Best Abbasid Podcasts (2025)

1
Abbasid Lusterware: How 9th-Century Baghdad Made Pottery Shine Like Gold 17:24

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2d ago17:24

17:24

In this late-night deep dive, we explore how Abbasid potters in 9th-century Baghdad and Basra invented lusterware — pottery that gleams like real gold and silver through secret kiln alchemy. We cover: The metallic magic of reduction firing and nanoparticles Influences from Sassanian silver and Byzantine enamels Why Harun al-Rashid gifted these to C…

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🖋️EP065 Ali Hammoud on the life and works of Jami (d. 1492 CE): End of an Era 24:05

5d ago24:05

24:05

A prolific poet, Jami, is the embodiment of the photo-Ottoman Bengal-to-Balkans cosmopolitan Sufi intellectual. Jami was born in 1414 near the border of modern day Iran and Afghanistan during the tail end of the era of the shadow Abbasid caliphs before the Ottoman claim to the Caliphate. He worked for the local Timurid court. And at the end of his …

1
The Islamic Cobalt Blue That Created Ming China’s Iconic Porcelain 13:18

2d ago13:18

13:18

In this late-night deep dive, we explore how the blue in your classic “Chinese” vase actually started in 9th-century Iraq. We examine into how Abbasid cobalt mastery traveled east via Mongol routes and birthed Yuan/Ming blue-and-white porcelain. We explore: Basra workshops and Persian cobalt mines Mongol Pax Mongolica trade explosion Reverse influe…

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How Tang & Song Porcelain Transformed Islamic and Global Ceramics 13:56

2d ago13:56

13:56

In the late-night deep dive, we explore how pristine Chinese porcelain from the Tang and Song dynasties traveled the Silk Road and Indian Ocean and sparked a ceramic revolution in Iraq and Europe. We dive into: The Belitung shipwreck treasure Samarra excavations full of Chinese shards How Islamic potters invented tin-glaze to copy that whiteness Th…

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🖋️EP064 Ali Hammoud on the life and works of Hafez (d. 1390 CE): Tongue of the Unseen 25:41

11d ago25:41

25:41

Regarded as the pinnacle of Persian literature, his works are a household item for Persian-speaking families and read during the Yalda winter solstice festival and Nowruz spring equinox festival. He was also widely known amongst European intellectuals, with even Engels mentioning him to Marx in a letter. Hafez lived in Shiraz under the waning Mongo…

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🖋️EP063 Ali Hammoud on the life and works of Saadi (d. 1292 CE): the Master 24:11

1M ago24:11

24:11

Abū Muḥammad Musharrif al-Dīn Muṣliḥ b. ʿAbd-Allāh, better known as Saadi is called simply as the Master in Persian for his place in classical Persian poetry. His Bustan and Gulistan takes pride of place in the canon of Islamic literary creations. Saadi was born in Shiraz 1210CE. He was alive during the Mongol sack of Baghdad in 1258 who took over …

1
🖋️EP062 Ali Hammoud on the life and works of Nizami Ganjavi (d. 1209 CE): the Romantic 26:05

2M ago26:05

26:05

Jamal ad-Dīn Abū Muḥammad Ilyās ibn-Yūsuf ibn-Zakkī better known as Nizami is considered the greatest romantic epic poet in Persian literature. His love story of Layla and Majnun inspired the Eric Clapton hit record of 1970, "Layla" and there are monuments of Nizami as far as Beijing and Rome. Nizami was born in the modern-day Republic of Azerbaija…

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🖋️EP061 Ali Hammoud on Attar of Nishapur (d. 1221CE): the Spirit of Persian Sufi Poetry 25:29

2M ago25:29

25:29

Farīd al-Dīn Abū Ḥamid Muḥammad ʿAṭṭār lived and died in Nishapur. Though he was little known beyond his city as a poet, his enduring legacy can perhaps be summarised by Rumi: Attar has roamed through the seven cities of love while we have barely turned down the first street. (1) Attar was born in Nishapur around 1145CE during the reign of Abbasid …

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🖋️EP060 Ali Hammoud on the life and works of Sanai (d. 1141): Poeta Doctus 25:00

