The Secret Story of Nutmeg - A hidden history

The Secret Story of Nutmeg - A hidden history

Mysteries and Histories of a seed that shaped the world. Start at Episode 1 and follow this hidden history podcast as we explore the mystery and history of the spice Nutmeg and the way it has shaped our world as we know it. From the birth of capitalism to the discovery of MDMA, The Secret Story of Nutmeg will show you how this seed from the Myristica fragrans tree has played a role in human discovery, from major world-shaping events and mystic traditions to human evolution and our innermost self-development. It will blow your mind. Disclaimer This podcast explores history, chemistry, cultural belief, and speculation. It does not provide medical advice or advocate drug use. Nutmeg contains the compound myristicin, which is not MDMA. Historical medicinal claims reflect beliefs of their time, not modern science. Some ideas presented are interpretive and are examined critically throughout the series.

Episodes

January 12, 2026 32 mins

Finally, we meet Trad, Nutmeg's keeper of secrets, a man who has studied the histories and mysteries of Nutmeg for two decades. Trad's dedication has led him down rabbit holes, but he has emerged a changed man...

In Episode 2 of The Secret Story of Nutmeg, Andy follows an idea repeatedly voiced by Trad: “Nutmeg is the original metaphor.” Not just a spice, not just a commodity—but a symbolic lens through which power, trade,...

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Nutmeg, the spice of life... the source of empathy, its oils that can make MDMA, New York being swapped for the spice's source, its widespread uses, people carrying around nutmeg graters on their persons in the 17th and 1800's...

In the opening episode of The Secret Story of Nutmeg, filmmaker Andy DelVecchio begins an investigation into how a single seed—Myristica fragrans—helped shape global trade, empire, and belief. Fro...

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Layer upon layer. Nutmeg reveals itself in history; the closer we look, the more we see that its story is a metaphor. Trad says the original metaphor. We look at how the Western world, starting with why and how the Portuguese started to look for the source of Nutmeg, hidden for millennia, on the other side of the world...

Myristica fragrans
 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Myristica_fragrans

Myristica fragrans  https://www.inchem....

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Nutmeg. A forgotten spice at the back of the cupboard… or the hidden key to how our world really works?

In this episode, we follow the spice routes not just across oceans, but deep into the human psyche. From ancient trade networks and espionage to modern wars, global trauma, and the fragile mechanics of empathy, nutmeg becomes a lens through which everything sharpens into focus.

As MDMA re-emerges as a tool for healing the mind, we ...

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In this episode, we follow the trail of one of history’s most prized spices — nutmeg — from its remote birthplace in the Banda Islands to its central role in the expansion of European empires. We begin with the Portuguese conquest of Malacca in 1511 and their first voyages to the Banda Islands, the only source of nutmeg and mace at the time. Along the way, we encounter Enrique of Malacca — a Malay man who sailed with Magellan’s exp...

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Speedboats in the Caribbean. The Dragon’s Mouth. A national flag bearing a split fruit — Grenada is the only country in the world with a nutmeg on its flag.

Why would a spice sit at the heart of a nation’s identity?

Following that question pulls us back to the Banda Islands — and into older stories of trade, monopoly, resistance, and ambition. Companies acting like nations. Nations acting like corporations. Islands traded for other i...

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