Skulls: Portraits of the Dead and the Stories They Tell

by Paul Gambino

It is said that the skull is the only human body part that is as powerful dead as it was when living. Skulls takes the reader on an eerie journey through history seen through the hollow eye sockets of this crown jewel of the human skeleton. The book is made up of a series of short illustrated stories laced with fascinating facts, historical and medical references, and compelling anecdotes. The testimonials of thirty-plus skull collectors reveal what is known of – or speculated about – the often gruesome history of the skulls, as well as how they were acquired, and what makes them so highly prized.

Genres: Nonfiction, History, Art

192 pages, Hardcover

Published October 12, 2021

About the author

Paul’s first book, SCRAP CITY: SCRAPBOOKING FOR SUBURBAN DIVAS AND SMALL TOWN REBELS (SOHO Publishing, 2006), was a semi-finalist for the Independent Publisher Book award in the Hobby/Crafts category and was touted as giving the craft of scrapbooking a youthful, cutting-edge makeover.
Paul has been an avid collector of the bizarre for over 20-years with an extensive collection of Victorian memorial photographs, antique funeria, mug shots and vintage religious items (including a life sized St. Sebastian and Virgin Mary salvaged from a 19th century church in Pennsylvania). The past two decades of serious collecting has allowed Paul to gain the trust of some of the world’s largest macabre collectors. These relationships have allowed Paul to have his second book published, MORBID CURIOSITIES: COLLECTIONS OF THE UNCOMMON AND THE BIZARRE. Amazon sums the book up like this; Morbid Curiosities is an insight into the strange world of collectors of the macabre. Centered on 18 collections, with extensive interviews with each collector and specially shot imagery detailing their objects, this is a fascinating showcase of bizarre and intriguing objects.
Included are collections of skulls, mummified body parts, occult objects, and various carnival, sideshow and criminal ephemera. Detailed captions tell the curious stories behind each object, many of which are being shown outside the private world of their collections for the first time.
Included are collections of skulls, mummified body parts, occult objects, and various carnival, side-show and criminal ephemera. Detailed captions tell the curious stories behind each object, many of which are being shown outside the private world of their collections for the first time.

Reviews

[Gareth Houghtonio · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is about human skull collectors from around the world. Each chapter is a brief biog of each collector, along with a brief history of some of their skulls, as well as lots of pictures...of skulls.

The collectors are all from different backgrounds and have different philosophies and reasons for collecting skulls. Some of them are interested in anatomy and science, some are artists, some are obsessed with death, some just think skulls are cool, and some believe they have paranormal powers. But the one thing they all have in common (besides owning loads of skulls) is that they all treat their skulls with utmost respect. After all, they all once belonged to living people with thoughts and emotions and loved ones.

It is interesting to see skulls in different stages of development, or how they are affected by injury or illnesses. We also see how different cultures decorate the skulls of their loved ones, or how head-hunting tribes decorated their victims' skulls.

The photos of the skulls are beautifully shot and the book's presentation is stunning. I'll probably be pulling this book off my shelf every now and again just to look at the pictures.

Anyway, very cool book. Five skulls out of five.

[JN · Rating 4 out of 5]

Le livre ne se contente pas de l'esthétique macabre; il plonge dans l'histoire et les croyances entourant chaque crâne, révélant des récits captivants de vie, de mort et d'au-delà. Des crânes utilisés dans des rituels religieux aux spécimens médicaux et anthropologiques, chaque pièce raconte une histoire unique. Le livre aborde des thèmes tels que la vanité, la mortalité, la mémoire, la science et l'art, offrant une réflexion profonde sur notre propre existence et notre rapport à la mort.

[Hunter Ross · Rating 2 out of 5]

You should firmly understand what this book is before buying, I guess I did not read the blurb closely enough. It does say clearly "testimonials" from skull owners. So basically you have a one page mini-bio with the collector's picture followed by a few to many pictures of their skulls. If you are interested in learning (very) little about skull collectors this is for you! If you are more interested in the history and backstory there is very little about the actual skulls, or the cultures they come from or previous uses (sure there is some, like this was from a medical school, but not a lot of detail). The questions the author asked the collectors were the same, so the same responses came over and over with minor tweaks. One page 123 the collector says she thinks people would think skull owners dress in black but "I look…the opposite." Cue picture-she is dressed in black. Also on this page it says "cardiomyopathy (heart failure)" this is not true. Of course cardiomyopathy can lead to heart failure but is actually a very diverse subject, with dilated, hypertrophic and restrictive cardiomyopathy. I is a disease of the heart muscle. After the fifteenth person with similar story, "Oh I got my first skull and same, same, same. Yes, yes I would like my skull to end up in a collectors. I think as long as you treat the skulls with respect there is nothing macabre about it. Repetitive in bio and similar skulls kept repeating in the collections, which I guess is understandable but it is not very long and a quick read so it becomes very tedious.

[Joe · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’ve always been intrigued by medical and other morbid curiosities…the types of items you would see at places like the Mutter Museum in Philadelphia. This is especially true about skulls and skeletons! If you’re like me and love skulls, you’ll enjoy this book immensely!

The pictures are of a very high quality, similar to what you would see in an issue of National Geographic. I enjoyed the fact that the book was organized according to the collector instead of subject matter/type of skull. I enjoyed the brief biographies of all of the collectors.

The only negative comment I have after reading this book is that it gave me a huge reality check that I’ll never delve into collecting myself…to purchase even a beaten up old partial skull would be way more money than I would ever be willing to part with. At least I will always have this collection of photos to pull out, look through, and dream!

[Charlie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I recieved this book as a holiday gift. It is absolutely stunning - the photos are haunting and beautiful. The texture of the cover and the paper stock of each page adds to an appreciation of the story of each skull. Gambino does a spectacular job of illuminating collections by people all over the world and telling the stories of each skull. I think anthropology is such a riveting and worthwhile field and many of these pages educated me on different cultures through the ages. I would double check some of this data to ensure I wasn't reading nonsense about skull carvings and bindings and surely enough each tidbit was valid and well written. Gambino's organization and photography of this delicate topic was great and handled with utmost respect for the material. A recommended reading/viewing for any creepy or macabre lover who may be fascinated by medical curiosities or cultural anthropology.

[Alan · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is fascinating and makes me want to start a collection. I will definitely be going back to it and recommending it to several people.
My only complaint is that it's incomplete. Small portions of some people's massive collections are documented. Otherwise, I highly recommend it.

[Abby · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

[Ana · Rating 3 out of 5]

Wow photos, but notes were definitely not good enough