1 00:00:04,120 --> 00:00:07,480 Speaker 1: Welcome to Aaron Manke's Cabinet of Curiosities, a production of 2 00:00:07,520 --> 00:00:09,360 Speaker 1: iHeartRadio and Grimm and Mild. 3 00:00:12,880 --> 00:00:16,919 Speaker 2: Our world is full of the unexplainable, and if history 4 00:00:17,079 --> 00:00:20,560 Speaker 2: is an open book, all of these amazing tales right 5 00:00:20,600 --> 00:00:25,720 Speaker 2: there on display, just waiting for us to explore. Welcome 6 00:00:26,880 --> 00:00:28,880 Speaker 2: to the Cabinet of Curiosities. 7 00:00:36,760 --> 00:00:39,479 Speaker 1: One of the most fascinating things about the natural world 8 00:00:39,680 --> 00:00:43,599 Speaker 1: is the interconnectedness. Sands from the Sahara Desert blow all 9 00:00:43,640 --> 00:00:47,199 Speaker 1: the way to the Amazon Rainforest, The Scottish Highlands and 10 00:00:47,240 --> 00:00:50,879 Speaker 1: the Appalachians were once the same mountain range. Separate bodies 11 00:00:50,920 --> 00:00:55,319 Speaker 1: on separate continents can be curiously intertwined. The same can 12 00:00:55,360 --> 00:00:58,960 Speaker 1: be said about humans. The choices our ancestors make shape 13 00:00:59,000 --> 00:01:02,360 Speaker 1: our lives senties later, and the choices we make today 14 00:01:02,560 --> 00:01:05,760 Speaker 1: shape the future. And sometimes separate groups of people with 15 00:01:06,000 --> 00:01:09,639 Speaker 1: entirely different goals can form a picture of history without 16 00:01:09,800 --> 00:01:13,600 Speaker 1: even meaning to. This story dates back centuries and brings 17 00:01:13,680 --> 00:01:17,720 Speaker 1: us to a place where past and future collide. Let's begin. 18 00:01:17,880 --> 00:01:22,959 Speaker 1: In twenty eleven, underwater archaeologists from Texas State University splashed 19 00:01:22,959 --> 00:01:26,679 Speaker 1: into the Caribbean Sea near Panama. Magnetic sensors had brought 20 00:01:26,720 --> 00:01:29,440 Speaker 1: them to this spot. They were looking for something special, 21 00:01:29,840 --> 00:01:32,800 Speaker 1: a ship that once belonged to the notorious pirate Captain 22 00:01:32,880 --> 00:01:36,880 Speaker 1: Henry Morgan. Over four hundred years earlier, Morgan sailed in 23 00:01:36,920 --> 00:01:40,240 Speaker 1: to ransack Panama City, but a storm sent his ship 24 00:01:40,280 --> 00:01:43,720 Speaker 1: to the seafloor before he and his crew could touch land. Now, 25 00:01:43,760 --> 00:01:46,679 Speaker 1: the archaeologists hoped to find it, but the divers returned 26 00:01:46,720 --> 00:01:49,280 Speaker 1: with some curious news. There was a ship, but it 27 00:01:49,360 --> 00:01:51,920 Speaker 1: was full of cargo, and this didn't make any sense 28 00:01:52,080 --> 00:01:54,680 Speaker 1: if Captain Morgan would have arrived with empty holds to 29 00:01:54,720 --> 00:01:58,120 Speaker 1: fill in his raid. The team investigated further and realized 30 00:01:58,160 --> 00:02:00,720 Speaker 1: that this wasn't Morgan's ship at all. It belonged to 31 00:02:00,720 --> 00:02:03,840 Speaker 1: Spain and it was known as the Incarnacion, which translates 32 00:02:03,880 --> 00:02:07,040 Speaker 1: to the Incarnation, and it went down eleven years after 33 00:02:07,200 --> 00:02:11,800 Speaker 1: Morgan's shipwreck. The discovery of the Incarnacion was a big deal. Yes, 34 00:02:11,840 --> 00:02:14,160 Speaker 1: it was full of loot for researchers