1 00:00:04,080 --> 00:00:07,440 Speaker 1: Welcome to Aaron Manke's Cabinet of Curiosities, a production of 2 00:00:07,480 --> 00:00:14,440 Speaker 1: iHeartRadio and Grimm and Mild. Our world is full of 3 00:00:14,480 --> 00:00:18,440 Speaker 1: the unexplainable, and if history is an open book, all 4 00:00:18,480 --> 00:00:22,119 Speaker 1: of these amazing tales are right there on display, just 5 00:00:22,200 --> 00:00:28,840 Speaker 1: waiting for us to explore. Welcome to the Cabinet of Curiosities. 6 00:00:36,520 --> 00:00:40,559 Speaker 1: Everyone loves a little celebrity gossip, and the seventeenth century 7 00:00:40,600 --> 00:00:43,560 Speaker 1: French court was no different. At the time, the talk 8 00:00:43,600 --> 00:00:47,479 Speaker 1: of Paris was an opera singer named Julie Dobini. What 9 00:00:47,640 --> 00:00:50,720 Speaker 1: was so scandalous about Julie, you might ask, Well, in 10 00:00:50,760 --> 00:00:54,320 Speaker 1: all honesty, you'd have an easier time answering what wasn't scandalous, 11 00:00:54,480 --> 00:00:57,760 Speaker 1: And far from being over in fifteen minutes, Julie's fame 12 00:00:57,840 --> 00:01:01,720 Speaker 1: is something that people are still talking about today. She 13 00:01:01,880 --> 00:01:04,880 Speaker 1: was born around sixteen seventy in Paris and was the 14 00:01:05,000 --> 00:01:08,440 Speaker 1: daughter of a master swordsman. Her father taught her about 15 00:01:08,480 --> 00:01:12,480 Speaker 1: all his favorite passions, drinking, gambling, and of course, fencing. 16 00:01:12,959 --> 00:01:16,320 Speaker 1: Rounding out her schooling was a formal education he insisted 17 00:01:16,319 --> 00:01:19,520 Speaker 1: that she received, despite that type of learning being reserved 18 00:01:19,720 --> 00:01:22,839 Speaker 1: for boys at the time. As Julie grew into a teenager, 19 00:01:23,160 --> 00:01:25,480 Speaker 1: it became clear that she wasn't content to act like 20 00:01:25,520 --> 00:01:28,600 Speaker 1: a lady of the court. She began dressing in men's clothes, 21 00:01:28,760 --> 00:01:32,240 Speaker 1: challenging men to duels, and quickly grew comfortable being on 22 00:01:32,280 --> 00:01:35,360 Speaker 1: the wrong side of the law. By sixteen eighty seven, 23 00:01:35,480 --> 00:01:38,280 Speaker 1: Julie had already been married to a tax collector named 24 00:01:38,360 --> 00:01:42,360 Speaker 1: Jean de Maupin. However, Julie, like many French aristocrats at 25 00:01:42,360 --> 00:01:44,319 Speaker 1: the time, wasn't one to let a little thing like 26 00:01:44,440 --> 00:01:47,240 Speaker 1: matrimony get in her way. She struck up one of 27 00:01:47,280 --> 00:01:50,320 Speaker 1: her many relationships with a fencing master, and when he 28 00:01:50,400 --> 00:01:52,520 Speaker 1: killed a man in a duel, she fled to the 29 00:01:52,520 --> 00:01:56,040 Speaker 1: countryside with him. Julie toured rule France with her lover, 30 00:01:56,160 --> 00:02:00,320 Speaker 1: providing fencing demonstrations and even singing to the crowds. Although 31 00:02:00,320 --> 00:02:03,480 Speaker 1: she had no formal training, her strong voice soon attracted 32 00:02:03,520 --> 00:02:07,120 Speaker 1: the fans, and she began performing at the Marseillese Opera 33 00:02:07,360 --> 00:02:10,560 Speaker 1: at the age of seventeen. Julie was already a swordswoman 34 00:02:10,600 --> 00:02:12,960 Speaker 1: on the run and a singer in the opera, but 35 00:02:13,040 --> 00:02:15,640 Speaker 1: when she met a beautiful young noble girl, she moved 36 00:02:15,680 --> 00:02:19,040 Speaker 1: on to her next role, escape artist While Julie and 37 00:02:19,080 --> 00:02:21,760 Speaker 1: her lover were smitten with each other, the girl's parents 38 00:02:21,840 --> 00:02:24,720 Speaker 1: were less pleased. They sent their daughter to a convent 39 00:02:24,760 --> 00:02:27,560 Speaker 1: in avign Young to keep her away from Julie, but 40 00:02:27,720 --> 00:02:30,560 Speaker 1: as you'd imagine, the convent walls weren't strong enough for 41 00:02:30,639 --> 00:02:34,679 Speaker 1: someone with her willpower. Julie joined the convent herself, pretending 42 00:02:34,720 --> 00:02:37,440 Speaker 1: to be a young novice to get closer to her girlfriend. 