What a Hot Mess: Books Bound In Human Skin

Courtesy of World of Wonder, I thought I was losing my mind when I came across a picture of a book bound in skin.  No, not cowhide, cardboard, or paper.  Human Skin!

I remember hearing about this way back when, but I never really looked into it; Until now.

Some say Harvard has four books, others say three - but honestly, Harvard has no earthly idea amongst it's 15-million book library how many are wrapped in human hide.  And Harvard isn't the only school with books bound in skin.  What a Hot Mess!

According to the Crimson.com,  'Accessible in the library’s Elihu Reading Room, the book, entitled “Practicarum quaestionum circa leges regias...,” looks old but otherwise ordinary.

Delicate, stiff, and with wrinkled edges, the skin’s coloring is a subdued yellow, with sporadic brown and black splotches like an old banana. The skin is not covered in hair or marked by tattoos—except for a “Harvard Law Library” branding on its spine. Nothing about it shouts “human flesh” to the untrained eye.' 

And the mess gets hotter... 'The book’s 794th and final page includes an inscription in purple cursive: “the bynding of this booke is all that remains of my dear friende Jonas Wright, who was flayed alive by the Wavuma on the Fourth Day of August, 1632. King Mbesa did give me the book, it being one of poore Jonas chiefe possessions, together with ample of his skin to bynd it. Requiescat in pace.”' 

Crazy, isn't it?  You can read more about it here.

When Will We Forget?

So based on the U.S. Census Bureau we tend to forget things that have happened in our lifetime at an alarming rate.  Or is that because more and more people are coming down with Alzheimer's?

While you may say, "I remember," that's pretty unlikely.  You probably remember reading about it, or learning about it in your high school history book, but do you actually remember being there at that specific time and place?

So by 2019, most of you will probably forget the Challenger Explosion, by 2027 you've forgotten about Lorena Bobbit, and by 2042, the first i-Phone.  Check out this list, it's pretty darn hilarious, but more than likely very true for most of us.

Coincidence or Not?

So is it a coincidence or not, that the assassinations of two presidents share similarities that are so eerily captivating?  Don't believe me?  Check them out here...

U.S. History We Choose To Ignore

It's amazing how we go through high school, taking college course after college course, writing research papers and taking final exams; Yet, we will never learn all there ever is to learn about our country, our politicians, and who they truly were.  Some leave it out, some refuse to teach it, some just simply ignore it.  I came across this blog this morning and had to share it.

"My morning run took me past the oldest tree in Central Park. This London Plane tree is over 150 years old and was planted sometime shortly before the Reservoir in Central Park was constructed in 1862. To give a little historical perspective, at about the time this tree was planted America was fighting the Civil War. President Abraham Lincoln began the process to free African slaves by issuing the Emancipation Proclamation, but would also move to brutally eradicate Native Americans by ordering the largest mass hanging in United States history of 38 Santee Sioux and gave a presidential promise to kill or remove every single Native American from the state of Minnesota."

Still think of President Lincoln as God's gift to mankind?  **cough** Not so much.

MD Anderson Cancer Center's HMB Will Meet It's End...

Wow, a part of history will be going down in Houston this morning.  

At 11:15 AM, the implosion of the Houston Main Building in the Medical Center area will be taking place.  A building I visited several times over the past 4 years.

The building formerly known as the Prudential building before the University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center purchased it in 1972 was the first high-rise in Houston outside of Downtown.  It was built in 1952, and has meant a great deal to many Houstonions.  I've only lived here 10 years, but I can tell by reading some of the stories online, how much the building meant to them.  

Looking at its rich history, the building at once had beautiful landscaped courtyards, swimming pools, tennis courts, and the building itself was made of limestone and steel.  Many people opposed the demolition, more-so the preservationists, but it would have been too costly to repair the already sinking building, and MD Anderson decided in 2002 to demolish it.

How the building affects me?  Well, I work in the Dan L. Duncan building, previously called CPB (Cancer Prevention Building).  The building is a few feet from the HMB, and was only two years old when I started working at MD Anderson.  I had the honor of taking classes in the HMB building, and completed my database training in there as well.  It was a lovely building, and it was even more lovely, because you could feel the history when you walked in that building.  This morning will be bittersweet, because a building I literally walk by every day will be gone tomorrow morning when I head into work. [source]
  
From the MD Anderson Website:

MD Anderson's Houston Main Building (HMB) was opened by Prudential Insurance Co. in 1952 as its southwest regional office. At the time, the 20-story office building was Houston's tallest building outside downtown.

In 1974, MD Anderson purchased the 500,000-square-foot facility, which included 22.4 acres of land and a surface lot containing hundreds of parking spaces. The University of Texas officially named the building the Houston Main Building in 1980.

The acquisition of the building allowed executive and other administrative offices to move from the hospital to HMB to accommodate the expansion of clinical space.

Over the years, MD Anderson updated and renovated some floors to support specific functions, and the expansive parking area was used for new construction.

The last employees moved out of HMB March 2010; the building was officially closed April 1, 2010. After its closure, contractors began the interior demolition and abatement of the building.

The master plan calls for the site to serve as the home of a new clinical building that would connect the Dan L. Duncan Building and the Lowry and Peggy Mays Clinic.