3M ago25:00

25:00

Hakim Abul-Majd Majdūd ibn Ādam, better known as Sanai, was an influential poet of Sufism who was attached to the Ghaznavid court in modern day Afghanistan. His major work The Walled Garden of Truth has been an enduring classic. An adaption of his verses were quoted at the end of the 2017 Hollywood film The Shape of Water. Q1. Sanai was born 1080CE…

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🖋️EP059 Ali Hammoud on the life and works of Omar Khayyam (d. 1131CE) 25:29

7M ago25:29

25:29

Writing to his brother from prison in 1949, a young African American man opens his letter citing these lines from a medieval Persian poet: Indeed the Idols I have loved so long, Have done my credit in this World much Wrong: Have dropped my Glory in a shallow Cup, And sold my Reputation for a song The writer would later achieve acclaim as the civil …

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🖊️EP058 Ali Hammoud on the life and works of Nasir Khusraw (d. c.1088CE): The Proof 28:50

9M ago28:50

28:50

Born 1004CE in present-day Tajikistan then under control of the Ghaznavid dynasty, Abū Muʿīn al-Dīn Nasir Khusraw was an Ismaili convert and missionary who became better known for his poetry. To discuss with us today the life, works and legacy of Nasir Khusraw is Ali Hammoud. Ali Hammoud is a PhD candidate at Western Sydney University. He is broadl…

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🖊️EP057 Ali Hammoud on the life and works of Ferdowsi (d.1019CE): author of the epic Shahnameh 28:20

10M ago28:20

28:20

Born under the Samanid dyansty and living through the rule of the Ghaznavid dynasty in Tus located north Iran, Ferdowsi is author of the epic Shahnameh ("The Book of Kings") of 50,000 lines taking 30 years to compose. The work is of central importance in Persian heritage. Q1. Ferdowsi was born in 940CE and died around 1019CE at around 80 years old.…

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🖋EP056 Ali Hammoud on the life and works of Rudaki (d. 941): Father of Persian Poetry 27:54

1y ago27:54

27:54

Living under the Samanid dyansty in modern-day Tajikistan, Rudaki is considered the first of the great classical Islamic Persian poets and the father of Tajik literature. Despite being a celebrated, patronised court poet, he would fall into poverty near the end of his life dying blind and alone. To discuss with us today the life, works and legacy o…

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📖EP055 Faheem Hussain on Thomas Bauer's "A Culture of Ambiguity: An Alternative History of Islam" 1:13:23

1y ago1:13:23

1:13:23

Thomas Bauer's "A Culture of Ambiguity" stands out as one of the most important contributions to Islamic Studies in recent decades. First published in German in 2011, it wasn't until 2021 that it became available in English. Bauer's three decades of knowledge and expertise shine through in the work, which earned him the Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz Aw…

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💧EP054 GUEST EPISDODE (8/8) The Great Valens Aqueduct of Constantinople/ Istanbul 47:06

1y ago47:06

47:06

The longest aqueduct of the ancient world, the Valens aqueduct brought water to the capital of the eastern Roman empire: Byzantium or Constantinople, today known as Istanbul. Monumental sections of the aqueduct bridge still majestically stride across the city. In this episode we talk about the reasons for embarking on this colossal project, its dev…

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💧EP053 GUEST EPISDODE (7/8) Qanāts: Harvesting Water on the Edge of the Desert 57:17

1+ y ago57:17

57:17

In this episode we discuss what is perhaps the most famous and distinctive invention of Middle Eastern and North African hydraulic engineering is the qanāt (also known as foggaras, khettāras, and aflāj): an underground tunnel dug horizontally into a hillside to harvest water from the water table. Speakers: Majid Labbaf Khaneiki and Louise Rayne. Ma…

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💧EP052 GUEST EPISDODE (6/8) Water and the White Monastery: Water Management at a Single Site 51:58

1+ y ago51:58

51:58

It is often difficult to reconstruct the water infrastructure at historical sites due to recent building and patchy excavation and survival. In this episode we look at a site in which we can see a great deal of the water supply as a connected system, and how it developed over time: the great late antique White Monastery on the edge of the Egyptian …

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💧EP051 GUEST EPISODE (5/8) Toilets and Waste in Andalusia 38:49