43 00:02:37,720 --> 00:02:40,000 Speaker 1: When one of the sisters passed away, the two stole 44 00:02:40,000 --> 00:02:42,440 Speaker 1: the nun's body, put it in the young girl's bed, 45 00:02:42,680 --> 00:02:46,200 Speaker 1: and set it and the entire room on fire. They 46 00:02:46,320 --> 00:02:48,840 Speaker 1: fled the convent, hoping that the nuns would believe that 47 00:02:48,880 --> 00:02:52,799 Speaker 1: the burned body was Julie's lover. However, a convent full 48 00:02:52,800 --> 00:02:55,480 Speaker 1: of nuns usually have a bit more wisdom than two 49 00:02:55,600 --> 00:02:59,600 Speaker 1: impulsive teenagers, and the scheme was quickly discovered. The local 50 00:02:59,600 --> 00:03:03,040 Speaker 1: government sentenced Julie to death in absentia, and the two 51 00:03:03,080 --> 00:03:07,280 Speaker 1: fugitives were officially running for their lives. Julie and her 52 00:03:07,320 --> 00:03:11,600 Speaker 1: companion spent several months wandering around the countryside before Julie's 53 00:03:11,639 --> 00:03:14,120 Speaker 1: lover decided to return to her plush life at home. 54 00:03:14,600 --> 00:03:17,720 Speaker 1: Heartbroken and on the run from the law, Julie decided 55 00:03:17,760 --> 00:03:21,480 Speaker 1: to make the very logical next step of taking singing lessons. 56 00:03:21,800 --> 00:03:23,960 Speaker 1: Her time at the Marseille Opera made her realize that 57 00:03:24,000 --> 00:03:27,280 Speaker 1: people loved her voice, and perhaps, if they loved it enough, 58 00:03:27,480 --> 00:03:30,720 Speaker 1: it could pave her way back to society. When Julie 59 00:03:30,760 --> 00:03:33,720 Speaker 1: was around twenty, her hard work paid off King Louis 60 00:03:33,760 --> 00:03:36,320 Speaker 1: the fourteenth pardon Julie so she could sing at the 61 00:03:36,360 --> 00:03:39,480 Speaker 1: Paris Opera. Opera was new to France at the time, 62 00:03:39,520 --> 00:03:41,760 Speaker 1: and the Paris Opera was just twenty one years old, 63 00:03:41,800 --> 00:03:45,040 Speaker 1: so here, like in her personal life, Julie broke new 64 00:03:45,080 --> 00:03:47,960 Speaker 1: ground with a low range and a powerful character to 65 00:03:48,000 --> 00:03:51,200 Speaker 1: her voice. She often made goddesses and warrior women the 66 00:03:51,240 --> 00:03:55,720 Speaker 1: stars of the show rather than gentle, romantic soprano roles. Today, 67 00:03:55,760 --> 00:03:58,960 Speaker 1: she would probably be considered a contralto, which is the 68 00:03:58,960 --> 00:04:02,520 Speaker 1: lowest range for us a female singer. Of course, Julie's 69 00:04:02,560 --> 00:04:07,680 Speaker 1: behavior offstage attracted just as much attention. In sixteen ninety seven, 70 00:04:07,880 --> 00:04:10,560 Speaker 1: when Julie was about twenty seven years old, she attended 71 00:04:10,600 --> 00:04:14,160 Speaker 1: a society ball in men's clothing. While this was already 72 00:04:14,280 --> 00:04:17,000 Speaker 1: enough to cause scandal, she upped the ante by kissing 73 00:04:17,000 --> 00:04:19,800 Speaker 1: a woman on the dance floor. What Julie didn't know 74 00:04:19,960 --> 00:04:23,120 Speaker 1: was that three noblemen had been vined for that woman's attention. 