Search Results for: Tree of Life

12 Of The World’s Best Anatomical Museums

September 13, 2017 By J.F. Penn

When you book a trip to a new city, thoughts turn to popular attractions or places you might like to see. For most people, anatomical museums don’t usually rank high on the list.

But for a writer, medical museums prove fertile ground in which to find new ideas or story seeds.

If you write crime thrillers, they’re also an excellent way to ensure you’re getting the details right!

As an avid fan of such places myself, I’ve collected together 12 of the world’s best anatomical museums. If you're into the macabre as I am, then you might enjoy them too!

1. Anatomy Museum, The Hunterian, Glasgow, UK

There are two Hunterian museums in the United Kingdom because there were two Hunter brothers. The Glasgow collection is that of William, the famed teacher of surgery and obstetrician to the wealthy. William Hunter opened a ground-breaking medical school in Covent Garden to teach anatomy through practical classes.

After a rift with his brother John, William donated his collection to Glasgow University. Perhaps the most famous exhibit is the plaster cast made of a pregnant uterus. It accompanies his masterpiece textbook, The Anatomy of the Gravid Uterus Exhibited in Figures (1774). His preparations of lymphatic tissue, injected with mercury to highlight the vessels, are artworks in themselves.

Of course, with tales of resurrection men murdering people to provide bodies for the anatomy school, you have to wonder how many of these were voluntary specimens …

2. Hunterian Museum, London, UK

While William Hunter’s collection went to Glasgow, John’s collection stayed in London. The vast array of preserved specimens bears witness to Hunter’s tireless efforts to understand the body. The Hunterian Museum collects together preserved body parts and even the skeleton of a ‘giant’.

specimen jars Hunterian — Specimen jars from the Hunterian Museum, London

It’s also a central location for Desecration, the first book in my London Crime Thriller series. As fascinating as anatomical museums are, and they’re essential to medical progress, they raise ethical questions about the treatment of the deceased. That made the museum the ideal location for the story.

3. Mütter Museum, Philadelphia, USA

Founded in 1863 by Dr Thomas Dent Mütter, the museum is perhaps America's best known medical marvel. It uses a ‘cabinet museum' format to display the collections of specimens, instruments, and models.

Among other things, you can see part of John Wilkes Booth's spine, slices of Einstein's brain, and the famous skull collection belonging to Dr Joseph Hyrtl. The museum features a mix of temporary exhibitions and permanent displays. The Benjamin Rush Medicinal Plant Garden is a fascinating stop if you’ve also seen the Chelsea Physick Garden in London.

As their website explains, the Mütter Museum “helps the public appreciate the mysteries and beauty of the human body while understanding the history of diagnosis and treatment of disease.”

4. Old Operating Theatre, London, UK

While the steady march of progress continues in the nearby Shard, the Old Operating Theatre lies in a quiet Southwark garret above St Thomas Church. All that remains of the old St Thomas’ Hospital, the theatre served the women's surgical ward.

Hundreds of students would have watched the surgical procedures from the galleries surrounding the operating table and remember, this was before the invention of antiseptic or anaesthetic. Gruesome stuff!

apothecarybox — Apothecary box from the Old Operating Theatre, London

You can attend fascinating talks about the equipment by museum curators and I've even attended a Death Drawing workshop there. Like the Hunterian Museum, it provided me with plenty of research material for Desecration.

5. International Museum of Surgical Science, Chicago, USA

Founded in 1935, the IMSS aimed to promote surgical knowledge worldwide. In 1954, it opened to the public and in 1959, the museum dedicated galleries, hallways or rooms to individual nations and their surgical contributions.

The museum holds plenty of art and documentation to trace the development of surgical techniques. You can also see original x-rays, transplant equipment, and a cast from Napoleon's death mask.

The IMSS was also another of the anatomical museums to give me a story idea. It was there that I found the 4000-year-old Peruvian skull showing evidence of trepanation.

chicagoskull — Skull that inspired Sacrifice

The skull inspired American Demon Hunters: Sacrifice, the dark fantasy novel I co-wrote with Lindsay Buroker, J. Thorn and Zach Bohannon on a train from Chicago to New Orleans in 2017.

6. Museum Vrolik, Amsterdam, Netherlands

Named after Gerard and Willem Vrolik, a 19th-century father-and-son who were both anatomy professors, the museum is an interesting place to visit in Amsterdam.

It started life as the pair's private collection, viewable at their house. Their specimens included both normal anatomy and malformed examples, such as one-eyed foetuses and corset livers. The museum stresses the importance of specimens such as Siamese twins, given how rare such cases are in the 21st century.

7. Warren Anatomical Museum, Harvard Medical School, USA

The Warren Anatomical Museum was founded in 1847. Attached to a working medical school, the anatomy lecturers still use the Exhibition Gallery as a teaching space. It’s a small museum, comprised of four display cases on a single floor, but if you’re in the area, it’s worth a trip. The 100 medical artefacts on display are less than 1% of the entire collection.

The displays contain actual human remains so photography is not allowed in the Exhibition Gallery. Its most famous exhibit is the skull of Phineas Gage (see image left), a railroad worker who suffered an iron bar driven through his brain. While he survived the trauma, the resulting change in his behaviour and personality revolutionised neuroscience.

8. Museum of Human Anatomy, Pisa, Italy

A lot of universities boast anatomical museums, but few have the lineage of the Museum of Human Anatomy in the Medical School of Pisa. The town was one of the first in Italy to get an anatomy school.

The museum itself dates to the early 19th century. A Second World War blast in 1944 caused flooding, damaging some of the exhibits, yet plenty of wonderful specimens remain. They specialise in osteology, displaying a range of different bones. One model is a skull, known as an exploded model, due to the separated bones on display. They also have other specimens representing different anatomical systems, such as circulation.

vesalius — An illustration from the Vesalius anatomy book

The museum even boasts a collection of embalmed Peruvian heads, alongside two Egyptian mummies. You can also pop next door to the Pathological Anatomy Museum to see all kinds of aberrations, including a two-headed cat.

9. Medical History Museum of the Hamburg University Teaching Hospital, Hamburg, Germany

Some anatomical museums attempt to trace the history of medicine. The Hamburg museum focuses on modern medicine, from the 19th century until now.

The curators are unafraid to face the darkest eras in human history. They included a display about Nazi eugenics programs. It returns a voice to those murdered by the regime for being deemed mentally or physically unfit to live. It’s a harrowing display, but it’s important to remember the sacrifices suffered by others in earlier times. I used aspects of the Nazi eugenics program in Desecration.

10. Paul Stradin's History of Medicine Museum, Riga, Latvia

The collection started in the 1920s, begun by Dr Paul Stradins. A two-headed dog rubs shoulders with Chernushka, the dog who travelled into space on Sputnik 9 and survived. Note the two-headed dog was a manmade creation. It seems horrifying today, but the work of Vladimir Demikhov inspired techniques still used in organ transplants.

Elsewhere, there are fascinating dioramas, including a medieval pharmacy and town which explains medieval healing.

11. The Museum of the History of Medicine, Paris, France

Some of this museum's collections date back to the 18th century. They specialise in the medical instruments, but they also hold anatomical specimens and other items related to surgery.

streetartskeleton — Skeleton street art in London shows enduring interest in anatomy and death culture

Chronological displays in the Museum of the History of Medicine lead you forwards through time as surgical devices evolve around you. From trepanning to anaesthesia, it makes you appreciate the advances of modern medicine. You can even see the autopsy equipment used on Napoleon.

12. Berlin Museum of Medical History at the Charité, Germany

This museum hosts a permanent exhibition that traces the past 300 years of medical history.

A specimen hall lies at the heart of the museum. Visitors can see 750 wet-and-dry examples on display. Like the Hamburg museum, the museum features displays that explore the ways in which the Nazis used science for their own ends. Elsewhere, temporary exhibitions shine a light on other aspects of contemporary medicine, such as forensics.

Any, or all, of these museums preserve knowledge that has been hard-won by ingenious–and diabolical–scientists. One thing is for certain–you’ll leave with a greater appreciation of modern medicine.

13 Of The Most Mysterious Places In India

July 28, 2017 By J.F. Penn

India is the birthplace of Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism and Sikhism, as well as having a deep cultural history with Christianity, Judaism and Islam. It is a country of ancient faith, with a rich mythology that mingles with marvellous architecture and incredible food!

I've been to India twice now – on a cultural tour of the ‘golden triangle' in the north, from Delhi to Varanasi and back through Agra; and then cycling through the south west through Karnataka and Kerala. Both times I have longed to return and it's one of those countries I feel at home in.

The burning ghats of Varanasi feature in the opening scene of Stone of Fire, but I returned to India for Destroyer of Worlds, a story that centers around the Brahmastra, a Hindu relic with the power of a nuclear weapon. The thriller was a finalist for the 2017 International Thriller Writers Awards for Best Ebook Original, so clearly the story resonates.

With so many religions rubbing shoulders, India is both a mystical and an unusual place to visit, so I’ve compiled a list of 13 of the most mysterious places in India.

1. Tower of Silence, Mumbai

The tower of silence stands as a complete contrast to the familiar Western cemetery. Favoured by the Zoroastrians, use of towers to dispose of the dead appears in records as early as the 9th century. In Zoroastrian doctrine, both earth and fire are sacred but the body is unclean. The sun and carrion birds such as vultures remove the need for traditional burial or cremation. Yes, they eat the flesh of the dead …

Three concentric rings make up the roof of the tower. Men occupy the outer ring, with women in the middle, and children at the centre. The bones are left until they're sun-bleached when they're moved to a pit in the middle of the tower. Lime helps them to disintegrate.

