Strange Facts of The Macabre

Throughout history, there have been strange and bizarre occurrences that have made the phrase "truth is stranger than fiction" especially true.

Here are just a few strange events that not only touch on the theme of the macabre but have actually happened.

The Victorian Tradition of Making Art out of Hair

Nowadays, when a loved one has passed, we might display a picture of them in our home to honor their memory. Or we might display an object they once owned, now handed down to the next person. Even if we have no physical object to remember them by, we share our memories of them through stories to keep them alive.

During the 19th century Victorian era, those who had loved ones who had passed honored them in ways that went beyond pictures hung on walls or even stories passed down.

Mortality rates were high during Victorian times and this sadly included high infant mortality rates. One way Victorians mourned and remembered loved ones who have died was by making their locks of hair into works of art.

Locks of hair from deceased loved ones were not only braided but shaped into jewelry with each braid shaped into a flower. I’m sure it must have been quite a process which makes the custom even more special.

These works of hair art were either worn as a bracelet or a necklace or displayed in the home as a framed work of art.

Nowadays, such a practice might sound strange and a little eerie but it was a common practice back then as a way to remember loved ones who have passed on.

A Dead Pope was Once Put on Trial

Pope Steven VI had accused his predecessor Pope Formosus who was the Pope from 891–896 of perjury and and serving as a bishop in multiple diocese which should have disqualified him of ever becoming Pope.

Because of these political crimes, Pope Steven VI decided to put Pope Formosus on trial.

The only problem?

Formosus had been dead for months. Pope Formosus’s death should have been a finality and any trial against him shouldn’t have taken place.

Being a dead man, it hardly seemed like a fair trial.

However not even death could stop the accuser Pope Steven VI from seeking justice and following through with his accusations.

Pope Formosus’s body was promptly exhumed, dressed in garments to stand trial in, and proped up on the throne for trial.

Since corpses don’t do much talking, Pope Steven VI provided a Deacon to speak on Pope Formosus’s behalf.

If the trial against a dead Pope wasn’t strange enough, in the middle of the trial, a huge earthquake occurred.

If the earthquake was an omen from the heavens, Pope Steven VI ignored it and went through with the trial.

Pope Formosus was found guilty of all charges, stripped of his title as Pope, dressed in rags, and thrown into the Tibet river.

The trial against Formosus caused great outrage. So much so that within just a few short months after the trial, Pope Steven VI was imprisoned and sentenced to death.

The case in which a Pope placed his predecessor who had already been dead on trial has to be one of the most bizarre court cases in world history.

A Church That Contains Real Human Bones

When you step into a church, you might expect to see a stained glass depicting various religious themes. Maybe statues of angels. Maybe an organ.

Step inside the Sedlec Ossuary, a Roman Catholic church in the Czech Republic and you will notice something you likely won’t find in any other church.

It is nicknamed the Church of Bones or The Bone Church and for good reason.

Adorned in the lower part of the chapel you will see a collection of skulls and other human skeletal remains adorned in such a way, it feels like a work of art — a work of art of the macabre.

As you might be wondering … Yes! These are real human skeletal remains which have been exhumed from the graves of those who lived during the medieval era.

In the heart of this Bone Church, you will see its most astonishing work of art — a chandelier made entirely out of human bones. Every one of them.

Each display of bones is meant to symbolize something. The chandelier represents light and hope. Skulls in the form of angels are meant to guide a soul into the afterlife.

There's so much mystery behind the skeletal remains adorned inside this church which makes it especially eerie.

Where did these bones come from? And why were they displayed inside the church in the first place?

The soil in the cemetery of Sedlec was said to be holy, so naturally, everyone wanted to be buried there. In no time, the cemetery had to be expanded. This dilemma led to a church — the Sedlec Ossuary being built nearby the cemetery. The church served as a place to store additional bones.

With so many graves and thus so many bones, a woodcarver was asked to organize all of these bones.

When you gaze up at the chandelier, you realize, the woodcarver did more than just organize!

The display of bones serve as a reminder of Momento Mori — a phrase meaning, “remember, you must die”.

At first, it might sound creepy, but in a strange sense, walking into this church and gazing also peaceful.

An Amusement Park Once Used Real Skeletons

Those of us that decorate our home for Halloween adorn it inside and out with spooky decorations like spider webs, spiders, skeletons, and skulls.

Of course most of the spooky decorations used are artificial. No one uses real skeletons or has actual human skulls sitting on their porch. Hopefully not!

There has been one very well known amusement park that once used actual human skeletons in one of their rides.

The amusement park?

Disneyland in California

The ride that used real human skeletons?

The Pirates of the Caribbean Ride

The ride had just opened to the public in 1967 and Disneyland wanted to make it as visually realistic as possible to give riders the best experience. Back in 1967, skeleton props didn’t look as realistic as the ones we have today.

So Disneyland improvised and used real human skeletons instead! 😱

The amusement park obtained these skeletons from a local medical center and propped them up to look like pirate skeletons throughout the ride.

If the idea of seeing actual human bones creeps you out, then you have nothing to worry about the next time you find yourself standing in line for The Pirates of the Caribbean ride. The ride no longer uses real skeletons. Today it only uses realistic replicas instead.

However, a few Disneyland employees will swear that there are still a few real skeletons that remain.

Sources: