Greeced Lightning

It’s finally happening: Greeced Lightning is tackling the Punic Wars! Join Sam and Sara for a lightning round of military history and Total War Rome Remastered: Hannibal Barca, teenage Sam’s World of Warcraft obsession, and Roman facial hair.

Sam and Sara dive into their first listener-recommended content! Grab a gallon of wine and join us as we wonder: who is the fish man? what is happening in Krapopolis? would we rather be dealing with the excrement of our children and/or pets than finding out?

We are kicking off Season 4 with something a little different: our first interview! Dr. Ben Angell, the Narrative Lead at CaptureAge, joins Sara and Sam to discuss his work on the Age of Empires II Chronicles: Alexander the Great and our Season 3 favorite, Battle for Greece. Come for the use of ancient sources in story and character development, stay for the predictions of future Chronicles campaigns.

It’s the end of Season 3, and the end of Sara and Sam’s journey through Age of Empires 2. Your hosts speculate about the future of civilization in 2025 while discussing the Peloponnesian War: optimistic peace agreements, ancient plague, a literal bag of dicks, video games as art, and a look back on our highlights of the season.Thucydides' The Peloponnesian War

We continue our Age of Empires 2 campaign with the Persian Wars! Join Sara and Sam for ostracism procedures, wily old Themistocles, and Sara’s waning tolerance for podcasting while pregnant.Map of the Greco-Persian WarsHerodotus' Histories - Books 6-9 cover the Persian Wars.

Back in the Greeced Lightning Game Room, your hosts tackle Part 1 of the Chronicles: Battle for Greece in Age of Empires 2. Join us to discuss Europeans stealing historical treasures, ancient tyrants, and the Ionian revolt.Herodotus' Histories - The first several books cover Persian history; coverage of the Ionian Revolt starts in Book 5.

We’re going back to our Greeced Lightning roots and revisiting the Trojan War! Join us for the 2018 series Troy: Fall of a City for the correct usage of chariots, birth plans, Bjӧrk-ified Helen, and distracting bowl cuts.Minoan 'Ladies in Blue' FrescoThe Iliad - Emily Wilson's new translation

It’s Macedonian War time in the Greeced Lightning Game Room! Join Sara and Sam to discuss the Battle of Pydna, layoffs and unions, war elephants, and Total War: Rome II.Plutarch, Life of Aemilius - Sections 12ff. cover the Macedonian campaignLivy, Ab urbe condita 45.19 - Livy's later account of the Macedonian WarPolybius, Histories 22.8 - On the origin of the Third Macedonian War, from a contemporary historian

Sara and Sam dive into the wonderful world of Broadway with very hot takes on Hadestown. (Please don’t come for us, Broadway lovers.) After a brief recap of the myth of Orpheus and Eurydice, we’ll dig into wedding night ceremonies, too many opera adaptations, unionizing, and the trouble with the perfect song.

Sara and Sam upgrade to a Game Room to discuss the city builder game Caesar III. Travel back to the era when “online” was still two words for: surprisingly horny video games, accidental slums, ancient fire brigades, and multipurpose holes.Curia Julia - A 1st c. coin showing the curia, or senate houseMap of Pompeii

Sam and Sara take on Pompey and Julius Caesar’s civil war: populist politics, Cicero’s foibles, the sluttification of a model Roman matron, respect for ancient doctors, and the drama (and nudity) of HBO’s Rome.Plutarch's Life of Caesar, 53.4 - An account of Julia's death in childbirth; the following sections cover the political turmoil and growing hostility between Pompey and Caesar in the late 50s BCERoman trepanation - A technical explanation by Celsus, a Roman medical encyclopedistAncient Peruvian trepanationTitus Pullo and Lucius Vorenus - Caesar's account of the two centurions, from his Commentary on the Gallic Wars, Bk. 5.44Life of Julius Caesar - English translation of the biography by the historian Suetonius

Grab a slice of cold pizza and pull up a comfy chair: today we’re hanging out in Sam’s Video Game Corner! Sam takes Sara through the development and plot of Age of Mythology: Retold. Discussion includes Plato’s Atlantis, early bedtimes, the collapse of civilizations, and a hard no on ancient aliens.The Trojan Horse - Probably the more well-known account, from the Aeneid Bk 2Chariot of Demeter - 5th c. BCE vase paintingAtlantis - English translations of Plato's allegorical myth of imperial hubris

Season 3 of Greeced Lightning is here! Sara and Sam are taking a new approach this season in more than one way. Join us in this episode to break down the myths behind the Netflix original series Kaos, including: Prometheus vs. Zeus, trans people in myth, the dangers of prophecy interpretation, and Hera’s creepy tongue room (yes, you read that right).Myth of Er - A story of the reincarnation of the soul from Plato's Republic, Bk 10Meander - The real meander: a design, not a divine fountain.Caeneus - From Ovid's Metamorphoses, Book 12.146ffOrpheus and Eurydice - Virgil's take on the story, from the Georgics Book IVAeschylus, PROMETHEUS BOUND - English translation

Sam and Sara bring you this special broadcast for the release of Gladiator 2! Join us for historically inaccurate weaponry, tyrannical brother emperors, unusual animal appearances, and a rip roaring good time.