75 00:04:23,560 --> 00:04:26,640 Speaker 1: All three of them challenged Julie to a duel, and she, 76 00:04:26,760 --> 00:04:30,080 Speaker 1: of course defeated them all. What she didn't know, though, 77 00:04:30,200 --> 00:04:33,200 Speaker 1: was that the king had outlawed dueling, so once more 78 00:04:33,240 --> 00:04:36,200 Speaker 1: she fled the city under pain of death. However, she 79 00:04:36,360 --> 00:04:39,679 Speaker 1: was quickly pardoned the next year to continue her career 80 00:04:39,800 --> 00:04:43,000 Speaker 1: at the opera. Around seventeen oh three, Julie began a 81 00:04:43,040 --> 00:04:46,520 Speaker 1: relationship with Madame la Marquis de Florensac, one of the 82 00:04:46,560 --> 00:04:49,640 Speaker 1: greatest beauties of the French court. It seemed like finding 83 00:04:49,720 --> 00:04:52,760 Speaker 1: love with the Madam made Julie finally settle down. The 84 00:04:52,800 --> 00:04:56,320 Speaker 1: two lived together for two whole years until Madame Florenzach 85 00:04:56,360 --> 00:05:00,000 Speaker 1: fell ill in seventeen oh five and passed away. Devis 86 00:05:00,080 --> 00:05:03,240 Speaker 1: stated by the loss, Julie retired from the stage, and 87 00:05:03,320 --> 00:05:05,760 Speaker 1: for the first time in her career, she fell quiet. 88 00:05:06,160 --> 00:05:09,719 Speaker 1: She followed not long after, dying in seventeen oh seven. 89 00:05:10,640 --> 00:05:14,280 Speaker 1: Like any good song, Julie's short life certainly had highs 90 00:05:14,279 --> 00:05:17,200 Speaker 1: and lows, but at just thirty seven years old, it 91 00:05:17,360 --> 00:05:35,000 Speaker 1: ended on a single Somber note, humanity has always been 92 00:05:35,040 --> 00:05:38,520 Speaker 1: fascinated by lights in the sky. Since the dawn of time. 93 00:05:38,640 --> 00:05:42,200 Speaker 1: We worshiped the stars, the moon, and the Sun. People 94 00:05:42,240 --> 00:05:45,359 Speaker 1: fought and died over the idea that the Earth orbited 95 00:05:45,360 --> 00:05:48,120 Speaker 1: the Sun and not the other way around. Then, by 96 00:05:48,120 --> 00:05:51,240 Speaker 1: the nineteenth century, some began to believe that visitors from 97 00:05:51,279 --> 00:05:54,640 Speaker 1: other worlds could be seen flying by in their spaceships 98 00:05:54,920 --> 00:05:58,440 Speaker 1: if one only looked closely enough. It all goes to 99 00:05:58,480 --> 00:06:02,159 Speaker 1: show how meaningful celestie steel phenomena can be. And yet 100 00:06:02,160 --> 00:06:05,520 Speaker 1: when the largest celestial event in recorded history appeared in 101 00:06:05,600 --> 00:06:10,360 Speaker 1: nineteen oh eight, hardly anyone noticed. The Shanyager people had 102 00:06:10,400 --> 00:06:14,119 Speaker 1: lived in the Siberia region for generations, building huts along 103 00:06:14,160 --> 00:06:18,279 Speaker 1: the rivers and herding the plentiful reindeer. But one sunny afternoon, 104 00:06:18,560 --> 00:06:21,880 Speaker 1: the land that had long nurtured them suddenly felt changed. 105 00:06:22,480 --> 00:06:25,400 Speaker 1: The air became warm instead of its icy cold, and 106 00:06:25,480 --> 00:06:29,200 Speaker 1: invisible force knocked them over. Then lightning shot out of 107 00:06:29,200 --> 00:06:32,400 Speaker 1: the sky, scorching the trees in the forests and lighting 108 00:06:32,440 --> 00:06:35,560 Speaker 1: them on fire. As astounding as all of this was, 109 00:06:35,960 --> 00:06:38,920 Speaker 1: it was nothing compared to what came next. A second 110 00:06:39,040 --> 00:06:43,000 Speaker 1: sun appeared in the sky, nearly blinding the shanyagear. Then 111 00:06:43,120 --> 00:06:46,360 Speaker 1: there was a massive bang, louder