Our Fake History
A podcast about myths we think are history and history that might be hidden in myths! Awesome stories that really (maybe) happened!
OFH Throwback- Episode #34- Did Archimedes Build a Death Ray?
In this throwback episode Sebastian takes you back to Season 2 Episode #34 - Did Archimedes Build a Death Ray? Archimedes was one of the ancient world’s most important mathematicians. His discoveries would form the foundation upon which all future western science was built. However, he’s probably best remembered for his amazing inventions that saved his city from attackers during the siege of Syracuse. The most discussed of all of these amazing devices has to be Archimedes’ “Death Ray”. This mysterious machine was said to be able to set ships on fire from hundreds of meters away. Did this fabled “Death Ray” really exist, or is just another legend in a life filled with mythology. Tune-in and find out how gold scams, Archimedes claw, and a sphere in a cylinder all play a role in the story.
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Podcast Episodes
Episode #242 - What Was Ponzi's Scheme? (Part I)
The name Charles Ponzi has become synonymous with financial frauds. In 1920 the formerly obscure Italian immigrant suddenly became one of the most famous men in Boston when his Securities Exchange Company started offerin…
Bonus Episode - Grisly Trophies, Evil Cowboys, and Questionable Mascots
In this Bonus Episode Sebastian takes questions about the recent series on Buffalo Bill and the Wild West Show. He unpacks Bill's influence on the cowboy hero archetype, dives into the contentious history of scalping, an…
Episode #241 - Who Invented the Wild West? (Part II)
Buffalo Bill's Wild West first started touring outdoor arenas in 1883. What started as a western themed circus soon grew in ambition. In the quest to appeal to respectable middle-class family audiences Buffalo Bill was s…
Episode #240 - Who Invented the Wild West? (Part I)
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.
Bonus Episode - Messy Duels, Welsh Pride, and Famous Firsts
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…
Episode #239 - Did a Welsh Prince Beat Columbus to the New World?
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 assi…
Episode #238 - What Was the Last Elephant Duel?
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…
Bonus Episode - Rabid Vampires, Drunk Witches, and Werewolf Psychopomps
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 wei…
Episode #237 - What is the Hammer of the Witches?
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…
Episode #236 - Real Werewolves?
Could Werewolf stories reflect a distant, if blurry, historical memory?
