Who Was Lilith? The Semen-Stealing First Wife Of Adam
Betwixt The Sheets: The History of Sex, Scandal & Society
01/28/25
•44m
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Lilith's story goes back 4,000 years, and she's still making an impact today.
She takes on different forms, depending on where you're looking, but a popular one was that she was the first wife of Adam, long before Eve, and was expelled from the Garden of Eden to go and live as a promiscuous, baby-killing, semen-stealing demon. As you do.
In short, she's embodies a lot of male anxieties about sex and women.
What are her true origins? What's with all the semen-stealing? And what's her connection to mermaids?
Joining Kate today is historian Sarah Clegg, author of Woman's Lore: 4,000 Years of Sirens, Serpents and Succubi, to help us get to know this fascinating woman better.
This episode was edited by Tom Delargy and produced by Stuart Beckwith. The senior producer was Charlotte Long.
All music from Epidemic Sounds/All3 Media.
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Previous Episode
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In today's episode, Kate speaks with Dr. David Hone, author of Uncovering Dinosaur Behaviour: What They Did And How We Know, to find out more about how different dinosaurs might have had sex.
Could the T-Rex's little arms aid their sexual performance? How did they penetrate through so much heavy protective armour? And were they monogamous?
This episode was edited and produced by Stuart Beckwith. The senior producer was Charlotte Long.
All music from Epidemic Sounds/All3 Media.
Sign up to History Hit for hundreds of hours of original documentaries, with a new release every week and ad-free podcasts. Sign up at https://www.historyhit.com/subscribe.
You can take part in our listener survey here.
Betwixt the Sheets: History of Sex, Scandal & Society is a History Hit podcast.
Voting is now open for the Listener's Choice Award at this year's Podcast Awards! UK & Ireland listeners please place your vote on the Spotify mobile app here: https://open.spotify.com/s/xhg6PJa
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Next Episode
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As historical figures go, Genghis Khan has something of a reputation.
Is there any truth to the rumours of him fathering so many children? What was life like in 12th century Mongolia? And how did he create one of histories most noted empires?
Joining Kate today is historian Marie Favereau, author of The Horde: How The Mongols Changed The World, to help us find out.
This episode was edited and produced by Stuart Beckwith. The senior producer was Charlotte Long.
All music from Epidemic Sounds/All3 Media.
Sign up to History Hit for hundreds of hours of original documentaries, with a new release every week and ad-free podcasts. Sign up at https://www.historyhit.com/subscribe.
You can take part in our listener survey here.
Betwixt the Sheets: History of Sex, Scandal & Society is a History Hit podcast.
Voting is now open for the Listener's Choice Award at this year's Podcast Awards! UK & Ireland listeners please place your vote on the Spotify mobile app here: https://open.spotify.com/s/xhg6PJa
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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