to examine, which 35 00:02:14,240 --> 00:02:17,320 Speaker 1: is an obvious win, especially since louters used to ransack 36 00:02:17,400 --> 00:02:20,480 Speaker 1: ships when they sank, But ocean worms and bacteria would 37 00:02:20,520 --> 00:02:23,720 Speaker 1: also degrade the wood. For these reasons, experts hardly know 38 00:02:23,840 --> 00:02:28,120 Speaker 1: anything about seventeenth century Spanish shipwrecks. This one, however, sank 39 00:02:28,160 --> 00:02:31,120 Speaker 1: about forty feet below the water and its hull was 40 00:02:31,120 --> 00:02:34,440 Speaker 1: buried in the sand, so it was more protected against 41 00:02:34,440 --> 00:02:36,720 Speaker 1: these common threats, and because of this, when it was 42 00:02:36,760 --> 00:02:39,880 Speaker 1: discovered in twenty eleven, it became the first Spanish shipwreck 43 00:02:39,919 --> 00:02:43,320 Speaker 1: found in the Americas that contained cargo or an intact hull. 44 00:02:43,919 --> 00:02:46,359 Speaker 1: This set in motion a whole new line of research 45 00:02:46,400 --> 00:02:49,320 Speaker 1: that is still ongoing today, and it's possible that whatever 46 00:02:49,360 --> 00:02:53,600 Speaker 1: answers the Incarnacion provides could effect not just our understanding 47 00:02:53,639 --> 00:02:56,280 Speaker 1: of the past, but the choices we make in the future, 48 00:02:56,560 --> 00:03:00,680 Speaker 1: and those revelations may come about in surprising ways. In 49 00:03:00,760 --> 00:03:04,160 Speaker 1: twenty thirteen, two years after they had stumbled upon the ship, 50 00:03:04,400 --> 00:03:08,120 Speaker 1: the American dendro Chronology Conference was held in Tucson, Arizona. 51 00:03:08,560 --> 00:03:10,440 Speaker 1: Like most people who hear the word for the first time, 52 00:03:10,480 --> 00:03:14,280 Speaker 1: you might be wondering what dendro chronology is. Luckily, for you, 53 00:03:14,360 --> 00:03:17,959 Speaker 1: I have googled it. Dendro Chronology is the scientific method 54 00:03:18,000 --> 00:03:22,080 Speaker 1: for dating tree rings. Dendro Chronologists can determine the exact 55 00:03:22,160 --> 00:03:25,040 Speaker 1: year a tree ring was formed. This field of work 56 00:03:25,120 --> 00:03:29,359 Speaker 1: relates closely to another called dendro climatology, which uses tree 57 00:03:29,440 --> 00:03:33,200 Speaker 1: rings to study past and present climate. And if you're wondering, well, 58 00:03:33,320 --> 00:03:36,760 Speaker 1: what about future climate, You're not alone. Three scientists who 59 00:03:36,760 --> 00:03:40,120 Speaker 1: attended that twenty thirteen conference wondered the same thing, especially 60 00:03:40,120 --> 00:03:43,680 Speaker 1: when it comes to hurricanes, which are infamously dangerous and destructive. 61 00:03:43,960 --> 00:03:48,360 Speaker 1: Being able to predict hurricanes could seriously improve emergency planning. 62 00:03:48,760 --> 00:03:52,320 Speaker 1: The scientists were Valerie Cherie, and associate professor at the 63 00:03:52,440 --> 00:03:57,080 Speaker 1: University of Arizona Laboratory of Tree Ring Research, Marta Dominga's Delmasa, 64 00:03:57,240 --> 00:04:00,720 Speaker 1: a dendro archaeologist from Spain, and great aunt Harley, a 65 00:04:00,840 --> 00:04:05,040 Speaker 1: paleoclimatologist from the US. It all started when Grant mentioned 66 00:04:05,080 --> 00:04:08,000 Speaker 1: some research that he'd been conducting on pine trees in Florida. 