This week we travel to the Kingdom of Abkhazia, a Black Sea land nestled amongst the Caucasus. At a date lost to history, but believed to be around 1860 - hunters trap what they believe is a monster in their bear pit. The creature is shackled and brought to a nobleman named Edgi Genaba. This week is all about monsters - but the monster may not be who you are thinking of.
Trigger Warning: This Tale contains discussion of rape and dehumanisation.
Sources Include:
In The Footsteps of The Russian Snowman by Dmitri Bayanov. This DNA Explained article on Zana (author not listed.) This travelogue on Abkhazia. This Weird NJ article on Oliver the Humanzee by Mark Sceurman. I referred to Britannica to confirm several details that were already in my head And came around a dozen news articles from 2015 with much the same text one to the next…
Support the show on Patreon for $2 US a month and get access to exclusive content, or Try our 7 Day Free Trial.
Please leave Tales a like and a review wherever you listen. The best way you can support us is to share an episode with a friend - Creative works grow best by word of mouth. I post episodes fortnightly.
Tales of History and Imagination is on
| Facebook | Twitter | TikTok | Threads | Instagram | YouTube |
Music, writing, narration, mixing yours truly.
Visit Simone’s
Popular Podcasts
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations.
The Nikki Glaser Podcast
Every week comedian and infamous roaster Nikki Glaser provides a fun, fast-paced, and brutally honest look into current pop-culture and her own personal life.
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.