Tune in for a bonus episode in which Sara and Sam joined the fine folks at Screens of the Stone Age for very unique film!When Men Carried Clubs and Women Played Ding-Dong (1971) is an Italian sex comedy in which cave women of two warring tribes stage a sex strike until their cave men make peace. If that sounds familiar, it’s because it’s a stone-age adaptation of the Ancient Greek play Lysistrata by Aristophanes. It’s all Greek to us, so we’ve invited Dr. Sara Hales-Brittain and Sam Siegel of the Greeced Lightning podcast to help us understand the erotic chicken cosplay, glory-hole fish emasculation, and petroleum-based conversion therapy. You heard me. Listen to Greeced Lightning wherever you get your podcasts. Follow Greeced Lightning on Social Media: https://x.com/Greecedlightpod https://www.instagram.com/greecedlightningpod/ https://bsky.app/profile/greecedlightning.bsky.social Win some SotSA Merch! Send your mistakes, inaccuracies, and corrections to us by email or social media:Twitter: @SotSA_Podcast Bluesky: @sotsapodcast.bsky.socialFacebook: @SotSAPodcastLetterboxd: https://letterboxd.com/sotsa/ Email: [email protected] In this episode:Watch When Men Carried Clubs and Women Played Ding-Dong on the Internet ArchiveRead Lysistrata by Aristophanes:Chi-Raq on Greeced LightningIl Primo Re on Greeced LightningAttila on SotSA“Spare me your space-age techno-babble, Attila the Hun!”“Chickens don’t clap!”CircummingoPetronius’ werewolf storyLinguriumCrannogs

Greeced Lightning supports a permanent end to the violence and genocide in Gaza. We encourage you to take action however you are able. It’s the Season 2 finale and we’re going out with a comedic bang! Join Sara and Sam for Oscar Wilde’s riff on Plautus, including mistaken identities, ass tattoos, our preferred Colin Firths, and a reflection on the highs and lows of this season.The Importance of Being Earnest - Project Gutenberg's text of Oscar Wilde's play.Menaechmi - English translation of Plautus's comedy.

Greeced Lightning supports a permanent end to the violence and genocide in Gaza. We encourage you to take action however you are able. Sam and Sara take one last trip to Roman Britain to learn about Boudica, Queen of the Iceni. Learn just how little we know about this badass and brutal leader while also discussing temples to modern politicians, advice from child ghosts, and a deeply misogynistic depiction of a woman leader. CW: rape, physical abuseGold torc, British Museum - This Iron Age torc (neck ring) was discovered in Norfolk, the territory of the ancient Iceni.Drinking skulls - Although this is significantly older than the British Iron Age and Roman period, there is archaeological evidence for ancient Britons drinking from skulls as they do in the movie.Cassius Dio's History, Bk 62 - Cassius Dio's account of Boudica's revolt. Scroll past the epitome (summary) to get to the full text of Bk 62 for his full account.Tacitus, Annals 14.29-39 - Tacitus's account of Boudica's revolt

Greeced Lightning supports a permanent end to the violence and genocide in Gaza. We encourage you to take action however you are able.Sara and Sam explore the sitcoms of the ancient world: the Roman comedies by Plautus. Join us to learn about vibe translations, Buster Keaton’s criminally brief storyline, camel-related compliments, the hosts’ breakfasts of choice, and more!Female actresses - Funerary inscription for a female actor Bassilla, recorded and translated in Easterling and Hall, eds., Greek and Roman Actors: Aspects of an Ancient ProfessionMiles Gloriosus - English translation of Plautus's comedy

Greeced Lightning supports a permanent end to the violence and genocide in Gaza. We encourage you to take action however you are able. We just can’t quit you, Legio IX! Remnants of Rome’s 9th Legion crop up yet again as Sara and Sam explore the decline of the Western Roman Empire. Discussion includes the Germanic invasions, the last Western emperor, incorrect inscriptions, poor filmmaking skills, white supremacist-adjacent legends, and more!Ancient Rome by Thomas R. Martin - An accessible overview of Roman history from the founding to Justinian.Portrait of the Four Tetrarchs - Porphyry sculpture from approx. 300 CE which is supposed to picture the first Dominate, composed of Diocletian and Maximian, and Galerius and Constantius IRomulus Augustulus - Gold coin that shows a portrait of Romulus Augustus wearing a crownJordanes, Getica - Translation of the 6th c. historian Jordanes' text on the Goths.

