Dive into Christmas true crime, Santa Claus history, and holiday folklore with the real medieval relic heist that helped shape the legend of Santa. In 1087, sailors from Bari, Italy break into the tomb of St. Nicholas in Myra (modern Turkey)—and the world’s most famous Christmas icon gets a distu...
Dive into Christmas true crime, Santa Claus history, and holiday folklore with the real medieval relic heist that helped shape the legend of Santa. In 1087, sailors from Bari, Italy break into the tomb of St. Nicholas in Myra (modern Turkey)—and the world’s most famous Christmas icon gets a disturbingly real origin story.
Inside the candlelit crypt, witnesses claim the tomb is flooded with mysterious liquid—the “manna” of St. Nicholas—and the thieves interpret it as a sign the saint approves. But back on shore, the people of Myra collapse into grief and fury, pleading for even a single fragment. And when the relics reach Bari, the celebration turns volatile: church power struggles, blood spilled in the saint’s name, and a brand-new basilica built to lock the prize in place.
Then the rivalry escalates. Venice returns to Myra and scoops up what Bari left behind—tiny fragments, crushed pieces, a second claim to the same saint. Centuries later, science steps into the story: anatomical studies, missing bones, and the unsettling realization that Santa’s “origin story” includes grave-robbing, propaganda, and a relic war that rewrote Europe’s holiday traditions.
Inside this episode:
- The 1087 relic heist: how Bari’s sailors infiltrate Myra and break into the tomb
- “Furta sacra”: the medieval logic that framed theft as holy rescue
- The grief of Myra: a town begging for any piece of their protector
- Bari’s power play: riots, control of the relics, and a basilica built for a stolen saint
- Bari vs. Venice: the second “collection” of bones and a centuries-long relic rivalry
- Miracles and manna: the eerie liquid linked to St. Nicholas and why skeptics argue back
- The Santa connection: how this crime helped carry St. Nicholas into Western Europe’s Christmas tradition
We’re telling that story tonight.
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Produced by: Daniel Wilder
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