usually thinking in terms of texts: written sources that provide the information we use to understand what happened before our time. But there are many other potential sources of information, and the richest of them all is the human body. In this new season of Past Lives, we explore the experiences of dozens of people who lived over thousands of years through the lens of their remains: skeletons, mummies, and bog bodies.

Become a member now at www.patreon.com/cw/PastLivesMedia. You'll get access to the Past Lives Discord server and four pieces of bonus content per month (including a historian interview, book club, Q and A, and a sources and evidence discussion). Past Lives is a 100-percent independent production, and your support is what allows us to make this show. So, thank you.

And don't forget to check out History for the Reckoning! www.historyforthereckoning.com

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Recommended Listen: History Daily18 Mar 202600:33:21

Today we’re sharing a podcast that Patrick really loves: History Daily. History Daily tells the fascinating stories of what happened “on this day” in history, and new episodes come out every weekday. Since we just finished our season on slavery, the first episode focuses on the uprising that led to freedom for the captives on the slave ship Amistad in the 19th century and the second on the Roman siege of Masada way back in the first century AD. Enjoy!

Become a member now at www.patreon.com/cw/PastLivesMedia. You'll get access to the Past Lives Discord server and four pieces of bonus content per month (including a historian interview, book club, Q and A, and a sources and evidence discussion). Past Lives is a 100-percent independent production, and your support is what allows us to make this show. So, thank you.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Why Slavery Matters11 Mar 202600:20:28

Slavery is a huge topic, but we've covered an enormous amount of ground from ancient Assyria to the 20th century, and now we can come to some conclusions about why slavery matters.

Become a member now at www.patreon.com/cw/PastLivesMedia. You'll get access to the Past Lives Discord server and four pieces of bonus content per month (including a historian interview, book club, Q and A, and a sources and evidence discussion). Past Lives is a 100-percent independent production, and your support is what allows us to make this show. So, thank you.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Anzick-1 (North America, 13,000 Years Ago)01 Apr 202600:28:28

Thirteen thousand years ago, a baby died in what's now Montana. His people buried him under a rock ledge, and there his bones stayed for millennia. Today, we know the infant as Anzick-1, and he's the only human being we can associate with the widespread and extraordinarily important archaeological group we know as the Clovis Culture - some of the first people to inhabit the ancient Americas.

Become a member now at www.patreon.com/cw/PastLivesMedia. You'll get access to the Past Lives Discord server and four pieces of bonus content per month (including a historian interview, book club, Q and A, and a sources and evidence discussion). Past Lives is a 100-percent independent production, and your support is what allows us to make this show. So, thank you.

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The Ancient One/Kennwick Man (North America, 8,500 Years Ago)08 Apr 202600:24:58

In July of 1996, a skeleton was discovered on the banks of the Columbia River. It belonged to a man who died 8,500 years ago, in a world so distant from our own it hardly seems real, but thanks to detailed studies of his remains, we know more about that man than almost anybody else in the distant past.

Become a member now at www.patreon.com/cw/PastLivesMedia. You'll get access to the Past Lives Discord server and four pieces of bonus content per month (including a historian interview, book club, Q and A, and a sources and evidence discussion). Past Lives is a 100-percent independent production, and your support is what allows us to make this show. So, thank you.

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Audiobook Chapter: Lost Worlds15 Apr 202600:50:37

Patrick's new book Lost Worlds: How Humans Tried, Failed, Succeeded, and Built Our World comes out May 5th! Check out a free preview of the first chapter of the audiobook, "The World As It Was," and learn about the Clovis people and reindeer hunters in Europe at the end of the last Ice Age. Preorder in hardcopy, ebook, or audiobook (read by Patrick) here: https://bit.ly/PWLostWorlds.

Become a member now at www.patreon.com/cw/PastLivesMedia. You'll get access to the Past Lives Discord server and four pieces of bonus content per month (including a historian interview, book club, Q and A, and a sources and evidence discussion). Past Lives is a 100-percent independent production, and your support is what allows us to make this show. So, thank you.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Ötzi the Iceman29 Apr 202600:28:59

Of all the many people who lived in the distant past, we might know Ötzi the Iceman the best. Found in the Ötztal Alps of northern Italy in 1991, Ötzi lived more than 5,300 years ago, but the icy conditions where he died preserved his remains to an extraordinary degree. We know what Ötzi ate for his last meals, where he spent his youth, what materials his clothing was made out of, and even what kinds of parasites infected his digestive tract. The result is an illuminating portrait of a long-dead human being.