The 300-year-old tower in Mumbai stands on Malabar Hill, within a 54-acre forest. Locals noticed a drop in the vulture population in 2015, delaying the natural process of exposure. Unless conservation efforts can boost the number of carrion birds, the process remains under threat. Reading about the plight of the vultures prompted the use of the tower in Destroyer of Worlds.

2. Funeral Pyres, Varanasi

sunrise varanasi — J.F.Penn, Sunrise, Varanasi, India, Dec 2006

The immense cremation ghat formed the backdrop for the opening scenes of Stone of Fire. The pyres, which burn 24/7, force visitors into close contact with the dead. This is not the clean, clinical cremation we’re used to in the West. Seeing the burning ghats for myself gave me the idea for the opening scene and I used them again in Destroyer. Varanasi is crazy busy and overflowing with pilgrims, but it's a place I want to return to. It feels like Jerusalem in its combination of spirituality and mass tourism, and it resonates with energy.

The popularity of the pyres derives from the Hindu belief that laying ashes in the Ganges at Varanasi allows the soul to escape the reincarnation cycle and reach heaven. Since Varanasi is one of the world’s oldest cities, it is the most sacred site along the Ganges.

Despite the introduction of gas and electric-powered crematoria, many still opt for traditional cremation on the ghat. Around 50-60 million trees fuel the ghats every year.

As a result, the funeral pyres are expensive for those wishing to be cremated there. Access to heaven doesn’t come cheap.

3. Bhangarh Fort, Bhangarh

This sprawling complex is less of a fort and more of a city. Boasting vast gates, palaces, and temples, it looks like a picturesque, fairy tale spot. Or is it?

Local legends claim supernatural unrest in the area. The Archaeological Survey of India even posted a sign prohibiting entry after sunset. The city remains accessible during daylight hours.

One story claims a wizard attempted to cast a spell on a woman, who crushed him with a boulder. As he lay dying, he cursed the city with complete destruction. Attackers soon sacked the fort, massacring the inhabitants.

That’s one legend among many. While we may scoff at such tales in the 21st century, the fact remains that the locals abandoned the city and established Bhangarh nearby.

You wonder what may lie among the quiet ruins, festering after dark…

4. South Park Street Cemetery, Kolkata

It wouldn’t be my blog without at least one cemetery. In the 19th century, this eight-acre necropolis was perhaps the largest Christian cemetery outside Europe or America. Almost 1900 graves jostle for space inside the brick walls.

Like a Kolkata version of Highgate (although older than the famous London graveyard), you'll find a range of monument designs. Obelisks and urns rub shoulders with Saracen graves and even cairns.

Who knows what you might find among the prehistoric ferns and moss that quietly reclaim the cemetery?

5. Kalighat Temple, Kolkata

The current Kalighat temple dates to the early 19th century, which explains its Victorian aesthetic. It's home to a unique image of Kali made from black stone with a long tongue made of gold. Some believe the name ‘Calcutta' comes from ‘Kalighat'.

The temple is also one of the Shakti Peeths of India. A princess married Lord Shiva and killed herself after her father disrespected her husband. Lord Shiva began the dance of destruction, and Lord Vishnu dismembered Sati's corpse to stop him. The Shakti Peeths are the sites where Sati's parts fell to earth. According to the story, Sati's right toe fell where the Kalighat now stands.

Attendants behead goats daily in Kali's honour. Since the temple is one of Kolkata's most holy spots, it gets very busy. They even offer queue-jumping services to reach the main shrine. I haven't visited but it's the setting for one of the pivotal scenes in Destroyer of Worlds.

6. Kumbh Mela pilgrimage

The Kumbh Mela is a Hindu pilgrimage rather than a place to visit. Four different festivals carry the name, and they occur at four different locations on rotation. The Mela always takes place on the banks of a sacred river. Organisers calculate the dates using the zodiac positions of Jupiter, the sun, and the moon. Millions of Hindus gather to bathe in the river to cleanse themselves of sin, led into the water at the most auspicious time by the sadhus, the holy men.

No one knows how old the festivals are, but medieval Hindu tales explain that Lord Vishnu left drops of Amrita, the Hindu drink of immortality, at the four sites of the modern-day Kumbh Mela.

While the pilgrimage is largely peaceful, stampedes have led to a loss of life, even as recently as 2013 in Allahabad. In Destroyer of Worlds, the Kumbh Mela is the site for an apocalyptic display of ancient power.

7. Jal Mahal, Jaipur

The ‘Water Palace’ looks like one of the most mysterious places in India, but the local Raja built it as a hunting lodge. A drought in the 16th century prompted locals to build a dam. The resulting lake flooded the lower floors of the lodge, creating the stunning spectacle seen today.

The roof still supports plant life, and some years ago visitors reached the lodge by gondola. Tourists can’t visit the building at the moment though tentative plans want to turn it into a restaurant. If you’d like to see the Jal Mahal at its finest, wait until evening. Illumination within the building gives the appearance of a secret meeting across the water.

8. Taj Mahal, Agra

Despite its name, ‘Crown of the Palace’, the Taj Mahal is a mausoleum. Commissioned in 1632, the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan wanted the building as a tomb for his favourite wife, Mumtaz Mahal.

Designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1983, the tomb acts as the central focus of the site. Its design is Persian and a mosque and gardens occupy the rest of the site.

Inside the mausoleum, the sarcophagi in the main chamber are ‘decoys’. The actual graves lie on a lower level in a plain crypt to suit the Muslim traditions against elaborate graves. The faces of Shah Jahan and Mumtaz Mahal turn right towards Mecca.

According to the legend, even the lower graves are empty. Doors in the basement level have been blocked, leading to the myth that the real graves lie far underground so they're not disturbed until Judgment Day.

Another long-running myth claims Shah Jahan intended to build a black marble mausoleum across the river from the Taj Mahal, a testament to his love of symmetry. Experts discovered blackened marble ruins on the site, lending credibility to the myth. But an excavation in the 1990s proved the marble stones were originally white, overturning the myth.

Other tales abound, including contracts for construction workers, forbidding them to work on similar designs elsewhere. It may be a popular tourist destination but it’s also one of the more mysterious places in India if you look beyond the souvenirs. In Destroyer of Worlds, there's an even more ancient temple underneath …

9. Mahabat Maqbara, Junagadh

While not as famous as the Taj Mahal, this impressive mausoleum is worth a visit. The building mixes Indian, Islamic, Gothic, and European architecture to create one of the more fantastical places in India.

Built between 1878 and 1892, the mix of styles reflects the changing rule of the area. Junagadh was founded in 1748 and became a British Protectorate in 1807. Despite British rule, the region was part of a princely state until 1947. The area joined Pakistan when the British left India but rejoined India three months later.

The Mahabat Maqbara is a silent monument to the political turmoil that accompanied its construction. Its mixture of influences reflects the changing times. Access to the grounds is free, but you can only see the outside of the mausoleum.

10. Ellora Caves, Maharashtra

The Ellora Caves stand testament to both the mingling of faith and the high level of workmanship in medieval India. Craftsmen carved 34 temples, dedicated to Buddhism, Jainism and Brahmanism, out of the mountainside itself. Many believe it was the faiths working together that allowed builders to excavate solid rock using the rudimentary tools of the 5th century.

Like the mingling of Egyptian religion and Greek beliefs at Thonis-Heracleion and Canopus in Egypt, the Ellora Caves are a monument to religious tolerance and the peaceful sharing of spiritual space. Could a piece of an ancient weapon hide in one of the most mysterious places in India?

11. San Thome Basilica, Chennai

In Stone of Fire, the stone of the title refers to the Pentecostal stones spread around the world by Christ’s disciples.

According to Catholic traditions, St. Thomas reached India in 52 CE, where he preached for a further twenty years. He preached in Chennai until he was martyred nearby.

No evidence exists to confirm this legend, and accounts of Thomas’s time in India weren’t written until centuries later. That said, South Indian Christians still hold the story dear.

The San Thome Basilica stands on the site where Thomas was buried. Followers scattered his remains across the Near East and Europe, some parts even reaching Italy. But a chapel in the basement apparently contains a bone from his hand. The basilica is also one of only three churches in the world built on an apostle’s tomb.

12. Baba Kinaram Ashram, Varanasi

Founded by Baba Kinaram, this ashram is the main headquarters of the Aghori sect. These ascetics are devotees of Shiva, and they deviate from traditional Hindu beliefs since they see opposites as identical. As a result, they see no distinction between purity and pollution.

Some of them live in or near cremation grounds. They smear themselves with human ashes and use skulls as begging bowls. According to some, they also eat human flesh and meditate among corpses. An Aghori sadhu features as one of the important characters in Destroyer of Worlds.

While that sounds extreme, sites of cremation are the final resting place of the body, giving them associations with peace. All cremation grounds are considered holy so they live across the country. But if you're in Varanasi, visit their ashram, truly one of the mysterious places in India. You'll spot it by the skulls either side of the entrance.

13. Great Wall of India

We’ve all heard of the Great Wall of China – but the Great Wall of India? Built 500 years ago, it guards the ancient fort of Kumbhalgarh. The fort is home to over 300 ancient temples.

The wall runs over 36km, and it’s the second longest continuous wall in the world. It resembles its Chinese cousin in both its scope and the terrain it crosses. In places, the wall reaches 15m thick. Despite its use as a defensive measure, decorative work makes the wall a beautiful destination for more adventurous tourists.

But take note. The wall boasts many traps and defence mechanisms. Many of them have been deactivated, but others may potentially lie in wait for the unwary traveller. Given the remote nature of the ruins, who knows what else hides in the mountains?

Any, or all, of these places are stunning and inspirational in equal measure. I look forward to going back to India to explore more!

