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Ancient World on TV
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The Ancient World on Television (AWOTV) lists programs dealing with the ancient world on PBS, A&E, The History Channel, Discovery Channel, and numerous other channels. These listings are compiled on a weekly basis by David Meadows.
Thursday, November 19
6.30 p.m. | HINT | Crypts, Coffins and Corpses
The manner in which a society deals with the dead reveals a great deal about how it views life. From mummification and cannibalism to cremation, cryonics, and interments in space, our final tributes to loved ones have been as varied and bizarre as the methods used to treat the deceased body. Starting at the San Francisco College of Mortuary Science, where we view a modern embalming, we'll turn back in time and travel the world to witness the many historical methods of dealing with the deceased.
Friday, November 20
6.00 p.m. | HINT | Ancient Monster Hunters
One-breasted female warriors; the one-eyed, man-eating Cyclops; the ferocious griffin, part bird, part lion. Were these creatures, celebrated by the ancient Greeks and immortalized by Homer, something more than myth? Join the hunt with some of today's leading paleontologists as we explore newly-translated evidence and examine remains that may link the Greek classical age with Earth's prehistoric past. New data suggests that the ancients searched for, excavated, measured, and displayed massive fossils.
7.00 p.m. | HISTC | BATTLES BC | Judgement Day at Marathon
A brilliant defensive strategy based on knowledge of the terrain, tough troops and a history-making runner.
8.00 p.m. | DCIVC | Bone Detectives: Floating Cemetery
Scotty delves into an ancient mystery on the remote island nation of Palau in Micronesia, where archaeologists have discovered the last remaining evidence of a murder: a 3,000-year-old skull, severed from its body.
8.00 p.m. | HINT | Lost Worlds Knights Templar
They defended the Holy Land through bloodshed and prayer. Founded in the 12th century, these Christian warrior monks reigned supreme for nearly 200 years before suffering a spectacular fall from grace. Tried for heresy, they were disbanded and their Grand Master burned at the stake. We'll search behind the legend for their lost world. We recreate the city they knew as Tortosa--now hidden among modern homes in the Syrian city of Tartus. We reveal secrets of their headquarters at Temple Mount in Jerusalem, with magnificent underground vaults that could stable 1,000 horses. And we visit the circular church in London built to resemble the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem and the site of the Templar's mysterious initiation rites. We bring to life the hilltop fortress that Lawrence of Arabia called "the finest castle in the world", and return to the Mediterranean island where the Knights Templar made their last stand against Moslem enemies.
8.00 p.m. | NG | Egyptian Secrets of the Afterlife
8.30 p.m. | HISTU | Ancients Behaving Badly: Julius Caesar
The ruler whose ego was as big as his empire declares himself dictator of Rome for life--turning his allies to enemies in the process.
9.00 p.m. | NG | The First Jesus?
10.00 p.m. | DCIVC | Mysteries Of The Dead: Frojel Vikings - Battle Of Visby
Archaeologists discover a lost port on the island of Gotland that was once home to the Vikings; at Visby, the site of a 1361 invasion, researchers find mass graves with inexplicable differences between them.
10.00 p.m. | HISTC | CITIES OF THE UNDERWORLD III | Tomb of the Lost Mummies - Cairo
Although the city of Cairo was founded in 969 AD, the desert sands stretch back nearly four millennia. From the first ancient Egyptian pharaohs and their thirst for power, to invading Persians, Greeks, Romans, Arabs and Turks looking to conquer this mighty empire, modern Cairo's foundation is scarred by thousands of years of violent fighting, awesome feats of engineering, and crazed emperors.
10.00 p.m. | HISTU | The History of Sex: Ancient Civilizations
In this hour, we study sex in the ancient world--from Mesopotamians, who viewed adultery as a crime of theft, to Romans, who believed that squatting and sneezing after sex was a reliable method birth control. We also look at revealing Egyptian and Greek practices--from the origins of dildos, to intimate relations between Egyptian gods and goddesses, to the use of crocodile dung as a contraceptive.
11.00 p.m. | HISTC | GO DEEP | Ancient Egyptian Boats
Who built the first ship? Experts Pearce Paul Creasman and Dr. Zahi Hawass embark on an investigation into the origins of ancient sea-faring that will take them from the Nile River to Greek Islands.
11.00 p.m. | HISTU | Ancients Behaving Badly: Caligula
This young Roman emperor had a fearsome reputation as a sadist, a murderer...and a raving lunatic.
Saturday, November 21
4.00 p.m. | DCIVC | Bone Detectives: Floating Cemetery
Scotty delves into an ancient mystery on the remote island nation of Palau in Micronesia, where archaeologists have discovered the last remaining evidence of a murder: a 3,000-year-old skull, severed from its body.
5.00 p.m. | DCIVC | Ancestors Of Ancient Rome: The Etruscans
Extraordinary finds in northern Italy reveal the startling story of Europe's original hedonists and first superpower; the fun-loving Etruscans invented two spectator sports - gladiatorial combat and chariot racing.
Sunday, November 22
9.00 p.m. | HISTU | Cowboys & Outlaws: The Real Wyatt Earp
The fabled Wyatt Earp, credited with spreading law and order in the Wild West, was in reality a complex character who straddled both sides of the law. Throughout most of his career he rarely used a pistol to kill a man, but when his little brother is shot, he snaps and embarks on a bloody vendetta. This action seals his place in history... but obscures the real man behind the myth.
10.00 p.m. | HISTU | Cowboys & Outlaws: The Real McCoy
At the dawn of the cowboy era, a mysterious disease threatens to derail the dreams of Texas cattlemen and their cowboys. One man vows to find a cure--and get fabulously rich at the same time. In a bold gamble, Joe McCoy builds a city in the middle of nowhere: Abilene--the first "cow town"--whose legacy would reshape the West.
| CHANNEL GUIDE |
| A&E | The Arts and Entertainment Channel (cable) |
| DCIVU | Discovery Civilizations (U.S. Cable)* |
| DCIVC | Discovery Civilization (Canadian Cable) |
| DISCU | Discovery Channel (U.S. Cable) |
| DISCC | Discovery Channel (Canadian Cable) |
| DTC | Discovery Times Channel (U.S. Cable) |
| HBO | Home Box Office (cable) |
| HINT | History International (U.S. Cable) |
| HISTU | The History Channel (U.S. Cable) |
| HISTC | History Television (Canadian Cable) |
| NGU | National Geographic Channel (U.S. Cable)* |
| PBS | Public Broadcasting System (U.S. National Schedule) |
| PBSU | PBS You (U.S. National Schedule) |
| TLC | The Learning Channel (cable) |
| SCI | The Science Channel (U.S. Cable) |
*n.b. Canadian versions of these two channels have recently been made available although the Canadian versions don't seem to be making their schedules available yet. For what it's worth, the Canadian version does seem to 'match up' in regards to ancient programming most of the time.
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