than any thunder they 112 00:06:46,400 --> 00:06:50,920 Speaker 1: had ever heard. This second sun seemed to explode, vaporizing 113 00:06:50,960 --> 00:06:53,720 Speaker 1: the herd of reindeer beneath it. The entire forest was 114 00:06:53,800 --> 00:06:57,400 Speaker 1: knocked over, the leaves burned, the shanya gear's huts reduced 115 00:06:57,400 --> 00:07:00,799 Speaker 1: to sticks. There were more flashes, more thunder under, until 116 00:07:00,839 --> 00:07:04,359 Speaker 1: finally the air cooled, the flashes stopped, and all that 117 00:07:04,440 --> 00:07:08,559 Speaker 1: remained was an even more desolate landscape. Many miles away, 118 00:07:08,600 --> 00:07:13,160 Speaker 1: in Saint Petersburg, Russia, scientists detected unusual seismic readings from 119 00:07:13,200 --> 00:07:16,480 Speaker 1: the direction of Siberia, but they didn't think much of it. 120 00:07:16,720 --> 00:07:20,040 Speaker 1: Only one of them, Leonid Koulik, wanted to investigate. He 121 00:07:20,080 --> 00:07:22,280 Speaker 1: had heard rumors about the event and believed that there 122 00:07:22,360 --> 00:07:26,000 Speaker 1: might be an asteroid impact involved. If so, the leftover 123 00:07:26,080 --> 00:07:28,520 Speaker 1: minerals could be worth a lot of money. But he 124 00:07:28,600 --> 00:07:31,720 Speaker 1: was soon distracted, as was the world, by the Great War, 125 00:07:31,920 --> 00:07:35,840 Speaker 1: followed by the equally violent Russian Civil War. By nineteen 126 00:07:35,880 --> 00:07:39,040 Speaker 1: twenty one, things had quieted down some and Leonid was 127 00:07:39,080 --> 00:07:42,480 Speaker 1: finally able to secure funding for an expedition into Siberia. 128 00:07:42,920 --> 00:07:45,880 Speaker 1: He questioned many villagers about the event, but his first 129 00:07:45,880 --> 00:07:49,920 Speaker 1: trip to the area didn't yield any significant findings. Siberia 130 00:07:50,000 --> 00:07:52,679 Speaker 1: is a third larger than the United States as a whole, 131 00:07:52,960 --> 00:07:56,600 Speaker 1: and far less populated. It constitutes the entire northern half 132 00:07:56,640 --> 00:08:00,400 Speaker 1: of Asia. Leonid's search area was about five hundred squareles 133 00:08:00,680 --> 00:08:03,520 Speaker 1: needle in a haystack doesn't even begin to cover it. 134 00:08:04,200 --> 00:08:07,760 Speaker 1: But he was persistent, and he always found little breadcrumbs 135 00:08:07,800 --> 00:08:11,320 Speaker 1: when speaking with villagers who remembered the event. He returned 136 00:08:11,320 --> 00:08:15,440 Speaker 1: to Siberia in nineteen twenty seven, this time traveling farther north. 137 00:08:15,720 --> 00:08:18,960 Speaker 1: He followed a trail of villagers and indigenous people who 138 00:08:19,000 --> 00:08:21,520 Speaker 1: all remembered the day the sky lit up and their 139 00:08:21,560 --> 00:08:25,640 Speaker 1: homes were blown over. He traveled so far that eventually 140 00:08:25,680 --> 00:08:29,280 Speaker 1: his expedition had to abandon their horse drawn carriages due 141 00:08:29,280 --> 00:08:31,920 Speaker 1: to the deep snow. They packed their belongings onto the 142 00:08:32,000 --> 00:08:36,000 Speaker 1: backs of reindeer and continued on. And finally, after a 143 00:08:36,040 --> 00:08:39,400 Speaker 1: long journey, Leonid and his team crested a hill and 144 00:08:39,440 --> 00:08:41,920 Speaker 1: were met with a most extraordinary sight they could have 145 00:08:41,960 --> 00:08:46,040 Speaker 1: ever imagined. For miles and miles below them, the forest 146 00:08:46,400 --> 00:08:50,320 Speaker 1: had been destroyed. All that remained were naked, dead tree trunks, 147 00:08:50,559 --> 00:08:53,480 Speaker 1: some of them toppled over and some of them standing still. 