67 00:04:08,240 --> 00:04:10,920 Speaker 1: The rings he observed there showed signs of serious trauma, 68 00:04:11,000 --> 00:04:13,640 Speaker 1: but he couldn't tell what had caused it. He considered 69 00:04:13,640 --> 00:04:18,120 Speaker 1: a few possibilities until landing on a theory hurricanes. Hurricanes 70 00:04:18,160 --> 00:04:21,000 Speaker 1: stunt the growth of trees, and their rings show that trauma. 71 00:04:21,080 --> 00:04:24,599 Speaker 1: Even hundreds of years later, Grant had tree ring records 72 00:04:24,600 --> 00:04:27,440 Speaker 1: from Florida dating back to seventeen oh seven that showed 73 00:04:27,480 --> 00:04:30,680 Speaker 1: when hurricanes occurred, but the US government didn't start logging 74 00:04:30,800 --> 00:04:34,119 Speaker 1: hurricanes in the Caribbean until eighteen fifty, so he didn't 75 00:04:34,160 --> 00:04:37,320 Speaker 1: have enough supporting data to prove his theory. That's where 76 00:04:37,440 --> 00:04:41,240 Speaker 1: Marta and Valerie came in. As a dendro archaeologist, Marta 77 00:04:41,279 --> 00:04:44,080 Speaker 1: can figure out when centuries old Spanish ships were built, 78 00:04:44,279 --> 00:04:47,440 Speaker 1: ships like the Incarnacion. She told Grant that she had 79 00:04:47,520 --> 00:04:50,520 Speaker 1: access to Spanish ship travel records that had been preserved 80 00:04:50,560 --> 00:04:53,560 Speaker 1: since the seventeen hundreds. Grant, by the way, happens to 81 00:04:53,640 --> 00:04:56,000 Speaker 1: be kind of a pirate nerd, so on that night 82 00:04:56,080 --> 00:05:00,320 Speaker 1: in twenty thirteen, he and Marta probably clicked. Then Valery 83 00:05:00,360 --> 00:05:03,280 Speaker 1: suggested that they compare Grant's tree ring records to MARTA's 84 00:05:03,279 --> 00:05:06,480 Speaker 1: shipwreck data, and between these two data sets and some 85 00:05:06,640 --> 00:05:09,680 Speaker 1: other relevant ones, the team formed a yearly record of 86 00:05:09,800 --> 00:05:12,280 Speaker 1: hurricanes in the Caribbean going all the way back to 87 00:05:12,360 --> 00:05:15,880 Speaker 1: the year fifteen hundred. This helped Grant prove his theory 88 00:05:16,160 --> 00:05:19,640 Speaker 1: about the Florida Pines, but that wasn't all the team discovered. 89 00:05:19,839 --> 00:05:23,320 Speaker 1: The data sets also showed fewer shipwrecks between sixteen forty 90 00:05:23,400 --> 00:05:26,480 Speaker 1: five and seventeen fifteen, and those dates stuck out to 91 00:05:26,600 --> 00:05:30,440 Speaker 1: Valerie as a natural scientist, they were extremely familiar dates 92 00:05:30,480 --> 00:05:33,200 Speaker 1: to her. She realized that this was the exact timeframe 93 00:05:33,279 --> 00:05:36,320 Speaker 1: of the Maunder Minimum, a well known period of very 94 00:05:36,400 --> 00:05:41,480 Speaker 1: low visible sun spots. Basically, the Sun's radiation is not constant. 95 00:05:41,920 --> 00:05:45,400 Speaker 1: During the Maunder Minimum, its energy was lower, which meant 96 00:05:45,480 --> 00:05:50,960 Speaker 1: cooler temperatures, cooler waters, and therefore Valerie realized probably fewer hurricanes. 97 00:05:51,320 --> 00:05:54,880 Speaker 1: Fewer hurricanes would explain why there were fewer shipwrecks. And 98 00:05:55,040 --> 00:05:58,440 Speaker 1: then Grant, pirate nerd that he is noticed yet another 99 00:05:58,520 --> 00:06:02,600 Speaker 1: event that occurred almost simult paneously, the Golden Age of piracy. 