1+ y ago38:49

38:49

You can't think about clean water without also thinking about removing dirty water and other waste. In this episode we take a deep dive into sewage (figuratively speaking) on the basis of excavations and documents that survive about cities in Muslim Spain in the Middle Ages. Speaker: Ieva Rèklaityte. Interviewer: Edmund Hayes. Ieva Reklaityte is an…

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💧EP050 GUEST EPISODE (4/8) The City on The Tigris: Baghdad, Drinking and Water Transport 49:08

1+ y ago49:08

49:08

Ep4. The City on The Tigris: Baghdad, Drinking and Water Transport Medieval Baghdad was probably home to 200,000 to 500,000 inhabitants. In this episode we look at how water functioned as the life blood of this great city, providing drink, but also transportation that supplied the city with food and connected it with trade routes in Indian Ocean an…

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💧EP049 GUEST EPISODE (3/8) The Beginnings of the Bathhouse in the Middle East, from Rome to Early Islam 1:04:19

1+ y ago1:04:19

1:04:19

The bathhouse is an iconic feature of the medieval middle eastern city up until the present. But how did this come to be? In this episode we look into the origins of bathing culture in the Middle East by going back to the Roman, late antique and early Islamic development of bathhouses. Speakers: Nathalie de Haan and Sadi Maréchal. Interviewer: Edmu…

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💧EP048 GUEST EPISODE (2/8) Mesopotamia: Taming the Euphrates 1:08:17

1+ y ago1:08:17

1:08:17

Part of the "Source of Life: Water Management in the Premodern Middle East" project (Radboud Institute for Culture and History). Ep2. Mesopotamia: Taming the Euphrates Mesopotamia means "the land between the rivers." The fertile silt and life-giving waters from the rivers Tigris and Euphrates allowed the region to develop into a key area of human s…

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💧EP047 GUEST EPISODE (1/8) Water History and the Pre-Modern Middle East. "Source of Life: Water Management in the Premodern Middle East" (Radboud Institute for Culture and History) 42:26

2y ago42:26

42:26

This episode was produced by Edmund Hayes and Jouke Heringa. Ep1. Water History and the Pre-Modern Middle East The cities of the medieval Middle East were some of the largest in the world, dwarfing the major cities of western Europe, for example. So how did they support large populations in relatively arid conditions? In this episode we provide an …

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🕸EP046 Prof. Hayrettin Yücesoy on his new book "Disenchanting the Caliphate" 1:25:04

2y ago1:25:04

1:25:04

Hayrettin Yücesoy is a historian with a specialization in the premodern Middle East. His scholarly interests revolve around the intricate realm of political thought and practice, covering themes such as political messianism, monarchy, republican practices, visions of social order throughout premodern literature, and the historiography of these subj…

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🖋EP045 Nasim Hassani on an illustrated manuscript of al-Maqāmāt by Abū Muḥammad al-Ḥarīrī (d.1122CE) 35:38

2y ago35:38

35:38

Abū Muḥammad al-Ḥarīrī was an Arab poet, scholar and Seljuk government official who died in 1122CE aged 68 years old. His work al-Maqāmāt, a compilation of 50 highly-stylised comic anecdotes about the exploits of trickster Abū Zayd, received widespread renown in his time across the Muslim world and is regarded as a high point of Arabic literature. …

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💒EP044 The Curious Tale of Isaac: An Egyptian Jew baptised as godson to King Edward II (d. 1327) 1:08:59

2y ago1:08:59

1:08:59

In 1319 Roger de Stangrave, a Hospitaller knight, and a Jew named Isaac arrived in England. For a ransom of 10,00 gold florins, Isaac had freed Stangrave, a stranger to him, from over 30 years of Mamluk captivity and then accompanied the knight home to be repaid. By 1322, Isaac has converted to Christianity and become Edward of St. John, with King …

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💰EP043 Dr. Isabelle Imbert on a Beginner's Guide to Investing in Islamic Arts 36:55

2y ago36:55

36:55

This is the second part of two presentations. More on our guest: https://isabelle-imbert.com 0:50 In your previous presentation, you gave us an overview of the history of Islamic art. Give us an overview of the Islamic arts market scene: who are the main players? Where are the main auctions, and so on? 7:05 You advised in your Bayt al-Fann intervie…

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🕌EP042 Dr. Isabelle Imbert on a Very Brief Introduction to Studying the History of Islamic Arts 49:47

