Archaeology Books for Fun

About Archaeology Books for Fun

Archaeology Books for Fun is a twice-monthly podcast and book club where archaeologists Barbara and Tristan dig into books that aren't drier than dirt. Drawing on over 40 years of combined experience, they explore ancient civilizations, archaeological mysteries, "lost" cities, and popular myths; from the illicit artifact trade to ancient aliens and Atlantis, high-tech LiDAR discoveries to the occasional murder mystery. A good fit for history, science, and true crime fans. Also great book club material. Winner of the 2024 Tallahassee Trust for Historic Preservation Education Award.

Publisher

Florida Public Archaeology Network - North Central

Category

history

Language

en

Explicit

No

First episode

12 Sept 2022

Latest episode

15 Oct 2026

Latest episodes

68 episodes in the feed.

1. 

   15 Oct 2026

   666 Convinced Him He Was a Reincarnated Egyptian | Spooky Archaeology, 2 of 4 | Aleister Crowley, King Tut’s Curse, & Atlantis

   How did a museum catalog number convince a man he was a reincarnated Egyptian? In Part 2 of Spooky Archaeology: Myth and the Science of the Past by Jeb J. Card, Tristan and Barbara talk about chapters 4 and 5. They discuss how hieroglyphs, mummies and lost civilizations like Atlantis became magnets for Victorian occultism and pop culture myths. Along the way they meet King Tut’s curse, Martian meteorite messages, the Roswell hieroglyphs, and the 1932 film that invented the movie archaeologist. They also get into the darker side of how myth-making has turned archaeology into a tool for nationalism. A must-listen for anyone who loves mummy movies, Victorian weirdness, or wondering why archaeology attracts so many strange ideas. GIVEAWAY: We're drawing for a copy of Where the Moon Stands Still signed by author James W. Graham. Everyone subscribed to our newsletter by October 31 is entered.Subscribe here: https://bit.ly/4rNzqM8 WHAT WE COVER IN THIS EPISODE Egyptian hieroglyphs seemed mystical until they were translated, and the texts turned out to be mostly mundane records of kings and harvests. Aleister Crowley saw the Stele of Revealing in the Cairo Museum, and its catalog number of 666 convinced him he had lived a past life in Egypt. Martian meteorite “messages” turned out to be sandstone and a newspaper hoax used for self-promotion. The Roswell hieroglyphs may have been decorative tape on an Air Force balloon train built to detect Soviet atomic tests. The Mummy (1932) gave film its first archaeologist archetypes, and Tristan and Barbara pick the one they’d want to play. King Tut’s curse grew from an exclusive media deal with The Times of London to what it is today with the help from Arthur Conan Doyle and plenty of rival newspapers. Atlantis filled real gaps in early archaeology, until radiocarbon dating helped dismantle “collapsed proto-history.” Archaeology as a tool for nationalism, from Napoleon’s expeditions in Egypt to Heinrich Himmler and the Nazis. Why archaeology attracts mysteries, and how this book is changing the way Barbara talks with the public about Atlantis and “artifact” rocks. ABOUT THE BOOK Spooky Archaeology: Myth and the Science of the Past by archaeologist Jeb J. Card (University of New Mexico Press) traces how archaeology and the supernatural have shaped each other, from Victorian occultists and mummy curses to ancient aliens and Atlantis. It’s a dense but rewarding read that’s especially fun if you like quirky historical figures, early Hollywood, or the history of ideas. RESOURCES & LINKS Our website (including Part 1 of Spooky Archaeology): https://bit.ly/4AMDhNC Newsletter, with Pass the Trowel guided questions for chapters 4–5 and Tristan’s notes on Crowley and British Wicca: https://bit.ly/4rNzqM8 Frauds, Myths, and Mysteries, Part 1: https://bit.ly/4d8Gtcg Our interview with Jim Graham, author of Where the Moon Stands Still: https://bit.ly/4B1x0xM Support the show: https://www.fpan.us/give/ COMING UP NEXT Spooky Archaeology, Part 3: chapters 6–8, drops on November 1. Read along with us and check the newsletter for guided questions. #archaeologybooksforfun #SpookyArchaeology #AleisterCrowley

2. 

   8 Oct 2026

   The Night a Meteor Crossed the Moonrise | Where the Moon Stands Still Author Interview | James W. Graham, Octagon Earthworks & Ancient Astronomy