Greeced Lightning supports a permanent end to the violence and genocide in Gaza. We encourage you to take action however you are able. In our most chaotic episode yet, Sara and Sam dish up a big bowl of the myth soup that is Percy Jackson. Ingredients include: venereal disease, a new Law & Order franchise, pasta water on tap, and Sam and Sara’s top priorities for social & political reforms.Varvakeion Athena - The most faithful miniature we have of Phidias's Athena Parthenos, which was housed in the Parthenon. Photo by George E. Koronaios, cropped by Neoclassicism Enthusiast - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0Chiron - The ancient vase paintings and frescoes included on this page of excerpts definitely answers Sam's anatomy question as: horse.Ps.-Apollodorus, Bibliotheca 3.14 - Athena and Poseidon compete to be patron of AthensAeschylus's Eumenides - English translation by George Theodoridis

Greeced Lightning supports a permanent end to the violence and genocide in Gaza. We encourage you to take action however you are able.Sara and Sam return to Roman Britain to discuss the conquering governor Agricola and the ultimate fate of the mysterious 9th Legion. Join us for conversation about military inscriptions, outdated female archetypes, Bush era filmmaking, and the combination of historical events that didn’t actually overlap in time.Astragalos - Knucklebones (astragaloi) of sheep and goats were commonly used as dice and game pieces in antiquity. This image shows a glass astragalos made to look like its bone original.Latrunculi - A Roman board game that shares features of both checkers and chess.Bar Kokhba Revolt | Britannica - A very brief overview of the biggest, and final, Jewish revolt against Rome.CIL 06.3492 - A reproduction of the inscription listing active legions during the reign of Marcus Aurelius.Pict | BritannicaLegio VIIII Hispana - A great overview of the legion's history, including a bit about the inscriptions found at Nijmegen.Agricola - A translation of Tacitus's biography of his father-in-law, the former governor of Britain.Legio IX Hispana Tablet - Fragmentary inscription in the Yorkshire Museum, with the reconstructed text surrounding

Join Sara and Sam for a short episode to discuss two constructed women: Pygmalion’s statue and Pandora! Highlights include a nod to Jewish folklore, what you can do with hope, nasty bar bathrooms, and John Hughes’s worst flick.The Legend Of The Golem Of PragueHesiod, Works and Days - Pandora's story features from roughly line 50-113.Ovid's Metamorphoses: Book 10 - In which Orpheus sings of Pgymalion

Greeced Lightning supports a permanent end to the violence and genocide in Gaza. We encourage you to take action however you are able. Sara and Sam tackle the Roman conquest of Britain! Join us for travel tidbits, border walls, special trips to Sam’s Video Game Corner, and how far your hosts would go to prevent starvation on the moors.Battle of the Teutoburg Forest - "Quinctilius Varus, give me back my legions!"Cicero, Letters to Atticus 4.17 - Discusses the potential gains (such as they are) of campaigning in BritainFalkirk - Part of the Antonine Wall in modern-day ScotlandSuetonius, Life of Julius CaesarCaesar, de bello Gallico Bk. 5

Greeced Lightning supports a permanent end to the violence and genocide in Gaza. We encourage you to take action however you are able.This episode, we dive back into the wonderful world of Homer’s Odyssey — but this time, in Italian! Join Sara and Sam to learn about the supporting characters of the Odyssey, along with ancient fanfiction, seduction by dairy products, more Kirk Douglas, and questionable audio-dubbing choices.Ancient Greek clothing - Everything you ever wanted to know!Theocritus Idyll 11 translation - Polyphemus tries to woo Galatea. If you can access the Loeb, that translation is the best, but this one is manageable.Ovid, Metamorphoses Bk 14 - At the end of Bk. 13, Scylla spurns Glaucus's love. In Bk. 14, Glaucus goes to Circe for help, and all hell breaks loose.Odysseus & the Sirens - Late Archaic painting from the early 5th century, housed in the British Museum.Ovid, The Heroides - Penelope to Ulysses (Odysseus) is the first letter in this poetic collection.

Greeced Lightning supports a permanent end to the violence and genocide in Gaza. We encourage you to take action however you are able. Join us for the first recording after the birth of the wee-est member of the Greeced Lightning family! Sara and Sam reminisce about their introduction to Mel Brooks, then discuss the wild and violent life of Emperor Nero, including: mediocre arts talent, gay marriage, murdering family members, and more! CW: murders, suicides.Cassius Dio, Epitome of Book 62 - A summary of Book 62, the full text of which has been lost. Bks 62-63 cover Nero's reign.Suetonius, Life of Nero - A biography of Rome's 5th emperorTacitus, Annals Bk. 14 - Book 14 opens with Agrippina's assassination at the hands of her son, Nero.Three types of columns - Illustration of column tops and "weights" in architecture, using the Colosseum as an example.Tacitus, Annals Bk. 15 - 15.38ff describes the Great Fire of 64 CE.Julio-Claudian Family Tree - For your incestuous information.

