Needful Things

With Apologies to Steven King

What follows is a selection of the

strange and curious items in my collection.

Tibetan Sorcerer's Crown

Silver chased and copper repousse, gold leaf, 
hand polished turquoise and precious coral cabochons.

Tibet, mid 19th century 

Wax Museum Heads

All early 20th century

 

A. Lincoln

This French lady of the evening, is from a

Toulouse-Lautrec diorama

Wild Bill Hickok

Adult Male Platypus

 Poisonous Spur on Rear Leg


An Original 1850's Mermaid
Less than a dozen of this type are known
  

 German cdv of an 1850's mermaid similar to above specimen.
cdv ca. 1870's


Three Exhibits from Hubert's Museum
Times Square, New York City

 

The above shadow boxes are original exhibits from the world famous oddity emporium,
Hubert's Museum.

Pocket Watch 
belonging to 

Professor William Heckler Sr.

When asked for the time, Professor Heckler enjoyed taking this watch from his vest and saying, 

"I'm not sure, look for yourself."
The watch case contains ten dressed fleas.

Egyptian Mummified Fish

The Lord's Prayer Engraved on the Head of a Pin

 Coke bottle completely incrusted in coral

Ear of Corn with single bottom and double top

A Rabbit with 12 Horns

The placement and prominence of the horn on the nose
gives rise to this being a True Unicorn of the Wood.

Egyptian Mummified
Dorcas Gazelle

This animal was a beloved pet of an ancient Egyptian who wanted it to
accompany them into the after-life. Upon it's death this Dorcas gazelle was
mummified with as much care as a human. The reeds on the head and neck
were to give it rigidity during the mummification process. The keratin casing
of the horns is missing, same as the specimen in the Egyptian Museum.

See Divine Creatures by Salima IkramAncient/dp/9774248589

Mummified gazelles are rare in any museum collection.
There are only two examples known in private hands.

Medals & Tokens

Barnum's Museum Medal

Obverse with image of Barnum's Museum in New York with legend "New York/ P.T. Barnum/ Proprietor"; reverse with portrait of Barnum inside a laurel wreath flanked by flags, over text:
"This immense establishment/ contains 500,000 curiosities,/ including birds, beasts, insects,/ fossils, minerals, marine specimens,/ Indian implements, suits of armour,/ statuary, coins, medals,/ choice paintings, rare engravings,/ grand cosmorama, aerial garden/ and lecture room, in which rich,/ diversified and talented/ entertainments are given,/ unsurpassed in the World./
Admission To The Whole, Only 25 Cents".

General Tom Thumb Medal

Charles S. Stratton Known As Genl Tom Thumb 25 In High with view of Tom on desk surrounded by books, glass, wine bottle and desk set, signed Allen & Moore F: Birm 1844. Reverse has image of Tom Thumb's carriage with statistics signed Pub. By P. T. Barnum. Struck in White Metal 38.5mm. This version dated 1844, but believed to have been struck in 1862. Issued in Great Britain.

General Tom Thumb Medal

A rarely seen gold plated example.

Also issued in Great Britain.

Parents of General Tom Thumb Medal

General Tom Thumb, Wife & Child Medal

General Tom Thumb Medal

 

Original 19th Century Dime Museum Mummy

Good enough to fool even an expert's cursory examination, this life-size fabricated "mummy" has 

the typical features seen in such dime museum exhibits. A caved-in decomposed abdominal

 opening in the chest wall shows an actual rib (animal), and a breast with nipple and aureola. 

Great attention has been paid to the face, note the lips, eye lids and slightly depressed nose.

Recent research shows this dime museum mummy not to have been made by 

Nelson Supply House as previously thought, but a "freak factory" operating in NYC. 

There are four of these rare mummy exhibits in my collection. 

At one time, these mummies were on display at the 

Cliff House Museum near Sutro's Baths, San Francisco.

Original 19th Century Mummified Demon Child

Unlike the often seen Tate demon children, this rare example has an actual skin over the body. It is sewn up the back. The horns on the head appear as if growing out of the skull and through the skin. Same with the hoofs and claws. The tip of the tail, not visible in the above picture ends in a horn.

Typically, the abdomen is caved in but what is unusual is the penis seen on the left thigh.

Same 19th century New York studio as the above. 

This is not from the Cliff House Museum.

Leg from a Polydactyl Horse

Please come back, more to come as time permits.