Episode 31 – It Belongs in a Museum! A Banquet of Mysteries

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Kate from Ignorance Was Bliss joins the Relic dinnertable for a six-course-meal of mystery! In this episode we dig into a few unsolved topics concerning food, such as:

– Did bad bread lead to the Salem Witch Trials?
– Does artificial banana flavoring taste like how real bananas used to taste like?
– What the heck is a sugarplum anyway?
– What was the ancient seasoning and herb Silphium, and what happened to it?
– What are the origins of red velvet cake?
– Does a legendary fruit resembling women grow in the jungles of Thailand?

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Episode 30 – The Woman on the Train, or The Dorak Affair

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James Mellaart took the archaeological world by storm when he discovered one of the oldest Neolithic sites in the world. Then, a chance encounter with a mysterious stranger on a train promised Mellaart an even more earthshaking find: the treasures of a bygone culture that neighbored the once-thought legendary city of Troy. However, what happened next challenged Mellaart’s credibility for the rest of his life. The truth behind the strange case of the “Dorak Affair” is still hotly debated to this day.

Music from Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

Suggested reading from Suzan Mazur, who has covered the case extensively.

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Episode 29 – Tales from the Reliquary: A Very Relic Halloween

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Good evening boys and ghouls and non-binary demonic entities!

In this extra long, extra spooky episode of Relic, just in time for Halloween, I have invited 5 podcasts over for a feast of archaeological and historical frights!

Spoop Hour talks about a haunted pirate treasure off the coast of Connecticut, Cocktail Party Massacre spins a surreal yarn about Salvador Dali and tarot cards, Faux Fright has a cursed doll story, Cult of Domesticity regales us with the creepy mystery of the ghost ship Mary Celeste, and Strangeful Things takes us back to the beginning of time when vampires (allegedly) roamed the frozen tundra of Sweden!

Music by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0
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Episode 28 – Ghosts of Leap Castle

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For hundreds of years, County Offaly in Ireland has stood in the shadow of Leap Castle, a place with a wicked and bloody past. One of its violent residents was said to have buried a treasure somewhere on the castle grounds. But going to look for this treasure might be more trouble than it’s worth, as an entire of host of gruesome specters supposedly roam the dark corridors of one of the world’s most haunted abodes.

Music by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0

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Episode 27 – Empty Frames

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In 1990, two individuals dressed as police officers entered the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston and altered the course of the art world forever. One of the most audacious crimes ever committed kicks off Relic’s Season 2, the arc of which will focus on heists, deception, the paranormal, and the occult.

All music from Purple Planet and Kevin MacLeod
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0
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Season 2 Preview – “Empty Frames”

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This season on Relic, we’re taking a look into the darker, dangerous side of treasure hunting: true crime capers, and cursed artifacts that may be better left undiscovered!

This preview contains the prologue to our first episode of the season, and one of the most bizarre unsolved art crimes ever committed: the Isabella Stewart Gardner museum heist.

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Special Report: WHAT’S IN THE BOX???

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Ok, so they found something weird in Egypt, you guys! Could be big, could be less big. Find out what’s going on with the “Black Sarcophagus,” and who might be buried inside (or not). Also, I reveal the theme for Season 2!

More Info here: https://www.sciencealert.com/huge-mystery-sarcophagus-unearthed-in-egypt-alexandria

Music–to cover over the noises made by our new podcast dog, Susie, provided by Kevin MacLeod.

Ibn Al-Noor Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License
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Bonus Preview: Everything is Crystals! Episode 1

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While Relic takes some well-deserved time off, my friend Tom and I are producing an “off season” humor podcast on one of our favorite video game series. You can listen to part 1 of our pilot episode here, and be sure to check out (and subscribe) to the official channel on iTunes: “Everything is Crystals”, for part 2!

https://everythingiscrystals.podbean.com/

Every episode, Tom and I regale a guest with an story from the most ironically titled video game franchise of all time.
We choose 1 game from the series, 1 new guest, and 1 thematic cocktail. Then hilarity ensues! Whether you’re into gaming, anime, sci-fi, or just bad fantasy lit, there is a crystal for everybody!

Our first episodes delves into the history of the humble Tokyo power company that would go on to create one of the world’s best selling–and sequel-spanning–video games of all time. We also discuss the production of the O.G. Final Fantasy, and set the stage for a tale of silent protagonists, dark knights, and crystals galore. All the while, I force my co-host and guest to drink aggressive shots of various liquors. Good times all around.

Outro Music: BossaBossa by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0
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Episode 26 – Season Finale Part 2: Blood of the Grail

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The adventure comes to a conclusion with Relic’s season finale.

No other lost treasure has captivated the minds of artists and treasure hunters alike than the Holy Grail. Said to have been the goblet that Jesus drank from at the Last Supper, it is an object of alleged immense power, rivaled only by its companion treasure, the Spare of Destiny. Where are these two sacred artifacts, if anywhere, and what did the Nazis want with them?

Vocal sample from Indiana Jones and The Last Crusade (1989) Lucasfilm Ltd.

Music from Kevin MacLeod
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

“Parzafal” by Richard Wagner, supplied by MusOpen

Special thanks to the research of David McIntee and his book “Fortune and Glory”.