Greeced Lightning supports a permanent end to the violence and genocide in Gaza. We encourage you to take action however you are able.The greatest thing you’ll ever learn is just to love and be loved in return. Or maybe it’s the myth of Orpheus. You be the judge! This #MythMonday, special guest Jackie Banigan joins us for the rock star of ancient Greece, 19th century Parisian demimonde, and high school marching band confessions.Ovid's Metamorphoses Bk. 10 - Orpheus's loss of Eurydice, establishment of pederasty, and final song.Argonautica 4.891 ff. - In which Orpheus saves the Argonauts from the sirens with his songVirgil's 4th Georgic - The story of Orpheus and Eurydice begins at line 453.Ps.-Apollodorus, Bibliotheca 1.3.2 - A brief biography of OrpheusMoulin Rouge was almost an original musical, and more soundtrack secrets

Greeced Lightning supports a permanent end to the violence and genocide in Gaza. We encourage you to take action however you are able.CW: suicide. After starting this super-sized episode with some good old-fashioned Plato-bashing, Sara and Sam consider Cleopatra’s connections to the Roman civil wars, drunken Richard Burton, and royal bedroom exploits of multiple genders.Roman hairstylesOn the production disasters of CleopatraWhat to Do When Someone Has a Seizure - Don't do what they do in this movie!Portrait of Cleopatra - from Herculaneum. Notice she's a redhead!Cleopatra and Caesarion at the Temple of DenderahPainting of Cleopatra and Caesarion - Depicted as Venus and Cupid, from Pompeii.Suetonius's Divus Julius 52 - The section of Suetonius's biography of Julius Caesar about his relationship with Cleopatra.Plutarch's Life of AntonyAkrotiri, SantoriniAtlantis Myth - Translations of the passages about Atlantis from Plato's Timaeus and Critias.

Greeced Lightning supports a permanent end to the violence and genocide in Gaza. We encourage you to take action however you are able.Today Sam and Sara dive into the world of the Amazons, including: misogynistic geographers, Artemis/Diana’s rage, poorly designed armor, chaotic special effects, and crimes against the voice of David Thewlis.Ovid's Metamorphoses 3.138-252 - A.S. Kline's translation of the story of Actaeon (including his dog's names)Caledonia etymologyGrave of Female Scythian Warrior Found in Ukraine | Ancient OriginsReal Scythian warrior womenDiana of Versailles - 1st-2nd c. CE Roman version of a Greek statue (we think), now in the Louvre.Callimachus's Hymn 3 to ArtemisRiding Amazon - 5th c. amphora depicting a riding Amazon. Note she is wearing pants! This was a peculiarly Persian/“Eastern” thing in the mind of Greeks.Homeric Hymn 27 to ArtemisHeracles v. Amazons - 6th c. BCE vase depicting Heracles fighting the Amazons (note the gendered difference in skin tone)Strabo's Geography 11.5 - Strabo's interesting take on the Amazons.Herodotus's Histories 4.110 - On Scythia and the AmazonsPs.-Apollodorus, Bibliotheca - Heracles's labor among the Amazons is covered in 2.5.9.

I’m Spartacus! You’re Spartacus! Today we’re taking a deep dive on Roman slavery and Spartacus’s revolt. Join us for the brutality of the rich, paganism-Judaism crossovers, ancient grooming practices, and a little objectification of classic film stars.Wikimedia Commons - Kylix attributed to Apollodorus showing two women removing pubic hair, from early 5th c. BCE. Housed in the archaeological museum in Tarquinia, ItalyEidolon: Emanscapation - On men's pubic hair grooming in antiquityBustle: Pubic Hair Trends Over TimeFlorus's Epitome of Livy - Book 2.8 covers Spartacus's revolt.Appian's The Civil Wars - Spartacus's revolt is covered in chapter 14 (labeled as section 116 in this translation)Plutarch's Life of Crassus - Information on the war with Spartacus begins in section 8.1.Ancient Rome by Thomas R. Martin - A very accessible history of Rome from the founding through the era of Justinian (1000+ years of history!). Includes some information on Roman slavery and Spartacus's uprising.

This #MythMonday, Sara and Sam discuss Theseus, also known as Heracles 2.0 and Ancient Greece’s chief asshole. Sara mangles Greek geography and bemoans the genre of myth soup movies. Sam finds a new model of fatherhood. The hosts drool over Henry Cavill.Mask of AgamemnonMedea's drakon-pulled chariot - Red-figure krater from late 5th/early 4th c. BCE.Daedalus and Icarus - Translation of Ovid's Metamorphoses Book 8 — Daedalus and Icarus begin in section 2.Ps.-Apollodorus, The Library - Translation of the Epitome, which briefly describes Theseus's laborsCatullus 64 - Parallel English and Latin text. The description of a tapestry depicting the Ariadne abandoned by Theseus begins on line 50. (Wikisource)Euripides's Medea - English text of the tragedy, translated by George TheodoridisEuripides's Hippolytus - English text of the tragedy, translated by George TheodoridisTheseus victorious over the Minotaur - Fresco from Pompeii depicting Theseus after his battle with the Minotaur (Wikimedia Commons)Plutarch's comparison of Theseus and Romulus - Plutarch paired all his Lives, one Greek with one Roman.Plutarch's Life of Theseus

