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Someone mentioned these wax models in another thread, saying they looked a lot like Mary Jane Kelly when she was found.
After a quick search of the web I can only agree.
"In the 19th century, despite the best efforts of body snatchers, the demand from medical schools for fresh cadavers far outstripped the supply. One solution to this gruesome problem came in the form of lifelike wax models. These models often took the form of alluring female figures that could be stripped and split into different sections. Other models were more macabre, showing the body ravaged by 'social diseases' such as venereal disease, tuberculosis and alcohol and drug addiction.
With their capacity to titillate as well as educate, anatomical models became sought-after curiosities, displayed not only in dissecting rooms but also in sideshows and the curiosity cabinets of wealthy Victorian gentlemen. For a small admission fee, visitors seeking an unusual afternoon's entertainment could visit displays of these strange dolls in London, Paris, Brussels and Barcelona."
This description suddenly makes "Jack" look much less out of the ordinary. It rather seems he just took the mentioned "afternoon's entertainment" a step further.
Lots of photos: http://marinni.livejournal.com/258692.html
It is interesting most of those wax models were females!
The Victorians certainly had a thing for the macabre. I've read somewhere they visited mortuaries and gazed at the bodies out of sheer curiousity. The people thronging in front of the workhouse sheds asking to be let in, claiming they could identify "Jack's" victims - but actually seeking a thrill - where no exceptions.
Let's also not forget the waxwork shows displaying "Jack's" victims.
If you love children, you should NOT browse YouTube for "Victorian post mortem photography", because that will either make you weep or scare the s*** out of you.
Some of the most famous wax models were made by Clemente Susini in the late 1700s. He clearly had a Ripperesque streak. He even named them "Slashed Beauies".
"...they are also cyphers, beckoning towards abandoned paths to forgotten – and perhaps forbidden – knowledge, evoking a lost past when God and science, medicine and beauty, body and soul, naturalia and artificialia, anatomy and metaphysics resided side by side ..."
http://www.preservedproject.co.uk/od...tomical-venus/ (Warning: Looks like Mary Jane Kelly in colour!)
This one is a bit of a thread derailer, but it must be shared: http://iheartguts.com/
They sell gut-shaped plushies, including uteri (and testicles). Very kawaii.
After a quick search of the web I can only agree.
"In the 19th century, despite the best efforts of body snatchers, the demand from medical schools for fresh cadavers far outstripped the supply. One solution to this gruesome problem came in the form of lifelike wax models. These models often took the form of alluring female figures that could be stripped and split into different sections. Other models were more macabre, showing the body ravaged by 'social diseases' such as venereal disease, tuberculosis and alcohol and drug addiction.
With their capacity to titillate as well as educate, anatomical models became sought-after curiosities, displayed not only in dissecting rooms but also in sideshows and the curiosity cabinets of wealthy Victorian gentlemen. For a small admission fee, visitors seeking an unusual afternoon's entertainment could visit displays of these strange dolls in London, Paris, Brussels and Barcelona."
This description suddenly makes "Jack" look much less out of the ordinary. It rather seems he just took the mentioned "afternoon's entertainment" a step further.
Lots of photos: http://marinni.livejournal.com/258692.html
It is interesting most of those wax models were females!
The Victorians certainly had a thing for the macabre. I've read somewhere they visited mortuaries and gazed at the bodies out of sheer curiousity. The people thronging in front of the workhouse sheds asking to be let in, claiming they could identify "Jack's" victims - but actually seeking a thrill - where no exceptions.
Let's also not forget the waxwork shows displaying "Jack's" victims.
If you love children, you should NOT browse YouTube for "Victorian post mortem photography", because that will either make you weep or scare the s*** out of you.
Some of the most famous wax models were made by Clemente Susini in the late 1700s. He clearly had a Ripperesque streak. He even named them "Slashed Beauies".
"...they are also cyphers, beckoning towards abandoned paths to forgotten – and perhaps forbidden – knowledge, evoking a lost past when God and science, medicine and beauty, body and soul, naturalia and artificialia, anatomy and metaphysics resided side by side ..."
http://www.preservedproject.co.uk/od...tomical-venus/ (Warning: Looks like Mary Jane Kelly in colour!)
This one is a bit of a thread derailer, but it must be shared: http://iheartguts.com/
They sell gut-shaped plushies, including uteri (and testicles). Very kawaii.
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