The world of cabinets of curiosities was a playground for the eccentric, the erudite, and the downright weird. In this top 10 bizarre tour we’ll wander through the most outlandish specimens ever displayed, from half‑fish clergy to mechanically singing devils, all while keeping the spirit of wonder alive.

10 Sirens And Sea Monsters

Taxidermied sirens, mermaids, and a host of other marine monstrosities were staple attractions in early wunderkammern. Artisans typically cobbled these creatures together from assorted fish parts, creating hybrids that were part human, part fish, and occasionally part bear or monkey. In Ambroise Pare’s 1510‑1590 treatise Of Monsters and Marvels, he argued that the sea teemed with as many strange beings as the land, describing sirens and tritons as bizarre blends of fish, primates, and even ursine features.

The most distinctive examples were the monk‑fish and bishop‑fish, which appeared in several bestiaries of the era, including those by Pare, Conrad Gessner, and Pierre Belon. These fanciful hybrids were portrayed wearing ecclesiastical garb, blurring the lines between the sacred and the monstrous.

French naturalist Guillaume Rondelet (1507‑1566) recounted seeing a portrait of a bishop‑fish that supposedly had been displayed in Poland in 1531. According to the tale, the creature made the sign of the cross before diving back into the water, a claim Rondelet himself viewed with skepticism.

While the story was entertaining, Rondelet admitted he doubted the fish ever truly performed a Christian gesture before slipping beneath the waves, suggesting the anecdote was more myth than fact.

9 Automata

Automata, the precursors to modern robots, were prized mechanical wonders that often took center stage in cabinets of curiosities. Milanese collector Manfredo Settala (1600‑1680) owned a devil automaton that greeted visitors by sticking out its tongue and emitting loud sounds whenever someone entered his cabinet, creating a theatrical welcome.

The fascination with these engineered marvels surged in the 17th and 18th centuries as philosophers likened nature to a grand machine. Artisans responded by crafting lifelike devices that mimicked living beings, exemplified by Jacques de Vaucanson’s (1709‑1782) mechanical duck, which seemed to digest food—though later investigations revealed the duck was simply fed pre‑digested material.

Swiss watchmaker Pierre Jaquet‑Droz (1721‑1790) pushed the boundaries further, designing automata capable of playing musical instruments and even writing. In 1780, the eccentric Abbot Mical produced a series of mechanical talking heads that could utter sentences such as “The king brings peace to Europe” and “Peace crowns the king with glory,” hoping to win a competition at the Imperial Academy of Sciences in Saint Petersburg.

8 Paradise Birds Without Feet

When the flamboyant birds of paradise first arrived in Europe via Eastern trade routes, they ignited the imagination of scholars and collectors alike. Legends proclaimed these dazzling avians as footless creatures, forever soaring on the strength of their plumage and subsisting on dew or pure air.

Carl Linnaeus (1707‑1778), the father of modern taxonomy, christened the species Paradisaea apoda, literally “bird of paradise without feet.” In a grim twist, merchants sometimes amputated the birds’ legs to perpetuate the myth and increase their market value, turning myth into a macabre reality.

7 Aldrovandi’s Dragon

Ulisse Aldrovandi (1522‑1605) stands among the most celebrated collectors of the Renaissance. As a professor of natural philosophy at the University of Bologna, he amassed a staggering assemblage of specimens and even founded one of the earliest botanical gardens.

In his extensive treatises, including A History of Monsters and A History of Serpents and Dragons, Aldrovandi described a dead dragon discovered in the fields surrounding Bologna. He detailed it as a bipedal creature with a long neck, a lengthy tail, scales covering its body, a robust torso, and a forked tongue.

Aldrovandi proudly added this extraordinary find to his collection, noting its rarity. He famously remarked, “Serpents naturally do not have feet.” Contemporary works, such as Conrad Gessner’s Historiae Animalium, also reported sightings of winged, four‑legged serpents near Styria, indicating that belief in dragons was widespread among scholars of the time.

