Episode 3.14 // Tamám Shud: The Mysterious Somerton Man

An unidentified, well dressed man was found dead on an Australian beach in November 1948. He lay on the sand as if sleeping, with no immediate signs of struggle or foul play. Stitched into a secret pocket in his trousers was a scrap of paper torn from a book of 18th century poetry, with a confusing jumble of letters and numbers scribbled alongside. Was it a cypher for a secret code? Could the man have been a spy? Or was he merely an unfortunate, unclaimed soul? The mystery would remain for over 70 years…

SOURCES:

• Unlocking… Somerton Man - Daniel Keane - Australian Broadcast Corporation - Nov 30, 2018

• The Body on Somerton Beach - Mike Dash - Smithsonian Magazine - Aug 12, 2011

• Inquest into the Death of a Body Located at Somerton on 1.12.48

• Poisoned in SA - Was he a Red Spy? - Matt Clemow - Sunday Mail - Nov 7, 2004

• The Dead Man Who Sparked Many Tales - Rex Jory - The Advertiser - Dec 1, 2000

• Somerton Mystery Clue - The Advertiser - Jan 15, 1949

• Definite Clue In Somerton Mystery - The Advertiser - Jan 18, 1949

• The Somerton Man... - Hilary Whiteman - CNN - May 31, 2021

• Somerton Man's Identity Remains a Mystery (Part 1) - Lisa Zyga - Phys.org - Jun 2, 2015

• The Mysterious Death of the Somerton Man - Stacy Conradt - Mental Floss - Nov 30, 2015

• Somerton Man - Wikipedia

• Somerton Case: Lecture 1, The Key Events - Derek Abbot

• Unlocking… Somerton Man - Daniel Keane - Australian Broadcast Corporation - Nov 30, 2018

• Army Officer Sought To Help Solve Somerton Body Case - The Advertiser - Jul 27 1949

• EX-OFFICER FOUND—AND HIS "RUBAIYAT" - The Advertiser Jul 28, 1949

• Tamám Shud Case: The Mystery of the Somerton Man -J.A. Hernandez - Feb 22, 2022

• 'Tamam Shud'... - Daniel Keane - Australian Broadcast Corporation - May 18, 2021

• A body, a Secret… Penelope Debelle - The Advertiser (Weekend Supplement) - Aug, 2009

• Somerton Man's Identity Remains a Mystery (Part 1) - Lisa Zyga - Phys.org - Jun 2, 2015

• What is a One-Time Pad? - SearchSecurity

• Is this the key to solving the decades-old mystery of the Somerton Man? | 60 Minutes Australia

• DNA Researchers Name the Somerton Man… - Alan Yuhas - The New York Times - July 26, 2022

• How an Electrical Engineer Solved… - Derek Abbott - IEEE Spectrum - Mar 20, 2023

TRANSCRIPT:

Somerton Man.pdf

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