Category: Curiosities
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Sacrifice and Skeletons at Clophill Church
In 1963, two teenagers were seen playing with a human skull in the middle of the street…
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The Bealings Phantom Bell Ringer
Now regarded as the work of a poltergeist – or a perturbed servant – the incidents in Suffolk made newspaper headlines, and eventually became the…
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It’s Raining Fish! Fish-falls and Other Curious Phenomena
You know the song ‘its raining men’? Well, you just wait until you hear ‘Quickly, get indoors, its raining fish.’
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The Weird World of Mummy Parties
In the 19th century, ‘Mummy Mania’ spread through the western world like a colonial Tamagotchi.
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The Stone Spheres of Costa Rica
The stone spheres of Costa Rica are one of the most fascinating and enduring mysteries in Central American history.
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The Whitby Wishing Chair
On the Western outskirts of Whitby, sits an inconsequential little stone seat.
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The Rocky Horror Coffin Clock
It’s astounding. Time is fleeting. Madness takes its toll…
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The Bloody Ceilings of Kyoto, Japan
In Japan’s Kyoto prefecture, five serene temples which harbour bloody secrets within their walls can be found.
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Henry Trigg and the Coffin in the Rafters
Henry Trigg was an eccentric man. A wealthy and successful man. A real character. And undoubtedly, a pain in the rear to his family. At…
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What’s in the Box? Oliver Plunkett’s Head
It’s about time we revisited some famous severed heads, as I’m sure you’ll agree, its been far too long.
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The Hangman’s Locket
As much as the Victorians revelled in beauty and sentimentality, they really were a bunch of morbid sods at heart.
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The Weirdest Epitaph in America: Sterling Hallard Bright Drake
“‘An idealist and a dreamer, he died of loneliness and a broken heart, searching for a shrine he never found.”
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A Preacher and a Horse Walk into a Bar
I don’t know about you, but when I think about Methodism, the first thing that springs to mind is a horse skeleton.
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The Curious World of Dollhouse Graves
Sitting like miniature residences between the headstones, these doll’s house graves are a striking example of non-traditional funerary art and changing ideas of grief, innocence,…
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Mary Toft: The Woman Who Birthed Rabbits
In 1726, when the rest of the country were dealing with periodic harvest failures, Mary Toft sat at home and gave birth to rabbits.
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The Thief’s Arm of Prague
The 400 year old arm, impaled on a meat hook, serves as a warning to all future criminals considering robbing the church.
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Ice, Ice, Body: Introducing Ice Caskets
In the age before embalming and refrigerated storage, keeping bodies preserved and cool was a serious issue for undertakers and families alike.
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Death Cheese: A Short History
In life, three things are for certain: Birth, Death and Cheese. The greatest of these is cheese.
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Medieval Secrets at St Faith’s Church, Little Witchingham
Medieval wall paintings. Grand, loud, bright and famous. They fill the pages of guidebooks, celebrated by tourists for centuries. They are never forgotten. Right?
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Hudds, Huds and Hudes: Graveside Shelters of Yesteryear
Shelters may seem to have been a rather excessive addition to the world of ecclesiastical furniture, after all; what’s a little rain between a vicar…
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Gef the Ghostly Mongoose
Ghosts and ghouls, hauntings and mournful spirits; one theme remains constant throughout. They are all human. Then there’s Gef.
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Timothy Clark Smith: The Grave With a Window
Instead of considering glass coffins and mausoleums, physician Timothy Clark Smith had rather more practical ideas…
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The House of Faces
Over a period of seven days, the mysterious stain turned into the clear image of a face. A face that would not disappear, no matter…
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The World of Victorian Grave Dolls
After experiencing the death of a loved one, our mourning practises may include collecting mementos…and a full-sized effigy of the deceased.
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Helen Peters Nosworthy: The Medium Behind ‘Ouija’
Without thinking, we attribute Ouija’s creation and branding to a huge faceless company, peddling plastic ponies in one hand and sprit communication devices in the…
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The Hand of Glory
When creating your mystical severed appendage, there were rules to be followed…
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A Short History of British Screaming Skulls
While sounding like a high-school punk band, screaming skulls are a not-uncommon element woven through the rich British tapestry of haunted body parts.
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The Curious Case of Edward Mordake’s Demon Face
You think you’re having a bad day? Well, imagine how bad you’d be feeling if you had a second face on the back of your…
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Invoking the Owlman
England in the 1970s; disco, flares, chilled bottles of blue nun… And a six-foot owl man.
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Satan Speaks: The Devil’s Handwriting
The Devil’s answers have never been deciphered as they follow no known, coherent languages…
Burials & Beyond 