1 00:00:04,080 --> 00:00:07,360 Speaker 1: Welcome to Aaron Menkey's Cabinet of Curiosity is a production 2 00:00:07,400 --> 00:00:13,560 Speaker 1: of I Heart Radio and Grim and Mild. Our world 3 00:00:13,760 --> 00:00:17,360 Speaker 1: is full of the unexplainable, and if history is an 4 00:00:17,360 --> 00:00:20,880 Speaker 1: open book, all of these amazing tales are right there 5 00:00:20,920 --> 00:00:26,920 Speaker 1: on display, just waiting for us to explore. Welcome to 6 00:00:26,960 --> 00:00:38,599 Speaker 1: the Cabinet of Curiosities. We tend not to think of 7 00:00:38,600 --> 00:00:41,319 Speaker 1: where the things in our daily lives come from. When 8 00:00:41,360 --> 00:00:43,640 Speaker 1: it comes to certain items, They've been a part of 9 00:00:43,680 --> 00:00:46,879 Speaker 1: our lives for so long it feels like forever. Paper, 10 00:00:46,960 --> 00:00:50,120 Speaker 1: for example, is so ubiquitous all over the world. Some 11 00:00:50,240 --> 00:00:52,280 Speaker 1: may be surprised to learn that it got its start 12 00:00:52,360 --> 00:00:55,600 Speaker 1: in China almost two thousand years ago, and the glasses 13 00:00:55,680 --> 00:00:58,360 Speaker 1: we used to see clearly each day first arrived in 14 00:00:58,440 --> 00:01:03,720 Speaker 1: Italy during the Jury. But such inventions aren't the only 15 00:01:03,800 --> 00:01:07,200 Speaker 1: things that have spread across the globe. Food has also 16 00:01:07,400 --> 00:01:11,160 Speaker 1: escaped beyond its original borders, allowing different cultures to sample 17 00:01:11,200 --> 00:01:16,280 Speaker 1: flavors from thousands of miles away. William Hughes was on 18 00:01:16,360 --> 00:01:19,440 Speaker 1: a quest, but not for food. He was on the 19 00:01:19,520 --> 00:01:22,520 Speaker 1: hunt for plants. He had traveled thousands of miles by 20 00:01:22,600 --> 00:01:25,160 Speaker 1: ship from his home in England to the America's during 21 00:01:25,160 --> 00:01:28,640 Speaker 1: the sixteen thirties. He was was a botanist, writing about 22 00:01:28,640 --> 00:01:32,080 Speaker 1: the plants of the New World. He was also a pirate. 23 00:01:33,440 --> 00:01:36,240 Speaker 1: There weren't too many pirate botanists in those days. If 24 00:01:36,280 --> 00:01:40,040 Speaker 1: you can imagine, Hughes had pretty much cornered the markets. However, 25 00:01:40,080 --> 00:01:42,800 Speaker 1: he was no captain. Instead, he took up a position 26 00:01:42,880 --> 00:01:45,760 Speaker 1: serving on one of the King's ships doing odd jobs. 27 00:01:46,160 --> 00:01:49,160 Speaker 1: Other crew members followed orders to capture any ships they 28 00:01:49,240 --> 00:01:51,880 Speaker 1: encountered at sea, but that wasn't what made Hugh as 29 00:01:51,920 --> 00:01:56,440 Speaker 1: a pirate. His job was unique and considerably more dangerous. 30 00:01:56,800 --> 00:02:00,400 Speaker 1: When a ship encountered an unfamiliar land, Hughes was out 31 00:02:00,400 --> 00:02:02,800 Speaker 1: in a small boat to investigate it. He would look 32 00:02:02,800 --> 00:02:05,560 Speaker 1: for food and fresh water, then report back as to 33 00:02:05,600 --> 00:02:07,760 Speaker 1: whether it was safe for the others to come ashore. 34 00:02:08,560 --> 00:02:11,800 Speaker 1: He wasn't upset about the task though. By exploring the 35 00:02:11,840 --> 00:02:14,799 Speaker 1: flora of unknown shores, Hughes was able to record new 36 00:02:14,800 --> 00:02:18,720 Speaker 1: observations for his book. He encountered plants and fruits such 37 00:02:18,760 --> 00:02:22,680 Speaker 1: as sugar canes, limes, and prickly pears. In his notes, 38 00:02:22,720 --> 00:02:25,239 Speaker 1: he detailed how to use them in their fullest potential. 39 00:02:25,560 --> 00:02:28,800 Speaker 1: The lime, for example, worked best as an antidote discurvy. 40 00:02:30,040 --> 00:02:32,280 Speaker 1: Of all the fruits he encountered, though, there was only 41 00:02:32,320 --> 00:02:35,400 Speaker 1: one to which he devoted his longest and most thorough entry. 