A worker's eye-view of ancient Rome

A worker's eye-view of ancient Rome

From HistoryExtra podcast by Immediate

May 5, 2026 · 39 min · Episode 2534

About this episode

Kim Bowes discusses the lives of the working people in ancient Rome, focusing on their experiences and contributions.

We know plenty about the lives of rich and powerful Romans – men such as Julius Caesar and Augustus. But Kim Bowes is more interested in those who worked for a living: the so-called 90 per cent. In this episode of the HistoryExtra podcast, Kim tells Spencer Mizen about her endeavours to unearth the lost voices of the Roman empire's working people – from Egyptian farmers and entrepreneurial barmen to profit-hungry pimps. ––––– GO BEYOND THE PODCAST Don't miss this Life of the Week podcast featuring Edward Watts telling Spencer Mizen about Rome’s cruel and brilliant first emperor, Augustus: https://bit.ly/4bLFLQD Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

People in this episode

Host: Spencer Mizen

Guest: Kim Bowes

Topics covered

  • ancient Rome
  • working class
  • historical voices
  • Roman economy
  • social history

Keywords

  • ancient Rome
  • working class
  • Kim Bowes
  • Julius Caesar
  • Augustus
  • social history
  • Roman economy

Mentioned in this episode

Places: Roman empire, Egyptian

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