It took more than money and man-power to lay the transatlantic cable. Gutta-percha, a natural plastic extracted from trees in Southeast Asia, sparked a craze in Victorian England, leading to its ...

H. H. Day, of New York, has obtained a patent in England for extracting from gutta percha a peculiar etheric oil which it contains preparatory to its being subjected to the process of ...

This new wonder material was called Gutta Percha, after the tree that it came from, and it would blow Victorian minds. Video by Archie Crofton Narration by Emily West Follow BBC Reel on Twitter ...