CW: kidnapping, rape, Stockholm syndrome. If that didn’t scare you off, join Sam and Sara for the legend of the Sabine women. Discussion includes: white people dancing, mystery pregnancies, the powerful effect of baby animals on your hosts, and a proposed alternate ending.Hephzibah: Wikipedia - Did you already know who Hephzibah was? You're way ahead of us!The Sobbin' Women, by Stephen Vincent Benét - Free text of the short story on which Seven Brides for Seven Brothers is based.A racist history shows why Oregon is still so white - Oregon Public Radio story on the black exclusion laws during the colonization and settlement of Oregon.Plutarch: Life of Romulus - The story of the Sabines begins in section 14.Livy: Ab urbe condita - The rape of the Sabine women is told in 1.9-13.

Greeced Lightning is back! We’re kicking off Season 2 with a foreign film and a very special guest. Josh Lindal of Screens of the Stone Age podcast joins us for the story of Romulus and Remus and the movie Il Primo Re: twin drama, swamp settlements, ancient hominids, and how often we think about the Roman Empire.Find Screens of the Stone Age at: https://pasc-scpa.ca/sotsahttps://bsky.app/profile/sotsapodcast.bsky.socialhttps://twitter.com/SotSA_Podcasthttps://www.facebook.com/SotSAPodcast/Iceman - The 2017 German/Italian/Austrian film of a fictionalized version of the life and death of Ötzi, the 5,000-year-old mummified man discovered in the Ötztal Alps in 1991.An Ancient Ballgame Makes A Comeback In Mexico - NPR coverage of the resurgence of ulama, the Mesoamerican ball game.Screens of the Stone Age: Skyrim - SotSA podcast checks out the megafauna in the game Skyrim!Dionysius' Roman Antiquities Book I - In Roman Antiquities 1.79, Dionysius of Halicarnassus describes contemporary Romans' veneration of the casa Romuli.Casa Romuli - Iron Age hut foundations on the Palatine Hill, the traditional site of the hut of Romulus.Lupa Capitolina - Originally thought to be an ancient sculpture, this depiction of a she-wolf suckling Romulus and Remus is most likely medieval, according to radiocarbon dating.Plutarch: Life of Romulus - The Loeb translation of Plutarch's Life of Romulus.Livy: Ab urbe condita - Translation of Livy's historical work, "From the founding of the city." Use the blue arrows or the navigation bars at the top of the screen to jump to the next section of text.Josh's source: Atapuerca - At 1.4 million years old, Atapuerca, Spain is the oldest archaeological site in Western Europe.Josh's source: Dmanisi, Georgia - This site is the oldest evidence of humans outside of Africa, at 1.8 million years old!Josh's source: Ceprano Man - All about the Ceprano skull from the Middle Pleistocene period, discovered in Italy in 1994.Josh's source: Kostenki mammoth bone structures - Josh's source with more info on the practice of using mammoth bones as building materialJosh's source: Terra Amata Shelter - One of the oldest known structures, identified by post holes

Sara and Sam had the pleasure of joining the fine folks at Screens of the Stone Age for a guest episode, so please enjoy this feed drop of their show!Today we’re reviewing Attila (2001), a two-part TV miniseries about the infamous king of the Huns, who was a different person from Genghis Khan. We know so little about this period that we needed to invite some guests to help us out: Sara Hales-Brittain and Sam Siegel from the Greeced Lightning podcast join us to talk about trebuchets, armour styles, and how Gerard Butler’s abs defeated the Roman Empire. Sara’s Sources:A translation of Priscus's account of his diplomatic visit to Attila's court: https://sourcebooks.fordham.edu/source/priscus1.asp A translation of Jordanes's description of Attila: https://sourcebooks.fordham.edu/source/jordanes-attila.asp A great overview of Roman history, including late antiquity and the "fall" of Rome: https://yalebooks.yale.edu/book/9780300198317/ancient-rome/ Get in touch with us!Twitter: @SotSA_Podcast Facebook: @SotSAPodcastLetterboxd: https://letterboxd.com/sotsa/ Email: [email protected] In this episode:Watch Hollywood Action Movies 2016 English - Adventure Movies 2016 Hollywood - New War Movies 2016 for free on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3nrEXMXgjDE Catapults vs. trebuchets: https://www.dictionary.com/e/trebuchet-vs-catapult/ Evolution of Roman Armour: https://discover.hubpages.com/education/evolution-of-the-roman-infantry-armor Attila and Lord of the Rings: https://www.blackgate.com/2012/02/26/tolkien-and-attila/ Gerard Butler’s abs destroyed the Roman Empire (Reddit film review): https://www.reddit.com/r/badhistory/comments/2h3aui/gerard_butlers_abs_destroyed_the_roman_empire_a/ Viminacium Archaeological Park, Serbia: http://viminacium.org.rs/en/