13 Strange But Awesome Places To See In New Orleans

June 27, 2017 By J.F. Penn

So far, my ARKANE books have largely focused on the ancient world and Europe. But ever since Jake went to America for One Day in New York I’ve wanted to explore the legends and occult traditions of the New World.

What better place to start than The Big Easy, New Orleans?

Especially as I visited the city in early 2017 as part of the research for American Demon Hunters: Sacrifice. You can see some of my pictures in this article and the whole album here on Flickr.

Founded in 1718 by the French, New Orleans passed to Spanish control in 1763. It finally joined the United States in 1803. This change of hands, along with its history of slavery and connection to the local Chitimacha tribes, makes New Orleans a unique place to visit.

It’s suffered many disasters over the decades, including devastating epidemics and hurricanes. More recently, Hurricane Katrina took 1,836 lives in 2005. Thankfully, the city recovered and is open to visitors.

st louis cemetery — Graves in St Louis cemetery, New Orleans

Here are thirteen strange places to see in New Orleans if you’re lucky enough to find yourself in this very unusual city.

1. The Tomb of Marie Laveau

Vodou is never far from the surface in New Orleans. While we're used to spelling it as Voodoo in the West, it’s originally Vodou. Otherwise, you're confusing a legitimate religion from Haiti with the West African folk magic practice of hoodoo.

Either way, one of its most famous priestesses, Marie Laveau, continues to draw the crowds.

Born around 1801, the half Creole hairdresser became famous as a purveyor of charms and gris-gris bags, fortunes and advice. According to legend, she even saved condemned men. But rumours also imply she ran a popular brothel – which could explain her fame.

She died in 1881 and allegedly rests in St. Louis Cemetery No.1, one of the top places to see in New Orleans. Her burial place is named in her obituary though some scholars say she lies elsewhere. Visitors used to scribble an X on her mausoleum in the hope she'd grant their wish. But after a restoration in 2014, the authorities now fine visitors for writing on the grave.

St. Louis Cemetery No.1 opened in 1789 and is the oldest cemetery in New Orleans. It has over 600 tombs and preservation work began in 1975.

If you'd like to visit St. Louis Cemetery No.1, then you can only gain access with a tour guide, unless you have family buried there.

2. Marie Laveau's House of Voodoo

Vodou Priestess Marie Laveau gave birth to a daughter in 1827, also named Marie. A museum and shop now stand on the site of the house where Marie Laveau II lived.

voodoo altar, new orleans — Voodoo altar

You can see a Vodou altar and associated items while the owners hold spiritual readings in a back room. You can even buy various Vodou items and books.

But perhaps Marie Laveau II isn't happy with the commercialisation of her home. Many believe her ghost still haunts the property. Visitors report cold fingers kneading their shoulders. Others have seen her in the back room during readings.

3. New Orleans Historic Voodoo Museum

Marie Laveau's shop isn't the only museum dedicated to Vodou. A local artist named Charles Massicot Gandolfo founded his own small museum in 1972. It focuses on New Orleans Vodou and is a fascinating place.

Vodou priest John T offers psychic readings and fortune telling, which start at $40. You can also book onto a walking tour of St. Louis Cemetery No.1.

The gift shop sells many products, including chicken feet and snake skins, as well as the famous Voodoo Love potion and the New Orleans Voodoo Coffin Kits.

If you're not that brave, then you can buy books and candles instead.

jfpenn nuawlins nate new orleans voodoo — J.F.Penn with Nu'Awlins Nate, New Orleans voodoo tour guide

You can find the Historic Voodoo Museum at 724 Dumaine Street. I did a great walking tour which included the museum with Nu'Awlins Nate, a regular tour guide of the city.

4. Boutique du Vampyre

New Orleans is full of vampires, at least it has been since Anne Rice set some of her Vampire Lestat books in the city.

There is a very cool shop full of vampire gifts and if you get chatting to the (pale) staff, you might get invited to one of the private clubs where entry is only allowed if you are invited by or accompanied by a vampire.

You can check out the shop at 709 St Ann St, or visit their online shop here.

5. New Orleans Pharmacy Museum

Not everything in New Orleans is devoted to the supernatural. The Pharmacy Museum in the French Quarter is an important monument to the development of scientific medicine.

You can see pharmaceutical ingredients in apothecary jars, original wheelchairs, medical instruments and tools, and even old eyeglasses. It’s one of the more unusual places to see in New Orleans.

A recreated pharmacist's lab lies at the back of the shop, while exhibits explain the original role of the ‘soda fountain' in Victorian medicine.

Though it wouldn't be New Orleans without at least a handful of Vodou potions.

6. Séance Room at Muriel's Jackson Square

Head to 801 Chartres Street if you'd like to combine Creole cuisine with paranormal activity.

Muriel's Jackson Square was a holding facility for slaves before it became a family home after the Great New Orleans Fire of 1788. Its owner committed suicide in 1814 on the second floor after losing the house in a poker game.

Once the building became a restaurant, the second floor became a séance room after guests reported a lot of paranormal activity. Despite stories of disembodied voices and breaking glasses, the owners claim the spirits are harmless. They even lay a table for the previous owner every night.

Of course, if you're in the area, you need to get a muffuletta from the Central Grocery, followed by beignets and cafe au lait from Café du Monde. Sugar rush!

7. LaLaurie Mansion

While many houses in New Orleans claim to be haunted, not all of them boast the pedigree of the LaLaurie mansion. Standing in the French Quarter, the cruel Madame LaLaurie allegedly tortured slaves in the house.

Fans of American Horror Story will recognise the house and Madame LaLaurie from the Coven series. Kathy Bates played the Madame.

Actor Nicolas Cage even bought the house and lost it to foreclosure in 2009. Few were surprised since legends of curses surround the house. The imposing mansion is one of the must-see places to see in New Orleans.

You can hear more of the ghost stories by doing an evening Ghosts, Legends and Lore walking tour with Strange True Tours.

8. Metairie Cemetery and Lafayette Cemetery

If you like visiting graveyards (as I do) then Metairie Cemetery is another recommended visit. It's notable for having been built on the site of a race track. The cemetery even follows the original contours.

Like the other city graveyards, it boasts fantastic monuments to house the above-ground burials. Some believe the trend to bury above ground comes from problems with the city's water.

But it was a popular burial style in the Mediterranean due to the rocky soil in southern Europe. French and Spanish colonists introduced the tradition. Paupers were buried in any available ground, so tombs act as a sign of status in the community.

Or you can travel to the Garden District to find the Lafayette Cemetery. Established in 1833, you can find it at 1400 Washington Avenue. It’s one of the definitive places to see in New Orleans.

The cemetery holds over 7000 inhabitants and will be familiar if you've read any of Anne Rice's vampire novels. She even staged her own funeral here in 1995, complete with horse-drawn hearse and brass band, to publicise the release of Memnoch the Devil, book 5 in her Vampire Chronicles.

You'll find plenty of monuments honouring Civil War dead and those lost to regular epidemics of yellow fever.

9. The Museum of Death

With perhaps the most striking name in the history of museums, this weird museum lies in the French Quarter and is one of the more disturbing places to see in New Orleans.

You need a strong stomach because they include plenty of photos from morgues and crime scenes, body bags, antique mortician equipment, coffins, and car accident photography.

It offers a self-guided tour that lasts for around an hour. But if you're of a stronger constitution, you can stay at the Museum of Death as long as you can stand it. I wouldn't recommend taking your Mom!

10. St. Augustine Catholic Church

Found at 1210 Governor Nicholls Street, the church itself isn't the destination. The rusting cross made of thick chains outside is what you need to see. This is the Tomb of the Unknown Slave, installed in 2004. It honours the nameless slaves who died and rarely received proper burials.

chain cross — Cross made from slave shackles, New Orleans

Officially, no one is buried under it, but a bronze plaque nearby explains that slave labour built a lot of the parish. A number of unmarked graves likely lie beneath it.

It's an important memorial in the city and it’s worth seeing it to pay your respects.

11. Backstreet Cultural Museum

Many associate New Orleans with a range of African American celebrations, including jazz funerals and Mardi Gras.

If you want to know more about them, then pop along to the Backstreet Cultural Museum (though it's closed on Mondays and Sundays).

It holds permanent exhibits related to the community-based processional traditions. But it also holds an archive of filmed records of over 500 events. It hosts public music and dance performances and chronicles the jazz funerals held every year.

shotgun houses — ‘Shotgun' houses in New Orleans

You can also visit the House of Dance & Feathers on Tupelo Street to learn more about the Mardi Gras Indian costumes.

12. Escape My Room

If you believe the stories, the DeLaporte mansion stood on the site now occupied by the hospital complex near the New Orleans Superdrome. After the last owner, Odette DeLaporte, became a recluse, the house fell to rack and ruin. In 2005, urban explorers broke in, later describing the house and its fabulous contents.

But when the neighbours returned in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, they realised the house was completely empty. Where did everything go?

If you believe the website, Escape My Room recreated two of the mansion’s rooms using the items from the house in the remains of a former perfume factory. Players wait in the cabinet of curiosities styled waiting room, furnished with antiques and weird taxidermy. It's typical of the legends and eeriness that hang around New Orleans.

Players get to choose the Jazz Parlor or the Mardi Gras Study. You get one hour to solve a mystery using the clues in the room. There are 8 of you in a group, so it's advisable to work together.

If you solve it without help, you learn something new about the occult in New Orleans that you couldn't have found elsewhere. Only 1 in 3 players solve the riddles unaided. If you're one of the 2 in 3 who can't, a guide will reveal everything you've missed.

If you want to play, you can find it at 601-699 Constance St. Just make sure you book in advance – it's fiendishly popular.

13. House of the Rising Sun

The infamous brothel that inspired the song by the same name isn't open to the public, but I was lucky enough to be taken round by some locals.

