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An expensive undertaking, all-out warfare is to be avoided in any age. When Homer’s Bronze Age boys went at it, they did so as individuals: warrior-chief against warrior-chief. Warriors of the 8th century, however, fought as a unit. This concept is a visual indicator of the societal shift from oligarchy to polis. Shown here is the 12th century Mycenaean “Warrior Vase” in contrast to the earliest known representation of warriors in hoplite formation on the Chigi vase (650-640 BCE). Who was this new kind of warrior? And what did it mean to be a “citizen”? Find out in this week’s podcast.

My gosh, I’ve pulled us all the way from Earth’s beginning & prehistory, into the age of written historical accounts. Finally, something we can sink our teeth into!