The platypus was a real mystery to the first Europeans who encountered this graceful creature, some even doubted its existence! When Captain John Hunter sent a pelt of the animal to the naturalist George Shaw in 1799, the scientific community was baffled. Shaw named the animal Platypus anatinus, a flatfoot duck, but also expressed his doubts about the authenticity of the bizarre creature, saying that “there might have been practised some arts of deception in its structure.” Other naturalists were equally suspicious that the beast was just a hoax. This was linked to the popularity of fake specimens, such as Feejee mermaids, shown at sideshows.

As the infamous anatomist Robert Knox* explained: “Aware of the monstrous impostures which the artful Chinese had so frequently practised on European adventurers, the scientific felt inclined to class this rare production of nature with eastern mermaids and other works of art.” Knox also had a chance to perform a thorough dissection of a platypus and published a series of articles about its anatomy.

Big thanks to @skull.slinger (IG) for becoming a star adventurer for VF! Together, we’ll bring more stories about real and mythical beasts of the past.

*Yes, that’s the same Robert Knox who bought bodies from Burke and Hare. Expect a lot of stories surrounding resurrectionists this year as well!

While the Victorians loved sending cute lace-trimmed cards on Valentine’s Day, they didn’t shy away from sending other types of cards to people they wanted to fend off or play a joke on. In such cases, they would send what was known as “vinegar valentines,” which often contained mean poems or caricatures.

One of such cards read:

“To My Valentine
‘Tis a lemon that I hand you and bid you now ‘skidoo,’
Because I love another—there is no chance for you.”

PS. See Nosferatu today if you haven’t yet.

Another séance with Miss Tique, aka @coven_of_skulls !

We already know about spirit rapping and how tedious it could be to spell spirits’ messages this way. That’s when automatic writing came along – a much faster way for mediums to channel spirits and convey their messages. At least in theory, since many of the ‘messages from beyond’ were indecipherable scribbles or confusing drawings, especially when the writing was done by a few inspired people at the séance table at once.

Automatic writing could be done just with a regular pen, or with the help of a big stylish planchette with little wheels and a hole to put a pen in. The planchette itself was created during an alphabet-calling session in Paris in 1853. As reported by Allan Kardec, one of the participants of a séance that day channeled the spirits who told them to grab a basket, put it upside down, and put a pencil in it.

As for Miss Tique’s rude guest, it was actually a belief at the time that women made better mediums because they were passive and their minds were ‘vacant,’ thus they could be more easily possessed by spirits. This sexist belief was however embraced and used by female spiritualists in surprising ways, which we’ll explore in future episodes.

It’s time for the first séance with Miss Tique, aka  @coven_of_skulls!

Spiritualism was a movement revolving around the belief that it was possible to communicate with the spirits of the dead, especially via séances. Many ideas that originated in that time regarding séances are still present, e.g., in modern movements interested in the paranormal or popular horror and gothic tropes.
While there are a few people who could be credited with starting spiritualism, it hadn’t taken off until 1848 when the famous Fox sisters claimed to contact the spirit of a murdered peddler in their house.

To contact the realm of the dead, the Fox sisters held sessions of ‘spirit rappings’ in which a spirit was supposed to spell out answers to questions by raps, taps, and knocking. It often involved calling out the alphabet, letter by letter, which often took a long time. After a few decades of fame, the sisters revealed themselves to be frauds and admitted they produced the sounds by cracking the joints in their toes.

The New York Herald reported, “There stood a black-robed, sharp-faced widow working her big toe and solemnly declaring that it was in this way she created the excitement that has driven so many persons to su*c*de or insanity. One moment it was ludicrous, the next it was weird.”

Happy Halloween, fellow Victorian ghouls!

Since we’re welcoming all the spirits from behind the veil tonight, let’s also welcome Miss Tique, the medium who will introduce us to some techniques and tricks used by different people at the height of the spiritualism movement when beliefs often met with showbusiness. 

Our Miss Tique was inspired by @coven_of_skulls and her love of everything gothic.