100 00:06:02,960 --> 00:06:05,320 Speaker 1: The team realized that the Golden Age of piracy likely 101 00:06:05,360 --> 00:06:08,360 Speaker 1: occurred because of the Mander Minimum. One of the most 102 00:06:08,440 --> 00:06:11,320 Speaker 1: prolific pirates that that time was Captain Henry Morgan, and 103 00:06:11,400 --> 00:06:14,000 Speaker 1: even though Morgan did lose some ships to hurricanes, he 104 00:06:14,080 --> 00:06:18,520 Speaker 1: apparently got lucky. Valerie, Marta, and Grant published their findings, 105 00:06:18,720 --> 00:06:22,040 Speaker 1: which have helped fine tune hurricane prediction models. As for 106 00:06:22,120 --> 00:06:25,280 Speaker 1: the Texas State team, they're able to study the incarnacions 107 00:06:25,320 --> 00:06:28,120 Speaker 1: would and the artifacts that carried to not only glean 108 00:06:28,200 --> 00:06:31,760 Speaker 1: information about colonial society, but how the Gulf coastline has 109 00:06:31,880 --> 00:06:35,839 Speaker 1: changed over time. The Arizona team's discoveries could help uncover 110 00:06:36,040 --> 00:06:39,080 Speaker 1: more of the Gulf's mysteries. There's no telling what else 111 00:06:39,120 --> 00:06:42,040 Speaker 1: these teams might find, but I for one look forward 112 00:06:42,080 --> 00:06:59,479 Speaker 1: to seeing how their revelations collide. When most of us 113 00:06:59,520 --> 00:07:02,200 Speaker 1: hear the word mummy, our minds go to the Pyramids 114 00:07:02,240 --> 00:07:04,880 Speaker 1: at Giza, the Nile River, and the Valley of the Kings. 115 00:07:05,240 --> 00:07:08,400 Speaker 1: But Egypt doesn't have a monopoly on mummies, and in fact, 116 00:07:08,440 --> 00:07:10,760 Speaker 1: one of the world's most unique collections can be found 117 00:07:10,800 --> 00:07:13,880 Speaker 1: almost four thousand miles from Cairo, in the basement of 118 00:07:13,920 --> 00:07:17,400 Speaker 1: an old church in Dublin, Ireland. And when I say old, 119 00:07:17,520 --> 00:07:20,800 Speaker 1: I mean really old. Saint Miken's was originally built in 120 00:07:20,920 --> 00:07:24,160 Speaker 1: ten ninety five, when the area was occupied by the Vikings. 121 00:07:24,480 --> 00:07:27,480 Speaker 1: The current structure dates back to sixteen eighty six. That's 122 00:07:27,520 --> 00:07:30,440 Speaker 1: when the basement crypt was constructed and when it gained 123 00:07:30,520 --> 00:07:33,720 Speaker 1: its first occupants. And it's not difficult to see them. 124 00:07:34,080 --> 00:07:36,720 Speaker 1: Just tell the groundskeeper that you're there to see the vaults. 125 00:07:37,000 --> 00:07:39,440 Speaker 1: He'll lead you past the graveyard to a rusty old 126 00:07:39,520 --> 00:07:42,120 Speaker 1: cellar door. Watch your head as you descend down the 127 00:07:42,120 --> 00:07:44,560 Speaker 1: steep flight of stone steps, and you'll find yourself in 128 00:07:44,680 --> 00:07:47,240 Speaker 1: a medieval crypt. The first thing you notice when you 129 00:07:47,320 --> 00:07:49,320 Speaker 1: get down there is how dry and dark it is. 130 00:07:49,720 --> 00:07:52,280 Speaker 1: The stone walls seem to close in around you. You 131 00:07:52,360 --> 00:07:55,000 Speaker 1: can see why some people think it inspired Brahms Stoker 132 00:07:55,080 --> 00:07:58,320 Speaker 1: to write parts of Dracula. Several small rooms break