These are just some of the awesome places to see in New Orleans.

Because of the diverse range of faiths, lifestyles, and beliefs of the people of New Orleans, you should always be respectful. The whole city is a community, so take an open mind with you.

Who knows which stories you may tell when you leave?

I'm going to be writing an ARKANE novel set in the city, but in the meantime, check out American Demon Hunters: Sacrifice, which I co-wrote with three other authors there after we took the train from Chicago down to New Orleans in March 2017.

A Walk Around The Historical And Occult Sites Of Oxford, England

June 7, 2017 By J.F. Penn

Oxford holds a special place in my heart. I read Theology at Mansfield College 1994 – 1997, so I spent formative years cycling around the streets, spending my student loan on books from Blackwells, rowing on the river, and studying in the Radcliffe Camera library.

I first dreamed of Oxford after reading Thomas Hardy's Jude the Obscure back in my teens, and the experience of living in the city of dreaming spires has certainly shaped my life … and my fiction!

Oxford is a key location in the ARKANE series. Home to Morgan Sierra, it provides a point of stability in her hectic life of international travel and defeating the bad guys! With its own ARKANE field office, Oxford also sees the start of Morgan’s life as an agent in Stone of Fire. You could say it's the intellectual balance for her supernatural adventures.

So Oxford has links with the occult through ARKANE, but what other weird tales lurk in the city of dreaming spires? Let’s take a walk around some of the historical and occult aspects of Oxford.

Oxford as the capital of England?

mansfield college oxford — Mansfield College, University of Oxford, where I read Theology 1994 – 1997

Oxford was briefly the capital of England during the English Civil War. The town supported the Parliamentarians, but the University supported the monarchy. King Charles I moved his court here in 1642 and he stayed at Christ Church College until 1646.

Local legends claim the tragic king still haunts the college, both with and without his head. Civil War ghosts also appear elsewhere in Oxford. A bedroom at Merton College was so haunted that no one could spend an entire night there. The library at the college is reportedly haunted by a former Royalist colonel, shot after surrendering to Parliamentarian forces in 1645.

There’s even a legend that Hitler intended to use Oxford as his capital if he invaded England so deliberately avoided bombing it. There’s no evidence to support the theory, but it certainly fits in with the occult leanings of the city. (Morgan comes up against the occult side of Nazi history in Gates of Hell.)

Divine power supported the founding of Oxford University

An interesting legend surrounds the founding of the university. A princess named Frideswide wanted to dedicate herself to the Church, but the king of Mercia wanted to marry her, so Frideswide fled to Oxford to escape him.

When the king entered the city in hot pursuit, a divine power struck him blind. His sight only returned when he begged forgiveness and released Frideswide from her betrothal. The king left empty-handed and Frideswide founded a nunnery. According to the legend, the first colleges were built for monastic scholars.

Despite the legend, women were only admitted in 1878. The university awarded degrees to women in 1920. The last all-male college opened to women in 1974.

oxford natural history — Interior of the Museum of Natural History, Oxford. Is the ARKANE base really underneath?

What would the old male founders of the colleges make of Morgan Sierra's Krav Maga skills?

Learning and knowledge

Oxford is most famous as a seat of learning. Evidence suggests the university has operated since 1096 AD and only the University of Bologna has been in operation for longer.

My Theology degree included some of the oldest subjects studied including the New Testament in ancient Greek, Israel before the Exile and Patristics, the study of the early church fathers. These papers shaped a number of my ARKANE books, and I spent much of my study time in the Radcliffe Camera, part of the Bodleian Library.

It is second only to British Library in terms of its holdings and the Bodleian stocks over 11 million items across several sites. It even extends into underground stacks, which I visited once, and became the inspiration for the underground ARKANE headquarters. A tunnel connects the Weston Library, the Old Bodleian and the Radcliffe Camera.

The famous Ashmolean Museum first opened to the public in 1683, the first museum in the world to be accessible to the public. It's one of the best things to see in Oxford, and it hosts an enviable collection of art and archaeology from around the world. Its Egyptian collection is one of the largest outside Cairo. Visitors can even write to the Ashmolean a week in advance to request access to the original drawings of Raphael and Michelangelo.

The Ashmolean is a perfect hiding place for one of the Seals of Revelation needed to resurrect the Great Serpent at the End of Days.

Elsewhere in Oxford, the Pitt Rivers Museum holds an amazing collection of archaeological and ethnographic objects from around the world. Founded in 1884, the museum has over half a million items. In my books, it’s also the public face of the Oxford branch of the ARKANE Institute, which nestles below the museum.

Most museums arrange their objects by geography or culture, but the Pitt Rivers Museum creates displays using types of object. That way, visitors can see how a range of cultures across a range of time periods have approached textiles, weapons, and even musical instruments.

Who knows what fascinating relics might lie among their Japanese Noh masks and Tahitian mourner's costumes?

Underground Oxford

In Stone of Fire, Jake alludes to the sprawling underground network below Oxford.

As well as the tunnels beneath the Bodleian Library, there's also a Norman crypt beneath St. Peter-in-the-East, now the college library of St. Edmund (Teddy) Hall. According to rumours, the crypt hides the entrance to a tunnel network that was used until the 1960s.

There are also legends about an underground passage that led into the crypt. King Henry II apparently used the tunnel when he visited Oxford. He passed through the tunnel to avoid his Queen while seeing his mistress. Sadly, no evidence has been found … yet.

Another series of underground tunnels connected the homes in the Oxford Jewish quarter. They lurk behind a medieval doorway below Oxford Town Hall.

Wells and gardens

blackwells — Blackwells bookshop with student bikes outside, Oxford. Booklovers get lost in there …

Wells and spas provide handy clues to the pagan roots of old English towns, including Oxford. The wells mark the sites of springs, often worshipped by earlier inhabitants for their magical properties. The town of Bath, where I live now, is a famous example.

St Margaret's Well lies in Binsey, 1.5 miles north-west of Oxford. Dedicated to Frideswide, its legend claims her prayers brought forth a healing spring when the king of Mercia was struck blind. The well became a site of pilgrimage during medieval times. Cured cripples would leave their crutches to adorn the nearby church when they left.

Pilgrims visited for its power in curing eye complaints and infertility and Katherine of Aragon, first wife of Henry VIII, was even rumoured to pay the well a visit. Legend has it that Lewis Carroll based the treacle well in Alice in Wonderland on St Margaret's Well. It’s one of the more peaceful things to see in Oxford and some still believe in the curative properties of the water.

Oxford also boasts the oldest Botanic Garden in the world. Founded as a physic garden in 1621, the Botanic Garden was always intended as a learning resource. Nowadays the Garden works within plant conservation, as well as conducting research at Oxford University.

Oxford and strange fiction

Oxford is important to my ARKANE books, but it also has (more famous!) literary links, particularly with fantasy fiction. Charles Dodgson (Lewis Carroll) taught at Christ Church College. He was friends with the Dean and immortalised his daughter in fiction as Alice in Wonderland.

Writer Kenneth Grahame attended St Edward's School in Oxford. He's buried in the city’s Holywell Cemetery. Perhaps his time in Oxford inspired the otherworldly atmosphere of The Wind in the Willows.

JRR Tolkien photo from the Eagle and Child, Oxford

The Great Hall at Christ Church inspired the dining hall of Hogwarts, while the staircase leading to the hall appears in the Harry Potter films. The locations around the college are some of the more popular things to see in Oxford.

Given that Oxford has the highest number of published writers per square mile, maybe there's something in the air that seeps into fiction.

Charles Williams must have thought so. He was part of the Inklings, a group of Oxford writers that also included J. R. R. Tolkien and C. S. Lewis. Williams wrote poetry about the Arthurian legends and supernatural novels about the spiritual realm breaking into daily reality.

He was also a member of The Fellowship of the Rosy Cross, a secret Rosicrucian fraternity. Arthur Edward Waite founded the group in 1915 and blended spiritual esotericism and Christianity. Unlike the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn, the FRC rejected magic. A lot of its members were Freemasons and they sought knowledge more than power.

The occult in Oxford

Charles Williams couldn’t have picked a better city if he wanted to explore the occult. There's something about the city that inspires the spirit. The word ‘occult’ means ‘knowledge of the hidden,’ so what better place than this seat of learning for occult traditions?

Students have dabbled in the occult across the centuries. Adam Squier, a Master of Balliol College in the 16th century, was almost expelled after he sold demons to help his clients win at gambling. The famous Tudor magician, John Dee, thought highly of another student, Thomas Heth.

In recent years, the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn inspired the founding of the Oxford Golden Dawn Occult Society (OGDOS). It's a magical order that teaches a more modern form of magic than the older Golden Dawn system.

The OGDOS are working to re-establish a resource centre in Oxford. They want to provide a space for ritual gatherings. Its founder, Mogg Morgan, is the CEO of the Mandrake of Oxford publishing press, specialising in occult titles. Elsewhere in the city, the Inner Bookshop on Magdalen Road carries occult books.

Part of the northern end of All Souls College was re-designed by Nicholas Hawksmoor, 18th-century architect and Freemason. A series of architectural conspiracy theories surround his London churches and his work often includes obelisks, pyramids and other elements hinting at pagan influences at odds with ecclesiastical buildings.

While they can’t be attributed to Hawksmoor, many of the college buildings are also home to a host of gargoyles. Some are just faces and others are whole people. The comedy grotesques are some of the more unusual things to see in Oxford.

blackfriars — The door to Blackfriars, where I used to have Theology tutorials, and where Ben Costanza from the ARKANE series lives and teaches

Elsewhere in the city stands Sir Christopher Wren’s first major commission – the magnificent Sheldonian Theatre. Like his apprentice Hawksmoor, Wren was a Freemason. He used the traditions of the Kabbalah and sacred geometry from the Old Testament in his work. Perhaps the journey of Wren and Hawksmoor into the occult began in Oxford.