In the Season 1 finale, Sara has a little gift for Luke and Sam before diving into the life and times of the Macedonian king and general Alexander the Great. The hosts revel in Irish accents galore. Sam investigates the four versions of the movie Alexander, including nudity, so that you don’t have to. P.S. At 24 minutes, Sara says Pelopponesian Wars when she should have said Persian Wars. Whoops!Legal threat over 'gay' Alexander | The Guardian - An explanation behind the (threatened) lawsuit against the film Alexander.New explanation for Alexander the Great's death - The Archaeology News Network - Article explaining Dr. Hall's theory behind the cause of Alexander the Great's death.Alexander Mosaic - The Alexander mosaic, depicting the Battle of Issus between Alexander and Darius III, in the House of the Faun in Pompeii (in the public domain)Plutarch: Life of Alexander - A translation of Plutarch's biography of Alexander.

Join Sara, Luke, and Sam for the Aristophanic comedy, Lysistrata! The hosts take a (non-binding) vow of chastity, debate the merits of a big brass bed, and question John Cusack’s presence in a Spike Lee film.Why Are Ancient Greek Phalluses Funny? - If you're curious what Greek comedic actors' false phalluses might have looked like, this article includes photos of 5th-4th c. BCE vase paintings and figurines of actors with large false phalluses exposed.The Maculate Muse by Jeffrey Henderson - All about obscenity and obscene language in Greek drama. As a scholarly book written for those studying Greek drama, we can't vouch for the readability or accessibility of the text.Ancient Greece by Thomas R. Martin - A very readable and informative overview of Greek history, from prehistory through Hellenistic times.Lysistrata and Other Plays by Aristophanes: Penguin translation - Alan Sommerstein's 2003 translation of Lysistrata, from which the hosts take Lysistrata's oath!

Sara, Luke and Sam take a wild and dirty ride through the underbelly of Rome with Petronius’s Satyricon. Join us for Neronian conspiracies, Priapic purification rituals, Roman Donald Trump, and the literary connections to Harold & Kumar. Bonus: discussion of ancient dildos.CW: suicide, sexual assault and explicit sexual contentThe long and satisfying 28,000-year history of the dildo - More information than Sara could give about the history of dildos!Petronius's Satyricon, translated by P.G. Walsh - An excellent translation with notes and an introduction, by P.G. Walsh.Tacitus on Petronius - In the Annals Book 16, sections 17-19, Tacitus tells us about Petronius's fall from Arbiter of Elegance and his ultimate end.Froma Zeitlin, "Petronius as Paradox" - The article that Sara references by the amazing scholar Froma Zeitlin.

Get in loser, we’re going to steal the Golden Fleece! Sara, Luke, and Sam dig into the myth behind 1963’s Jason and the Argonauts. Join us for Hecate worship, talking boats, stop-motion magic, and the invention of disc golf.Phineus & Harpies - A 5th c. BCE red figure painting of the Harpies stealing Phineus's food.Theocritus, Idyll 2 - Early 20th century translation of a poem about a woman named Simaetha praying to Hecate and putting a love spell on her lover, Delphis. Theocritus was a contemporary of Apollonius of Rhodes.Argonautica by Apollonius Rhodius - 2014 translation of Apollonius of Rhodes's Hellenistic epic, the Argonautica.

Sara, Luke, and Sam take an uncomfortable dive into the religious violence of late Roman Alexandria with the film Agora. Sam puts on his historian hat to teach Luke and Sara about Serapis; all three hosts condemn the openness of men’s restrooms.Encyclopedia of Ancient Egypt, ed. Helen Strudwick - Sam teaches Sara and Luke about Serapis based on what he learned in this book. A great resource if you're interested in learning about ancient Egypt!Texts of Synesius' writings - Translations of the essays and letters of Synesius of Cyrene. His letters to Hypatia are labeled "To the Philosopher": Letters 10, 15, 16, 33, 81, 124, 154.

It’s an ancient disaster! Sara, Luke, and Sam learn about the eruption of Mt. Vesuvius, the destruction of Pompeii, Pliny the Younger’s #BigNarcEnergy, and Kit Harrington the Horse Whisperer. The hosts also have a great idea for future Greeced Lightning merch.Mount Vesuvius Didn't Kill Everyone in Pompeii. Where Did the Survivors Go? - Live Science article interviewing Dr. Steven Tuck regarding the survivors of Pompeii and the aid distributed by the emperor Titus. (Sara says she used Dr. Tuck's book in her archaeology class but she misspoke — it was an art history class.)History of archaeological excavations of Pompeii - The official Pompeii excavations website, where you can learn more about the history of the site.Pliny the Younger's Letters - English translation of Book 6 of Pliny's letters. His account of Pliny the Younger's death and the eruption of Mt. Vesuvius are in letters 6.16 and 6.20.

