Welcome to Noble Blood, a production of I Heart Radio and Grim and Myelt from Aaron

Manky.

Listener discretion is advised.

There's an anecdote that's often included in biographies of 16th century astronomer

Tico Bri that while almost entirely irrelevant to his life or scientific achievements, I think

is worth talking about.

You see Tico Bri had a pet elk.

He had a few pet alks, we can determine that from primary sources.

But one in particular was Tane.

The wood trot along at the side of his carriages and joined him inside the house.

He and his family would feed it beer and delight in the way that it lapped it up.

One of Bri's German friends wrote to him once, asking if it was true that in Denmark

there was an animal called a rick's that was bigger and faster than a deer.

Bri knew his friend, he knew he was one of those wealthy aristocratic types who just wanted

as many different animals as possible for his own private zoo.

Bri wrote back saying, no there's no ricks you're probably thinking of a reindeer.

But hey if you happen to want an elk, I have a tame one that you can borrow.

The letter was sent off to Germany and by the time the friend wrote back saying, sure,

it was too late.

Bri had already sent his tame elk over to a neighbor's house for a party.

That party's guests were so amused by the animal that they kept giving it more and more

alcohol.

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