Parallel Earth: 571454
Exhibition: The World In A Haze
Parallel Historian: Ben Tumbling.

Cavourite infused coal; date of acquisition and source classified.

Pure cavourite is one of the most strictly controlled substances in the world. But it was not always so. Before its energy generating capabilities were discovered, the “incandescent element” was used for all manner of things. Although, never to much success. Cavourite mirrors reflected more light than they received, but never steadily. They caused sporadic sunburns and heatstroke. Cavourite infused pigments made artworks shimmer, but never completely dried. Eventually, the paint would run off the canvas. The most disastrous attempts to put the substance to good use were in construction. Try to create cavourite alloys and you get structures that slowly bend in on themselves, develop holes and uneven textures, or simply disintegrate into a fine powder.

Fusing the material with coal is still officially a top secret process, even though much more advanced and less environmentally impactful techniques of using it as fuel now exist. Burning the coal releases two to three hundred times more energy than burning petroleum.

Its miraculous and mysterious properties are still being studied today.

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