A swampy lagoon on the Adriatic coast of Italy was not a promising place for a city, but Venice grew from a collection of huts on spits of land to a glittering center of commerce and the heart of a maritime empire. Today, we explore the beginnings and rise of this fascinating city from late antiquity to the Black Death.
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Yesterday
Recent Discoveries in the Ancient Americas: Professor Shane Miller Returns
Every year, new archaeological discoveries claim to rewrite what we think we knew about the ancient Americas, but how much can we trust the initial reports we see? Professor Shane Miller, now of the University of Alabama, joins me again to place the White Sands footprints and oth ... Show More
52m 41s
Jan 1
Interview with Professor Tom Birkett on "Runes: A Concise History"
Runic writing carries connotations of magic and fantasy, but it was a widespread, useful, and long-lasting system of writing. Professor Tom Birkett has written a fantastic overview of runic writing that returns it to the real time and place in which it existed - Runes: A Concise ... Show More
42m 48s
Feb 2023
Venise, reine de l'Adriatique
<p>La Cité des doges, la Sérenissime, la reine de l'Adriatique, la cité des eaux... Les surnoms ne manquent pas pour parler de Venise. Cette ville extraordinaire, l'historien Bernard Doumerc lui a consacré plusieurs ouvrages, et notamment "Venise et son empire en Méditerranée, IX ... Show More
55m 5s
Nov 2022
The Great Lisbon Earthquake - Original
November 1st, 1755. A massive earthquake hits Lisbon, the capital city of Portugal, reducing half the city to rubble and killing over 50,000 people. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
19m 4s
Apr 2017
Episode #17: The Casino of the Spirits (Season 1, Episode 17)
Venice-- it's the most serene and beautiful city in Italy, and possibly the whole world. But Venice at night-- all darkened and quiet-- takes up the most space in my imagination. I seriously love the depictions of Venice as enigmatic, shadowy, and even dangerous. Without cars or ... Show More
28m 11s