6 Unicorn Horns

Unicorn horns were a coveted addition to many cabinets, though they were almost certainly the tusks of narwhals masquerading as the fabled beasts. Collectors believed these horns possessed potent medicinal powers, capable of neutralizing plagues, venomous bites, and even rabies. Legend has it that Mary Stuart (1542‑1587), the Queen of Scotland, kept a unicorn horn on hand to safeguard her meals from poison.

Conrad Gessner (1516‑1565), author of one of the most influential bestiaries, devoted a full page to the unicorn in his Historiae Animalium. Remarkably, the unicorn’s illustration sat beside an entry for the common mouse, juxtaposing the fantastical with the mundane. Gessner drew on biblical, medieval, and mythic sources to claim the unicorn could cure epilepsy and purify water.

The creature was also steeped in symbolism: it was said to approach only virgin women, resting its head in their laps. This association with purity linked the unicorn to Christ in medieval iconography, reinforcing its status as a divine emblem.

5 Anatomical Tableaux

Monstrous or misshapen specimens have long been a fixture of cabinets, serving as tangible proof of nature’s boundless variety. Frederik Ruysch (1638‑1731), a prolific collector, blended scientific inquiry with theatrical flair. A botanist by training, he devised a preservation technique that infused specimens with colored substances, accentuating veins and arteries in vivid hues.

Ruysch’s most celebrated creations were his dioramas, miniature scenes that placed fetal skeletons in dramatic, natural‑looking settings. Yet the “nature” was cleverly fabricated from human body parts: gallstones masqueraded as rocks, veins became trees, and lung tissue formed bushes and grass.

These anatomical tableaux carried allegorical weight, prompting viewers to contemplate the fleeting nature of life. By intertwining art, anatomy, and symbolism, Ruysch turned his cabinet into a stage for both education and wonder.

4 The Stuffed Crocodile

The taxidermied crocodile was a frequent centerpiece in many cabinets of curiosities, gracing the covers of renowned catalogs such as those compiled by Ferrante Imperato and Ole Worm. Its exotic, semi‑aquatic nature made it an ideal specimen to provoke questions about the boundaries between land and water.

Ambroise Pare, in his Of Monsters and Marvels, marveled at the crocodile’s paradoxical tongue: “It has such an impedite [rudimentary] tongue that it seems not to have one at all, which is the reason why it lives partly on land, partly in the water; as, being terrestrial, it takes the place of a tongue for him, and as, being aquatic, he is without a tongue.” He argued that fish either lacked tongues entirely or possessed a very reduced one.

Beyond its anatomical curiosity, the crocodile was believed to possess medicinal virtues. Its flesh was thought to cure facial blemishes, its gall to treat cataracts, and its blood to sharpen vision, illustrating how cabinets blended science with folk remedy.

3 Bestiaries

Renaissance bestiaries functioned as early encyclopedias, cataloguing both ordinary and fantastical creatures. Each entry paired an illustration with a narrative describing the animal’s habits, symbolism, and purported uses, often emphasizing medicinal properties.

The genre’s longevity stemmed from its dual purpose: classification and wonder. Collectors of cabinets frequently produced their own mini‑natural histories, documenting the oddities within their walls. Dutch zoologist Albertus Seba exemplified this practice, commissioning exquisitely detailed illustrations of his specimens and publishing them across four lavishly colored volumes.

These illustrated tomes cemented the credibility of both real and imagined beasts, reinforcing the cabinet’s role as a bridge between empirical observation and mythic imagination.

2 Herbaria And Mandrakes

Herbaria, much like bestiaries, served as catalogues of plant specimens, often emphasizing their therapeutic virtues. Among the most enigmatic entries were mandrakes (Mandragora), whose human‑shaped roots sparked both fascination and fear.

Renaissance illustrations frequently portrayed mandrakes as tiny, anthropomorphic figures. Folklore warned that uprooting a mandrake would unleash a blood‑curdling scream capable of killing anyone who heard it. To avoid this fate, practitioners depicted the plant being pulled from the earth by tying its head to a dog while the owner kept a safe distance.

