In 1911, exotic plums were used to trim ever more elaborate women's hats, and due to their volume and versatility, perfect ostrich feathers were particularly prized, commanding hefty prices, and as South Africa's third most lucrative export, the government had even seized land to create ostrich farms. But there was one problem... In every consignment of feathers entering South Africa, each was meticulously examined to search for a particularly illusive ostrich feather, because South Africa didn’t actually have the best feathers on the market. The highest prices were paid for plumage from “Barbary ostriches,” a mysterious variety thought to come from North Africa - and so naturally, South Africa wanted them...