The Hot Air Cure

Original ad here.

Posted By: Paul - Sun Nov 27, 2016 - Comments (1)
Category: Patent Medicines, Nostrums and Snake Oil, Nineteenth Century

Antonio De Soto Major

We tend to think we have some eccentric politicians today, like the UK's Boris Johnson or, ahem, a certain President-elect. But really, the past had the present beat hollow, and we are proved to be relatively colorless today by comparison.

Posted By: Paul - Thu Nov 10, 2016 - Comments (2)
Category: Eccentrics, Politics, Europe, Nineteenth Century

The Pyréolophore

The fuel for the world's first internal combustion engine was exploding plant spores.

Details here.


And here.

Posted By: Paul - Thu Oct 13, 2016 - Comments (6)
Category: Inventions, Nature, Nineteenth Century

Charmion the Strongwoman, and Her Trapeze Disrobing Act

Her full story here.

Posted By: Paul - Sat Oct 08, 2016 - Comments (2)
Category: Entertainment, Public Indecency, Women, Nineteenth Century, Twentieth Century, Bodybuilding

Moonlight Towers

The antique form of streetlights called "moonlight towers" exists today only in Austin, Texas, as seen above in a picture taken from this fine post. There's something pretty science-fictional or steampunk about them, especially in a vintage picture as seen here.

In some other timeline, moonlight towers dot the nation in the year 2016.

Posted By: Paul - Sun Sep 11, 2016 - Comments (4)
Category: Buildings and Other Structures, Technology, Urban Life, Nineteenth Century

Follies of the Madmen #292

Full story here.

Posted By: Paul - Wed Sep 07, 2016 - Comments (1)
Category: Drugs, Patent Medicines, Nostrums and Snake Oil, Nineteenth Century, Graphics

Photographing a mule at the instant its head is blown off by dynamite

Advances in photographic technology that occurred in the 1860s and 70s led to the invention of plates that had exposure times of a fraction of a second. This allowed for "instantaneous photography," as it was called at the time. Moving objects could be frozen in time by the camera.

Researchers immediately used this technology to study bodies in motion. Most famously, Eadweard Muybridge in 1878 took a series of images to study the galloping of a horse. Similarly, neurologist Jean-Martin Charcot used instantaneous photography to study the muscular movements of his human patients.

A more unusual application of the technology took place on June 6, 1881, when Mr. Van Sothen, photographer in charge at the United States School of Submarine Engineers in Willett's Point, New York, took an instantaneous photograph of a mule having its head blown off by dynamite. The mule was apparently old and was going to be put down anyway, so it was decided to "sacrifice the animal upon the altar of science."

The resulting photo

Eugene Griffin, First Lieutenant of Engineers, described the details of the experiment in a letter to Lieut. Col. H.L. Abbot:


Several months later Scientific American published an account of the experiment, including several engravings showing before and after scenes:

Scientific American - Sep 24, 1881

Posted By: Alex - Fri Sep 02, 2016 - Comments (0)
Category: Mad Scientists, Evil Geniuses, Insane Villains, Photography and Photographers, Science, Experiments, Nineteenth Century

Tricycle Black Maria

Served the extra duty of public humiliation of criminal.

Posted By: Paul - Mon Jul 11, 2016 - Comments (3)
Category: Bicycles and Other Human-powered Vehicles, Cops, Crime, Inventions, Nineteenth Century

Mystery Illustration 24

What historical figure is this rooster intended to represent? Lord Nelson? Oliver Perry? Maybe Captain Cook?

The answer is here.

Or here.

Posted By: Paul - Sat Jul 09, 2016 - Comments (8)
Category: Animals, Nineteenth Century

Anchor Stone Building Blocks

Another weird old playtoy for building stuff. Very pricey on Ebay.

Wikipedia entry here.

A blog post here.

Posted By: Paul - Thu Jun 23, 2016 - Comments (6)
Category: Toys, Europe, Nineteenth Century, Twentieth Century