Renaissance, c. 1550 — the striking "Camino di Satana" 🦁🔥, a fearsome hellmouth fireplace, designed by Venetian architect Michele Sanmicheli at Villa della Torre, Fumane, Verona, Italy.

W.C. Fields as Humpty Dumpty - Alice In Wonderland (1933).

The Pulsocon, made by Irishman Gerald Macaura in 1902, claimed to boost circulation with 5,000 vibrations per minute. ⚡ This device was typically used as a vibrator and Macaura, who was not a real doctor, was jailed for fraud in 1914 after protests from medical students.

The Pillar-Biter (1509–1517), located on the lower section of the choir screen in St. Bavo Church, Haarlem, Netherlands.

Please don't feed lions. 🦁

Where do baby mermaids come from? Find out at Dublin's Museum of Curiosities. 🧜‍♀️

The 1775 Compendium rarissimum totius Artis Magicae features 31 watercolors of demons, magical sigils, and cabbalistic symbols. Here are four of our favourite artworks from this darkly beautiful collection.

Dutch Gaper. 👅 A traditional figure displayed outside apothecaries in the Netherlands to symbolise medicine-taking.

Mister Merry's Play Lighter, Cigarettes and Bubble Gum toys, 1960s. 🚬

Wooden milliner’s head, carved in the 1880s, used by hat makers to display hats and bonnets. One of the many curious objects to be found at our odditorium. 🎩

A 19th-century Japanese netsuke, carved from ebony with intricate inlays, showing an owl battling a bat. Not from our collection, just something we love! 🦇

The Digitorium 🎹 This 19th-century finger exercise machine was designed for amateur pianists to improve strength and dexterity, though it was often blamed for causing hand injuries.

Erotic sculpture at the Church of San Martín de Elines in Cantabria, Spain.

Brothel candles, purportedly used in 19th century establishments, burned for a set time to determine the length of a client’s visit. 🕯️

Abandoned Film Theatre in Dresden Germany.

In European folklore, particularly in England and parts of France, polecats were often associated with witchcraft and magical protection.

M. Triley’s Nose Shaper – a small metal device used to gently press and shape the nose, popular in the early 20th century 👃

'Demon' by Parisa Khazaee.

Old Czech marionette, perched on top of a cabinet in the museum.

In the 19th century, the warriors of Kiribati wore a striking form of headgear known as te barantauti helmets crafted from the dried skins of porcupinefish. This piece is not part of the museum’s collection but it's certainly very interesting.

Buttons the haunted clown. 🤡

Ophthalmologist signs in Taiwan, 1962.⁠

Anti-masturbation device.

Gizmo, 41 Years Later (Seattle Museum of Pop Culture).

A couple of boneheads. 💀

Vintage disguise kit by FAO Schwartz. 🥸 Sadly, it isn’t part of my collection, though it would be a dream to own.

A small selection of the marvellous masks that adorn the walls of the museum. 👺

Behind the scenes on Thomas and Friends. '🚂

Barney the bear. 🐻

Crayola colours that are no longer produced. 🖍️

The Electric Chair toy, 1978. Made by Poynter. ⚡

These are a few of my favourite things.

Eight hundred years ago, at All Saints Church in Hereford, a skilled carpenter carved this figure high in the dark roof, hidden away where no one could see him.

Napoleon Bonafrog. 🐸

Glurpo, the world's only underwater clown, c.1960. 🤡

My ugly mug. 👹

Chuck Groenink - 'Alice'.

Coo coo ca choo. 🦭

Animal masks, 1930. From the Budapest Municipal Photography Company archive. 🐰

Hello dolly.

Endless oddities await at the Museum of Curiosities. 🪆💀🐀

Rialto Theatre (Manhattan, NYC) – Opening of Val Lewton & Jacques Tourneur’s Cat People (1942). 🐱

🦉🍦 The legendary “Hoot Hoot I Scream” shack — an owl-shaped ice cream parlour built in Los Angeles in the mid-1920s. First perched on East Valley Blvd in Rosemead before moving to Long Beach, it delighted visitors for decades until its demolition in the 1950s.

Detail of “Papilla Estelar” by Remedios Varo, 1958.

The Puss-and-Mew machine, created by Captain Dudley Bradstreet in 1736, is considered the first vending machine for alcohol. Coins were placed in the cat’s mouth and the drink poured from its paw. 🐈🍸

Department store wax mannequins melting during a heatwave in 1929. 🫠

Toys made by artist Paul Klee (1879-1940) for his children, full of whimsy and charm.

The Oculizer. 👀 Patented in 1931, the Oculizer promised to improve your eyesight with a mix of eye massages and puffed-up rubber bulbs. A hand-crank added a mechanical flourish, just in case the rubber wasn’t exciting enough.

Beecisions. 🐝

What’s got your goat? 🐐 This preserved goat’s head is thought to have been used in Satanic rituals in Wales during the 1980s. It is now on display at the Museum of Curiosities in Dublin.