7 episodes
A History of the Caribbean in 100 Objects Alice Samson and Angus Mol
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- Society & Culture
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4.1 • 14 Ratings
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This is a podcast about the rich history of the cultures and societies of the Caribbean told through objects from the earliest period to modern times.
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Episode 18 - Currency from Redonda
We talk about real and totally not April Foolish Redondan coins. Although as with any joke, if you carry on for too long it becomes difficult to distinguish fact from fiction, and this particular one has been running for over 100 years! Will Alice and Angus make it out the labyrinth of kings, boobies and guano that is the island of Redonda? Listen to this episode of aHotC in 100 Objects!
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Episode 17- A Cuban Idol
We’re back! This time we are featuring two Cuban idols: the Idolo del Tabaco and Fidel Castro. Both this object and leader are symbols of larger historical processes that have some positive aspects but are also deeply problematic. Care to find out what happens if Alice and Angus try to be topical and political? (Spoiler: they end up releasing the topical episode a couple of months after the fact.) Want to know how you can smoke yourself to the top, why hammocks and cigars are a historical combo, or how the Maya 20 day-count has a big influence on one of the hardest to kick habits of today? Listen to this all new episode of A History in the Caribbean in 100 Objects!
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Episode 16 - A Hurricane
We start out with Alice chatting about the weather and Angus apologizing for one of his very rude namesakes. Beware though: the rest of the episode is going to be much more volatile as we discuss Caribbean hurricanes and objects related to them.
Why does the cave painting found by Alice and her team on Isla Mona look like a person at a dance rave? What did people do in the past when they were hit by a hurricane? Find out this and more in this week's episode of aHotC in 100 Objects.
Please consider making a donation to the Haiti Support Group as a show of solidarity with the people of Haiti who have been hit by Hurricane Matthew: http://haitisupportgroup.org/ -
Episode 15 - A Hutía Mandible
The special item on the menu today is Hutía. This fluffy animal is about the size of a cat, with teeth the size of toothpicks. Aside from being the largest land mammal in the Caribbean islands, and being cute as bunnies, many people in the past as well as today also consider them to be highly edible. It seemed only fair that one of them decided to return the favor and take a big bite out of the leg of Angus his sister. Want to know the full story behind this Hutía attack and find out more about the complex relations these animals have with us humans, listen to this episode of A History of the Caribbean in 100 Objects!
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Episode 14 - A Bat-Shaped Vomit Spatula
Alice and Angus go batsh*t crazy over this carved, bone object. But what do bats have to do with the ghosts of the dead, vomit, spiritual assaults, and archaeologists running away screaming like little girls? Find out in this spooohoooky Halloween episode of a HotC in 100 Objects!
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Episode 13 — The Pigorini Zemie
We're back! After a nice long summer break, Alice and Angus are once again ready to talk you through what is undoubtedly one of the most fascinating of Caribbean objects: the Pigorini Zemie.
What is a Pigorini? What is a Zemie? What does this have to do with Rome and rhinos? If you want to know, we kindly invite you to strap on your object-powered, time-travelling goggles and explore this episode of a History of the Caribbean in 100 Objects!
Customer Reviews
KEEP GOING!
We’ve got 82 objects left by my count! I really, really love this. I hope you’ll hit on something from the Caymans (my favorites) and some of the islands whose names I may not even know. I’ll be waiting!
Promising stuff
Archaeologists Alice Samson and Angus Mol use various artifacts to introduce listeners to aspects of Caribbean archaeology, ethnology, and history. This podcast is still in its early days at time of review, so there are rough spots and awkward moments, but I’m hoping for many more episodes. The tone is conversational - a far cry from the authoritative narration of Neil MacGregor’s namesake program - and the format has the potential to be more accessible as well as more distracting. So far, one host often plays dumb in order to give the other host an opening to explain the significance of an object, but the format might also be used to make the ambiguities of historical interpretation explicit. Both hosts are engaging, and the program is very informative (speaking as a “layperson” to the region). I’m particularly grateful for the fact that the program’s range forces it to move beyond today’s regionalisations, i.e. it looks at the Spanish and Anglo-Caribbean together (and beyond), in the context appropriate to each object.
There are, in general, too few podcasts about the Caribbean, and Drs. Samson and Mol make a welcome and serious addition here. I’m looking forward to 94 more installments.