Morgan Sierra investigates the Freemasons' Grand Lodge of England in the hunt for the Ark of the Covenant in Ark of Blood.

You can plot your own plan of esoteric things to see in Oxford

Try following in Morgan’s footsteps and start with the museums. Explore some of the nooks and crannies of the colleges for a small fee. Seek out ancient springs or keep your eyes open for hidden entrances to secret tunnels.

Keep an open mind while you wander. Who knows where those winding alleyways may take you?

Begin your journey into Oxford’s ARKANE side with Stone of Fire, or binge the whole series in ebook, print or audiobook.

12 Of The World’s Weirdest Museums That You Really Should Visit

May 14, 2017 By J.F. Penn

If you think of museums, you might think of the majesty of the British Museum or the industrial heritage of the Railway Museum.

But you’d miss out on the darker, more unusual, or just plain bizarre side of life. Choosing to visit the weirdest museums instead can be a truly enlightening experience.

I’ve collected together 12 of the strangest museums around the world that are all worth a visit. You’ll encounter mummies, vampires, torturers, and maybe even Bigfoot.

Choose carefully, and visit with an open mind. Who knows what new ideas or fascinations will emerge for you?

1. Pitt Rivers Museum, Oxford, England

oxfordpittrivers — Inside the Oxford Museum of Natural History, the Pitts Rivers is at the back … and ARKANE is underneath!

The Pitt Rivers Museum is a place close to my heart as the public front of the ARKANE Institute in my thrillers. The collection is also perhaps one of the weirdest museums in the UK. General Pitt Rivers founded the museum in 1884, and there are now over half a million objects.

It's notable for its typological displays. Most museums display their objects based on cultures or geography. Not the Pitt Rivers. Here, curators group objects according to type. It makes the similarities between people and cultures, often across vast time periods or extensive physical distance, all the more obvious. So it’s important to anthropology and an interesting viewing experience for visitors. There are some particularly gruesome shrunken heads, as well as giant wooden birds of paradise, their spiraling feathers like huge tongues, and the agonized face of a Christian martyr statue, neck twisted towards his God, desperate for release, next to a case of ceremonial knives for stripping the flesh from sacrificial animals.

It's super weird. What better home for ARKANE?!

2. La Specola, Florence, Italy

This quiet, unassuming gallery lies within the Museum of Natural History in Florence. The rest of the museum houses taxidermy and other exhibits relating to its subject. But La Specola is the part you need to see. It's home to the largest collection of anatomical wax figures, including over 1400 models.

Most of them date to the 18th century and students still pop in to study their realistic forms. The famous Anatomical Venus is a must-see, a full-size version of the tiny memento mori that is the key to solving a murder in my London Psychic thriller, Desecration.

As La Specola is on the south side of the River Arno, it’s also a lot more peaceful than other attractions like the Uffizi or Duomo. So if you want to escape the hustle and bustle of Florence, and see something unusual, then this is a brilliant destination.

3. Museum of Vampires and Legendary Creatures, Paris, France

It’s no surprise you’d find this museum just 2.4km from the awe-inspiring Pere Lachaise cemetery. Jacques Sirgent, a scholar of the macabre, founded the museum as a place to collect his research into vampirism and esoterism.

This strange museum shares the strange, cryptic history of Paris. It also contains vampire killing kits, antique books, toys and collectables relating to Hammer Films and Dracula, and other pop culture items. Adding to the air of mystery, you need to reserve your place on their guided tours.

Some of the weirdest museums often double as libraries, and the Museum of Vampires is no different. You can buy an annual membership for €60, which entitles you to unlimited access to the books and magazines held by the museum.

4. International Cryptozoology Museum, Portland, Maine, USA

Stephen King country is the ideal location for this strange museum. Covering Big Foot, the Jersey Devil and other folkloric creatures, the museum holds a range of memorabilia, souvenirs, toys, and research materials on all things cryptozoology.

The museum has moved location several times, with its premises growing to accommodate its ever-expanding collection.

The website describes it as the world’s only cryptozoology museum, and it’s also noted as a formal collection. It’s open every day except Tuesdays, so if you want to see the Feejee Mermaid, or learn more about the coelacanth, then it’s worth a visit.

5. Funeral Museum, Vienna, Austria

This macabre attraction is one of the weirdest museums in Vienna. Funerals were historically a major event in this European capital, and tourists still line up to visit the Imperial crypt. The Funeral Museum capitalises on the trend towards all things funerary, displaying hearses, mourning attire, and items designed to help those who found themselves buried alive.

One of the stand-out exhibits is a re-usable coffin, designed by Emperor Josef II in 1784. The bottom of the coffin is a trap door, allowing the corpse to drop into the grave without burying the coffin itself. It's the ultimate in recycling, yet the Viennese were unimpressed.

You can also find out more about the Viennese Cult of the Dead at this strange museum.

6. Museo de Las Momias (Mummy Museum), Guanajuato, Mexico

In the mid-19th century, the people of the small mining town of Guanajuato interred hundreds of bodies interred in the Santa Paula Pantheon’s crypts in. Authorities later exhumed the bodies if their families couldn't pay the town's mandatory burial tax.

During these exhumations, town officials discovered that the climate of the region had naturally mummified the bodies. The first body was exhumed in 1865, making the mummified French doctor the oldest of the collection. Visitors originally saw the mummies in situ in the catacombs, something of a clandestine experience as viewing the corpses was not permitted.

Around 100 bodies, including those of infants and children, later moved to the Museo de Las Momias, or Mummy Museum. The poignant museum is a touching testament to the body after death.

7. Torture Museum, Amsterdam, the Netherlands

Europe may seem like a space of civilisation and progress now, but its dark history is never far below the surface. It sometimes seems ready to erupt again, an idea I explored in One Day in Budapest.

Amsterdam is now seen as a liberal city of life and culture, but their Torture Museum displays over 40 torture devices actually used during interrogations. Witches, political prisoners and criminals all fell foul of these decapitation swords and the infamous inquisition chair.

But the museum’s curators recognise that almost 100 countries still practise modern torture. The museum runs educational events for students and supports the UN Convention Against Torture.

8. Museum of Death, New Orleans, USA

With a name like that, the Museum of Death has a lot to live up to. Definitely one of the weirdest museums in the capital of the strange, the Museum of Death is not a subtle place.

The Museum of Death originates from a San Diego art gallery after its founders JD Healy and Cathee Shultz decided that people had become too distanced from death.

On display, you'll find body bags, coffins, old mortician equipment, photographs from crime scenes and morgues, images of the Manson Family, and much more. The self-guided tour lasts 45 minutes, although visitors are welcome to stay for as long as they can stand it.

If you have a strong stomach, then the Museum of Death is the place for you. I visited the museum with my co-authors during the writing of American Demon Hunters: Sacrifice.

9. Žmuidzinavičius Museum, Kaunas, Lithuania

Founded in 1966, the Žmuidzinavičius, or Devil’s Museum, collects and displays carvings of devils from around the globe. When it opened, it contained just 260 sculptures. Visitors left their own devils, and by 2009, the collection held 3000 objects.

The exhibits range from wood to stone and ceramic although some of the items are also masks. They also contain pebbles whose markings resemble the devil.

Some of the simple statues express both folk myths and political ideologies. A famous sculpture shows Hitler and Stalin dancing as devils across human bones. Maybe you have a devil stone you can leave behind if you visit.

10. Mary King’s Close, Edinburgh, UK

Edinburgh is a curious city, divided between the gleaming Georgian New Town and the twisting cobbled closes of the Old Town. Between the South Bridge Vaults and Greyfriar’s Kirkyard, it’s a mecca for anyone who likes a taste of the macabre or the unusual.

Yet one of the weirdest museums in Britain lies below a government building on the Royal Mile. Mary King’s Close is a monument to the old narrow streets that lie on either side of this historic strip between Edinburgh Castle and Holyrood Palace. There are rumors that those infected with the plague were walled up here alive.

Take a guided tour below ground and see the tiny rooms and stifling chambers that inhabitants once called home. There’s even a legend of a little girl ghost named Annie, and tourists often leave stuffed toys and dolls for her to play with.

If you’re lucky, she might tug your coat to say hello.

11. Museum of Holy Souls in Purgatory, Rome, Italy

In the Catholic faith, souls pass through Purgatory on their way to heaven. You pay for your sins in Purgatory. The soul made its way through Purgatory faster if more of the living said prayers to speed them along. In earlier centuries, people handed out ‘soul cakes’ to the poor at Halloween, in exchange for the poor saying prayers for their relatives.

But this truly strange museum displays objects apparently marked by burning hands belonging to the souls of Purgatory. According to legend, a fire in the original church inspired a French missionary to build the museum. He discovered the scorched image of a face which he assumed was a trapped soul.
You can find the museum at the back of the Sacro Cuore del Suffragio church.

12. Museum of Witchcraft and Magic, Boscastle, UK

Cornwall might be more famous nowadays as Poldark country. But this bizarre museum houses the world's largest collection of items relating to witchcraft and magic. The museum previously existed in Stratford-upon-Avon, and on the Isle of Man, where Gerald Gardner, the founder of modern Wicca, acted as the witch in residence. The museum moved to Boscastle in 1960.

A prehistoric maze is carved into the rock face three miles from its location, linking the museum with the magic of ancient times.

The museum holds over 3000 objects and 7000 books and stages temporary exhibitions along with public events. While some of the displays may seem unusual, remember that Wicca is a legitimate spiritual path, so be respectful.

Any, or all, of these museums offer unique learning opportunities. They also capture the sides of human life that extend beyond the classical ideas preserved by traditional ideas. They’re also a lot of fun!