off 133 00:07:58,360 --> 00:08:01,840 Speaker 1: from the main corridor, each covered with iron bars. Look 134 00:08:01,920 --> 00:08:05,880 Speaker 1: inside and you'll see old coffins haphazardly stacked on top 135 00:08:05,960 --> 00:08:08,800 Speaker 1: of one another. Many of them are falling apart, giving 136 00:08:08,920 --> 00:08:12,960 Speaker 1: visitors an unobstructed view of the bodies inside. Now, the 137 00:08:13,000 --> 00:08:15,200 Speaker 1: corpses in the crypt are old enough that they should 138 00:08:15,240 --> 00:08:18,600 Speaker 1: be severely decayed, but for some reason, possibly a combination 139 00:08:18,720 --> 00:08:21,800 Speaker 1: of the limestone walls, the dry air inside the crypt, 140 00:08:22,120 --> 00:08:25,840 Speaker 1: and methane gas from the surrounding swamp soil, they're unusually 141 00:08:25,960 --> 00:08:29,680 Speaker 1: well preserved. Strangely, those same conditions are also causing the 142 00:08:29,720 --> 00:08:34,439 Speaker 1: wood coffins to decompose, and this unusual combination has naturally 143 00:08:34,559 --> 00:08:37,400 Speaker 1: created the macab viewing gallery that you find inside the 144 00:08:37,440 --> 00:08:40,720 Speaker 1: crypt today, and it's also the only reason visitors are 145 00:08:40,800 --> 00:08:43,280 Speaker 1: allowed to view the mummies at all. The Catholic Church 146 00:08:43,400 --> 00:08:46,320 Speaker 1: doesn't typically go rooting around through its cemeteries in search 147 00:08:46,360 --> 00:08:49,640 Speaker 1: of tourist attractions. To do so would be sacrilegious right 148 00:08:49,960 --> 00:08:52,240 Speaker 1: not to mention, kind of dishonest to the people who 149 00:08:52,320 --> 00:08:55,000 Speaker 1: paid for those tombs. That's why this isn't really an 150 00:08:55,080 --> 00:08:58,920 Speaker 1: official tour, and why Saint Miken's doesn't technically charge an 151 00:08:59,080 --> 00:09:01,720 Speaker 1: entry fee. The only people who pay to be there 152 00:09:02,080 --> 00:09:04,360 Speaker 1: are the mummies. A space in the crypt would not 153 00:09:04,440 --> 00:09:06,840 Speaker 1: have been cheap too, so most of the occupants were 154 00:09:06,920 --> 00:09:10,120 Speaker 1: probably wealthy. The fanciest coffins there belong to the Earls 155 00:09:10,160 --> 00:09:13,120 Speaker 1: of Leetram, several generations of them. In fact, there are 156 00:09:13,240 --> 00:09:17,240 Speaker 1: also some famous Irish revolutionaries down there, including the Sheers brothers, 157 00:09:17,240 --> 00:09:20,560 Speaker 1: who were executed in seventeen ninety eight for plotting against Britain. 158 00:09:21,000 --> 00:09:23,839 Speaker 1: Their coffins are in decent condition, so you can't see 159 00:09:23,880 --> 00:09:26,559 Speaker 1: their bodies. That's probably a good thing, though, considering that 160 00:09:26,640 --> 00:09:29,520 Speaker 1: the brothers were killed by being drawn and quartered. Now, 161 00:09:29,600 --> 00:09:32,120 Speaker 1: if you continue far enough down the crypt, you'll eventually 162 00:09:32,160 --> 00:09:35,120 Speaker 1: reach a room that contains the Big Four. These are 163 00:09:35,200 --> 00:09:38,480 Speaker 1: the church's best preserved mummies. They stand in a line 164 00:09:38,520 --> 00:09:41,800 Speaker 1: of lidless coffins, surrounded by the bone fragments and skulls 165 00:09:41,840 --> 00:09:45,160 Speaker 1: of their neighbors. Their