Monday, February 11, 2019

The Murder Dolls...!

Sometimes it seems as though a mystery almost refuses to die. Long after a mystery is solved and almost forgotten, a reminder pops up and brings the whole thing back to mind again. That's the case in this article from Listverse.

Burke and Hare Murder Dolls



In the late 1820s, two men in Edinburgh, Scotland, began a grisly cottage industry. William Hare (who owned a boarding house), and William Burke were Irishmen who became friends. When a tenant at Hare’s house died, the pair sold his body to Ediburgh University. They quickly realized they could make a pretty penny doing this, but unfortunately bodies were in short supply. So they decided to create some of their own. All told, they killed 16 people, mostly by smothering, and sold their wares to a Dr. Knox at the University. One day, a tenant at Hare’s boarding house found a body and went to the police. They managed to dispatch with the corpse before the police arrived, but Burke & Hare’s crime spree was over.

Hare turned over on his accomplice in exchange for his freedom. Burke’s fate would mirror that of his victims; after his execution, he was dissected in public. Hare vanished, never to be seen again.

But the story doesn’t end there. Shortly after the murder spree, a young boy playing in a cave in Edinburgh came across a collection of carved wooden dolls in a cave. There were 17 in all, about the size of a finger, each secreted in its own tiny coffin. It didn’t take long for people to realize that the dolls greatly resembled the victims of Burke & Hare in both number and appearance. DNA tests on the macabre toys against the remains of Burke yielded no results. Only 8 of the 17 are still known to exist; they can be seen at the National Museum of Scotland in Edinburgh. Just who created these morbid effigies, and what they were meant to represent, will never be known.

We could discuss a mystery like this one 'till the cows come home, but I doubt we would ever figure it out. Still, nothing like a good old fashioned mystery to get the brain cells working, right?

Coffee in the kitchen this morning...OK?

8 comments:

Mamahen said...

You're right. We probably would never figure it out, and wouldn't know it if we had. The kitchen sounds good. Its a winter mess here today:))

linda m said...

That is really creepy. Guess we'll never know about the dolls. Kitchen sounds just fine this morning.

Rob said...

Crazy people do crazy stuff.

JO said...

Well your right good mystery this morning to go around the table over coffee.

Not bad here at all is up to 40 so maybe a couple nice days before the next cold front comes along.

Gorges Smythe said...

Weird!

HermitJim said...

Hey Mamahen..
All good mysteries are a bit baffling, I think. That's what makes them fun.
Thanks for stopping by today!


Hey Linda...
There is a big creepiness factor about it, for sure.
Thanks for coming over this morning!


Hey Rob...
Boy, isn't that thew truth!
Thanks for the visit today!


Hey Jo...
Nice to have something to discuss while we linger over coffee.
Thanks for dropping by today, dear!

HermitJim said...

Hey Gorges...
There is a very large weirdness to it, for sure.
Thanks for stopping by today!

Dizzy-Dick said...

Would make a good subject for either Alfred Hitchcock Presents or Rod Serling's Twilight Zone. I watch all those old shows on MeTV and FeTv. Right now, I am watching Perry Mason.