The Tel

Oct 26 2024 22 ep. 48 mins 31
The Tel Podcast artwork

An Archaeology podcast featuring interviews with archaeologists, anthropologists, historians, and classicists. All united by a love of ancient history and prehistory. Hosted by Sebastian Wetherbee, a professional archaeologist, caver, climber, and antiquarian.

  History  Education  Science
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Trevor J Wallace: The Menorca Shipwreck Project (Underwater Archaeology in the Balearic Islands)

Oct 26 2024 38 mins  
In this interview, international filmmaker and explorer Trevor Wallace tells me about the Menorca Shipwreck Project, an ongoing excavation of a series of shipwrecks in the Balearic Islands of Spain.

Briana Doering: Ancient Migrations from Alaska to the Southwest

Sep 23 2024 42 mins  
In this conversation, we focus on one research topic: the Dene Transition, a pivotal moment of change more than a thousand years ago, when people speaking Na-Dene languages, such as the modern Navajo and Comanche migrated out of Alaska, the Yukon, and British Columbia, eventually settling as far south as the border of Mexico.

Kirk Freudenburg: The Cinematic Art of Virgil's World

Apr 29 2024 40 mins  
Yale classicist Kirk Freudenburg discusses the epic poems of the ancient world. From the Iliad to the Aeneid.

Gino Caspari: Exploration on the Eurasian Steppe and Beyond

Mar 04 2024 38 mins  
In this episode, I speak with Dr. Gino Caspari, an Explorers Club fellow and expert in the archaeology of the ancient Eurasian Steppe. Gino uses satellite imagery, LiDAR, and other forms of remote sensing paired with ambitious field surveys to discover new ancient sites. Check him out on Instagram @ginocaspari

Wei-Cheng Lin: Stories of a Sacred Mountain in Medieval China

Oct 22 2023 44 mins  
Art historian Dr. Wei-Cheng Lin and I discuss the arrival of Buddhism in ancient and early medieval China. We track the emergence of a major sacred site called Mount Wutai, discuss the symbolism of the mountains in Chinese history, and much more.

Morag Kersel: Looters, Tourists, and Archaeologists in the Holy Land

Oct 12 2023 41 mins  
Dr. Morag Kersel and I discuss the ethics of archaeology, including the challenges posed by looting, the illegal antiquities trade, and the curation crisis. We focus on these issues in Israel, Jordan, and Palestine, through the lens of Dr. Kersel's archaeological and ethnographic research.

Brian Bauer: At the Edge of the Wari Empire

Sep 17 2023 40 mins  
In this episode, Dr. Bauer tells me about his work studying a remote outpost of the Wari Empire, an enigmatic civilization that preceded the Inca in Andean prehistory. We discuss imperial expansion, social hierarchy, burials, and more.

David Paradis: War and Honor in Medieval England

Sep 02 2023 70 mins  
In this episode, David Paradis joins me to discuss the legacies of early medieval feuding and honor cultures. We examine how those forces shaped England, and Europe more broadly, across the middle ages.

Adrian Chase: Mapping Ancient Maya Cities

May 31 2023 59 mins  
In this episode, Dr. Adrian Chase takes us on a deep dive into the process of mapping and understanding ancient Maya cities, how the Maya shaped the natural world around them, and how studying ancient urbanism can enrich our understanding of modern cities.

Catherine Kearns: Unearthing Iron Age Cyprus

Apr 07 2023 39 mins  
A fascinating conversation on one of the lesser-known regions in the ancient Mediterranean. Dr. Kearns talks about her fieldwork studying archaic Cyprus. We talk about the rural landscapes of the Iron Age world, and why it's important to look beyond palaces and temples to the countryside, where most of the ancients lived their lives.