Existing terraces on Floor 2 of these buildings will extend to the new facility, forming a courtyard above five floors of underground parking.

If you click on this link, you'll be able to watch the demolition live, 15 minutes before the event.

2011, Buh-Bye

As 2012 draws nearer and nearer, what better way is there to say, "Buh-Bye" than with a video by JibJab?

From Charlie Sheen's #winning tweets to the debt ceiling crisis and global protests, it seems the whole world went nuts in 2011. Join JibJab as they reminisce about the most notorious moments of the year in their 7th annual year in review... this time sung by a popsicle stick puppet choir! Catch the lyrics after the jump...

It's Was Definitely A Lego Year!

Remember the Lego posters I blogged about back in February which depicted the Oscar contenders in Lego?  How about the ones in May by Nextmovie.com with their rendition of the summer blockbuster movies in Lego?  If you can't recall ever seeing them, you can take a look here and here.  They were pretty hilarious.

Well it seems like 2011 has been a Lego year, and several Flickr members have created some pretty excellent renditions of what's happened over the past year, all in Lego. Check out these amazing depictions of the Royal Wedding, The Pepper Spray Incident at UC Davis, Occupy Wall Street and more.

Occupy Wall Street

Libyan Uprising

Pepper Spray Incident at UC Davis

The Royal Wedding of Will & Kate

The Situation Room During Osama Bin Laden Raid

The Tree of Ages

I absolutely love this picture.  It's hard to imagine that some trees can live for thousands of years, but this one in particular is quite special.  

The picture below is a cross-section of a tree in America that lived through Mohammed being born, Joan of Arc, the discovery of our country, electricity, and the civil war, until it was cut down in 1891.

click to enlarge

Land of the Lost: Inside the Heart of the Navy's Graveyard

I took Art as one of my subjects the 4 years I was in High School, and it was by far, one of my most favorite classes. So in no surprise to you, nothing fascinates me more than Art and Photography.  Better yet, if I could go back in time to capture images of history, I would.

Imagine waking into a building where it seemed like all the people disappeared, yet everything else in the building remained as it was. It sounds like a scary movie, doesn't it?  In my third issue of Land of the Lost, photographer, Scott Haefner takes us for an incredible adventure unlike any other - a warship graveyard.  At least until the government does away with it in 2017.  He and a group of fellow photographers managed to sneak onto these ships, and take photos that would capture anyone's imagination.  Over a 2 year period, they would spent "several days at a time, photographing, documenting, and even sleeping aboard them - often in the luxury of the Captain's quarters."














On his website, Scott describes in detail, their planning, the history, and the ships' environmental implications.  He also discusses their scouting mission, boarding the ships, and their final trip.

From his website:

For decades, dozens of forgotten Navy and merchant ships have been corroding in Suisun Bay, 30 miles northeast of San Francisco. These historic vessels—the Mothball Fleet—served their country in four wars: WWII, the Korean War, the Vietnam War, and Desert Storm. After a decade of impasse, the ghost fleet is slowly dwindling as the ships are towed out one-by-one for scrapping. About 15 retired ships are already gone; by 2017, the entire fleet will be just a memory.

Scott's website is truly amazing to view and read.  If you're a history buff, in the military, or a veteran, you'd definitely get a rise out of it.  Check it out here.

Art In The Most Fascinating Form

I found these photos by photographer Henry VIII quite fascinating.

Am I being biased when it comes to older folks re-enacting scenes from world history?  If you remember, I had written a post back in April titled "Art In The Most Despicable Form," and I wasn't kind to the photographer.  In fact, I was rather upset and angry at the photographer for using children as props for his "iconic moments in history" photos.  What do you think? Is it any different if it were old people re-enacting the scenes?

How many  iconic moments in history do you recognize without looking at the answers.

Answers here...

Art In The Most Despicable Form

The Twins

I seriously wonder about certain people sometimes. What would compel an artist to exploit recent horrid events in order to create art?  This just baffles me, but Canadian photographer Jonathan Hobin did just that.  The worst part being - the use of children dressed up in garb, like the late Princess Diana in the car crash that killed her, the prisoners in Abu Ghraib, the 9/11 towers tragedy, the Jonestown massacre, and many more as you'll find here.   

Hobin makes the following statement in his portfolio:

The quizzical disposition of youth and the pervasive nature of the media are symbolically represented in my images through tableau-vivant re-enactments of the very current events that adults might wish to keep out of their child’s world. Just as children make a game of pretending to be adults as a way to prepare and ultimately take on these roles in later life, so too do they explore things that they hear or see, whether or not they completely understand the magnitude of the event or the implications of their play.

A Boo Grave

Diana's Dead

The New York City No One Sees

I saw this video about 3 or 4 weeks ago and I was fascinated with the quality and imagination the artist projects in his work. Steve Duncan (undercity.org), who describes himself as a historian & photographer goes underneath the city of New York to show people a piece of America no one ever has the chance or will ever get the chance to see.  Due to laws and regulations no one is allowed underneath particular parts of the city.  Together with videographer Andrew Wonder, Steve creates a work of art. I highly recommend watching this video.