The bust of Verdi scowled down at Marco Limigni. His original pitch was a modern day homage to La Traviata, a dramatic musical miniseries full of incisive commentary on how the pressures of social media blurred the lines between exploitation and love. The network execs suggested less "thinky-stuff" and more singing competitions and hooking up in jacuzzis, and thus was Who Wants to Make Out with a Pop Star born.

After Perseus beheaded the Medusa, her blood soaked into the ground and from it sprang the amphisbaena, a two-headed serpent that could double itself if ever it was cut down. The blood also polluted the roots of an olive tree, from which this mask was carved, alleged to grant a similar ability should you wear it—though, take care not to lose track of which is the real you.

It delighted the children when Mister Adisa came to the neighborhood. The nomad would appear one morning without announcement and would quickly attract a crowd, with slight-of-hand the adults couldn’t quite explain. Sometimes he would lift his hat and a dove would fly out; other times it was butterflies, or candy and toys for the children. Then, just as suddenly as he came, he would stroll around a corner and vanish.

It was an unnerving thing indeed to take tea in Mrs Hozzipop’s garden; at midday the sun was so very bright, and the flowers gave off an intoxicating perfume that made you dizzy and question your own eyes. You could swear the creamer pot just walked over and poured itself into your cup.

Armand wasn't sure how much longer the mask would fool the museum's night guards, but the hives developing on his neck from whatever sort of fur this was were getting to be unbearable.

The bear brothers Nooq and Aruis were thought by ancient Celtic tribes to symbolize the duality of nature, night and day. Nooq brought the sun and wind, generous but fickle, while Aruis represented the safety of a den and the comfort of sleep.

After his ship capsized, crab fisherman Jack Namblin swam through icy waters to the nearest land he could reach —a small island in the Aleutian peninsula—where he survived for 426 days using this pair of hand-fashioned bone knives.

Each of these bells is tuned to resonate at a specific ectoplasmic frequency, so you can tell whether you’re being stalked by a poltergeist, wraith, doppelgänger, or phantasm.

Dr. Selma Ruiz had spent her entire career trying to finish the great ambition of her father, the archeaologist Benicio Ruiz-reuniting the mythical Aztec serpent cuffs. If she had translated the writings correctly, when she slipped them on, she would be granted the powers of the moon goddess Metztli. After being trapped in metaphysical exile for millenia, however, Metztli was in no mood to lend out her powers to a mortal, so she instead took Dr Ruiz' body for her own.

fertility idols; various materials After amassing an impressive collection of fertility idols in the hopes of finally siring an heir, Reginald Porcquot III was eventually obliged to acknowledge that the lack of potency might not lie with his wife.