Welcome to Aaron Manky's Cabinet of Curiosities, a production of I Heart Radio and

Grim and Mild. Our world is full of the unexplainable.

And if history is an open book,

all of these amazing tales are right there on display,

just waiting for us to explore.

Welcome to the Cabinet of Curiosities. Let's talk taxes. Now of course you know the gist, right? The government collects

taxes so that it can provide services to its citizens.

That's the idea at least.

But we all know that it's not that simple.

Taxes cause a lot of disgruntled.

People can't agree on what tax money should go toward what.

They can agree that filing taxes is a pain,

and we also know that the founding of the United States had a lot to do with taxes.

But what about before all of this? How did the concept of taxation even come about?

Well, as with most topics we discuss on this show, we've got to go back to ancient Egypt.

Taxation in Egypt was as ingrained in the fabric of society as the nation. E was a levy on goods and services, in which officials collected dues in the form of grain,

textiles, cattle, or labor.

The amount someone owed was tied to their agricultural output.

Successful harvests were subjected to higher percentages.

In other words, a person's wealth

determined their tax burden, just like today.

Now, this harvest-based tax

...