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American Medieval

American Medieval

By: Multitude
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American Medieval is a podcast about the Middle Ages, but with an American twist. Each week, your host Prof. Matthew Gabriele is joined by expert guests to explore not just the Middle Ages themselves, but how and why they have such a hold on our collective imagination. After all, if America has never been modern, it’s because we’ve always been slightly medieval.


New episodes released every Wednesday. Be inscribed into the Book of Life, Drink with us Historians, and get ad-free episodes by subscribing at patreon.com/americanmedieval

 Art Literary History & Criticism World
Episodes
  • Spectrum of Desire with Nancy Thebaut and Melanie Holcomb

    Spectrum of Desire with Nancy Thebaut and Melanie Holcomb
    Feb 11 2026
    Prof. Gabriele and guests today are talking about sex, baby. About you and me. About all the good things and the bad things that may be. Sorry. But we are talking about medieval sex and desire with Nancy Thebaut and Melanie Holcomb, who have co-curated the great exhibition “Spectrum of Desire: Love, Sex, and Gender in the Middle Ages” at the Cloisters Museum in NYC.GuestsNancy Thebaut is Associate Professor of Art History at the University of Oxford & tutorial fellow at St Catherine’s College. Her research interests range widely, from Carolingian & Ottonian liturgical manuscripts to the study of gender & sexuality across media. Melanie Holcomb is a curator in the Department of Medieval Art and The Cloisters at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, where she has organized or co-organized numerous exhibitions including Pen and Parchment: Drawing in the Middle Ages (2009), Jerusalem 1000-1400: Every People Under Heaven (2016). Melanie’s projects have been fueled by a career-long fascination with how art works—the functions it serves and methods it uses to communicate. CreditsHost & Executive Producer: Matthew Gabriele. Find him on Bluesky @profgabriele.com or his homepage profgabriele.com Editor: Julia SchifiniMusic: “Sleeping Bags” by OTEArt: Ulysses GabrieleMultitude: https://multitude.productions Find American Medieval OnlineWebsite: AmericanMedieval.com Patreon: patreon.com/AmericanMedieval Insta: instagram.com/americanmedieval YouTube: youtube.com/@AmericanMedieval Bluesky: bsky.app/profile/americanmedieval.bsky.social About UsAmerican Medieval is a podcast about the Middle Ages, but with an American twist. Each week, joined by expert guests, we’ll explore either some fascinating part of the medieval world, or some way Americans have used this period to help them understand themselves. After all, if America has never been modern, it’s because we’ve always been slightly medieval.Want to become a sponsor of American Medieval? Head over to https://multitude.productions/ads SponsorsSince you're listening to a podcast, why not another sibling podcast from Multitude? Wow, if true, is your one-stop internet culture shop explaining how what's happening online shapes the world. The hosts, tech culture journalist Amanda Silberling and science fiction author slash attorney Isabel J. Kim Esquire, ask those burning questions on everyone's minds. I mean, they've talked about heated rivalry, how chat GPT sucks and and enshitification, among other things. Check out the podcast now.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
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    52 mins
  • Wow if True / American Medieval on Medieval Memes and Other Internet Stuff

    Wow if True / American Medieval on Medieval Memes and Other Internet Stuff
    Feb 4 2026

    Enjoy this special collab episode with "Wow if True," a podcast on internet culture and sibling in the Multitude Collective. Prof. Gabriele, Isabel J. Kim, and Amanda Silberling talk about your most favorite (and least favorite) medieval memes and various other internet stuff.


    Guests

    See more about Amanda and Isabel at this link.

    You already know about Prof. Gabriele.


    Credits

    • Host & Executive Producer: Matthew Gabriele. Find him on Bluesky @profgabriele.com or his homepage profgabriele.com
    • Editor: Julia Schifini
    • Music: “Sleeping Bags” by OTE
    • Art: Ulysses Gabriele
    • Multitude: https://multitude.productions



    Find American Medieval Online

    • Website: AmericanMedieval.com
    • Patreon: patreon.com/AmericanMedieval
    • Insta: instagram.com/americanmedieval
    • YouTube: youtube.com/@AmericanMedieval
    • Bluesky: bsky.app/profile/americanmedieval.bsky.social



    About Us

    American Medieval is a podcast about the Middle Ages, but with an American twist. Each week, joined by expert guests, we’ll explore either some fascinating part of the medieval world, or some way Americans have used this period to help them understand themselves.

    After all, if America has never been modern, it’s because we’ve always been slightly medieval.

    Want to become a sponsor of American Medieval? Head over to https://multitude.productions/ads


    Sponsors

    • Tiny Matters is an award-winning podcast about tiny things, from molecules to microbes, that have a big and often surprising impact on society. Hosts and former scientists Sam Jones and Deboki Chakravarti embrace the awe and messiness of science, and you can learn about bunny pregnancy tests in the Milky Way and the Iron Lung, for example. I mean, that's all pretty cool, right? Anyway, this sibling pod from Multitude is brought to you by the American Chemical Society, a nonprofit scientific organization based in Washington DC. Look for new episodes every Wednesday.


    See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
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    1 hr and 2 mins
  • Vikings with Daniel Melleno

    Vikings with Daniel Melleno
    Jan 28 2026

    Vikings. We talk about Vikings. It’s great. Traders and raiders, but no horned helmets.



    Guest

    Daniel Melleno is Associate Professor of pre-modern history at the University of Denver. His recently published book, Franks and Northmen: From Stangers to Neighbors, and his research more broadly, looks at the impact of cross-cultural encounters in the early medieval world. In the classroom he teaches on everything from the Ancient Near East, to Vikings, to Conan the Barbarian with a particular interest in how our own world engages with the past. Learn more at his website.



    Credits

    • Host & Executive Producer: Matthew Gabriele. Find him on Bluesky @profgabriele.com or his homepage profgabriele.com
    • Editor: Julia Schifini
    • Music: “Sleeping Bags” by OTE
    • Art: Ulysses Gabriele
    • Multitude: https://multitude.productions



    Find American Medieval Online

    • Website: AmericanMedieval.com
    • Patreon: patreon.com/AmericanMedieval
    • Insta: instagram.com/americanmedieval
    • TikTok: tiktok.com/@americanmedieval
    • YouTube: youtube.com/@AmericanMedieval
    • Bluesky: bsky.app/profile/americanmedieval.bsky.social



    About Us

    American Medieval is a podcast about the Middle Ages, but with an American twist. Each week, joined by expert guests, we’ll explore either some fascinating part of the medieval world, or some way Americans have used this period to help them understand themselves.

    After all, if America has never been modern, it’s because we’ve always been slightly medieval.

    Want to become a sponsor of American Medieval? Head over to https://multitude.productions/ads


    Sponsors

    If you’ve liked this episode of “American Medieval,” then you’ll love an actually good podcast - “Join the Party,” another pod in the Multitude Collective. See more at jointhepartypod.com.

    See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
    Show More Show Less
    1 hr and 6 mins
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