Sistory History

Welcome to season 4, episode 4!

Ever wonder what used to happen at Ancient Roman weddings? Well, wonder no longer...we´re here to enlighten you! Some of the things we´ll talk about will be very familiar - flowers, veils, priests, wine, even the odd rude joke. Some will be not so familiar... And here we´re in the realms of sacrificial sheep, omens-a-plenty and excessive walnut throwing.

We reveal all, with the help of these very illustrious wedding guests:

Seneca the Younger (maybe), "Octavia", Act IV from lines 693

Plutarch, "Roman Questions", 29

Gaius, "Institutiones", section 112

Catullus, extracts from "Poems", 61

Music credit goes to our resident composers: Phil Russell & Alice Morgan. You can find Alice on Instagram - missalicekeys.

Finally, if you like what you hear today then please don´t be shy! Feel free to like, rate, subscribe and share, as this helps new listeners to find us.

Blue sky: @sistoryhistory.bskysocial

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Email: [email protected]

Web: Sistory History | sensory history and podcast

© 2026 by Sistory History

Drinking games with a twist, speeches and ribbons. All the elements required for a fabulous party!

To celebrate the festive season, we bring you a special episode from the archives, all about the Ancient Greek symposium. Full of revelry, plus a few cautionary tales to help you keep it classy this Christmas...

Our sources are:

Plato, Symposium, 212d-213b

Xenophon, Symposium, 1.3-1.4

Plato, Symposium, 214a-d

Plato, Symposium, 176a-c

And here's a link for some extra reading:

Debauchery in ancient Athens - Why would someone want to go to a symposium? - Ancient

Music credit goes to our resident composers: Phil Russell & Alice Morgan. You can find Alice on Instagram - missalicekeys.

Finally, if you like what you hear today then please don´t be shy! Feel free to like, rate, subscribe and share, as this helps new listeners to find us.

Blue sky: @sistoryhistory.bskysocial

Instagram: sistoryhistory

Email: [email protected]

Web: Sistory History | sensory history and podcast

© 2025 by Sistory History

Welcome to season 4, episode 3!

And today we´re all about the comms. Letters, fire, flags, even a pigeon. Our good friend Pliny the Younger was lucky enough to have a book read to him most evenings at dinner. And Cicero was fastidious in ensuring that messengers were well fed to keep their energy, (and no doubt their enthusiasm...) topped up. So, there´s all sorts to talk about.

In this episode we´re communing with this lovely lot:

Pliny the Younger, "To Fuscus", Letters 9.36

Marcus Tullius Cicero, " Letters To Atticus" , 13.40

Marcus Tullius Cicero, "Letters To Atticus", 5.17

Polybius, "Fire Signalling", Histories book 10

Music credit goes to our resident composers: Phil Russell & Alice Morgan. You can find Alice on Instagram - missalicekeys.

Finally, if you like what you hear today then please don´t be shy! Feel free to like, rate, subscribe and share, as this helps new listeners to find us.

Blue sky: @sistoryhistory.bskysocial

Instagram: sistoryhistory

Email: [email protected]

Web: Sistory History | sensory history and podcast

© 2025 by Sistory History

Welcome to episode 2 of season 4!

We get up close and personal with Ancient Roman beauty products and it really is a tale of 2 halves. We´re very much on board with the gold dust, and have nothing against the burnt crushed nuts. We are however less keen on the unwashed sheep fleece, and I fear we must draw the line at the ashes of ass genitals... Which you´ll probably agree is a reasonable reaction.

Our sources for this episode are:

"To Galla", epigram 9.37, by Martial

"Ars Amatoria", lines 205-217, by Ovid

"Her Hair", Amores book 1.14, by Ovid

" Or Messalina?", Satire VI lines 115-122, by Juvenal

Music credit goes to our resident composers: Phil Russell & Alice Morgan. You can find Alice on Instagram - missalicekeys.

Finally, if you like what you hear today then don´t be shy! Please do take the time to like, rate, subscribe and share, as this helps new listeners to find us.

Blue sky: @sistoryhistory.bskysocial

Instagram: sistoryhistory

Email: [email protected]

Web: Sistory History | sensory history and podcast

© 2025 by Sistory History

Welcome back to Sistory History!

And we're kicking off season 4 in the proper Roman way with an episode about the salutatio, the early morning client-patron ritual that you should definitely not try out for yourself if you're in any way a fan of a lie-in...

Our sources (and guests) are:

"Commentariolum Petitionis", section IX, by Quintus Tullius Cicero

"To Gallus", epigram 10.82, by Martial

"De Brevitate Vitae", 14.3-14.4, by Seneca the Younger

"Satire 1", lines 95-99 & lines 132-136, by Juvenal

Music credit goes to our two resident composers: Phil Russell & Alice Morgan. You can find Alice on Instagram - missalicekeys.

