38 Quirky Artifacts At The Museum Of Intrigue

Unveil the wonders within the Museum of Intrigue, featuring 38 quirky artifacts and oddities that defy expectations.

“These Are A Very Rare Set Of 16th Century Italian Notation Knives. Each Side Has Musical Notes And Lyrics Engraved On The Steel Blade, Which Are Meant To Be Sung As Grace Before And After A Meal”

“A Woman Of Many Disguises! This Is An Example Of An Unusual Fad From The Mid-1600s: Miniature Oil Portraits That Came With Clear Slices Of Mica Painted With Different Costumes”

“Black Cat Paper Fan Made In Germany In The 1920s. I Know This Was Intended As A Novelty Halloween Accessory, But I Can Think Of At Least Six Of My Regular Outfits That Would Go Perfectly With A Pissed-Off Cat”

“Gilt-Bronze Bat Chandelier Made Around 1910 By Swedish Lamp Company Böhlmarks. My Favourite Detail Is The Pendant Lights That Are Enclosed By Little Furled Bats Hanging Upside Down”

“About 4500 Years Ago, Ancient Egyptian Parents Put This Homemade Ball In Their Child’s Grave As A Toy For The Kid To Play With In The Afterlife”

“Gold Spider Earrings, 300 Bc To 100 Bc, From The Bactrian Region In Modern Day Afghanistan”

“Don’t Fear The Reaper, But Do Fear Poor Oral Hygiene.⁣⁣ ⁣⁣ Fancy Memento Mori Toothpick, In The Shape Of A Skull With An Arm Holding A Sickle”

“An Antique Bear Automaton Whose Fur Was Destroyed By An Infestation Of Moths”

“The Shoe That Marie Antoinette Lost When She Tripped Going Up The Steps To The Guillotine On The Morning Of Her Execution, 16 October 1793”

 

“Ghoulish Gold Earrings Depicting The Severed Heads Of Marie Antoinette And King Louis Xvi Were Sold As Souvenirs During Their Execution By Guillotine In 1793”

“Silvered Glass Bottle Said To Contain The Spirit Of A Witch Inside. It Was Collected In 1915 From An Old Lady Living Near Hove, Sussex, Who Sternly Warned That If You Opened The Wax Seal There Would Be A “Peck O’trouble””

“A 15th Century Painting Of St Bartholomew Wearing His Own Flayed Skin As A Robe After Being Skinned Alive And Honestly He Is Totally Pulling Off The Look”

“Shoe Doll That Belonged To A Child In The Slums Of London In The Early 20th Century. It Is Handmade From Fabric Scraps And The Heel Of A Man’s Delapidated Shoe, With Hair Made From An Old Black Sock”

“A Tiny Devil Vitrified In A Prism Of Glass. In The 18th Century, The Imperial Treasury Of Vienna Attested That This Was A Real Demon Which Had Been Trapped In Glass During An Exorcism In Germany A Century Earlier”

“When The Lid Is Opened On This Victorian Gold Charm, A Little Demon With Sparkling Rhinestone Eyes Pops Out. These (Frankly Adorable) Devil Totems Were Worn As Symbols Of Temperance — A Reminder To Resist The Sinful Temptation Of Drinking Alcohol”

“A Posthumous Portrait Of A Child Holding A Lizard, Which Sheds Its Skin And Regrows Its Tail — A Symbol Of Resurrection, Rebirth Or Regeneration”

“Screaming Baby Dolls Made From Bisque Porcelain By German Dollmaker Kestner Around 1920. ⁣⁣ ⁣⁣ This Doll Gives Me Such A Visceral Stress Response. Honestly, I Don’t Understand Who Would Ever Want Such A Thing Unless It Shoots Birth Control Pills Out Of Its Mouth At You Like A Pez Dispenser”

“A Neon Salesman’s Sample Case, Circa 1935”

“This Enchanting Painting Is ‘Silence Of The Forest’ (1885) In Which A Nymph Rides Out Of A Darkened Wood On The Back Of A Freaked-Out Unicorn”

