Episode: Early Christians were quite familiar with Rome’s well-developed prison system. In this episode, we explore the archaeology and experience of Roman prisons with Dr. Matthew Larsen, co-author of Ancient Mediterranean Incarceration.

Guest: (from https://www.matthewdclarsen.com/about) Matthew Larsen is a historian, archaeologist, and filmmaker dedicated to bringing the ancient world—and the origins of Christianity—into vivid focus for modern audiences. He is the founder of August Media Company, a company specializing in historically grounded, cinematic storytelling across film, podcasts, and immersive visual media, and lived experiences.

Associate Professor in Religious Studies and Classics; Fellow of the Gwyn Shive, Anita Nordan Lindsay, and Joe & Cherry Gray Professorship in the History of Christianity at the University of Texas at Austin, Matthew’s research centers on the lived experience of the first Christians: how they organized communities, navigated persecution, and understood faith within the Roman world. His work challenges popular myths while remaining accessible, visually ambitious, and grounded in cutting-edge historical and archaeological scholarship.

Before Copenhagen, Matthew taught at Yale University (2017–2018) and Princeton University (2018–2021). He is the co-author of Ancient Mediterranean Incarceration (University of California Press), named by The New Yorker as one of the best books of 2025, and the award-winning Gospels before the Book (Oxford, 2018), translated into Italian.

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