2y ago49:47

49:47

Works of Islamic arts mesmerise their viewers, be it calligraphy, vases or mausoleums, but knowledge of their developments continues to be weak for the general enthusiast. To give an introductory survey on how to delve deeper into the fascinating ocean of Islamic arts is Dr. Isaballe Imbert. Dr. Imbert completed her PhD in 2015 at Sorbonne in Persi…

Abbasid Podcasts

4
Abbasid History Podcast

AbbasidHistoryPodcast.com

1
The History of Islam Podcast

Elias Belhaddad

1
The Professor Ali Show

Professor Ali H. Akhtar

1201
Islamic History

History of Islam

1
Cauldron - A Military History Podcast

Cullen Burke

1
Abbasid Lusterware: How 9th-Century Baghdad Made Pottery Shine Like Gold 17:24

1
🖋️EP065 Ali Hammoud on the life and works of Jami (d. 1492 CE): End of an Era 24:05

1
The Islamic Cobalt Blue That Created Ming China’s Iconic Porcelain 13:18

1
How Tang & Song Porcelain Transformed Islamic and Global Ceramics 13:56

1
🖋️EP064 Ali Hammoud on the life and works of Hafez (d. 1390 CE): Tongue of the Unseen 25:41

1
🖋️EP063 Ali Hammoud on the life and works of Saadi (d. 1292 CE): the Master 24:11

1
🖋️EP062 Ali Hammoud on the life and works of Nizami Ganjavi (d. 1209 CE): the Romantic 26:05

1
🖋️EP061 Ali Hammoud on Attar of Nishapur (d. 1221CE): the Spirit of Persian Sufi Poetry 25:29

1
🖋️EP060 Ali Hammoud on the life and works of Sanai (d. 1141): Poeta Doctus 25:00

1
🖋️EP059 Ali Hammoud on the life and works of Omar Khayyam (d. 1131CE) 25:29

1
🖊️EP058 Ali Hammoud on the life and works of Nasir Khusraw (d. c.1088CE): The Proof 28:50

1
🖊️EP057 Ali Hammoud on the life and works of Ferdowsi (d.1019CE): author of the epic Shahnameh 28:20

1
🖋EP056 Ali Hammoud on the life and works of Rudaki (d. 941): Father of Persian Poetry 27:54

1
📖EP055 Faheem Hussain on Thomas Bauer's "A Culture of Ambiguity: An Alternative History of Islam" 1:13:23

1
💧EP054 GUEST EPISDODE (8/8) The Great Valens Aqueduct of Constantinople/ Istanbul 47:06

1
💧EP053 GUEST EPISDODE (7/8) Qanāts: Harvesting Water on the Edge of the Desert 57:17

1
💧EP052 GUEST EPISDODE (6/8) Water and the White Monastery: Water Management at a Single Site 51:58

1
💧EP051 GUEST EPISODE (5/8) Toilets and Waste in Andalusia 38:49

1
💧EP050 GUEST EPISODE (4/8) The City on The Tigris: Baghdad, Drinking and Water Transport 49:08

1
💧EP049 GUEST EPISODE (3/8) The Beginnings of the Bathhouse in the Middle East, from Rome to Early Islam 1:04:19

1
💧EP048 GUEST EPISODE (2/8) Mesopotamia: Taming the Euphrates 1:08:17

1
💧EP047 GUEST EPISODE (1/8) Water History and the Pre-Modern Middle East. "Source of Life: Water Management in the Premodern Middle East" (Radboud Institute for Culture and History) 42:26

1
🕸EP046 Prof. Hayrettin Yücesoy on his new book "Disenchanting the Caliphate" 1:25:04

1
🖋EP045 Nasim Hassani on an illustrated manuscript of al-Maqāmāt by Abū Muḥammad al-Ḥarīrī (d.1122CE) 35:38

1
💒EP044 The Curious Tale of Isaac: An Egyptian Jew baptised as godson to King Edward II (d. 1327) 1:08:59

1
💰EP043 Dr. Isabelle Imbert on a Beginner's Guide to Investing in Islamic Arts 36:55

1
🕌EP042 Dr. Isabelle Imbert on a Very Brief Introduction to Studying the History of Islamic Arts 49:47