42 00:02:35,720 --> 00:02:39,639 Speaker 1: He called it the American nectar. The Colombians and Hondurans 43 00:02:39,639 --> 00:02:42,880 Speaker 1: were already familiar with it. Its main ingredients had factored 44 00:02:42,880 --> 00:02:46,040 Speaker 1: into their foods and drinks for thousands of years. The 45 00:02:46,200 --> 00:02:49,080 Speaker 1: ingredient was considered a food of the gods. People would 46 00:02:49,080 --> 00:02:51,400 Speaker 1: grind it up or crush it into a pulp and 47 00:02:51,440 --> 00:02:54,120 Speaker 1: place it in hot water with other foods like honey 48 00:02:54,200 --> 00:02:58,280 Speaker 1: and vanilla. The drink was also incorporated into religious ceremonies, 49 00:02:58,360 --> 00:03:01,079 Speaker 1: and when prepared in a certain way, bore the color 50 00:03:01,160 --> 00:03:06,919 Speaker 1: and viscosity of blood. European colonizers who visited South America 51 00:03:07,040 --> 00:03:09,720 Speaker 1: were often greeted with steaming cups of the stuff, which 52 00:03:09,800 --> 00:03:12,240 Speaker 1: was how Hughes came to know it so well. He 53 00:03:12,320 --> 00:03:15,079 Speaker 1: published some of his favorite recipes in his book The 54 00:03:15,120 --> 00:03:19,240 Speaker 1: American Physician in sixteen seventy two. He wasn't the first 55 00:03:19,280 --> 00:03:21,440 Speaker 1: to encounter the fruits, but he was among the first 56 00:03:21,520 --> 00:03:25,480 Speaker 1: to write about it in English. Christopher Columbus had encountered 57 00:03:25,480 --> 00:03:27,640 Speaker 1: it over a hundred years earlier, on one of his 58 00:03:27,680 --> 00:03:30,760 Speaker 1: trips to the Americus, the Hondurans he'd met had treated 59 00:03:30,800 --> 00:03:33,639 Speaker 1: it as precious as gold, spilling some of the fruits 60 00:03:33,639 --> 00:03:35,960 Speaker 1: on the floor of their canoe and quickly picking it 61 00:03:36,000 --> 00:03:39,560 Speaker 1: back up, careful not to lose any Columbus tasted some 62 00:03:39,720 --> 00:03:43,320 Speaker 1: and believed it to be some kind of almond. In fact, 63 00:03:43,480 --> 00:03:46,640 Speaker 1: most Europeans who consumed the drink made from this valuable 64 00:03:46,760 --> 00:03:49,560 Speaker 1: ingredients didn't care much for it. It was too bitter 65 00:03:49,600 --> 00:03:52,520 Speaker 1: for their tastes. One Italian explorer noted that it was 66 00:03:53,000 --> 00:03:56,320 Speaker 1: more fit for pigs than humans, and so it was 67 00:03:56,360 --> 00:04:00,520 Speaker 1: widely ignored outside of Central and South America. Spain went 68 00:04:00,560 --> 00:04:02,800 Speaker 1: on to adopt it, but it didn't spread throughout the 69 00:04:02,840 --> 00:04:05,720 Speaker 1: rest of Europe until Hughes brought both the fruits and 70 00:04:05,760 --> 00:04:10,480 Speaker 1: the recipes back with him to England. Europeans eventually returned 71 00:04:10,480 --> 00:04:13,120 Speaker 1: to the America's but not to taste the magical drink. 72 00:04:13,520 --> 00:04:17,320 Speaker 1: They committed genocides of the indigenous people, murdering thousands and 73 00:04:17,360 --> 00:04:21,560 Speaker 1: taking many overseas as slaves. They also started importing African 74 00:04:21,600 --> 00:04:24,760 Speaker 1: slaves as well. The women from these different cultures shared 75 00:04:24,760 --> 00:04:27,680 Speaker 1: their knowledge to help make the drink less bitter as 76 00:04:27,720 --> 00:04:30,920 Speaker 1: it would appeal more to their master's tastes. They would 77 00:04:30,920 --> 00:04:35,120 Speaker 1: sweeten it by adding things like milk and flavorings. Today 78 00:04:35,200 --> 00:04:38,200 Speaker 1: we still guzzle cups of it during the winter, snuggled 79 00:04:38,279 --> 00:04:41,080 Speaker 1: up by our fireplace or the Yule log on TV. 80 00:04:41,600 --> 00:04:44,560 Speaker 1: We put everything from marshmallows to peppermint in it to 81 00:04:44,720 --> 00:04:47,800 Speaker 1: enhance its flavor, but in the end, the pure substance 82 00:04:47,960 --> 00:04:51,720 Speaker 1: just can't be beat. The American nectar the South Americans 83 00:04:51,720 --> 00:04:55,920 Speaker 1: gave to William Hughes was none other then hot chocolate. 