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Book Apparently Bound in Human Skin Found
This undated image released by Britain's West Yorkshire Police on Saturday April 8, 2006, shows a 300-year-old book that appears to be bound in human skin, found on a central street in Leeds, northern England. Much of the text is in French, and it was not uncommon around the time of the French Revolution for books to be covered in human skin. The practice, known as anthropodermic bibliopegy, was sometimes used in the 18th and 19th centuries when accounts of murder trials were bound in the killer's skin. (AP Photo/West Yorkshire Police, PA)
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hmmm... written in black ink, eh?
not blood?
so it's not the Necronomicon that i misplaced, and i wont be the "owner" that they contact.
bummer
- 6 votes
#1 - Sat Apr 8, 2006 2:54 PM EDTVery similar to this article seeded earlier on Newsvine of http://top.newsvine.com/_news/2006/01/07/52159-some-of-nations-best-libraries-have-books-bound-in-human-skin">books at Harvard bound in human skin.
- 1 vote
#3 - Sat Apr 8, 2006 3:23 PM EDTSo can tags be modified on wire items? This should have anthropodermic-bibliopegy.
I am glad to see they aded the picture though.
#4 - Sat Apr 8, 2006 3:40 PM EDTMuch of the text is in French, and it was not uncommon around the time of the French Revolution for books to be covered in human skin.
The practice, known as anthropodermic bibliopegy, was sometimes used in the 18th and 19th centuries when accounts of murder trials were bound in the killer's skin.
I don't know if anyone feels the same way, but it really gets under my skin when something like this is seen as "big news" and makes it to headlines. I mean, the article is saying that it is not uncommon for books around the time period of the French Revolution to be covered with human skin. I mean this article is little more then a "lost and found" piece.
- 5 votes
#6 - Sat Apr 8, 2006 3:53 PM EDTSince when does the AP have the corner on big news? I've always been convinced we can seed real news better than the AP.
You're right, just think how many "news" articles the AP could write from the halls of the Smithsonian.
- 2 votes
You raise a good point, and it brings light onto the issue as to whether there should be more emphasis placed on seeded news. With the current system, it is either AP articles or user articles which get the most attention, but a good question is, shouldn't there be more attention put on user submitted news (seeds) then on a feed? I'm not sure where I stand, but I do feel that the seeds don't get enough attention, and that the AP articles have too much emphasis...the question I ponder is how could the two be balanced better.
- 5 votes
I think the problem is not with the piece of news itself, but how the news is treated and extended (unfortunately, it remains shallow and sensationalist). The event (lost and found) takes us back to a completely different era of treating the human body, long before the genocide of the WW2 a turning point in our interpretation of the human body objectified.
I lack the socio-historicocultural and philosophical depth that could have been discussed, or at least hinted at, for instance on what grounds was a murder's body skinned, what it meant for the people of that age, what it meant for the people of 1700's century to touch a book covered in human skin (how discourse formed the body), etc., or some further historical data on until when this practice was accepted and how and why it was abolished etc. Some more information that gives you the feeling of enrichment in history and how human culture changes, instead of the creepy headline and a very lean historical background.
Another thing: in 2002 there was an exhibition Von Hagens' Body Worlds showing the remains of real human bodies (donated specifically for this purpose) and causing widespread controversy. I think the exhibition was organized to make us (re)think about what our relationship is with our bodiness/ body/ flesh/ sexuality/ death etc. It is a different question if the mission was completed or not.
In contrast to the exhibition, here lay a piece of news (not organized, given by accident) with the opportunity for the journalist to add some extra thoughts on such matters. But the opportunity was left untouched.
- 1 vote
No big deal. A library at my university has 3 - it's great for talking about on the tours, though.
- 1 vote
#8 - Sat Apr 8, 2006 4:35 PM EDTGood point. Maybe this is just a news piece to sensationalize books and libraries when today's generation wouldn't be caught dead in either.
- 1 vote
I hope this doesn't convince kids to start covering their school books in human skin. Whatever happened to just brownbagging your books? It's certainly cheaper than hunting down a human.
- 1 vote
#9 - Sat Apr 8, 2006 5:43 PM EDTI think instead of ancient, they meant antique.
No skin off my back!! Ba-da-bang!!
- 1 vote
#11 - Sat Apr 8, 2006 6:24 PM EDTI think they mean it was an ancient book, lost 300 years ago... it's obviously a copy of the Necronomicon...
A Delta Green Clean up team is en route.
#12 - Sat Apr 8, 2006 7:14 PM EDTi got here too late. i wanted to make an AoD reference, but about a billion people already have.
#13 - Sat Apr 8, 2006 10:34 PM EDTYou're in Easy Mode. If you prefer, you can use XHTML Mode instead. |