William Turner (1509‑1568), author of the Niewe Herball, warned of the plant’s potent effects: inhaling its scent could induce sleep, while excessive consumption might render a person “dumb.” He cautioned that over‑use could cause severe lethargy and a loss of strength, underscoring the fine line between remedy and poison.

1 Decorated Nautilus Shells

Elaborately painted or mounted nautilus shells were a regular feature in many cabinets. Some specimens were tinted with vivid pigments, while others rested upon richly ornamented pedestals, occasionally serving as functional drinking vessels.

The practice of embellishing these shells reflected a broader philosophical belief: nature could be refined through human artistry. By marrying natural form with decorative craft, collectors highlighted the dialogue between the organic world and human ingenuity, encapsulating the very essence of curiosity that defined these extraordinary cabinets.

From sea‑borne myths to mechanical marvels, the top 10 bizarre objects showcased here illustrate how the quest for wonder has long driven humanity to collect, categorize, and celebrate the extraordinary.

To an outsider, Scotland is a place that can often be associated with stereotypical things like tartans, haggis, bagpipes, and Mel Gibson’s portrayal of William Wallace in Braveheart. In reality, however, it’s a far more interesting country than that. It’s one with a number of strange curiosities that you may not be aware of—curiosities such as…

10 The Glaswegian Conehead

Glasgow, the largest city in Scotland, has become well known over the last couple of decades for being a bustling cultural hub. It is home to a world-famous School of Art and has recently played host to the COP26 Climate Change summit.

Something which may seem strange to non-locals, however, is the tradition of placing a traffic cone onto the head of the Duke of Wellington Statue found outside the Gallery of Modern Art on Queen Street.

Yes, over the years, for one reason or another, it’s become part of the Glaswegian tradition, so much so that the image can now be found on postcards. On top of that, the city council themselves have taken to putting it up, something done to stop drunken natives from injuring themselves as they attempt it.^[1]

9 Irn Bru Outsells Coca-Cola

Describing the taste of Irn Bru to a non-Scottish native can be a difficult task. It’s incredibly sweet, with some describing it as having a fizzy bubblegum flavor and others saying it tastes of orange. Not the fruit, the color.

Whichever way you explain it to someone, the fact remains that it is far and away the most popular soft drink in all of Scotland, actually outselling the industry leader, Coca-Cola.

And this makes Scotland one of the only countries in the world where Coke is not the most popular fizzy beverage. The only other places where this occurs appear to be those where the U.S. has trade restrictions, places like North Korea and Cuba.^[2]

8 No Official National Anthem

As Scotland currently remains a part of the United Kingdom, its formal national anthem continues to be the English one, “God Save the Queen.” That said, with the historic rivalry between Scotland and England still strong after all these years, you’d be hard pushed to find many folks north of the border who will stand for this one.

Instead, whenever the situation calls for it, Scots will generally go for one of two unofficial national anthems, “Scotland the Brave,” an old Gaelic tune, or “Flower of Scotland,” a 1967 song written by the folk band The Corries.

In recent years though, with the debate over Scottish independence continuing to be a hot button issue, there have been suggestions that a newer, more modern song should be used. And the most popular suggestion out of these has been The Proclaimers hit, “500 Miles.” It would certainly be an interesting one to hear at the Olympics alongside “The Star-Spangled Banner” or “La Marseillaise.”^[3]

7 An Epic Fierce Sports Rivalary

There are a lot of notable sports rivalries out there, whether it be the Lakers and the Celtics, the Red Sox and the Yankees, or Ali and Frazier. However, when it comes to the most intense of them, that may come down to the heated competition between Glasgow’s two top football teams: Rangers and Celtic.

Yes, over the years, Old Firm games, as they have become known by the locals, have often seen the teams themselves play second fiddle to the passionate fan base watching in the crowds. In fact, on more than one occasion, this has even led to violence breaking out.

And part of the reason for this one being so intense is that it’s closely tied to the historic Protestant/Catholic rivalry within the city, with the Rangers largely being seen as the representative of Anglo Protestantism and the Celtic as the flag flyers for Irish Catholicism.^[4]

6 Free Higher Education

Growing up in Scotland might leave someone feeling spoiled when it comes to being able to get a good education. And that’s because, unlike other places where going to college can lead to decades’ worth of debt, it’s free of charge there.

