Feejee Mermaid

Feejee Mermaid
reputedly a mermaid caught near the Fiji Islands and exhibited in New York by a "Dr. J. Griffin", an English gentleman, and then by the showman P. T. Barnum. Griffin was a fraud perpetrated by Barnum for heightening public interest. The mermaid was a traditional art form of Asia, formed by stitching an upper ape body to a fish body. Feejee Mermaid is now used as a generic term for any fake mermaid seen in sideshows and bars, and even in an episode of the X-Files ("Humbug" in season 2, episode 20)

Dictionary of ichthyology. 2009.

Игры ⚽ Поможем написать курсовую

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Mermaid (disambiguation) — A mermaid is a mythical half woman, half fish creature. The word may also refer to: Contents 1 Film 2 Music 3 Places …   Wikipedia

  • Fiji Mermaid — Feejee Mermaid …   Dictionary of ichthyology

  • Fiji mermaid — A Fiji mermaid (also Feejee mermaid) was a common feature of sideshows. During the Renaissance and the Baroque eras, it was a staple of wunderkammers. They were often people afflicted of sirenomelia or a dugong. It is presented as a mummified… …   Wikipedia

  • P. T. Barnum — Phineas Taylor Barnum Phineas Taylor Barnum photo by Mathew Brady, c.1860 Born Phineas Taylor Barnum July 5, 1810(1810 07 05) Be …   Wikipedia

  • Фиджийская русалка — Рисунок «оригинальной» фиджийской русалки из коллекции Барнума, 1842 год. Фиджийская русалка  общее название популярного в XIX веке экспоната всевозможных бродячих «выставок диковин» и уличных шоу, объект, представляющий собой туловище и… …   Википедия

  • Encyclopedia Horrifica — infobox Book | name = Encyclopedia Horrifica orig title = translator = author = Joshua Gee cover artist = country = United States language = English series = subject = Paranormal genre = Non fiction publisher = Scholastic Corporation release date …   Wikipedia

  • gaff — 1) a short to long pole with a large hook on the end to land large fish; 2) a large fish hook 3) a boat hook 4) to pull a fish from the water with a gaff 5) a tradi …   Dictionary of ichthyology

  • circus — circusy, adj. /serr keuhs/, n., pl. circuses. 1. a large public entertainment, typically presented in one or more very large tents or in an outdoor or indoor arena, featuring exhibitions of pageantry, feats of skill and daring, performing animals …   Universalium

  • Barnum, P.T. — ▪ American showman in full  Phineas Taylor Barnum  born July 5, 1810, Bethel, Connecticut, U.S. died April 7, 1891, Bridgeport, Connecticut  American showman who employed sensational forms of presentation and publicity to popularize such… …   Universalium

  • Marocco — Not to be confused with Morocco. Marocco Marocco and William Bankes performing in an arena Species Equus ferus caballus Sex …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
… Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”