25 Quirky And Unusual Things To See In London

March 7, 2017 By J.F. Penn

I love London. I lived there back in the 1990s and again 2011 – 2015, and I still go back every few months. The city is rich with layers of history and it has been my muse for a number of novels.

Tourists flock to the Tower or the V&A, but there are plenty of unusual things to see in London once you get off the beaten track. After all, a city doesn't exist for centuries without attracting the macabre, the eccentric, and the downright strange…

So if you like art, history, or just the darker side of life, here are 25 quirky attractions to visit if you're visiting the best city in the world!

(1) Hunterian Museum

This grisly museum hides inside the Royal College of Surgeons in Lincoln’s Inn Fields. It houses a range of medical specimens, anatomical anomalies and vicious instruments. Free to visit, it’s a quirky collection that’s not for the faint-hearted. It’s also the perfect place for a murder scene, as Detective Jamie Brooke discovers in Desecration, when the body of an heiress is found amongst the anatomical specimens.

(2) Sir John Soane Museum

This architectural wonderland lies across the park from the Hunterian, preserving past objects rather than body parts. Also free to visit, this townhouse is a treasure trove of finds including art, antiquities, and ancient sculptures. You can see architect Sir John Soane’s inspiration for the Bank of England and Dulwich Picture Gallery. Don’t miss the giant sarcophagus in the basement, which features in Ark of Blood, when Morgan Sierra hunts for clues to the whereabouts of the Ark of the Covenant. I've written more about John Soane here.

(3) Highgate Cemetery

Highgate was one of the Magnificent Seven cemeteries designed to ease the overcrowding in London's churchyards. Its West Cemetery boasts the famous Egyptian Avenue, the Circle of Lebanon, and eerie catacombs. Karl Marx rests across the lane in the East Cemetery. According to urban legends, Highgate played host to a vampire in the 1970s! You can see more of my photos of Highgate and other cemeteries here on Flickr.

(4) The Old Operating Theatre

Hidden in a forgotten Southwark garret above St Thomas Church, the Old Operating Theatre is all that remains of the old St Thomas’ Hospital. Hunched at the top of a narrow staircase, this is the women’s theatre. The surgical ward for female patients would have lain beyond the far wall. Hundreds of students would have watched the surgical procedures. You can now stand in their place and watch fascinating talks about the equipment by museum curators.

bottles from the old operating theatre london — Bottles from the Old Operating Theatre, London

I visited it as part of my research for the anatomical history featured in Desecration. It's an awesome, grisly place!

(5) Chelsea Physick Garden

The oldest botanic garden in London opened in 1673. The nearby river Thames contributes to a special micro-climate that enables the gardeners to grow rare and endangered species. The garden contains some 5000 medicinal plants – as well as some notorious toxic specimens like monkshood and deadly nightshade, used as poisons.

(6) The Freemason’s Hall

Grand Temple Mosaic Ark — Mosaic of the Ark of the Covenant at the Grand Lodge of England

The Freemasons' Hall is the headquarters for the United Grand Lodge of England. It's a Grade II listed building, and some of its halls are open to the public … although there are doors you're not allowed to enter. After all, this is a society with secrets.

You can join a free guided tour to see the Library, Museum and Grand Temple. The Hall is an unusual attraction and Morgan Sierra visits it in Ark of Blood, because it is rumored to contain part of the Ark of the Covenant. I went on a tour there and found the symbolism fascinating.

(7) British Museum

This might seem like an obvious tourist destination, but the British Museum has plenty of quirky exhibits. Wander through the Enlightenment Gallery’s cabinet of curiosities, where you can find molten lava thought to be from Sodom & Gomorra. Or meet Hoa Hakananai'a, the imposing moai from Easter Island. You can also see famous exhibits like the Rosetta Stone and ancient Egyptian mummies.

mummybritishmuseum — A mummified head in the Hall of Enlightenment at the British Museum

I'm fascinated by the British Museum and my frequent visits have meant that it appears in a number of books. Day of the Vikings is based on a Viking exhibition there, Crypt of Bone was inspired by a religious relic exhibition, and Blake Daniel from the London Psychic series works there, sensing the history of objects through the scars on his hands. It will definitely inspire more books in the future!

(8) Crypt Gallery

How often do you see art exhibitions in a crypt? Since 2002, St Pancras Church's crypt has hosted a range of exhibitions and installations by contemporary artists. The remains of 557 Londoners are still interred there, so you may wonder what they think of it all! Definitely one of the more unusual things to see in London.

(9) Jeremy Bentham’s Skeleton

Philosopher and reformer Jeremy Bentham inspired the founding of University College. He loved the institution so much that he asked to be preserved and displayed there after death. His body now sits in a cabinet in the South Cloisters of the main building. Occasionally he is taken into meetings. The minutes reveal that he's recorded as being present, but not voting.

crossbones graveyard, london — Ribbons on the gates of Crossbones graveyard, London

(10) Crossbones Cemetery

Crossbones Cemetery in Southwark was once a graveyard for the Bishop of Winchester’s prostitutes, known as geese, and their illegitimate children. The red iron gates are now a shrine for ‘the outcast dead' and people tie ribbons to the bars in remembrance. There are also rituals and performances there every Halloween. You can’t go inside the graveyard but there’s currently a petition to have the cemetery turned into a Garden of Remembrance. My novel, Deviance, was inspired by Crossbones and the opening scene is set at a memorial march there.

(11) Wellcome Collection

The Wellcome Collection is one of the most underrated attractions in London. Described as ‘the free destination for the incurably curious', it’s perfect for those interested in medicine and history. It’s also a natural home for an exhibition about the notorious Bedlam Hospital, which occupied 3 sites in London before its move to leafy Kent. Its Southwark location features in Delirium.

When I visit London now, you'll often find me in the reading room or the cafe at the Wellcome. Their bookstore is one of my favorite as it stocks death culture and anatomy books, which are my addiction!

(12) The Horniman Museum

Clock Tower at the Horniman Museum in Forest Hill, London. Commissioned in 1898, it opened in 1901 and was designed by Charles Harrison Townsend in the Arts and Crafts style. — Clock Tower at the Horniman Museum

The overstuffed walrus is definitely one of the more unusual things to see in London. Set in 16 acres of gorgeous gardens, this south London museum is worth a visit if you like your anthropology and natural history on the quirky side! With no touch screens in sight, the most interaction you’re likely to get comes from the collection of musical instruments.

(13) Amphitheatre under the Guildhall

It’s easy to forget that London was a Roman city. But the ancient civilisation left something behind. If you descend into the bowels of the Guildhall Art Gallery, you can see the remains of the Roman amphitheatre that would have dominated the area. The extent of the amphitheatre is picked out in a ring of black stone in the courtyard at street level.

(14) Temple Church

Templar Church in London where Da Vinci Code was filmed.

Made famous by Dan Brown’s The Da Vinci Code, the Temple Church is one of the more unusual things to see in London. Built by the Knights Templar, it features a circular nave, designed to reflect Jerusalem’s circular Church of the Holy Sepulchre. The Temple also has strong ties with the Magna Carta. It still holds services and is open to the public.

(15) Pollock’s Toy Museum

It's amazing how creepy toys can be when they're collected into one place. Pollock's Toy Museum manages that spectacularly! Explore old dolls' houses, board games and puppets – and meet the world's oldest teddy. The building itself, a pair of unrestored Georgian townhouses, is the perfect setting for this quirky museum.

penn london library — J.F.Penn in the stacks of the London Library

(16) The London Library

Established in 1841, the London Library is a bibliophile's paradise! Favoured by the likes of Tom Stoppard, Bram Stoker, and Tennyson, the eccentric classification system encourages random browsing. It has 15 miles of open-access shelves so you might be there for a while. A temporary reference pass is £15, and they run free guided tours on weekday evenings. I wrote a number of books in the London Library as a Member when I lived in town. Here's a little video of me working there.

(17) The Viktor Wynd Museum of Curiosities, Fine Art & Natural History

Travel to Hackney's Mare Street to find this quirky curiosity shop and art gallery. Home to the Last Tuesday Society, expect surreal exhibitions and the sorts of specimens you'd find in a cabinet of curiosities. The museum follows pre-Enlightenment ideals and uses no form of classification, so you can make your own sense of the items on display.

(18) Kensal Green Cemetery

The first of the Magnificent Seven, Kensal Green Cemetery is home to royalty, and luminaries such as Isambard Kingdom Brunel, John Tenniel, Wilkie Collins, and Blondin. The Friends of Kensal Green Cemetery offer a range of themed tours to visit the famous people that rest there. You can also venture into the catacombs beneath the Dissenter’s Chapel. I visited Kensal Green and it features in a scene in Delirium. You can see more of my pictures of graveyards here.

(19) Freud Museum

The companion to his Vienna museum, this London home captures Sigmund Freud's life after he left Austria in 1938. As well as the infamous couch brought here from his Vienna consulting room, you can also see his collections of almost 2000 Egyptian, Greek and Roman items. His study is preserved as Freud would have known it and is the main attraction of the museum. I visited the museum in 2012 as part of my research for Ark of Blood, and Freud's collection features an important clue for the story …

(20) The British Library

The British Library is home to some of the literary treasures of the world including notebooks by Leonardo da Vinci, the Codex Sinaiticus, one of the earliest copies of the Greek Bible, the Magna Carta, and modern treasures like handwritten lyrics by the Beatles. They also have the Lindisfarne Gospels, which feature in Day of the Vikings. A must-visit location for bibliophiles!