Well, within reason, of course, as upon leaving school, every Scottish citizen is entitled to four years of higher education, completely funded by the government and non-repayable.

And this, then, has led to many lower-income families who would never normally be able to afford a college education for their children finding they have the option to do so.^[5]

5 The Land of Seven Cities

To travel around Scotland is to experience wilderness—a lot and lot of wilderness. Yes, while the more densely populated areas have become far more industrialized over the centuries, this only makes up a small percentage of the landmass.

In fact, there are only seven official cities in the country—with those being Glasgow, Edinburgh, Aberdeen, Dundee, Inverness, Perth, and Stirling. Outside of that, you’re talking about a lot of smaller towns and villages, many of which have relatively low populations.

What this does mean, though, is that, outside of these spots, Scotland remains home to some of the most beautiful scenery in the world. So if you’re looking for somewhere to experience the wild, all you have to do is travel an hour in either direction, and you’ll find something worth seeing.^[6]

4 The Unicorn

It’s been mentioned in articles on this website before that the national animal of Scotland is the unicorn. And while that’s an interesting fact in itself, the reason for this choice of animal is even more so.

Yes, playing up to the historical rivalry between Scotland and England, it appears the northern country chose this particular mythical beast as it’s been said to be the arch-nemesis of the lion. This is something that comes from an old nursery rhyme used by Lewis Carroll in his classic children’s tale, Alice Through the Looking Glass.

And with the lion, of course, being the national animal of England, it all starts to fall into place. So if you’ve ever wondered why there are no lions roaming about the wilds of Scotland, maybe this can provide an answer: the unicorns simply got them all.^[7]

3 A Knighted Penguin

Yes, you read that right. Inside Edinburgh zoo is a penguin named Brigadier Sir Nils Olav the Third, who has lived there since its opening in 1913.

How did this happen? Well, upon the zoo receiving a visit from the Norwegian King’s Guard in 1972, a lieutenant would become interested in adopting one of the animals. From there then, he’d claim Nils the First as one of his own and award him the rank of lance corporal in the Norwegian military.

Every time the military returned after that, they would increase the penguin’s rank, even after he died as it happened. That’s right. After the original penguin had passed, Nils the Second and later Nils the Third would take his place, with the latter having now reached the point of being given a formal knighthood and the rank of brigadier.^[8]

2 How Many Islands?

It’s well known that Scotland is a place that has lots of smaller islands branching off from the mainland. That said, some may be surprised to learn that there is actually upward of 790 of these spots.

And while some of the most notable, such as Orkney, Shetland, Skye, and Islay, are home to small communities in themselves, places that thrive outside of the bigger location of the country, most of these places remain uninhabited.

In fact, according to census data, only 95 of them have people living there, leaving the rest to be the domain of the flora, the fauna, and the occasional island hopping tourist, of course.^[9]

1 The Right to Roam Anywhere

Now, we should clarify here that the right to roam in Scotland doesn’t mean you can just go into someone’s house whenever you feel like it. What it does mean, though, is that, for any hill walkers, there are no limitations on where you can wander outside.

That’s right. Even if it’s a field owned by someone else, everyone in the country has the right to travel through on their way to where they’re going, as long as they don’t camp there or cause any lasting damage.

And this, unsurprisingly, has seen Scotland become a hot spot for those who enjoy traversing the great outdoors. With the beautiful scenery seemingly being endless and there being no access restrictions on getting anywhere, people have come from all over the world to see what the country has to offer.^[10]

The Ancient Egypt is one of the most fascinating cultures that ever populated the earth and despite all the research and studies done over the past decades there is still a lot of mystery surrounding their lifestyle, traditions and believes.

One of the main characteristics that all researches agree on is that Egyptians had a fascination for animals and many of them were used to explain incomprehensible phenomes or were associated with gods. It is not illogical if we think about how life was in that time and all the dangers humans were constantly facing. Usually the animals with stronger religious and spiritual meaning were the closest to them, the simpler that they could see daily. In this case the Egyptians develop a special devotion for cats above any other animal. The reason why is still uncertain and remains one of the many mysteries about Ancient Egypt.

