The Tel

Robert Kelly: The Fifth Beginning

In this episode, I speak with Dr. Robert Kelly, an expert in prehistoric archaeology and the study of ancient hunter-gatherers. The topic of the day is his book, The Fifth Beginning: What Six Million Years of Human History Can Tell Us About Our Future.

Todd Surovell: The Overkill Hypothesis

In this episode Dr. Todd Surovell lays out the case for the Overkill Hypothesis: the claim that ice age hunters triggered a wave of megafaunal extinctions as they entered the New World. 

Catherine Steidl: Ancient Greek Colonies and Mediterranean Migrations

In this episode I speak with Dr. Catherine Steidl. Dr. Steidl is a Scholar in residence at the Benson Center for the Study of Western Civilization, at the University of Colorado, Boulder. Having earned her PhD from Brown University’s institute for Archaeology and the Ancient World in 2018, she is an expert in the archaeology of the ancient mediterranean. In particular, her work has been focused on the emergence of Greek colonies in the archaic period, from Ionia to the shores of Spain and France. We discuss the intermingling of Greek colonial communities with local populations, and the way ancient migrations can help inform modern social issues, among other things. Show notes and citations are available on my website!

Spencer Pelton: Out of Africa and Into the Ice

Wyoming State Archaeologist Spencer Pelton tells me about his research on how anatomically modern humans colonized the globe. We also talk about paleoindian archaeology, ancient ochre mines, ethnography in Mongolia, cave archaeology, and more. 

James Johnson: Uncovering the Ancient Pastoralists of the Bronze Age Steppe

In this episode I speak with Dr. James Johnson, an archaeologist and expert in the ancient western Eurasian steppe. Tune in next time for more interviews on archaeology, ancient history, and prehistory. 

Molly Herron: Mammoth Ivory and Big Game Hunting in the Ice Age

In this episode, I speak with my friend Molly Herron. She specializes in the archaeology of pleistocene North America, and is interested in the relationship between ancient humans and megafauna. We discuss her research identifying ivory at mammoth kill/scavenge sites, and her ongoing reexamination of the Colby Mammoth Site.