The Dirt Podcast

We return to Flores to visit our old friends Homo floresiensis, this time with a Very Special Guest in tow! In this excerpt from our Patreon episode, Grace Veatch (Emory University) walks us through her research at Liang Bua, and introduces us to the many, many things rat bones can tell us. But first, Anna and Amber want to fill you in on some VERY EXCITING developments.

If you thought we were experts, well, that's about to change. This week, Anna and Amber wade out into the great unknown-to-them of British history and discuss Richard III and the events that led to the excavation of his remains from a parking lot in Leicester, England. Plus, the secret to Richard III's perfectly aligned teeth, other rulers whose final resting places remain a mystery, and the curse of Tamerlane's tomb (but also, his great eyebrows). BONUS: The premiere of the "Amber Googles It" theme tune!

This week, we fake it 'til we make it, tackling four archaeological hoaxes. Even when things aren't what they seem...they aren't what they seem. What's the deal with that stone giant in some guy's field? How can that mummified Persian princess be neither Persian nor a princess? Did someone stumble upon the final resting place of Jesus' little brother? Did Vikings inhabit Oklahoma in the 11th century? No. No, they did not.

Breaking news: it's a bonus episode! We're sharing our bountiful harvest of news with the main feed this month, and in this snippet, Anna and Amber highlight Roman horse-sandals, human sacrifice at Tenochtitlán, and a dinner party with some very, very aged meat on the menu. Plus, a very special guest drops into the studio and scares the daylights out of Amber. Twice.

This week we're pushing our "um, actually" glasses up the bridge of our nose and busting some myths about archaeology. Was 30 the new 80 in the Paleolithic? Would someone from the Middle Ages be too short to ride a rollercoaster? Carbon dating is pretty precise, right? Can we tell if a skeleton is a lady? All this and more!

Vacation season is here, and Anna and Amber are island-bound: To the site of Liang Bua, Indonesia! Join them as they get to know Homo floresiensis, our diminutive extinct cousins in Flores, and discuss their place on our complicated, ever evolving human family tree. Plus, local lore about small, hairy cave-dwellers said to steal food and/or children, and a brief moment of Hobbit (TM) Drama.

Sink your teeth into this nutrient-dense episode, in which we discuss the recent discovery of bread(-like substances) in the Eastern Mediterranean from more than 14,000 years ago, and learn more about what one might actually have eaten in the Paleolithic. Plus, Anna tells us what we can learn from stuff stuck in your teeth, and we speculate wildly about Iberian vegan Neanderthals.

We POKE AROUND the subject of tattoos. What are the oldest ones? What do they mean? How were they made? This one gets under our skin.

We're steppin' out to talk about some of the oldest human footprints ever found in North America, Europe, and Africa. We encounter a giant sloth hunt, and Amber and Anna have a series of existential crises as we dive deeper and deeper into the depths of time. Worry not, though: despite a strange audio glitch that suggests otherwise, Anna is not recording from beyond the grave. #notallsloths

Bienvenue, and welcome to Le Dirt! This week, we discuss the discovery and translation of the Rosetta Stone. We brush off our best French accents, geek out over dead languages, and realize that we are very, very bad at pop culture references.

Support us on Patreon at https://www.patreon.com/thedirtpodcast for bonus episodes, extra content, and our undying gratitude!