Our Fake History

Buffalo Bill Cody was one of America's great mythmakers. The man born William Cody reinvented himself as the west's greatest rider, scout, and buffalo hunter before taking his schtick to the American stage in the early 1870's. Buffalo Bill would eventually develop his frontiersman act into the Wild West Show, an outdoor exposition that was part circus, part rodeo, and part historical reenactment....

In this bonus episode Sebastian takes questions about the recent episodes on Thailand's legendary elephant duels and the seafaring Welsh Prince Madoc. The host does his best to pinpoint the "real" last elephant duel and takes questions from a practicing druid. We also hear from a Welsh listener with some fascinating thoughts about the Madoc episode.Join us in Greece in 2026! Check out the...

There's a story that in the year 1170 a Prince from Wales, named Madoc, led a group of Welsh colonists over the Atlantic to North America. This group allegedly mingled with the local indigenous people and eventually assimilated into their culture. However, they left behind their language. For centuries it was believed that a lost tribe of welsh-speaking indigenous people lived somewhere in...

One of the most pivotal moments in the history of Thailand was the Battle of Nong Sarai in 1593. This confrontation between the Burmese Tuangoo Dynasty and the proto-Thai kingdom of Ayutthaya is remembered as the setting for an epic elephant duel. King Naresuan of Ayutthaya was said to have challenged the Burmese crown prince to single combat on elephant back. His victory that day become symbolic...

In this Bonus Episode Sebastian takes questions from listeners about the recent episodes on Werewolves and Witches. Sebastian explores the connection between rabies outbreaks and vampire/werewolf mythology. Listeners weigh in on the psychological meaning of the Egyptian god Anubis. We break down some witchy myths associated with English alewives and explore the inspiration for Shakespeare's...

In 1487 a scandal prone Dominican inquisitor published one of the most notorious witch-hunting manuals in history. The Malleus Maleficarum, or Hammer of the Witches, argued that Europe was under siege by witches and that these witches were almost exclusively female. The book was one of the first widely available texts that presented witchcraft as a uniquely female evil. By the end of 1500's women...

Stories about human beings transforming into wolves are as old as literature itself. Even the ancient Mesopotamian Epic of Gilgamesh featured a story of a man becoming a wolf. The Werewolf may be one of our most ancient and historically durable monsters. Could Werewolf stories reflect a distant, if blurry, historical memory? Belief in real werewolves seems to have peaked during the witch-panics...

In this bonus episode Sebastian answers questions from listeners about the recent series on the Parthenon Marbles. The host tangles with the ethics of repatriation requests from notorious dictators, the role of the Parthenon Marbles in inspiring the Greek Independence movement, and the path towards a true "universal museum." Sebastian also wrangles with the notorious "If I don't do it, somebody...

The Parthenon Sculptures have been hugely controversial objects from the moment that they arrived in England. The British public has long been split over the morality of keeping these famous works of art in London. In the early 1800's the famous poet Lord Byron went so far as to write angry poems castigating Lord Elgin for defiling Athena's temple. Over the last 200 years the topic of the...

The Parthenon Sculptures, also known as the Elgin Marbles, are some of the most controversial museum objects in the world. In the early 19th century the Scottish aristocrat Thomas Bruce, the seventh Earl of Elgin, used his position as Ambassador Extraordinary to the Ottoman Empire to gain access to Athens' historic acropolis and remove priceless works of ancient art from the Parthenon. Since that...