Finally, if you like what you hear today then don't be shy! Please take the time to like, rate, subscribe and share, as this helps new listeners to find us.

Blue Sky: @sistoryhistory.bskysocial

Instagram: sistoryhistory

Email: [email protected]

Web: Sistory History | sensory history and podcast

© 2025 by Sistory History

Welcome to our third Kidstory episode! These episodes are dedicated to all budding historians and anyone studying history or desperate for some help with their history homework...

Today we explore Canterbury Roman Museum with our resident kidstorian Felix, and try out some typical tools that Romans would have used in their daily lives.

If you´d like to visit the museum then you can find everything you need to know here: Canterbury Roman Museum, Kent

Music credit goes to our resident composer Alice Morgan (you can find Alice on Instagram - missalicekeys).

If you like what you hear and don´t want to miss out on any future kidstories, then make sure you subscribe to Sistory History! And feel free to hit the like button and of course share with your friends.

Blue Sky: @sistoryhistory.bsky.social

Instagram: sistoryhistory

Email: [email protected]

Web: Sistory History | sensory history and podcast

© 2025 by Sistory History

Welcome to the final episode of our Londinium miniseries, where we consider Minerva, make-up and mixing bowls...

In June 2025 we visited Roman London´s Amphitheatre at Guildhall Yard. It´s a great place to lose yourself in for an hour or so - you can wander around the remains of the amphitheatre itself (unearthed in 1988), and view the artefacts found there during the excavations of the 1980s and 90s. We share our favourites with you here - follow the photos on our socials or website:

https://www.sistoryhistory.co.uk/post/photos-for-miniseries-londinium-iii-roman-london-s-amphitheatre

If you´re inspired to visit, all you need to know is here: Visit London's Roman Amphitheatre | City of London

If you enjoy the episode, you might enjoy these too:

Internet Archaeol. 42. Fletcher. The Egyptian Hair Pin: practical, sacred, fatal

Makeup and Beauty in Ancient Rome - by Crystal King

Kitchenalia: Roman Mortarium

Music credit goes to our resident composer Alice Morgan, (you can find Alice on Instagram - missalicekeys).

Finally, if you like what you hear then don´t be shy! Please do take the time to like, rate, subscribe and share, as this helps new listeners to find us.

Blue sky: @sistoryhistory.bsky.social

Instagram: sistoryhistory

Web: Sistory History | sensory history and podcast

Email: [email protected]

© 2025 by Sistory History

Welcome to episode 2 of our Londinium miniseries, in which we bring you lovely lamps and sensuous scents!

In May 2025 we visited the Crypt Museum at All Hallows Church by the Tower, to find out what it can tell us about Roman London. It´s a small but beautifully formed museum that houses some excellent artefacts from the period, as well as Saxon and 16th century finds. Here, we talk you through our favourites from the Roman selection. Photos are on our social media and website: Photos for Miniseries: Londinium II - All Hallows Church

If you´d like to visit the museum, check out their website here: ⁠Crypt Museum - All Hallows by the Tower

Music credit goes to our resident composer Alice Morgan, (you can find Alice on Instagram - missalicekeys).

Finally, if you like what you hear then don´t be shy! Please do take the time to like, rate, subscribe and share, as this helps new listeners to find us.

Blue Sky: @sistoryhistory.bsky.social

Instagram: sistoryhistory

Web: Sistory History | sensory history and podcast

Email: [email protected]

© 2025 by Sistory History

Welcome to episode 1 of our Londinium miniseries!

Where we consider the practicalities of naked initiation ceremonies, and Caroline delights us with her extensive collection of key facts... (Did you know that some Roman keys could fold up? And some were designed to break after one use!?!).

In April 2025 we visited the London Mithraeum to explore the excellent exhibition space and peruse the artefacts currently on display. The excavation of 2012-2014 yielded a huge array of over 14,000 finds, about 600 of which have been beautifully curated for visitors to enjoy. Here, we talk you through our favourites.

If you´d like to visit the London Mithraeum or find out more about the excavations, then try these links:

London Mithraeum

Lost rivers: The Walbrook | London Museum

Walbrook Discovery Programme | Explore and engage with MOLA's current archaeological findings along the banks of the City of London's hidden river the Walbrook

10 Facts About The Secret Roman Cult of Mithras | History Hit

Music credit goes to our resident composer Alice Morgan, (you can find Alice on Instagram - missalicekeys).

Finally, if you like what you hear then don´t be shy! Please do take the time to like, rate, subscribe and share, as this helps new listeners to find us.

Web: Sistory History | sensory history and podcast

X (Twitter): @sistoryhistory

Instagram: @sistoryhistory

Email: [email protected]

© 2025 by Sistory History