What we know for sure is that Egyptians had a great admiration for felines as they were one of the most venerated species. The Egyptians were the first civilization to domesticated them and were treated like another member of the household. Despite being used as a protector of the homes some studies suggest that the Egyptians believed cats were related to divinities. That’s why the received a privileged treatment from the community.

Before reading please consider that this is a general recompilation of interesting facts, some of them might change slightly depending on what era are we referring to. Nonetheless, all these statements were true at some point during their ancient history.
This is a list of 10 curiosities about cats in the ancient Egypt you might not know…

1. The goddess Bastet was represented with the head of a cat.

The goddess Bastet was usually represented with the head of a feline and a golden earing. It was believed that one of the ways people could offend the goddess was to harm one of her cats. When she was really angry, she could transform into a fearful lion thirsty for blood and the only way to calm her down was through offering beer. She represented beauty, joy, love, happiness and was the protector of humans.

Bastet was extremely popular during the second dynasty (2890-2670 BC) and had her cult center in the city of Bubastis. It is believed that a temple in her honor was built in the city and mummified cat were buried inside as an offering to the goddess.

2. The Egyptian word for cat was an onomatopoeia that sounded like an actual cat.

According to experts the word cat in the ancient Egypt was pronounced like “miu” or “meow”. This refers to the sound cats make when they meow.

It is particularly curious that despite their great admiration they only had this one word to refer to cats. It was a general word, which means they didn’t differentiate between species or any other categorization. Moreover, in the Egyptian alphabet there is a jerogr to represent exclusively the cats which is obviously the silhouette of a cat.

3. Killing a cat or being involved in the death of one was punished by death.

Killing a cat was considered a major capital therefore the punishment was to sufferer the same result as the victim, death. Depending on the period of time if the death was produced by accident the punishment was either the same or could be replace by the payment of a fine. As Herodotus repots, Egyptians caught in a burning building would save the cast first, before trying to save themselves, another person or attempting to put out the fire. Some experts suggest that not even the emperor could forgive somebody that had committed this crime. There is a popular story amongst amateurs that explains that not even Pharaoh Ptolemy XII Auletes, father of the legendary Cleopatra, couldn’t stop the death of a Roman solider who had killed a cat by accident. So, the poor solider, unaware of the severity of the crime he had committed, was sentenced to death.

Nonetheless, some theories suggest that during certain periods cats were sacrificed and mummified in the city of Bubastis as an offering to the goddess Bastet, of which we have spoken in the first curiosity. Other theories also hint that cats could be sacrificed in order to be buried next to his owner so that the cat could accompany him in his journey to the other side. These speculations are interesting because it means that depending on the period there could be exceptions to this law.

4. The death of the family cat was a tragedy.

The cat was considered to be another member of the family, that is why they receive the same care as the rest of its members, especially after death. The richer families mummified their cats with jewelry, once it has passed away. Some owners even buried themselves with their cat. When the family cat died the whole family participated in the grieving that involved shaving the eyebrows as a symbol of the pain and sorrow. However, not all cats received treatment. As today, only those that came from a wealthy family would enjoy such a treatment.

5. They had cat cemeteries

The ancient Egyptians had a wide range of pets, including cats, dogs, hippos, falcons among many others. As we have mentioned household pets were mummified and buried usually with their owners. But animals were also mummified in a massive scale. This gigantic cemetery was located in Berenike, a port-town on the Red coast and it is estimated to be nearly 2.000 years old. It belongs to the pre-dynastic era, when the Roman Empire controlled the region. 100 complete animal skeletons were found, including 86 cats, 9 dogs and 2 monkeys. Though this wasn’t the first discovery of mummified ancient pets, however it emphasizes the great lengths Egyptians and Romans went to care for these creatures.

6. It was forbidden to smuggle cats out of the country

Exporting cats out of the country was strictly prohibited by law. There was a specific branch of the government whose task was to deal with this problem. Government agents were sent to other lands to find the cats that had been smuggled out and returned them back. Nonetheless, Phoenician and Greek merchants and later on the Roma legions exported cats illegally to Europe.