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Minisode – Who Gets Solved Next? A Talk With 5 True Crime Podcasts

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Hear what happens when I hang out with my Podcast friends! This is a sample of some more “off the beaten path,” exclusive content you can expect when you donate $5 to the Relic Patreon at Patreon.com/Relic

In this half hour minisode, myself and 4 other True Crime podcasters discuss the aftermath of the Golden State Killer identification, and which infamous cases might soon be closed shut…

You can also hear the full, unedited conversation on our lives, podcasting, and accidental ingestion of mind altering substances, in episode 14 of “Ignorance Was Bliss.”

Please check out these really great podcasters featured in this episode!

Kate of “Ignorance was Bliss” – @IWBPodcast
Courtney of “The Cult of Domisticity” – @DomesticPodcast
Justin of “Obscura” – @obscuracrimepod
Jenna of “Meet Me in the Woods” – @MeetmeNthewoods

Cases in order of mention:

Golden State Killer
Lyle Stevik
Boy in the Box
The Zodiac Killer
Sneha Phillip
Jean Benet Ramsey
Maura Murray
Amber Tucarro
Mesa Body Pit
DJ Fickey
Jefferson Davis 8
West Memphis 3
Ronald Gean Simmons Sr.

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Episode 25 – Season Finale Part 1: Brood of the Gods

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The first part of Relic’s season finale! If you’ve watched any science fiction or adventure movie in the last 20 years, you may be aware of a certain fantasy/sci fi trope: Nazis channeling the forces of the paranormal to help satisfy their goals. The truth behind the lore is, as they say, stranger than fiction. In this episode, find out how fringe belief, ancient mythology, and modern pseudoscience, came together to form a tyrannical and genocidal movement.

Music from Kevin Macleod and MusOpen

 

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Episode 24 – Yamashita’s Gold

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During World War II, the Japanese amassed their hoard of stolen wealth primarily on the Philippine island of Luzon. After the war, rumors began to emerge that a general by the name of Tomoyuki Yamashita had buried most of the loot in unspecified locations. For many years, this was nothing more than an urban legend…until a local man named Rogelio Roxas supposedly uncovered a cache of gold in an abandoned tunnel. This was when things got weird…

Music from: Derek Fiechter. MusOpen. And Kevin Macleod

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Episode 22 – It Belongs in a Museum! The Pages of History

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Content Warning: A short, non-descriptive mention of a sexual assault in a historical context.

Because of the efforts of scribes and scholars, we are still able to take a look into the past and know where we came from. But for all of the books that changed history, there are countless others that held knowledge now lost to the ages. Such tomes included: inventions that question what we thought we know of ancient civilization, the true story behind one of the most notorious poets who ever lived, and even a book that shaped the English langage…a book that may have never even existed in the first place! In this episode, Relic and the crew of the Frankenpod examine a few famous titles that you’ll never get to read.

Background music by Derek Fiechter

Listen to the Frankenpod here!

 

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Episode 21 – The Highest Grave

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Due to some scheduling conflicts, we had to switch some things up a bit for this episode. But never fear! You (and by that I mean the audience) got to vote on a shorter episode for this week. And you all chose…the mysteries behind the dead bodies left behind on Mount Everest? Oh boy…

Since the 1920s, Mt. Everest has stood as a metaphor for surmounting all odds. But over the years, experienced adventurers have lost their lives on this formidable mountain. This “treasure-lite” episode explores a few mysteries, including the doomed Mallory/Irvine expedition, which may have pre-dated the famous Norgay/Hillary achievement by several decades.

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Episode 20 – Truth to Dust

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Legend has it, that when the Jews of Prague were threatened by anti-Semitic violence, a great Rabbi, possessing the knowledge of alchemy and the Kabbalah, conjured up a golem to defend the city. For decades, most believed this was nothing more than a tall tale, until one night in 1938, when the Nazis marched into town…

Is there any truth to this fable? And if so, is the golem still sealed inside an attic somewhere, waiting for the right time to come alive?

Music by Kevin Macleod and MusOpen

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Episode 19 – A Tale of Two Swords

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The ancient chronicles of Japan speak of a sword called Kusanagi, an enchanted blade wielded by the gods and handed down to their descendants. Allegedly hidden in a shrine and only called upon during the Emperor’s coronation, its authenticity remains a topic of debate. Joining it in legendary status is the Honjo Masamune, often called the finest samurai sword ever crafted; current whereabouts unknown. In this lost artifact double feature, I try to figure out where the truth lies in legend.

Music by: PeriTune, Kevin MacLeod

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Episode 18 – Werewolf

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Warning: This episodes does not contain actual werewolves.

A lake. A train. A tragedy at sea. A message in a music score. This episode examines four mysteries surrounding the Nazi’s final ploy: the secreting of billions of assets, mostly in gold bullion and ingots, to fund a Nazi insurgency long after the war had ended.

Classical music provided by MusOpen

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Treasures and Tyrants

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Relic will be back in February 2018 with the last half of season 1! Until then, here’s a quick dive into our first season and its thematic arc. This will also serve as a first look towards our final stretch: the lost artifacts of World War II, and Hitler’s schemes to hoard all of the world’s treasures under one roof.

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