Money makes the ancient Mediterranean world go round...but what happens when there's not enough metal to make official coinage? In this episode, archaeologist Dr. Irene Soto Marín shares her research on quasi-official (not counterfeit!) coinage in Roman Egypt during the 4th century CE, a period of instability and uncertainty. Join us as we learn how the Roman army created a cheap and effective monetary system to meet the needs of the local populations and how they literally "broke the mold" in doing so!

Today's episode is simply magical! Join us as we welcome Dr. Britta Ager - an expert in ancient Mediterranean magic, spells, and curses - to the show and hear about her experimental work re-creating some sweet and smelly spells based on surviving recipes from the Egyptian Greek Magical Papyri. Listen in to learn about evidence for how and why people practiced magic in antiquity, from getting the gods on your good side to taking care of your animals, with a few surprises thrown in for good measure!

Waste not, want not! In this episode, learn all about ancient Mediterranean olive oil production and how real people producing this delicious food used the manufacturing byproducts to create a closed-loop, sustainable system. Dr. Erica Rowan, an expert on archaeobotanical (plant!) remains, joins us to explain how the ancient Romans in North Africa, Spain, and Italy used industrial olive oil waste as a fuel source to heat their homes, kilns, bakeries, and even to power the olive presses themselves!

Ever wonder how ancient artists created the vividly-coloured frescoes that adorned the houses of Pompeii and Herculaneum? Dr. Hilary Becker joins Chelsea and Melissa to tell us all about nature's palette and the raw materials that were used to create the reds, yellows, blues, whites, blacks, greens, and purples of the Roman world. Focusing on the archaeological remains of the only surviving pigment shop in ancient Rome, join us on a colourful journey from dangerous extraction to elusive transaction!

Water, water, everywhere...but how much of it can we drink?  In this episode, Chelsea and Melissa chat with Dr. Mark Locicero about Roman drainage systems in the ancient North African town of Volubilis (modern Morocco) and the Italian port city of Ostia. Find out how ancient Mediterranean people controlled and accessed clean drinking water and how that differed based on status, class, and location. In this episode we explore issues that are still very relevant to our lives today, including global water shortages, waste, and inequality, through a discussion about how archaeologists interpret the "invisible footprint" of ancient water.

What do our choices say about who we are? In this episode, Dr. Blair Fowlkes Childs joins Chelsea and Melissa to talk about clothing, status, dress, identity, preservation, commemoration, and cultural heritage! Focusing on art historical analyses of ancient funerary portraits from Palmyra (modern Syria), we explore memory and permanence, and dive into issues of protecting our collective past for the future.

In this episode, Dr. Liana Brent joins Chelsea and Melissa to talk about the archaeological remains of burials in Roman Italy at the ancient cemetery of Vagnari. Find out how archaeologists and anthropologists discover information about the real lives of ancient people through their commemorative practices, funerary rituals, and graves.

In the Season 2 premiere episode, Dr. Elizabeth Greene joins Chelsea and Melissa to talk about the archaeological remains of Roman shoes from the site of Vindolanda on Hadrian's Wall in present-day England. Why do shoes survive here, and what can they tell us about the men, women, and children who lived at this military fort hundreds of years ago? Listen to find out!

Join your Season 1 host, Dr. Chelsea Gardner, as she welcomes new co-host Dr. Melissa Funke for an introduction to the second season of the Peopling the Past podcast!

This season, we'll take listeners on a journey through under-explored aspects of archaeology, history, material culture and everyday life in the ancient Roman world, from Egypt to Italy, Syria to England, Morocco to Turkey, and more!

Follow us on our website, https://peoplingthepast.com, on Twitter @peoplingthepast with #peoplingpodcast, on our Instagram at peoplingthepast, and on our Facebook page Peopling the Past. 

In this episode, Sanchita Balachandran joins us to speak about the sensory experience of ancient potters and painters, her experimental archaeology project at Johns Hopkins, and the underdrawings on Greek painted pottery.