Context:

Polybius is quoted extensively throughout the episode as the main Greek historical source for the First Punic War. The hosts read from his account of the war and cite him multiple times for details about battles and events.

Context:

Referenced in connection with the Battle of Mylae, with the hosts quoting the line 'Stetson, you who were with me in the ships at Mylae' and discussing why Eliot may have chosen this particular battle as a reference to mass slaughter.

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Flaubert's novel about ancient Carthage is referenced multiple times throughout the episode. Extended passages are quoted describing the character Hamilcar and the Libyan mercenary Matho, including the graphic torture scene at the novel's climax. One host mentions studying it at university.

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Mentioned as the source where one of the hosts first learned about the incident where the Roman commander Publius Claudius Pulcher threw the sacred chickens into the sea before the disastrous naval battle at Drepana.

Context:

Referenced as a later historian who wrote about the build-up to the First Punic War, specifically his observation that the Carthaginians and Romans 'could not help but cast envious eyes on each other.'

Context:

Described as 'a very great scholar of Roman imperialism' who makes a 'brilliantly convincing case' about Roman attitudes toward war and violence being central to their state. This likely refers to his scholarly work on Roman imperialism, though the specific book title is not mentioned.