148 00:08:53,960 --> 00:08:56,719 Speaker 1: There were literally millions of dead trees, and they all 149 00:08:56,760 --> 00:09:00,480 Speaker 1: seemed to be leaning away from a central point. Leonid 150 00:09:00,520 --> 00:09:03,480 Speaker 1: and his men rushed to the center, hoping to confirm 151 00:09:03,559 --> 00:09:07,760 Speaker 1: his asteroid theory. They excavated carefully four years, but there 152 00:09:07,800 --> 00:09:11,840 Speaker 1: was no evidence of extraterrestrial matter. Finally, though it dawned 153 00:09:11,840 --> 00:09:14,839 Speaker 1: on Leonid there had been an asteroid, and a large 154 00:09:14,880 --> 00:09:18,000 Speaker 1: one at that, but it was vaporized in the atmosphere. 155 00:09:18,320 --> 00:09:20,920 Speaker 1: The explosion was still massive, causing what we now know 156 00:09:21,000 --> 00:09:24,320 Speaker 1: today as the Tunguska Event. The impact was enough to 157 00:09:24,400 --> 00:09:27,720 Speaker 1: knock down the forest and many small settlements, and likely 158 00:09:27,800 --> 00:09:31,440 Speaker 1: killed thousands of animals and at least a few people. However, 159 00:09:31,520 --> 00:09:35,080 Speaker 1: there was no crater, no minerals, as the asteroid never 160 00:09:35,240 --> 00:09:38,840 Speaker 1: actually touched the Earth. Later on, people in Ireland and 161 00:09:38,960 --> 00:09:41,880 Speaker 1: England realized that they had witnessed the event as well, 162 00:09:42,120 --> 00:09:45,880 Speaker 1: although obviously from a greater distance and at night. To them, 163 00:09:45,920 --> 00:09:49,560 Speaker 1: the night sky was just unnaturally bright, especially considering that 164 00:09:49,600 --> 00:09:52,920 Speaker 1: the moon wasn't even out at that time. Today, the 165 00:09:52,960 --> 00:09:57,360 Speaker 1: Tunguska Event remains the largest celestial impact in recorded history. 166 00:09:57,760 --> 00:10:00,920 Speaker 1: NASA has even studied it and formed an organization called 167 00:10:00,960 --> 00:10:05,000 Speaker 1: the Planetary Defense Coordination Office, which might be the coolest 168 00:10:05,080 --> 00:10:09,280 Speaker 1: name in recorded history, and their mission to stay curious, 169 00:10:09,320 --> 00:10:12,520 Speaker 1: of course, about the night skies, watching for any signs 170 00:10:12,559 --> 00:10:15,480 Speaker 1: of the next Tunguska event. If an object of that 171 00:10:15,640 --> 00:10:19,080 Speaker 1: size ever touched down in a populated area, it could 172 00:10:19,160 --> 00:10:24,240 Speaker 1: be disastrous, and so the PDCO remains vigilant, ready to 173 00:10:24,280 --> 00:10:27,280 Speaker 1: divert any asteroid that heads our way. If you live 174 00:10:27,360 --> 00:10:30,200 Speaker 1: in a remote area, make sure you call them first 175 00:10:30,720 --> 00:10:38,199 Speaker 1: if your house mysteriously falls over. I hope you've enjoyed 176 00:10:38,200 --> 00:10:41,960 Speaker 1: today's guided tour of the Cabinet of Curiosities. Subscribe for 177 00:10:42,000 --> 00:10:44,800 Speaker 1: free on Apple Podcasts, or learn more about the show 178 00:10:44,840 --> 00:10:49,880 Speaker 1: by visiting Curiosities podcast dot com. The show was created 179 00:10:49,920 --> 00:10:53,200 Speaker 1: by me Aaron Mankey in partnership with how Stuff Works. 180 00:10:53,640 --> 00:10:56,760 Speaker 1: I make another award winning show called Lore, which is 181 00:10:56,880 --> 00:11:00,280 Speaker 1: a podcast, book series, and television show, and you can 182 00:11:00,360 --> 00:11:04,320 Speaker 1: learn all about it over at Theworldoflore dot com. And 183 00:11:04,440 --> 00:11:06,680 Speaker 1: until next time, stay curious.