Seen here is a striking portrait of the famous Pig-faced Lady of Manchester Square, a London local during the 19th century. Jan Bondeson, physician and author of such terrific books as A Cabinet of Medical Curiosities and The Two-Headed Boy and Other Marvels, discovered the illustration tipped into the January 7, 1882 issue of Illustrated Police News. The print was given away free with that issue. Bondeson wrote a short commentary about pig-faced ladies in the current issue of Fortean Times. From the article:
The immensely wealthy Pig-faced Lady had come to London in 1815, look ing for a husband. She was said to be perfectly shaped, except that her head exactly resembled that of one of the porcine tribe. She ate from a silver trough and uttered a loud grunt ing noise when in want of food. Many people believed in her existence and one foolish young man even put an advertisement into the Morn ing Herald that he aspired to make her acquaintance.The Illustrated Police News went on to claim that at the time of writing (in 1882), many Irish people believed that an other Pig-faced Lady, Madam Grisley Steevens, had once been a resident of Dublin. Parties of country people used to go to Doctor Steevens's Hospital, where she had ended her days, and tip the matron to be all owed to see a portrait of the pig-faced Madam Steevens and the silver trough she had eaten from.
Previously on BB:
• Two heads not better than one Link
• Hairy people who made PT Barnum proud Link
