These photos come from reader Wyatt Brumfield who discovered them in a book from an estate sale in San Francisco. The book was from the A.S.P.R. (American Society for Psychic Research), and each of the photos are stamped "A11" on the back. While these photos have been published before, I've never seen them this clear and uncropped.
Wyatt later spoke with the A.S.P.R. who said they did not normally make copies of photos for members. But if a member was doing research, they could loan them from their archives. So could these be originals from the A.S.P.R. archives gone astray?
If you have any insight or information about these pics, you can contact Wyatt Brumfield via email.
Thanks to Wyatt for sharing these.
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That hand is supposed to be coming from where? Looks like it's made of wax...or has a waxy appearance. Is that guy shaking the hand? I assume the Room is pitch dark but the photos illuminate what's going on? The hand is probably being pushed through from behind that black screen, under her chair, under her dress making it look like it's coming from her body.
ReplyDeleteThe hand was not wax as the scientists were allowed to touch it and many described it in books written about Margery. That would be a long reach from the cabinet, through her, and up on the table.
DeleteAre these images subject to copy right or can I use them as in the public domain
DeleteYou should email Wyatt about that.
DeleteThe ectoplasmic hand was reportedly made from organic material (like liver) and was cold to the touch. The fingerprints were captured in wax. The seances were held in darkness but with flashes of light from a red bulb, at which point photos were taken.
DeleteThe photos were tucked inside the pages of the book? That is surprising!
ReplyDeleteHoudini demonstrated how to make wax hands from your own. We've all seen those photos where he dips his hand into that wide glass cylinder filled with liquid. Perhaps he was aware of this phenomenon at Lime Street and decided to expose it.
A bit strange where that wax hand is coming from. I'd rather not speculate...
The hand is called, "The Walter Hand" and is from her sprit guide, "Walter" who was her deceased brother. Yes, the scientists were allowed to shake hands with "Walter's" hand. Mina Crandon's a.k.a. "Margery" husband was a famous surgeon and some thought he altered her genitalia to hide things. Sometimes, Margery even performed séances in the nude. She was put through many tests by scientists for several years.
Delete"The Walter Hand"… that is great. I don't recall ever hearing that before. Thanks.
DeleteThe pictures are from a séance where "Walter" was putting his hand in "Kerr" to get a fingerprint. "Kerr" is a form of dental wax and this is ultimately what got Mina accused of fraud. The fingerprint was found to be that of her dentist. They were never able to figure out how the fingerprint of her dentist was placed. Here are a few links to read about the Houdini séance and the seance of these pictures:
Deletehttp://www.historynet.com/mina-crandon-harry-houdini-the-medium-and-the-magician.htm
http://www.survivalafterdeath.info/articles/price/margery.htm
http://www.bing.com/images/search?q=Mina+Crandon+&qpvt=Mina+Crandon+&FORM=IGRE#view=detail&id=9FD39FB066E1F25737B81A0DD74807E7721D4656&selectedIndex=20
It's funny to read all the stories about "Walter" because he was kind of a smart ass. In one story I read, Houdini brings a bell to the séance for "Walter" to ring. Mina goes into trance and "Walter" says, "Ah, Houdini. Still haunting all the séances for publicity?" Walter then asks one of the scientists to check the bell. The scientists takes it out of the dark room and discovers that there have been rubber grommets placed in the bell so it wouldn't ring. The scientist tells Houdini that it isn't going to help being deceitful. At that moment, the bell starts ringing and "Walter" announces, "How do you like that, Houdini." At some point, "Walter" also told Houdini that he was going to die. There is now speculation that Houdini may have had an affair with Mina Crandon. This is strange because in the past, she was also accused of having an affair with researchers J. Malcom Bird and Hereward Carrington. This strikes me as funny because who would want to sleep with a woman who has strange things popping out of her "you-know-what"?
DeleteI won't say it...
DeleteYou never know, Wyatt. Some people would want to go for a chick like that *because* she had weird mystical stuff coming out of hoo-ha.
ReplyDeleteIs there any credibility to the idea that Houdini and Margery had an affair? [It seems like the more people dig, the more potential affairs he had...but this one seems like a stretch to me. Maybe they flirted with each other, but would he really be that dumb to boink her in the middle of an investigation?]
There is a second or third hand story about someone seeing Margery in Houdini's car. That's about it.
DeleteI think people just like this idea. :)
I'm not sure that Houdini had an affair with Mina but they did seem to have a very strange love-hate relationship. Almost like a couple. I do know one thing though, her pants must have fit like a glove. LMAO!!!
Delete