true identities are unknown, but the 166 00:09:45,240 --> 00:09:48,640 Speaker 1: tour guides have affectionately given them names. First up is 167 00:09:48,880 --> 00:09:52,640 Speaker 1: the Unknown. She is a female mummy of no noteworthy qualities, 168 00:09:52,679 --> 00:09:55,080 Speaker 1: aside from having claimed the name long before the Willy 169 00:09:55,080 --> 00:09:58,400 Speaker 1: Wonka experience made it a meme. Next up is the Thief, 170 00:09:58,679 --> 00:10:01,440 Speaker 1: a man whose hand and leg appeared to have been removed, 171 00:10:01,640 --> 00:10:04,599 Speaker 1: suggesting that he may have been punished for stealing. The 172 00:10:04,679 --> 00:10:07,120 Speaker 1: third figure is now a stand in. It used to 173 00:10:07,160 --> 00:10:09,520 Speaker 1: be a small figure called the Nun, but her body 174 00:10:09,600 --> 00:10:12,520 Speaker 1: was stolen from the crypt in twenty nineteen. She was 175 00:10:12,600 --> 00:10:17,240 Speaker 1: eventually recovered, but her head was not. It's the fourth figure, however, 176 00:10:17,360 --> 00:10:21,080 Speaker 1: that is the most visually arresting. The Crusader stood at 177 00:10:21,120 --> 00:10:23,679 Speaker 1: six and a half feet tall, making him something of 178 00:10:23,760 --> 00:10:26,120 Speaker 1: a giant. When he was alive, he was so tall 179 00:10:26,200 --> 00:10:28,560 Speaker 1: that his legs had to be broken before he could 180 00:10:28,600 --> 00:10:31,839 Speaker 1: fit into his coffin, and he's significantly older than the 181 00:10:31,920 --> 00:10:35,280 Speaker 1: other mummies too, dating back to the Fourth Crusades. That 182 00:10:35,320 --> 00:10:38,160 Speaker 1: would make him about eight hundred years old, twice as 183 00:10:38,240 --> 00:10:40,880 Speaker 1: old as the crypt itself. How he got down there 184 00:10:41,000 --> 00:10:43,199 Speaker 1: is a mystery, but despite his age, he is in 185 00:10:43,320 --> 00:10:46,079 Speaker 1: remarkable condition, and one of his hands seems to be 186 00:10:46,160 --> 00:10:49,040 Speaker 1: reaching out of the coffin toward the viewer. Some people 187 00:10:49,080 --> 00:10:52,040 Speaker 1: say that he's offering to shake hands or beckoning visitors 188 00:10:52,080 --> 00:10:54,959 Speaker 1: toward him personally, though I think he looks like he's 189 00:10:55,000 --> 00:10:57,800 Speaker 1: waiting for you to give him something. Maybe he's there 190 00:10:57,840 --> 00:11:00,440 Speaker 1: as a reminder that while Saint Miken's does it charge 191 00:11:00,480 --> 00:11:09,200 Speaker 1: for the tour, donations are always appreciated. I hope you've 192 00:11:09,280 --> 00:11:13,199 Speaker 1: enjoyed today's guided tour of the Cabinet of Curiosities. Subscribe 193 00:11:13,240 --> 00:11:15,839 Speaker 1: for free on Apple Podcasts, or learn more about the 194 00:11:15,880 --> 00:11:20,640 Speaker 1: show by visiting Curiosities podcast dot com. The show was 195 00:11:20,760 --> 00:11:24,559 Speaker 1: created by me Aaron Mankey in partnership with how Stuff Works. 196 00:11:25,000 --> 00:11:28,079 Speaker 1: I make another award winning show called Lore, which is 197 00:11:28,240 --> 00:11:31,640 Speaker 1: a podcast, book series, and television show, and you can 198 00:11:31,720 --> 00:11:34,760 Speaker 1: learn all about it over at the Worldoflore dot com. 199 00:11:35,640 --> 00:11:37,959 Speaker 1: And until next time, stay curious.