Stuff The British Stole

Zero Marks The Spot

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

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.