Saturday, July 24, 2021

Stuff the British Stole

Episode 450

Stuff the British Stole

Throughout its reign, the British Empire stole a lot of stuff. Today those objects are housed in genteel institutions across the UK and the world. They usually come with polite plaques. This week, 99pi is featuring an episode from the podcast Stuff the British Stole hosted by Marc Fennell.

Photo via the Victoria and Albert Museum

Every day, hundreds of daily visitors to London’s Victoria and Albert quietly stream past a man being brutally murdered by a tiger. The mechanical creature was created for one of the most controversial rulers in history — Tipu Sultan, the Tiger of Mysore. His wooden toy is attacking a member of the East India Company, Tipu’s sworn enemies. Crank the toy, and the man’s arms flail in agony.

To understand how Tipu’s Tiger ended up in the Victoria and Albert Museum, you have to traverse the tale of two stolen princes, two global superpowers, two very different revolutions … and at least one blood-curdling scream.

Stuff the British Stole is a podcast from the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.

Enjoy 99pi?
Subscribe to the podcast!

Get the latest from 99pi each week in your inbox

Enjoy 99pi? Subscribe to the podcast!

Production

Stuff the British Stole is hosted by Marc Fennell.

Voices included: Alice Procter, art historian; Maya Jasanoff, historian, Harvard University; Shashi Tharoor, author and Indian MP; Zareer Masani, author, historian, Oxford University; Bhaktiar Ali Shah, a descendant of Tipu Sultan, lawyer, Calcutta High Court.

Additional production by Emmett FitzGerald.



from Hacker News https://ift.tt/36yL9Fx

No comments:

Post a Comment

Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.