Become a member now at www.patreon.com/cw/PastLivesMedia. You'll get access to the Past Lives Discord server and four pieces of bonus content per month (including a historian interview, book club, Q and A, and a sources and evidence discussion). Past Lives is a 100-percent independent production, and your support is what allows us to make this show. So, thank you.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

The Shaman of Bad Dürrenberg22 Apr 202600:27:53

Nine thousand years ago, a special woman was buried in central Germany. She was her band's shaman, and they interred her with all of the tools of her craft: a feathered headdress with deer antlers, dozens of clinking animal teeth, an extraordinary variety of unusual objects. Who was she, and what can she teach us about the Mesolithic society to which she belonged?

Become a member now at www.patreon.com/cw/PastLivesMedia. You'll get access to the Past Lives Discord server and four pieces of bonus content per month (including a historian interview, book club, Q and A, and a sources and evidence discussion). Past Lives is a 100-percent independent production, and your support is what allows us to make this show. So, thank you.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

The Corps of Discovery Wasn't Just Lewis and Clark: Interview with Craig Fehrman13 May 202600:37:45

New York Times bestselling author Craig Fehrman joins us to discuss his wonderful new book, This Vast Enterprise: A New History of Lewis and Clark. We talk about the Corps of Discovery beyond the two captains, the richness of the sources we have to understand the expedition, and what we can learn about North America at the dawn of the 19th century. Buy This Vast Enterprise and support a fantastic author!

Become a member now at www.patreon.com/cw/PastLivesMedia. You'll get access to the Past Lives Discord server and four pieces of bonus content per month (including a historian interview, book club, Q and A, and a sources and evidence discussion). Past Lives is a 100-percent independent production, and your support is what allows us to make this show. So, thank you.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Gebelein Man and the Roots of Ancient Egypt06 May 202600:30:17

In hindsight, ancient Egypt appears to be both eternal and inevitable, but in reality it was neither. Until his untimely death 5,300 years ago, Gebelein Man lived in the Upper Nile Valley, the heartland of the warring petty kingdoms that would eventually morph into the kingdom of the pharaohs. The forces that shaped his life were those that gave birth to the ancient Egypt we recognize later.

Become a member now at www.patreon.com/cw/PastLivesMedia. You'll get access to the Past Lives Discord server and four pieces of bonus content per month (including a historian interview, book club, Q and A, and a sources and evidence discussion). Past Lives is a 100-percent independent production, and your support is what allows us to make this show. So, thank you.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Xinjiang: The Crossroads of Eurasia20 May 202600:26:58

While Xinjiang - in the extreme west of present-day China - is today a tightly controlled and repressed periphery, but for most of the past 4,000 years, it has been the crossroads at the heart of Eurasia. Practically every important technological and cultural innovation from the Neolithic onward has passed through this corridor, skirting the massive mountains and impassable deserts that block transit across the continent. New archaeological research is transforming how we think about this remarkable place and its history over the long term.

Become a member now at www.patreon.com/cw/PastLivesMedia. You'll get access to the Past Lives Discord server and four pieces of bonus content per month (including a historian interview, book club, Q and A, and a sources and evidence discussion). Past Lives is a 100-percent independent production, and your support is what allows us to make this show. So, thank you.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

The Princess of Xiaohe03 Jun 202600:28:01

Nearly 4,000 years ago, a young woman was buried in the sands of the Tarim Basin in western China. When her coffin was opened just a few decades ago, her face was almost perfectly preserved. We know her as the Princess of Xiaohe, but what was her world really like?

Become a member now at www.patreon.com/cw/PastLivesMedia. You'll get access to the Past Lives Discord server and four pieces of bonus content per month (including a historian interview, book club, Q and A, and a sources and evidence discussion). Past Lives is a 100-percent independent production, and your support is what allows us to make this show. So, thank you.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Interview: Producer, Writer, and Director Tim Haines on Surviving Earth and Bringing the Distant Past to Life27 May 202600:29:19

Tim Haines (Walking with Dinosaurs, Primeval) joins me to discuss making high-quality documentaries about the distant past in the lead-up to the premiere of his new series on mass extinctions, Surviving Earth, which debuts June 10th on Peacock.

Become a member now at www.patreon.com/cw/PastLivesMedia. You'll get access to the Past Lives Discord server and four pieces of bonus content per month (including a historian interview, book club, Q and A, and a sources and evidence discussion). Past Lives is a 100-percent independent production, and your support is what allows us to make this show. So, thank you.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

A Quick Guide to Ancient Egypt10 Jun 202600:31:25

When we think of mummies, ancient Egypt is the first place to come to mind, and with good reason. But it's probably been a while since most of us have had a refresher on Egypt's long and fascinating history, so today, come with me on a journey along the Nile from the days before the pharaohs to the Bronze Age Collapse.

Become a member now at www.patreon.com/cw/PastLivesMedia. You'll get access to the Past Lives Discord server and four pieces of bonus content per month (including a historian interview, book club, Q and A, and a sources and evidence discussion). Past Lives is a 100-percent independent production, and your support is what allows us to make this show. So, thank you.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

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