“Unsettling 17th Century Mask Made From Real Human Hair, Leather Skin, Feathers And False Teeth. It Was Worn As A Disguise By The Outlaw Preacher Alexander Peden (1626-1686), A Popular Scottish Covenanter In Hiding For His Treasonous Views That Rejected King Charles I As The Spiritual Head Of The Church In Scotland”

“Folk Art Wood Carving Of An Exorcism Scene, With A Demon Sitting On Top Of A Terrified, Wide-Eyed Child”

“These Are Dummy Soap Heads Made By Frank Morris And Brothers John And Clarence Anglin, Which They Tucked Into Their Beds To Fool The Night Guards During Their Successful Escape From Alcatraz Penitentiary In June 1962”

“White Gold Enamel Earrings In The Shape Of Little Hands, Which Are Holding Pieces Of The Cannonball Shrapnel That Was Dug Out Of The King Of Denmark’s Forehead In 1644”

“Late Victorian Art Pottery Known As Martinware, Which Depicts A Horrifying Crab With A Grotesque Human Face. Made By Robert Wallace Martin In June 1880, From Salt-Glazed Stoneware”

“Flying Monkey Costume Tests To Pick The Perfect Wings For The Wizard Of Oz, 1939. Also Exactly How I Look Picking Out My Outfit Each Morning”

“Antique Terracotta Pincushion In The Shape Of A Crying Baby With A Big Gross Metal Fly On Its Face. The Nightmare Only Gets Worse As You Shove Your Sewing Pins Into The Soft Spot On His Poor Little Head”

“Christine Borland, Set Conversation Pieces (Detail), 1998⁣. ⁣ ⁣ Set Of Five Pelvises Containing Fetal Skulls, Which Borland Based On Antique Obstetric Models”

“Hans Eijkelboom, ‘With My Family’ (1973). For This Series, The Dutch Photographer Would Ring The Doorbells Of Strangers’ Houses After He Saw The Husbands Leave For Work. He Would Then Convince Their Wives To Pose In A Family Portrait With Him In The Place Of The Father”

“Persian Cat Sabotaged Before A Cat Show In Milwaukee, Wisconsin In 1949. ⁣⁣ ⁣⁣ According To Her Owner, Petite Lilly Bear Was Smeared With Makeup By An Unknown Assailant In The Hours Before A Sunday Morning Cat Show, Ruining Her Chances Of Winning”

“Hendrick De Keyser (1565-1621) Was A Dutch Sculptor And Architect Inspired By The Timeless And Majestic Beauty Of A Screaming Baby’s Forehead Veins”

“”Dental Plumper” Jaw Prosthetic Worn By Marlon Brando In The Godfather (1972). Brando Wanted Vito Corleone To Have Jowls Like A Bulldog, So He Stuffed Cotton Balls In His Mouth During His Audition”

“Marble Sculptures Of The Left Arms Of Princess Louise (1848), Prince Alfred (1845) And Princess Beatrice (1859). They Were Carved By Mary Thornycroft, Who Was Commissioned By Queen Victoria To Sculpt The Arms Based On Plaster Casts Made From Her Sleeping Babies”

“A Late 19th Century Wax Head From Berlin Which Was Stored Face-Down For Many Years, So That It Deformed Into This Exquisitely Grotesque Nightmare”

“A Peanut Vendor Wearing A Suit Made Of Peanuts In 1890. Photograph By Henry H. Buehman”

“Keep Your Face Looking Youthful By Washing It With The Tears Of Children!⁣ ⁣ Norton’s “Smile And Cry” Baby Face Soap With Face Flannel, 1930-39. There Is A Laughing Face On The Other Side Of The Baby’s Head And I Honestly Don’t Know Which Option Is Worse”

“Drawing Of A Rat King Found Around 1683 In Strasbourg, France, Attributed To Friedrich Wilhelm Schmuck”

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