Category:
Customs

The Christmas Custom of Dead Bird Postcards

Back in the 19th century, people often sent each other postcards of dead birds during the Christmas season. Collectors Weekly explains:

"The Victorians had some really strange ideas about what served as an appropriate Christmas greeting," says Bo Wreden, who recently organized an exhibition of holiday cards for the Book Club of California. "They liked to send out cards with dead birds on them, robins in particular, which related to ancient customs and legends. There's a famous quotation from the Venerable Bede about a sparrow flying through the hall of a castle while the nobility is celebrating Christmas: The moment from when it enters until it flies out is very brief, a metaphor for how quickly our lives pass." Apparently, killing a wren or robin was once a good-luck ritual performed in late December, and during the late 19th century, cards featuring the bodies of these birds were sent to offer good luck in the New Year.






More info: hyperallergic.com

Posted By: Alex - Mon Dec 05, 2022 - Comments (4)
Category: Customs, Death, Christmas

Bees told of Queen Elizabeth’s Death

Royal housekeeper John Chapple has carried out the duty of telling the bees kept at Buckingham Palace and Clarence House that Queen Elizabeth has died, and that King Charles is their new master.

"I drape the hives with black ribbon with a bow," he said...

"You knock on each hive and say, 'The mistress is dead, but don't you go. Your master will be a good master to you.'"

This was in accordance with the ancient British custom of "telling the bees," which we described in a post back in 2012.

More info: geo.tv

Posted By: Alex - Sun Sep 11, 2022 - Comments (2)
Category: Animals, Customs, Death, Royalty, Superstition

The Sacred Chickens of Rome

Strange custom: The ancient Romans were reportedly loath to embark on any major undertaking, particularly battles, before they had consulted sacred chickens. As told by HistoryCollection.com:

The pullarius [keeper of the sacred chickens] was responsible for keeping sacred chickens and using them to make divinations or "predictions." These holy birds, which had been sourced from the island of Negreponte (now Euboea, near Athens), were kept unfed in their cages for a predetermined amount of time before being released and presented with some grain. If they ate the grain, the venture upon which the Romans were consulting them was deemed favourable. If they didn't touch it, however, the venture lacked the god's backing and was therefore to be abandoned.

Publius Claudius Pulcher And The Sacred Chickens



However, the advice of the sacred chickens wasn't always followed. As told by the Anecdotes from Antiquity blog:

During the First Punic War, Publius Claudius Pulcher turned to the sacred chickens for approval of his plan to launch a surprise attack on the Carthaginian fleet at the harbour of Drepana. When the chicken watcher notified Pulcher that they were not eating, which constituted a bad omen, he replied, ‘Since they do not want to eat, let them drink!’ and had them hurled into the sea. The naval battle which ensued saw the near annihilation of the Roman fleet.

Posted By: Alex - Wed May 05, 2021 - Comments (4)
Category: Animals, Customs, Religion

Plaid Stallions

Endless hours of browsing at this blog dedicated to 70s culture.





Posted By: Paul - Sun Jun 30, 2019 - Comments (1)
Category: Cult Figures and Artifacts, Culture and Civilization, Customs, Pop Art, 1970s

Happy April Fool’s Day 2019

Jokes were more gruesome in 1909.



Source.

Posted By: Paul - Mon Apr 01, 2019 - Comments (4)
Category: Customs, Death, Hoaxes and Imposters and Imitators, Holidays, Humor, 1900s

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Alex Boese
Alex is the creator and curator of the Museum of Hoaxes. He's also the author of various weird, non-fiction, science-themed books such as Elephants on Acid and Psychedelic Apes.

Paul Di Filippo
Paul has been paid to put weird ideas into fictional form for over thirty years, in his career as a noted science fiction writer. He has recently begun blogging on many curious topics with three fellow writers at The Inferior 4+1.

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