We traveled the globe to uncover the stories behind some of the world's most expensive items, from natural latex mattresses and bespoke dress shoes to handmade calligraphy ink and ancient Tyrian purple dye.
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Hisano Motohiro. Courtesy of Kazuya Shibata
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Hate to break it to you, but your truffle oil wasn't made from truffles. Your vanilla extract? Well, that's probably just a lab-made derivative of crude oil. And your shaker of Parmesan cheese? It probably has wood pulp inside.
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