British Museums Have Been Sharing Their Creepiest Objects Online
April 21, 2020 6:00 AM
This article is more than four years old and was last updated in April 2022.
Photo: © @PenshurstPlace
Museums around the UK have taken to Twitter in a giant 'curator battle' as they went head-to-head sharing photos of their collection's creepiest objects.
It all started when the Yorkshire Museum called up fellow museums in the #curatorbattle. They wrote "today's theme, chosen by you, is #CreepiestObject. We're kicking things off with this 3rd/4th century hair bun from the burial of a Roman lady, still with the jet pins in place..."
MUSEUMS ASSEMBLE! It's time for #CURATORBATTLE! 💥
— Yorkshire Museum (@YorkshireMuseum) April 17, 2020
Today's theme, chosen by you, is #CreepiestObject!
We're kicking things off with this 3rd/4th century hair bun from the burial of a #Roman lady, still with the jet pins in place...
CAN YOU BEAT IT? 💥 pic.twitter.com/ntPiXDuM6v
With the challenge, "can you beat it?" The tweets started rolling in with photo of other weird objects in exhibits in museums around the country. The items being showcased online included creepy dolls, freaky looking mermaids, and even a witch in a bottle.
Egham Museum tweeted a photo of a truly disturbing old doll, saying "just when you thought it couldn’t get any worse, we present..."
Just when you thought it couldn’t get any worse, we present ....
— Egham Museum (@EghamMuseum) April 17, 2020
MC 294
No need to thank us, it was honestly our pleasure #CURATORBATTLE #CreepiestObject pic.twitter.com/kgAA2ePMIr
But was this doll more or less weird than this terrifying drinking bear that can be found at the Toy Museum at Penshurst Place in Kent?
Live from the Toy Museum of Penshurst Place, we present the Drinking Bear. Feed it a 2 pence piece and it'll pretend to drink from its cup as it stares into your soul. #CuratorBattle #CreepiestObject pic.twitter.com/ohNl2974UJ
— Penshurst Place (@PenshurstPlace) April 17, 2020
Then the Centre of Ceramic Art (CoCA) at York Art Gallery showcased these two very odd voodoo-like dolls. The strange artefacts clearly appeared to the dark side of 'Most Haunted' presenter Yvette Fielding, who was prompted to tweet "ooo I like!" in response.
We have so many more too @YorkArtGallery #CreepiestObject pic.twitter.com/36UPCexGsr
— CoCA York (@COCAYork) April 17, 2020
Things then got a lot weirder when the Natural Sciences department of National Museums Scotland tweet photos of a very odd-looking and not very convincing mermaid. It's just plain weird.
Our #CreepiestObject has to be this ‘mermaid’... 😱💀🧜♀️ #CURATORBATTLE #TroublingTaxidermy pic.twitter.com/GMSosyuqIX
— Natural Sciences NMS (@NatSciNMS) April 17, 2020
Norwich Castle shared a photo of a weird pincushion complete with tiny children's heads sticking out of it, which they say has already given a few of their followers nightmares.
@RedHeadedAli how can we ignore such a call to arms?
— Norwich Castle (@NorwichCastle) April 17, 2020
This particular item has caused a few nightmares for our followers this week.
Our #CreepiestObject is...this pincushion! Complete with tiny children's heads. You're welcome, Twitter.#CURATORBATTLE pic.twitter.com/0YdmCE5dYD
Then Dan Hicks, Professor of Contemporary Archaeology at Oxford University, jumped into the conversation with a photo of a silvered stoppered bottle which is said to have an actual witch trapped inside of it.
Nice. And we have an actual witch 🧙♀️😱 #CURATORBATTLE #CreepiestObject pic.twitter.com/c3e9Nm3NZH
— Dan Hicks (@profdanhicks) April 17, 2020
The mention of witchcraft prompted some to start sharing photos of some of the occult artefacts on display at the Museum of Witchcraft & Magic in Boscastle, Cornwall.
some #CreepiestObject i've still got photos of from the Museum of Witchcraft and Magic pic.twitter.com/WkmuEf6hFR
— lauren | order WICKED AS YOU WISH (@northernplunder) April 17, 2020
These aren't the only weird objects on display at museums in the UK. In fact, there are at least three museums that specialise in the unusual. As well as Boscastle's Museum of Witchcraft, there's also two haunted museums.
The Haunted Antiques Paranormal Research Centre is a hand-ons collection of haunted artefacts in Hinckley, Leicestershire. There's also the Old Picture House & Haunted Museum, a collection of unusual items housed in a historic former cinema in Nottingham.
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The Haunted Antiques Paranormal Research Centre opened in February 2018 on Regent Steet Hinckley and houses an eclectic collection of interesting and old artefacts displayed across three main rooms.
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The Old Picture House & Haunted Museum on Woodborough Road is one of the city's newest haunted landmarks.
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