In the heart of Istanbul's Sultanahmet Square, a battered bronze column twists skyward, its three serpent heads long gone. This is the Serpent Column, a monument older than Constantinople itself—cast in Delphi in 479 BC to commemorate the Greek victory over Persia at Plataea. For centuries, it stood at the center of the ancient world, a symbol of defiance against the Persian Empire. Then, Constantine the Great brought it to his new capital, where it survived earthquakes, looters, and the Ottoman conquest. In this episode, Lucas and Luna trace the column's improbable journey from the sanctuary of Apollo to the Hippodrome of Constantinople, where it witnessed the Nika Revolt, the triumphs of chariot races, and the rise of Islam. They unpack the mystery of the missing serpent heads—was it Mehmed II's iconoclasm or a drunken Polish nobleman?—and the recent discovery of a fragment that reignited debate. Along the way, they reveal how this single object embodies the city's pagan, Christian, and Ottoman layers, and why it still matters today. A story of empire, religion, and the strange endurance of bronze.
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