7. The Egyptian cats weren’t like our cats.

Like any other domesticated species wild cats had a different constitution that evolve and changed when they started living with humans. As we mentioned previously the Egyptians only had one word to refer to cats because they didn’t differentiate between the different species. Nonetheless, researchers have been able to identify three different kinds of cats from the mummies found in various locations. The first species is called Felis lybica commonly known as African wildcat. This was the most common breed and experts are completely sure that it was domesticated.

The second breed that can be found was the Felis chaus also known as the jungle cat. Although it is likely that this one was also domesticated there aren’t enough evidences. Finally, we can find the Felis serval or serval. This wasn’t a common breed and probably wasn’t autochthonous, but they were imported from Nubia in the south of Egypt. Nowadays this region belongs to the country of Sudan.

8. Cats were commonly used as guardians and as hunters

Cats were a symbol of protection. Is a well-known fact that they are extraordinary haunters. The Egyptians used to have them in their homes where cats would haunt rats, maces, scorpions and snakes. It is believed that this is how they were domesticated. In exchange from keeping the undesirable little animals outside the home and protect the family members (just like the goddess Bastet did) cats were offered food, a home and a safe place from its depredators.

Moreover, other studies also suggest that cats were used to haunt little birds. The owner or in this case the haunter threw a wooden tool, that resembled a boomerang, to kill the bird. The cat was in charge of picking the pray and bringing it back to the owner.

9. The Egyptians lost the Battle of Pelusium because of its fascination for the cats

In 525 BC during the Battle of Pelusium the Persian King Cambyses II, aware of Egyptian culture, had the image of Bastet painted on his soldiers shields and commanded his armies to attached cats and other adored animals like dogs, sheep and ibises in their shields. The Egyptian army seeing their beloved goddess on the enemies shields and afraid that they might injure the sacred animals didn’t attack and surrendered their positions. Many were massacred on the field and those that weren’t killed fled to the city of Memphis. Memphis was besieged and fell shortly after. Pharaoh Psametik II was captured and executed. Thus ended the sovereignty of Egypt and the territory was annexed to Persia until the arrival of Alexander the Great, many years after .

It is said that the Persians would have won regardless of the tactic used since King Cambyses II had far more experience than young Pharaoh Psametik II, who had just been crowned. Nonetheless, the battle was won through this unusual strategy to use animals as hostage.

10. The most popular Egyptian found sculpture is the Gayer-Anderson cat

Hundreds of cat’s representations have been discovered over the past years. However, the most famous and better-preserve it the Gayer-Anderson Cat Statue that has enchanted many writers, artists and sculptors with its beauty and charm. As Marcel Marée, curator for the Egyptian sculpture gallery at the British Museum, said “This cat figure is among the very finest surviving from ancient Egypt, and justly regarded as one of the British Museum’s greatest masterpieces.” It is a bronze statue representing the goddess Bastet in her cat form adorated with golden earrings. It is estimated to be from around the 600 BC. Therefore, it probably belonged to the Late Period (around 664-322 BC). It’s named after Major Robert Grenville Gayer-Anderson, who donated the statue to the British museum in the 1939. Previously it was showcased in his house, now transformed into the Grayer-Anderson Museum.

Although, there aren’t any conclusive evidences experts suggest that it comes from a temple. It was customary to have bronze figures of gods, varying in sizes and forms, inside the temples throughout Egypt as a sign of power, admiration and respect. Another function of the statues was to help believers communicate with the gods. Only a king or someone very wealthy could afford buying a piece like this because it is adorned with precious metals.

The sculpture is wearing a silver protective pectoral that invoked protection and healing, golden earrings and nose ring, representing the goddess Bastet and has a scarab beetle drawn on the cat’s heat and chest that symbolizes rebirth .

If you wish to learn more about the sculpture, it can be visited in the British Museum in London. You will find it in the Oriental Art collection, room 4. If not we strongly encourage you to have a look at the British Museum’s website were there is 3D model and a detailed scientific analysis of the piece.