logo
episode-header-image
Sep 2025
1h 43m

Conversations: Joining the Vestal Virgin...

Liv Albert
About this episode

Liv speaks with Peta Greenfield (aka the Partial Historian's Dr. G) about the HORRORS of ancient Rome's Vestal Virgins, one of the most disturbing religious practices. This chat is as fascinating as it is disturbing... But that's pretty standard for Rome. Find more from the Partial Historians.

Submit your question for the next Q&A via email or a voice note. Get ad-free episodes and so, so much more, by subscribing to the Oracle Edition at patreon.com/mythsbaby

CW/TW: far too many Greek myths (and history) involve assault. I try to provide direct warnings when there is reference to anything with overtly traumatic themes but be aware that Greek mythology regularly features assault, death, and many other potentially triggering events.

Attributions and licensing information for music used in the podcast can be found here: mythsbaby.com/sources-attributions.


Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Up next
Today
RE-AIR: Not With a Bang, but a Whimper, the Collapse of the Bronze Age Mediterranean
This episode originally aired in April 2024 during our series on the Bronze Age Collapse. A brief look at the causes behind the societal collapse of the Bronze Age Mediterranean. Help keep LTAMB going by subscribing to Liv's Patreon for bonus content!CW/TW: far too many Greek myt ... Show More
46m 23s
Feb 27
Liv Reads Homer: The Odyssey (A Modern Translation!) Part 2
Liv reads Book 3 of Homer's Odyssey, translated by Ian Johnston. This modern translation is used with immense gratitude to translator Ian Johnston and Vancouver Island University. Submit questions and prompts for future Odyssey readings at mythsbaby.com/questions and get ad-free ... Show More
55m 45s
Feb 24
Men Fear What They Cannot Command or Control, the Husband-Slaying Lemnian Women
Just a casual, not at all timely, look at the myth of women taking revenge on their abusers and oppressors. For funsies. Check out the next group trip through Thalassa Journeys. Submit your question for the next Q&A via email or a voice note. Get ad-free episodes and so, so much ... Show More
49m 45s
Recommended Episodes
Sep 2025
604. Greek Myths: Sex, Drugs & Tragedy (Part 3)
Who was Dionysus, the son of Zeus, and Greek god of ecstasy, revelry and madness? Why was he so central to the ancient Greeks? What is the story of the Bacchae, the play in which a young man is ripped apart by the handmaidens of the goddess Artemis? What did it mean to be a Bacch ... Show More
1h 4m
Sep 2025
293. The Gaza Erotic Literature Festival: Byzantine Gaza (Part 3)
How did Gaza become a centre of learning and festivals during the Byzantine era? Who was St. Porphyrius of Gaza, and why did he destroy pagan temples in the city? Why is the Early Christian period considered a Golden Age for Gaza? Anita and William are joined by Peter Sarris, Pro ... Show More
42m 22s
Sep 2025
History of Ancient Rome, Part 1 of 2 - The Republic
This sleepy story about the History of Ancient Rome is the first of two parts, because there were too many things to say for one single episode. The next part about the end of the Republic and the Empire will be out soon. In this episode, I tell you about the origins of Rome, its ... Show More
1h 19m
May 2025
100: Mailbag: An Embarrassment of Riches
<p>Abby, Patrick, and Dan mark one hundred episodes of Ordinary Unhappiness! They start by looking back on the show’s run so far, and what they’ve gotten from engaging with psychoanalysis as a living body of knowledge, as a corpus of classic texts, as a way of seeing the world, a ... Show More
1h 30m
Mar 2025
926. Oral Storytelling Traditions and the Mental Health Benefits of Listening to Podcasts ☀️🎧
<p>The other day I was thinking about how podcasts must be good for your mental health, and how this could be connected to the tradition of collective oral communication which was the first form of mass media in most human civilisations, and how this has been central to human psy ... Show More
2h 3m
Jan 2019
Animal Facts Part 1: The Blowhole, Cow Tipping and Much, Much More
In this episode of The Brain Food Show, we start by looking at a rather fascinating fact about dogs and cats that you probably didn’t know. Next we discuss Wix! Go to https://www.wix.com/go/brainfood to get started on your website today! Check out our website at https://brainfoo ... Show More
57m 42s
Jul 2016
50 Othello
One of Shakespeare’s four great tragedies, The Tragedy of Othello, the Moor of Venice (ca. 1603) is perhaps the most difficult of them to watch. The malevolent Iago, viewed by some as evil incarnate, has been infuriating audiences for centuries – legend has it that at one perform ... Show More
34m 30s
Nov 2024
13x22: Gore Orphanage
Stories in this episode: Winter 2014 Unknown Attacker | According-Rhubarb715 (0:41)My Creepy Paper Route Customers | buildabearwifeswap (6:46) He Threatened to Kill Me | PowderFresh (12:45) Creepy Happenings from 1969-70 | whorton59 (15:43) Narrowly Avoided Being Murdered | Luke ... Show More
57m 1s