In an old country town high school library there is a glass case that displays something highly unusual and, for some, confronting.

Inside that glass case is a mummified head and according to its plaque, it was donated to Grafton High School in 1915.

Now, over 100 years later, questions are being raised about where it really came from and whether it really belongs there.




This podcast is a co-production of ABC Australia and CBC Podcasts.

The Head in the Library

Throughout its reign, the British Empire stole a lot of stuff. Today the Empire's loot sits in museums, galleries, private collections and burial sites with polite plaques. But its history is often messier than the plaques suggest.

In each episode of this global smash hit podcast, Walkley award-winning journalist, author and genetic potluck, Marc Fennell, takes you on the wild, evocative, sometimes funny, often tragic adventure of how these stolen treasures got to where they live today. These objects will ultimately help us see the modern world — and ourselves — in a different light.

This is a co-production between the ABC and CBC Canada.

History

Society & Culture

Take a listen to the ABC's new podcast Looking For Modi and an update on season 2 of Stuff The British Stole's TV season."

PRESENTS: Looking For Modi and a Stuff The British Stole update

How do you uncover the true life of a woman whose existence is wrapped in myth, propaganda and a famous animated children’s movie?

This is the true story of Matoaka - a young Powhatan girl who you probably know as Pocahontas. This is the mystery of a child, a hidden history and a stolen story.




Audio courtesy of Missing Matoaka.

This podcast is a co-production of ABC Australia and CBC Podcasts

The Girl Called Pocahontas

Most heists target gold, jewels or cash. This one targeted illegal seeds.

As the British established their sprawling empire across the subcontinent and beyond, they encountered a formidable adversary — malaria. 

There was a cure — the bark of the Andean cinchona tree. The only problem? The Dutch and the French were also looking to corner the market in cinchona. And the trees themselves were under threat.

Grab a gin and tonic and come with us to hear how a botanical empire took off — and gave birth to a quintessential cocktail.

The Fever Tree Hunt

It’s round. It has a hole in it. It symbolises nothing and yet it is the possibility of something... meet zero.

The zero we know and love today is the foundation of our modern world. And we have India to thank for it; in particular one special Indian birch bark book — the Bakhshali manuscript.

This is the story of how these fragile pages travelled to Oxford University and what their future looks like.

This podcast is a co-production of ABC Australia and CBC Podcasts

Zero Marks The Spot

There's a body buried in the grounds of Windsor Castle whose real home is thousands of miles away. Since 2007, there have been calls for Prince Alamayu’s remains to be returned to Ethiopia.

But how exactly did this young royal end up alone in England, and buried at Windsor Castle? To answer that we have to go back to 1868 to hear the message the British wanted to send that still reverberates to this day.

This podcast is a co-production of ABC Australia and CBC Podcasts

If this episode has raised any issues for you, call Lifeline on 13 11 14.

The Head in the Library

Download our free app to listen on your phone