(21) Little Venice Canal boats and the floating book barge

If the tourist throng of London gets too much for you, head down to the canals. Walking along the waterways is one of my favorite things to do in London and you can pop up in all kinds of exciting places. You might even find Word on the Water, the London book barge, and you'll definitely want to stop in Little Venice for a drink and watch the canal life go by.

(22) Barts Pathology Museum

If you're an anatomy fan as I am, you'll love Barts Pathology museum. It's rarely open to the public as it's full of specimens that require preservation, but when it is open, it's definitely worth a visit. The viewing room has several tiers of shelving and a glass window that lets the light in. Beautiful architecture and macabre specimens! There are sometimes taxidermy classes, death culture fairs and I also attended a book discussion there for Smoke Gets In Your Eyes: And Other Lessons From the Crematorium by Caitlin Doughty.

(23) The Hardy Tree

Thomas Hardy's Jude The Obscure inspired me at an early age. His city of Christminster was modelled on Oxford and it made me want to go to University there. I ended up going to Mansfield College, University of Oxford 1994 – 1997 to study Theology and the city is in a number of my books.

But before he was a novelist, Thomas Hardy worked on the railways in London. He was assigned the job of organizing the reburial of remains that had to be moved for the new railway line into St Pancras station. He arranged the gravestones in an unusual pattern around a tree. I wonder what else is hidden under there …

(24) The Sculpture Gallery at the V&A

There are some amazing things in London's museums, but I particularly like the sculpture cast gallery at the V&A. It has casts of some of the great edifices and sculptures from around the world. I love the Michelangelo horned Moses from St Peter in Vincoli, Rome. The horns come from a mistranslation of the Hebrew word for ‘shining' and it's always amazing to see a Biblical figure with horns.

(25) Walk along South Bank from Borough Market to Waterloo

I live in Bath now, in the west of England, but when I go up to London and the sun is out, this is my favorite walk. Get off the Tube at London Bridge, head for Borough Market to pick up a snack and then walk along the edge of the Thames. You'll pass the replica of Shakespeare's Globe, the Tate Modern and you can watch the life on the water. This area of Southwark is the inspiration for Deviance, and definitely a must-do if you're in the city!

These are some of my recommendations for the more unusual side of London. Happy exploring!

When Will The World End? 7 Of The Strangest End of Days Predictions

January 31, 2017 By J.F. Penn

2017 looks like being the ideal year for End of Days predictions.

After all, some conspiracy theorists believe the beginning of the End Times will start 70 years after the return of Jews to Israel. Since the UN mandate saw the re-establishment of Israel in 1947, that makes 2017 a potentially interesting year.

But it wouldn’t be the first time that a particular year was seen as the gateway to Armageddon. The European outbreak of the Black Death in 1346 was widely held to be a sign of an impending apocalypse.

Nostradamus made several apocalyptic prophecies, but one prediction attributed to him actually placed Armageddon in July 1999.

Even Sir Isaac Newton made an End Times prediction. As well as being a scientist and mathematician, he also had a belief in the occult. Sadly, scholars only gained access to his papers on alchemy and the Bible in 1991.

Newton fixed Doomsday in 2060, but he didn't set an exact date. He admitted that any human interpretation of the Bible could be flawed.

Many other thinkers have made predictions – and subsequently revised them when the date passed without incident. The 18th-century Puritan minister Cotton Mather predicted the End of Days on three separate occasions!

But Armageddon isn't restricted to Christianity.

Many faiths have a form of apocalypse within their theology. In Norse mythology, Ragnarok marked the end of both the world and the gods. The next age would begin with two humans hidden inside Yggdrasil, the world tree.

And perhaps the most famous recent apocalyptic prediction was that of 2012. According to popular thought, the world would end since the Mayan calendar appeared to finish in 2012. Hollywood gave us a CGI-heavy apocalypse movie – but 2012 certainly didn't usher in the End of Days.

end of days arkane thriller — The Thousand Years are Ended

Morgan Sierra is now battling to stop Armageddon in my thriller, End of Days. So it seems pertinent to ask… what are 7 of the strangest predictions of the End Times?

1) Mankind would create Armageddon through the Large Hadron Collider (2008)

The Large Hadron Collider (LHC) has a complicated relationship with theology. That's probably due in part to the search for the elusive Higgs-Bosun, otherwise known as the God particle.

If mankind can recreate the Big Bang beneath Europe, then what happens to God?

Some theorists worried that the LHC could potentially create black holes from the collisions between hydrogen protons. The scientists in charge of the LHC claimed that any black holes would be too small – and brief – to make any impact.

But in March 2008, Walter L. Wagner and Luis Sancho were so worried they even filed a lawsuit against the LHC. The scientists had to produce a safety report before they could fire up the collider.

The LHC was turned on in September 2008 and so far the world as we know it hasn't ended. And no black holes have been detected.

shiva nataraja — Shiva Nataraja, Lord of the Dance

But CERN is also the home of the 2m tall Lord Shiva statue that features in Destroyer of Worlds. He represents the creation and destruction of the cosmos. So perhaps the LHC could yet unleash Armageddon…

2) A hen predicted the End of Days in Leeds (1806)

This is perhaps one of the strangest doomsday predictions of all. In 1806, a hen started laying eggs inscribed with the words ‘Christ is coming'.

Word soon spread of the avian prophetess. Visitors inundated the village to examine the eggs. Religious panic gripped Leeds, with believers seeking to right wrongs before Judgment Day.

The religious fervor was not to last. A group of skeptical gentlemen visited the hen while she was laying her eggs. After some examination, they realized someone had been inscribing the eggs with corrosive ink. The eggs were forced back into the hen to perpetuate the ruse.

With the lie exposed, apocalyptic mania died down. Hopefully, the hen went back to her normal routine too!

3) The world would end with the Great Fire of London (1666)

17th century Christians were nervous about the year 1666, containing as it does the digits 666 – the number of the Beast.

When the Great Fire of London broke out on September 2, 1666, some thought the End of Days was upon them.

The fire destroyed 87 parish churches and 13,000 homes. It came the year after the devastating outbreak of the Black Death that decimated London – surely a sign of impending doom.

Yet only 10 people apparently died. Instead, the damage was financial. The estimated value of the destroyed property is around £1.5 billion in today's money.

Rather than ushering in the End Times, the Great Fire of London gave birth to the insurance industry. Not quite so thrilling!

4) Halley's Comet would cause an apocalypse (1910)

Halley's comet makes an appearance in our skies roughly every 76 years. But in 1910, some believed the comet would actually cause the end of the world.

The predictions this time came from Chicago's Yerkes Observatory. They'd detected cyanogen gas in the comet's tail. A French astronomer, Camille Flammarion, announced the gas could actually end all life on Earth when the planet passed through it.

Less fanciful scientists denounced his claims, but the anti-comet business was already in full swing. Panic-stricken buyers snapped up gas masks, pills and even umbrellas designed to shield the user from harm.

More skeptical Americans staged parties on rooftops to watch the comet pass by.

No one knows if Earth did come into contact with the comet's tail. But no one appeared to suffer any ill effects. And Sir Arthur Conan Doyle allegedly based his 1913 novel, The Poison Belt, on the events.

In a more unfortunate turn of events, another comet was believed to herald the End Times in 1997. The Heaven's Gate cult drank vodka and barbiturates when the Hale-Bopp comet passed close to Earth. They believed a spaceship hid in its tail, ready to whisk them away from the impending apocalypse.

The 39 victims of the mass suicide were wrong.

5) The end of the world can be predicted with numerology (1843-1844, 1994, 2011)

Harold Camping didn't exactly make weird predictions for End of Days. He just made a lot of them.

That's as many as 12 different prophecies, all based on biblical numerology. In 1992, he predicted the world would end in 1994.

When that didn’t happen, he calculated Armageddon would occur 7000 years after the flood of the Old Testament. That placed the End of Days on May 21, 2011.

When the world remained in one piece, he pushed his prediction to October 21, 2011. He claimed his maths was wrong.

And Camping wasn't the only preacher to revise his predictions. In 1831, William Miller believed the Second Coming would occur in 1843. He based his claims on his ability to ‘crack the code’ of the Bible.

As many as 100,000 people believed him. When the supposed date came and went, Miller claimed the End Times would happen in 1844 instead.

One follower even wrote, “I waited all Tuesday, and dear Jesus did not come … I lay prostrate for 2 days without any pain—sick with disappointment.”

The affair even became known as ‘The Great Disappointment’.

6) Armageddon will follow 2 days of snow in Italy (2017)

The southern resort of Salento is noted for its warm and welcoming climate. According to the philosopher Matteo Tafuri, two consecutive days of snow in the town would herald the End of Days.

His prophecy reads like a Dan Brown riddle;

“Salento of palm trees and mild south wind, snowy Salento but never after the touch. Two days of snow, two flashes in the sky, I know the world ends, but I do not yearn.”

Known as a sorcerer, Tafuri was apparently a practitioner of alchemy, herbal medicine, and even astrology.

Tafuri made his prediction in the 16th century. In those days, the climate in the region was famously mild. But in early January, southern Italy saw fresh snow – two days in a row.

Some commentators noted Tafuri's prophecy and the freak weather, claiming January 2017 as Armageddon. Thankfully no one has fulfilled the ‘two flashes in the sky' criteria yet.

But Tafuri seems more likely to have predicted climate change than the End of Days.

7) The world should have ended on New Year's Day (2017)

A story broke on 30 December 2016 that the world was predicted to end on January 1 2017.

The Sword of God Brotherhood originally made their prediction several decades ago. Their belief apparently stemmed from a vision of Gabriel. The group claimed the archangel told them the date. Already known as doomsday preppers, they would be safe during the End of Days. The Brotherhood was thought to have disbanded in 1985.

But they aren't the only group to cite 2017 as the end of the world. Author Nicholas C. James notes that the Book of Daniel puts Armageddon in a Jubilee year. Such years occur every 50 years, according to the Old Testament.