Sara, Luke, and Sam are back in the land of myth with Disney's Hercules! Sara teaches Luke and Sam everything there is to know about this himbo hero. Sam detects more than a hint of stink to Hades' depiction. All three hosts learn of an unexpected connection to Quibi.Sophocles' Women of Trachis - A 1966 translation of Sophocles' tragedy which depicts the death of Heracles.Euripides' Alcestis - A translation of Euripides' tragedy Alcestis, in which Heracles shows up to party and (spoiler!) ends up saving the heroine.Livy Bk. 1.7: Cacus and Hercules - A free translation of the story of Hercules, Cacus, and the cattle of Geryon. Story starts in the second paragraph.Heracles & Erymanthian Boar - Ancient Greek Vase Painting - 6th century BCE vase painting of Eurystheus cowering in fear at Heracles holding the Erymanthian Boar.‎Hanksy Panksy: 24 - Hercules: Yak Hair on Apple Podcasts - Sara's first time joining Luke and Sam on the airwaves, this episode of Hanksy Panksy breaks down 2014's Hercules with Dwayne Johnson. For adult ears only!Euripides' Heracles - An excellent translation of Euripides' play, Heracles, which depicts the madness of Heracles.

Let us entertain you with a deep dive into gladiators and Roman games! Sara, Luke, and Sam talk good and bad emperors, sexy gladiators, combat to the death, and the Teflon quality of the Oscar-winning film Gladiator.Commodus as Hercules - The famous bust of Commodus in the guise of Hercules, with symbolism that portrays Commodus as having conquered the world. (Wikimedia Commons)Pliny's Epistulae: The Latin Library - For the adventurous listener interested in the Latin of Pliny's letters, the letter that Sara quotes is #6 on this page.Pliny the Younger's Letters - You can find Pliny's disparaging comments about the games in Epistle 9.6.Marcus Aurelius' Meditations - An English translation of the emperor Marcus Aurelius' private journal.Water organ - Enjoy some Roman music! This water organ was reconstructed from metal parts found at an archaeological dig near Budapest.

Sara, Luke, and Sam go on the greatest of adventures with The Princess Bride! Listen along as Sara delves into the fascinating world of the criminally underappreciated Greek novels, and everyone has a whale of a time with this classic film!The Princess Bride Home Movie - The celebrity home-movie remake of The Princess Bride that Luke mentions in the episode. The Princess Bride is actually an ancient Greek novel. – Medea Palatina - Part One of Sara's blog about the relationship between The Princess Bride and the ancient Greek novels. Link to Part Two is at the bottom of the blog page!Collected Ancient Greek Novels, ed. B.P. Reardon - This is the collection of Greek novel translations used in Sara's graduate school courses. It's a doorstop of a volume, but it does include translations (with introductions) of the Big Five as well as the fragmentary novels.

Romanes eunt domus! This week, Sara, Luke, and Sam dive into the Roman occupation of Judea with Monty Python’s Life of Brian! Join us for a conversation about Jewish history, renaming BC/AD, the alarming history of toilets, and how poorly John Cleese’s humor has aged.Arch of Titus - Photo of an inner panel from the triumphal arch of Titus, just outside the forum in Rome. The carved relief on this panel represents Titus's triumphal procession in 71 CE, in which his victorious army carried treasures and spoils taken when they looted and burned the Jerusalem temple the year before (image source: Wikipedia). Josephus's complete works - This English translation from 2003 contains all of Josephus's writings (originally written in Greek).

Sara, Luke, and Sam take their first dive into ancient history, rather than myth, this week with the 2007 violent, machismo-soaked 300! Learn all about the Persian Wars and Spartan life while enjoying topics of discussion such as: jock rock as a movie, fun ancient instruments, and the Greeks' aversion to pants.Aulos music - The aulos played in this video is a reconstruction based on an ancient aulos discovered in Egypt.Map: The Achaemenid Empire at its Greatest Extent - This map (from Wikimedia Commons) shows the Persian empire at its greatest extent, around 500 BCE. The first war between Persians and Greeks occurred a decade later in 490 BCE.English translation of Herodotus's Histories - An English translation of Herodotus's Histories, which is our main Greek source for the Persian Wars. (P.S.: This website, Lacus Curtius, is a great resource in general for translations of other ancient texts!)English translation of Aeschylus's Persians - A 2009 translation of Aeschylus's play The Persians, which was performed at the City Dionysia festival in Athens in 472 BCE.