84 00:05:08,880 --> 00:05:12,719 Speaker 1: Nothing beats a nice relaxing vacation on a tropical island, 85 00:05:12,960 --> 00:05:16,120 Speaker 1: the warm sand beneath one's feet, a cold drink with 86 00:05:16,200 --> 00:05:19,119 Speaker 1: a tiny umbrella sticking out of it, and the sound 87 00:05:19,200 --> 00:05:22,400 Speaker 1: of the ocean crashing upon the shore. Just the thought 88 00:05:22,520 --> 00:05:24,640 Speaker 1: is enough to make someone want to pack up and 89 00:05:24,760 --> 00:05:27,839 Speaker 1: fly out to one tomorrow, that is, if they can 90 00:05:27,839 --> 00:05:33,240 Speaker 1: find it. In ninety seven, England's Guardian newspaper did a 91 00:05:33,240 --> 00:05:36,200 Speaker 1: special report on an obscure set of islands known as 92 00:05:36,240 --> 00:05:39,760 Speaker 1: the Sans Serif, which were celebrating the tenth anniversary of 93 00:05:39,760 --> 00:05:44,080 Speaker 1: their independence from Portugal. Despite its rich history, San Serif 94 00:05:44,279 --> 00:05:47,080 Speaker 1: was not well known until the Guardians seven page story. 95 00:05:48,320 --> 00:05:51,600 Speaker 1: It was discovered in the Indian Ocean by explorer John Street, 96 00:05:51,839 --> 00:05:54,920 Speaker 1: who first set sail with his crew in fourteen one. 97 00:05:55,440 --> 00:05:58,200 Speaker 1: Spain and Portugal sent ships of their own to colonize 98 00:05:58,240 --> 00:06:01,640 Speaker 1: the islands ten years later. After their rule ended, Great 99 00:06:01,680 --> 00:06:04,480 Speaker 1: Britain took control of San Serrif during the mid seventeenth 100 00:06:04,520 --> 00:06:08,360 Speaker 1: century until it seeded the land to Portugal in eighteen fifteen, 101 00:06:08,760 --> 00:06:12,640 Speaker 1: the island's independence not coming until April of nineteen sixty seven. 102 00:06:13,480 --> 00:06:17,120 Speaker 1: The larger island, named Casa superior A, was home to 103 00:06:17,160 --> 00:06:20,920 Speaker 1: an international airport, as well as lush forests and substantial 104 00:06:20,920 --> 00:06:24,520 Speaker 1: oil fields along its western coast. The smaller island, Casa 105 00:06:24,680 --> 00:06:27,560 Speaker 1: inferior A, also had an airport of its own and 106 00:06:27,640 --> 00:06:32,279 Speaker 1: several tourist friendly beaches. Surprisingly, such small islands were actually 107 00:06:32,360 --> 00:06:36,200 Speaker 1: home to almost every world religion imaginable. However, the primary 108 00:06:36,240 --> 00:06:40,719 Speaker 1: faith was that of Asterism, an amalgamation of Christianity, Hinduism, 109 00:06:40,800 --> 00:06:44,839 Speaker 1: and other belief systems. Worshippers believe their god, the Ascender, 110 00:06:45,080 --> 00:06:47,960 Speaker 1: would eventually return and lift them above the baseline with 111 00:06:48,000 --> 00:06:51,719 Speaker 1: the help of priests known as wingdings. The food of 112 00:06:51,760 --> 00:06:55,400 Speaker 1: Sant sa refe was comprised mainly of the root vegetable swarfega. 113 00:06:55,720 --> 00:06:59,320 Speaker 1: Swarfega was prepared a number of ways, including mashed, squashed 114 00:06:59,320 --> 00:07:02,760 Speaker 1: and flattened, then dipped into flavorful sauces. To help with 115 00:07:02,800 --> 00:07:06,039 Speaker 1: the taste, many islanders would wrap it in toilet paper 116 00:07:06,120 --> 00:07:08,400 Speaker 1: first to help it go down just a little easier. 117 00:07:09,360 --> 00:07:11,960 Speaker 1: Readers were smitten with San Serriff and what it had 118 00:07:12,000 --> 00:07:15,560 Speaker 1: to offer Englanders looking for a tropical vacation spot, but 119 00:07:15,720 --> 00:07:19,320 Speaker 1: travel agents hated it. They were bombarded with calls following 120 00:07:19,320 --> 00:07:22,360 Speaker 1: the reports publication from people hoping to book flights to 121 00:07:22,400 --> 00:07:26,680 Speaker 1: the archipelago. There was just one problem. They couldn't find it. 122 00:07:27,920 --> 00:07:30,280 Speaker 1: If you haven't caught on yet, there's something a little 123 00:07:30,400 --> 00:07:33,160 Speaker 1: offset about San Saiff. You can hear it in the 124 00:07:33,240 --> 00:07:38,480 Speaker 1: name San Serif San Saraf consisting of the two principal 125 00:07:38,520 --> 00:07:42,920 Speaker 1: islands where those names translate to upper case and lower case. 126 00:07:43,440 --> 00:07:48,400 Speaker 1: It's cities and ports are named after fonts such as Bodhini, Garamond, Clarendon, 127 00:07:48,720 --> 00:07:52,440 Speaker 1: and other areas named for general type setting terms. At 128 00:07:52,440 --> 00:07:55,600 Speaker 1: the tip of the lower island lies thirty point, just 129 00:07:55,680 --> 00:07:57,560 Speaker 1: to hop, skip and a jump away from the shores 130 00:07:57,600 --> 00:08:02,080 Speaker 1: of gil Sands. The island's creation had been in April 131 00:08:02,080 --> 00:08:05,640 Speaker 1: Fool's Day joke devised by Philip Davies, the Special reports 132 00:08:05,640 --> 00:08:09,000 Speaker 1: manager for The Guardian. He had been mildly annoyed by 133 00:08:09,040 --> 00:08:12,440 Speaker 1: the articles of another paper, The Financial Times, which would 134 00:08:12,480 --> 00:08:15,600 Speaker 1: publish pieces about small countries he had never heard of. 135 00:08:17,080 --> 00:08:20,600 Speaker 1: Shortly before April one of nineteen seventy seven, Davies was 136 00:08:20,640 --> 00:08:23,760 Speaker 1: flipping through The Financial Times and wondered, why don't we 137 00:08:23,800 --> 00:08:26,840 Speaker 1: just make up a country. The other editors took his 138 00:08:26,920 --> 00:08:29,560 Speaker 1: idea and ran with it, turning it not only into 139 00:08:29,600 --> 00:08:33,560 Speaker 1: a successful April Fool's Day joke, but also an advertising venture. 140 00:08:36,800 --> 00:08:39,400 Speaker 1: Four of the seven pages of the report were nothing 141 00:08:39,440 --> 00:08:42,160 Speaker 1: but ads from real companies who were in on the hoax. 142 00:08:42,520 --> 00:08:46,120 Speaker 1: For example, Kodak held a photo competition for readers pictures 143 00:08:46,160 --> 00:08:49,240 Speaker 1: of San Saief. Winners would be featured in a public 144 00:08:49,280 --> 00:08:53,000 Speaker 1: exhibition the following year. Though the airlines and travel agents 145 00:08:53,000 --> 00:08:55,800 Speaker 1: were less than thrilled by the ruse, it has endured 146 00:08:55,800 --> 00:08:58,600 Speaker 1: for over forty years thanks to fan made websites and 147 00:08:58,720 --> 00:09:02,040 Speaker 1: even a series of books published about life on the islands, 148 00:09:02,080 --> 00:09:07,520 Speaker 1: all fictional, of course, Several astute readers caught on right away, 149 00:09:07,520 --> 00:09:09,960 Speaker 1: writing back to the paper with tongue in cheek letters 150 00:09:09,960 --> 00:09:12,760 Speaker 1: about their childhood trips to the islands. It wasn't like 151 00:09:12,840 --> 00:09:15,959 Speaker 1: Davies was trying to hide it either. Look closely at 152 00:09:15,960 --> 00:09:18,720 Speaker 1: a map of Sans Serife and you'll see the biggest 153 00:09:18,760 --> 00:09:21,640 Speaker 1: clue of all. The pair of islands had been drawn 154 00:09:21,720 --> 00:09:27,520 Speaker 1: to resemble a semi colon. And that's what I'd call curious. 155 00:09:30,640 --> 00:09:33,360 Speaker 1: I hope you've enjoyed today's guided tour of the Cabinet 156 00:09:33,360 --> 00:09:37,240 Speaker 1: of Curiosities. Subscribe for free on Apple Podcasts, or learn 157 00:09:37,280 --> 00:09:41,839 Speaker 1: more about the show by visiting Curiosities podcast dot com. 158 00:09:41,880 --> 00:09:45,440 Speaker 1: The show was created by me Aaron Manky in partnership 159 00:09:45,520 --> 00:09:48,760 Speaker 1: with how Stuff Works. I make another award winning show 160 00:09:48,880 --> 00:09:52,960 Speaker 1: called Lore, which is a podcast, book series, and television show, 161 00:09:53,240 --> 00:09:55,120 Speaker 1: and you can learn all about it over at the 162 00:09:55,280 --> 00:09:59,439 Speaker 1: World of Lore dot com. And until next time, stay 163 00:09:59,480 --> 00:10:01,040 Speaker 1: curious one.