   What's it like to watch the moon rise over a 2,000-year-old lunar observatory, and see a meteor streak across the sky? In this special episode of Archaeology Books for Fun, Tristan talks with James W. Graham, author of Where the Moon Stands Still: Revealing the Cosmic Genius of Ohio's Indigenous Earthworks. They discuss how a journalist came to tell the story of the Newark Earthworks, a Hopewell site that tracks the moon's 18.6-year cycle like an American Stonehenge, why it took decades for those lunar alignments to be accepted, and what's changed since the golf course finally left. A must-listen for anyone interested in archaeoastronomy, ancient astronomy, Indigenous heritage, and why historic preservation laws matter right now. Want a signed copy? Subscribe to our free newsletter for a chance to win one of two signed copies of Where the Moon Stands Still: https://bit.ly/4rNzqM8 WHAT WE COVER IN THIS EPISODE: How a career journalist came to write about Ohio's earthworks, and why he wanted to give the story a human face. Learning the archaeology as an outsider, through interviews with Ray Hively, Bob Horn, and Ohio archaeologist Brad Lepper. Why Hively and Horn's 1982 discovery of the Octagon's lunar alignments took a decade to get noticed, and why even they still question their own results. Archaeoastronomy catching on in the 1980s, including the Sun Dagger at Chaco Canyon, and why solar alignments were easier for people to accept than lunar ones. How Graham approached the Horns' adoption of two Native American children, and why it needed its own chapter. The Octagon Earthworks today: the golf course is gone, and the site is now a public park you can visit any time. Watching the moonrise over the Octagon in 2023 alongside Chief Glenna Wallace, with about 200 people and one meteor. Section 106 and historic preservation: why streamlining these laws means sites can be destroyed before anyone knows they're there. FPAN connection: Barbara, listening in this time, was recently in Washington, D.C., talking with members of Congress about these same preservation issues. ABOUT THE BOOK: Where the Moon Stands Still: Revealing the Cosmic Genius of Ohio's Indigenous Earthworks by James W. Graham. Graham spent his career in journalism, public affairs, and public policy, and is also the author of Victura: The Kennedys, a Sailboat, and the Sea. Where the Moon Stands Still is one of our favorite books we've covered on the podcast. RESOURCES & LINKS: Sign up for the newsletter for a chance to win one of two signed copies of Where the Moon Stands Still: https://bit.ly/4rNzqM8 James W. Graham's website, including upcoming talks: https://www.jameswgraham.com/ The first episode in our "Where the Moon Stands Still" series: https://bit.ly/3VXrkEJ Where the Moon Stands Still at Ohio State University Press: https://bit.ly/3UPWSfq Hopewell Ceremonial Earthworks (UNESCO World Heritage): https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/1689/ Support the show: https://www.fpan.us/give/ COMING UP NEXT: Our next full episode comes out October 15, continuing Spooky Archaeology. #archaeologybooksforfun #WhereTheMoonStandsStill #NewarkEarthworks

3. 

   1 Oct 2026

   We Want to Go to Goblin Hill! | Spooky Archaeology, 1 of 4 | Bigfoot, King Arthur, & Ley Lines

   Why did the Anglo-Saxons look at ancient monuments and name them Elf Burrow and Goblin Hill? And why does that make us want to visit? In this episode of Archaeology Books for Fun, archaeologists Barbara and Tristan begin Spooky Archaeology: Myth and the Science of the Past by Jeb J. Card, a surprisingly funny book about how folklore, the occult, and archaeology have been tangled together from the start. They dig into where Bigfoot really came from, the monks who "found" King Arthur's grave at Glastonbury, and how ley lines went from drawing lines on a map to tracking UFOs. A must-listen for anyone curious about folklore, pseudoarchaeology, and how myths about the past get made. WHAT WE COVER IN THIS EPISODE: Goblin Hill and Elf Burrow: how people mythologize ancient sites they no longer have a connection to, and how those myths encourage looting. Folklore's original fairies and elves, not Tolkien's but the ones who steal children, and the burial-mound treasure behind Beowulf's dragon. Where Bigfoot came from: roots in Pacific Northwest Native traditions, and how far today's "I Believe" t-shirt version has drifted from them. King Arthur's grave at Glastonbury Abbey, "discovered" after a fire, and why the Holy Grail legend is closer to 900 years old than 2,000. Frederick Bligh Bond, who rebuilt Glastonbury Abbey with automatic writing, dug where a dowsing rod pointed, and joined the Ghost Club. Ley lines, Stonehenge, Avebury, and the druids: what these ideas actually started as, and how they got wrapped in myth. A what-archaeologists-actually-think moment: a reported one in eight archaeology instructors believed in dowsing in the 1980s, which is harder to excuse than the public believing in Atlantis. A four-year anniversary callback: while Bligh Bond was dowsing for gold, Basil Brown was excavating Sutton Hoo about 200 miles away, the subject of our very first book, The Dig. Florida and regional connection: how public archaeologists can answer questions about myths and folklore without dismissing the people asking. ABOUT THE BOOK: Spooky Archaeology: Myth and the Science of the Past by Jeb J. Card (University of New Mexico Press). Card is an archaeologist who teaches anthropology at Miami University in Ohio, and his book traces how archaeology has contributed to legends about ghosts, psychics, curses, and the occult since the discipline began, with a much drier sense of humor than you'd expect. RESOURCES & LINKS: Our new website: https://podcast.page/websites/archaeology-books-for-fun/ Sign up for the free newsletter: https://archaeologybooksforfun.substack.com/subscribe We have received two signed copies of Where the Moon Stands Still from author James W. Graham, so subscribe to the newsletter to be in the raffle! Episode 1 of the Frauds, Myths and Mysteries series (Spotify): https://bit.ly/4d8Gtcg The first episode of the podcast covering The Dig (Spotify): https://bit.ly/46SpJm4 Support the show: https://www.fpan.us/give/ COMING UP NEXT: On October 15, we're reading chapters 4 and 5 of Spooky Archaeology. And would you buy dowsing rods at the gift shop? Tell us in the comments. #archaeologybooksforfun #SpookyArchaeology #Folklore

Reach and audience

Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.

YouTube views

104,463

Score snapshot 15 Sept 2025

Apple Podcasts (US)

5.0 / 5

10 ratings

Spotify

5.0 / 5

10 ratings

Podcast Authority Score: 51 / 100

A composite of feed quality, social presence, YouTube performance and engagement. Read the methodology.

Quality

39

Social presence

0

YouTube

86

Engagement

71

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