This week, your hosts end their time with the Titans with 2012's Wrath of the Titans. Sara returns to her #BadClassicist ways, Sam earns 5 Greeced Lightning Points, and Rip Torn gets his Greek God kudos.Ps.-Apollodorus, The Library - An easily-navigable English translation of the work Bibliotheca (The Library) by Pseudo-Apollodorus. If you're interested in looking at the Greek text as well, check out the Loeb volume cited at the top of this webpage.Toyverse theory on Hanksy Panksy - For more on Sam and Luke's development of the rules of the Toyverse, check out the Toy Story episodes of their other podcast, Hanksy Panksy! Gigantomachy frieze of the Pergamon Altar - Athena fights against giants in the Gigantomachy (Wikimedia Commons)

We’re back with more myth soup, and the 2010 reboot of Clash of the Titans! Sara, Luke, and Sam discuss Gorgons, Io, Priapus, and whether the world is ready for an Irish Zeus. CW: This episode’s myths involves a lot of rape.Athena with the aegis - Athena Promachos, from Herculaneum, now housed in the National Archaeological Museum of Naples. You can see the aegis (goat skin) draped over her extended arm, with the gorgon head mounted on it.Prometheus Bound - An accessible translation of Aeschylus' tragedy Prometheus Bound by George Theodoridis.Gorgon kylix by Nikosthenes (Met Museum) - A 6th century BCE drinking cup, called a kylix, with a Gorgon face in the bottom interior of the cup. When you tipped the cup up to drain the wine, this is what you'd see! This cup was painted by Nikosthenes, a successful ceramicist of the day.Gorgoneion roof tile (Met Museum) - A 6th century BCE roof tile featuring a scary Gorgon grimace, surrounded by snakes for hair. These Gorgon tiles were apotropaic, meaning they were intended to ward off evil.The Priapeia - Sara summarizes Poem 67 in the episode. The syllables highlighted in the first two lines spell out the verb pedicare, which means "to sodomize": Penelopes primam Didonis prima sequatur et primam Cadmi syllaba prima Remi, quodque fit ex illis, mihi tu deprensus in horto, fur, dabis: hac poena culpa luenda tua est. The first syllable of Penelope, followed by the first syllable of Dido, And the first syllable of Cadmus followed by the first syllable of Remus: What's made of these is what you'll get when you're caught in my Garden, you thief: by this punishment, your crime will be paid for. (trans. by Sara) Fresco Of Priapus Photos - Getty Images - Fresco which Sam references during the episode: Priapus weighing his impossibly large penis on a scale. Fresco from the Casa dei Vettii in Pompeii.

Episode 4 is the first of three episodes breaking down the “of the Titans” saga. We start with 1981’s Clash of the Titans! Join us for the story of Perseus and Andromeda, according to both Ovid and Ray Harryhausen: golden showers, color and gender in ancient art, special effects so bad they’re good, Laurence Olivier thirst, and more!Ovid's Metamorphoses - The 1986 translation of Ovid's Metamorphoses that Sara uses. There are definitely more recent (and possibly better) translations out there, but this is the one Sara bought for her undergraduate class in classical mythology, so here we are.Perseus and Andromeda amphora painting - 6th c. BCE amphora depicting Andromeda, Perseus, and the sea monster Cetos. Perseus and Andromeda from Agrippa Postumus' villa at Boscotrecase - This fresco depicts Andromeda (center) chained to a rock waiting to be eaten by the sea monster (bottom left) and Perseus flying to her rescue.

This week, we’re breaking down the myth of Pygmalion: the original incel! After Luke and Sam teach Sara what negging is, discussion includes ancient pickup artists, blurred lines between sculpture and real life, the absolute delight that is Lars and the Real Girl, and what it takes for a doll to be real."Guy and Doll" - Luke says Lars and the Real Girl is great because a woman wrote it. Here’s a short article about that woman, Nancy Oliver, and the movie.Metamorphoses - The 1986 translation of Ovid's Metamorphoses that Sara uses. There are definitely more recent (and possibly better) translations out there, but this is the one Sara bought for her undergraduate class in classical mythology, so here we are.

Welcome back for Episode 2! Dr. Sara, Luke, and Sam dive into Homer’s Odyssey to discuss tricksy heroes, visits to the Underworld, murderous rampages, and how loose of an adaptation we think O Brother Where Art Thou is.Madeline Miller - Join Sam and Sara in their love of Madeline Miller's myth-themed novels!Edith Hamilton - Edith Hamilton's MythologyEmily Wilson translation - Emily Wilson's translation of The Odyssey, beautifully done in iambic pentameter

In the series premier of Greeced Lightning, Dr. Sara Hales-Brittain, Luke Patrick, and Sam Siegel begin their deep dive into ancient Greek mythology by breaking down the legend of the Trojan War. Dr. Hales-Brittain teaches Luke and Sam about the epic cycle, Paris' past, and how much the movie Troy failed. Troy: Fall of a City - The miniseries Troy: Fall of a City aired in 2018 and does an excellent job of interpreting the Iliad and the epic cycle of the Trojan War. Check it out for a more accurate rendition of Homer!The Iliad, trans. Fagles - One of the most commonly used translations of The Iliad, by Robert Fagles. This is the one Sara usually uses.