2017 is the 120th Jubilee year.

If that wasn't worrying enough, a 12th Century Irish bishop made a prediction that 112 popes would follow the election of Pope Celestine II in 1143.

Pope Francis I is the last of those – and apparently the final pope before Armageddon.

Whether the final two predictions come true remains to be seen.

If you’re reading this post in 2018 you’ll already know!

But in the meantime, you can always find out how Morgan Sierra deals with the Great Serpent in End of Days, out now in ebook and print formats.

15 Weird and Wonderful Religious Relics

January 20, 2017 By J.F. Penn

I'm fascinated by religious relics. They appear in a number of my thrillers because they hold so much meaning for believers, and many of them are really strange.

Relics are sometimes used to give to weight to political posturing and they’re sometimes pressed into service for more nefarious reasons … So maybe, just maybe, they hold a lot of their own power too.

But there’s no denying that some relics are just bizarre.

From dried blood to severed heads, mummified hands and even preserved footprints, here are 15 of the weirdest and most wonderful religious relics around the world!

1. The Turin Shroud, Turin

Believed to be the burial shroud of Jesus, this linen cloth bears the image of a man – apparently that of Christ himself. While radiocarbon dating places it in the medieval period, many believe the image is far more detailed when viewed as a negative. Conspiracy theorists consider that such an image would be difficult to forge in the medieval era.

The Shroud even has its own website, which describes it as ‘the single most studied artifact in human history.' But the Shroud is incredibly delicate, so it won’t be shown again until 2025.

2. The body of St Francis Xavier, Goa

Francis Xavier was a 16th century Roman Catholic missionary in Goa, India. He also worked in Japan and China, among others, but he’s most famous for his work in India. Most of his body is on display at the Basilica of Bom Jesus in Goa, India. You’ll find him in a glass container and he’s been in there since 1637.

His right forearm was detached in 1614 and is now at the Jesuit church in Rome, Il Gesù. Another arm bone, the humerus, is in Macau, having been kept there for safety instead of going on to Japan.

The Basilica of Bom Jesus, and indeed the Saint's body, appear in my ARKANE thriller, Destroyer of Worlds, as Morgan and Jake race to stop an ancient weapon being unleashed.

3. The Buddha's Tooth, Kandy

A left canine was allegedly taken from the Buddha's funeral pyre in 543BC. According to legend, only the tooth remained following his cremation. It's currently housed at the Temple of the Tooth in Kandy, Sri Lanka.

Wars have been fought over it since whoever possesses the tooth has the right to rule the island. It's only displayed on special occasions, but it's said to perform miracles whenever anyone threatens to destroy it.

4. Muhammad's Footprint, Istanbul

The Topkapi Palace in Istanbul houses a number of Muhammad's relics. They include a signed letter, a sword and bow, his footprint and hair from his beard. According to legend, his beard was shaved after his death by his favorite barber.

His footprint allegedly made a lasting impression wherever he went and prints are displayed all over the Middle East. Some remain in situ, but the Istanbul print is preserved in the museum.

5. The Holy Right Hand, Budapest

The Holy Right Hand is thought to have belonged to King Stephen, the first Hungarian King, who died in 1038.

His death provoked unrest and his followers worried that his body might be desecrated. When he was exhumed, they discovered his right arm was perfectly preserved.

His arm was added to the Basilica's Treasury. It was stolen and kept in Romania for a while, though it’s now back in the Basilica of St. Stephen in Budapest.

A chronicler noted that while it was in Romania, the hand wore St Stephen's ring. The Holy Right Hand on display doesn't wear one and doesn't look like it's ever worn one. Some wonder how genuine the Holy Right Hand actually is …

In my political thriller One Day in Budapest, the Holy Right is stolen and a right-wing faction move against the Jews of the city, as they did in the dark days of the Second World War. The right is rising …

6. Mary's Holy Belt, Prato

Most religious relics seem to take the form of body parts, but the Virgin Mary left her belt behind instead. Her handwoven belt is kept in a silver reliquary in Prato Cathedral. The arrival of the relic allowed the Cathedral to add a transept and a new chapel.

According to legend, she gave the belt to the apostle Thomas before she ascended to Heaven. That’s Doubting Thomas – and the Virgin allegedly gave him her belt as physical proof of her ascension. The belt, known as Sacra Cintola, is displayed five times a year in the chapel built especially to house it. In centuries gone by, it was venerated by pregnant women.

7. St Catherine's Head (and thumb), Siena

One of Italy's two patron saints (along with Francis of Assisi), St Catherine died in 1380 at the age of 33. But she died in Rome. When the people of Siena requested her body for burial, the request was denied. A group of her followers decided to exhume her anyway to return her to Siena. According to legend, she was decapitated because they couldn’t conceal her entire corpse.

When the body snatchers were apprehended, guards found only rose petals inside their bag. The guards let them go, and St Catherine’s followers returned to Siena. The rose petals turned back into her head and it is is now displayed at San Domenico Basilica. Her head remained in Siena, but three of her fingers and a foot went to Italy, a rib went to Florence, and her hand and shoulder blade went to Rome.

8. St Antoninus' body, Florence

St Antoninus was a popular priest in Florence, getting by with only the bare essentials of life. He was so popular that Pope Eugene IV wanted to make him an Archbishop, and he threatened to excommunicate Antoninus when he declined the offer.

St Antoninus died in 1459 but his body wasn't immediately embalmed as it should have been. Left to the elements for eight days, his body didn't decompose. His followers took this as a sign of his incorruption, so he was placed in a glass coffin to display his divinity. You can see his corpse at the Church of San Marco.

9. Shrine of the Three Kings, Cologne

The bones of the Three Wise Men apparently rest in the ornate gold-plated sarcophagus inside Cologne Cathedral. According to legend, their remains originally lay in Constantinople, before being taken to Milan, then Cologne in 1164. The shrine is the largest reliquary in the western world. Some of the images on the shrine depict the dawn of time, as well as the Last Judgment.

It was damaged when it was hidden in 1794 to keep it from French revolutionary troops, but it was largely restored during the 1960s. Cologne is so proud to house the Three Magi that there are even three crowns on the city’s coat of arms.

10. The cloak of Muhammad, Kandahar

This is more of a powerful religious relic than a weird one. The Kerqa, believed to have been worn by Muhammad, is kept at the Shrine of the Cloak in Kandahar, Afghanistan. Some tales say the cloak was used to solidify a political treaty in 1768.

Others say that Ahmad Shah saw the cloak in Bukhara. Its keepers wouldn't let him borrow it, so he had a rock planted near by. Ahmad Shah told them he would never take the cloak far from the rock…then promptly took both the rock and the cloak back to Kandahar.

In more recent times, Mullah Omar, the then-leader of the Taliban, wore it in front of his followers. But the cloak hasn't been seen in public since 1996.

11. The Blood of San Gennaro, Naples

St Gennaro was beheaded by Emperor Diocletian in 4th century. His dried blood is presented to local residents and pilgrims at Naples Cathedral on September 19, December 16 and the first Sunday in May. They wait for the blood to liquefy, making this a grisly religious relic.

As the patron saint of Naples, the liquefaction of his blood is thought to signify a miracle and protects Naples from disaster. In 1527, it failed to liquefy and Naples suffered an outbreak of plague. In 1980, they were struck by an earthquake. The relic was even venerated by Pope Francis in March 2015.

12. The Heart of St Camillus

St Camillus started out life as a soldier and a gambler. He later repented and devoted his life to caring for the sick. After being denied entry to the Capuchin order thanks to a leg injury, he established the Order of Clerics Regular, Ministers to the Sick. They specialised in assisting injured soldiers on the battlefield. A large red cross was a symbol of the Order – centuries before the Red Cross was formed.

Many were so struck by his charity that they thought it must have left an imprint on his heart. So after he died, his heart was removed and preserved with salt. This religious relic is definitely more weird than wonderful. It’s now kept in a gold and glass container and it even went on tour. It visited Thailand, Ireland and the Phillippines.

13. The hand of St Teresa de Avila, Ronda

St Teresa de Avila reformed the Carmelite Order, and after she died, her remains were found to be incorrupt. Her left hand became a relic, but it was seized by General Franco in 1937. St Teresa had once been a contender for Spain’s national saint, and Franco used her during the Spanish Civil War as an ideal of traditional Spain.

According to legend, he kept the hand by his bedside until he died in 1975 – allegedly while holding the mummified hand. It now rests at the Iglesia de Nuestra Señora de la Merced in Ronda, Andalusia.

14. The Holy Foreskin, currently missing

Yes, it really is as weird as it sounds. As many as 18 different churches have laid claim to having the skin from the infant Jesus's circumcised penis since the Middle Ages. St Catherine of Siena even claimed to wear an invisible foreskin as a ring.

But the most notorious Holy Foreskin was kept in the town of Calcata, near Rome, until it disappeared in 1983. Its whereabouts are still unknown.

15. The Tongue and Jaw of St Anthony, Padua

At the age of 35, St Anthony of Padua succumbed to ergot poisoning – also known as St Anthony’s Fire. He sealed himself in a small cell under a walnut tree and waited to die. He actually died on the way back to Padua where he was buried in 1231.

32 years later, his followers pried open his vault. Most of his body had turned to dust, but his tongue was strangely still fresh. Many believe this is a testament to the power of his words while alive.

St Bonaventure had St Anthony’s tongue, lower jaw and vocal chords mounted in a metal shrine. His tongue even went on a tour of UK churches in 2013.

You can visit a lot of these strange and sometimes unsettling religious relics. Just remember that they have meaning for many believers, so always be respectful. And who knows what weird experiences you might have when you see them?