10 Pictures From ‘The Museum of Ridiculously Interesting Things’

The Museum of Ridiculously Interesting Things might be an imaginary institution, but it's so captivating that over 4 million people have already visited it.

Created by curator and art historian Dr. Chelsea Nichols, the museum celebrates the odd, the creative, the spooky, and the eccentric. Oftentimes all at once, too.

From early twentieth-century German Halloween accessories to eighteenth-century Japanese medical book illustrations, the display showcases a diverse array of artifacts that defy conventional categorization, providing a unique experience for those who are interested in all parts of culture.

More info: ridiculouslyinteresting.com | Instagram

10 PHOTOS

#1 Gilt-Bronze Bat Chandelier Made Around 1910 By Swedish Lamp Company Böhlmarks. My Favourite Detail Is The Pendant Lights That Are Enclosed By Little Furled Bats Hanging Upside Down

#2 A Woman Of Many Disguises! This Is An Example Of An Unusual Fad From The Mid-1600s: Miniature Oil Portraits That Came With Clear Slices Of Mica Painted With Different Costumes

According to its website, The Museum of Ridiculously Interesting Things started back in 2011 as Dr. Chelsea Nichols' blog.

However, it eventually fell into "a period of outrageous neglect and decay," and was relaunched in 2019 as an umbrella site for "a series of digital, curatorial, and writing projects dedicated to making the world a weirder and more interesting place."

#3 Black Cat Paper Fan Made In Germany In The 1920s. I Know This Was Intended As A Novelty Halloween Accessory, But I Can Think Of At Least Six Of My Regular Outfits That Would Go Perfectly With A Pissed-Off Cat

#4 Amazing Illustrations From A C.1720 Japanese Medical Book On Smallpox, Which Cleverly Uses Paper Embossing To Show The Changing Texture Of Smallpox Lesions During Different Stages Of The Disease

#5 About 4500 Years Ago, Ancient Egyptian Parents Put This Homemade Ball In Their Child's Grave As A Toy For The Kid To Play With In The Afterlife

As a curator, Nichols is interested "in the strange and dark corners of art history."

She has a DPhil from the University of Oxford, where her doctoral thesis examined human curiosities in contemporary art.

When she's not posting online, Nichols works as the senior curator at The Dowse Art Museum, throwing such bonkers exhibitions as Candy Coated, The Truth Is Out There, and Steamed Hams.

#6 These Are A Very Rare Set Of 16th Century Italian Notation Knives. Each Side Has Musical Notes And Lyrics Engraved On The Steel Blade, Which Are Meant To Be Sung As Grace Before And After A Meal

#7 Traditional Irish Jack-O'-Lantern Carved From A Turnip, Circa 1850. Preserved All These Years By The Tears Of Children, I Presume

#8 Gold Spider Earrings, 300 Bc To 100 Bc, From The Bactrian Region In Modern Day Afghanistan

#9 The Shoe That Marie Antoinette Lost When She Tripped Going Up The Steps To The Guillotine On The Morning Of Her Execution, 16 October 1793

Nichols is also one half of the duo Curator of Screams, a collaboration with fellow curator Aaron Lister, through which they explore the relationship between contemporary art and horror movies.

Their exhibition projects have included artist-as-vampire Josh Azzarella: Triple Feature, an exploration of the witch archetype in Sisterly, and an ode to folk horror with Eerie Pagentry.

#10 A Neon Salesman's Sample Case, Circa 1935