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So... Apparently someone discovered three separate books discovered in Harvard University's library that had particularly strange-looking leather covers.
Turns the smooth binding was actually human flesh... in one case the skin was allegedly harvested from a man who was flayed alive. WTF?!
Apparently this practice used to be pretty common in the 17th century. It's called Anthropodermic bibliopegy.
The book above, "Practicarum quaestionum circa leges regias", has a very interesting inscription inside on its 794th and final page:
‘The bynding of this booke is all that remains of my dear friende Jonas Wright, who was flayed alive by the Wavuma on the Fourth Day of August, 1632. King Mbesa did give me the book, it being one of poore Jonas chiefe possessions, together with ample of his skin to bynd it and about $3.50. Requiescat in pace.’
Moogaloog
Necronomicon ex mortis, the book of the dead. Bound in human flesh and inked in blood!
LukewarmBeans
Neat
w0ntoan
Rimworld? Rimworld.
Mrpeepeepoopoopants
meesadinosaur
But why?
Courier87
Klaatu barada nikto. That shit will save your life people
SubgeniusArmageddon
Tree fiddy... Yeah right.
Thor400
even said "about"
Tater4049
They been saying that print is dead.
Mikeupvotes
50 shades of Greyjoy.
kungfucatattack
Many human-flesh books are stored in the Vatican Secret Archives. They have some weird stuff hidden away.
RainbowPone
Book of the dead, pages bound in human flesh Feasting the beast, from the blood the words were said, I am unseen
TheWookie1
justahumanonline
0.o
GanjalfTheClear
Was that about the same time that he realized the king was also that goddamn Loch Ness Monster?
BeerMeAgain
and a succubus
GamesDeen
...."long believed but never proven to have been bound in human skin, have conclusively established that the book was bound in sheepskin"
justlurkingmovealong
Ed Gein would've appreciated this.
darwynstheory
nolanbautista
Skin saving tip: Don't piss off the Wavuma
fluxbiota
Ed Gein approved.
Lonehoof
I saw it coming a mile away. sorry to say you don't get my +1 :(
BTrace98
Ezio was here.
treebreaker
nombre11
GingerSwan
Fuck off Hermaeus Mora, I don't want to serve you or your fucking Oghma Infinium
SexDungeonsandDragons
Really? I definitely abused my bookshelves to reread it a million times.
GingerSwan
yeah I like the perks but seriously FUCK Herma Mora. Bitchass apocrypha stupid level enemies motherfucker.
PrairieNightSky
ferengischoolofbusiness
Yeah, I've heard that the Germans tattooed prisoners and made lampshades out of that skin and also tobacco bags out of boob flesh , sic
hedgewizard
Flesh is meat, skin is skin.
MarcTheRN
nationoflaws
This is a myth. http://www.bostonmagazine.com/news/blog/2014/04/03/harvard-book-made-of-human-skin/
mdzmdz
Not all of them are though - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Horwood#The_Horwood_Book
mdzmdz
Looks like Harvard does have one - http://id.lib.harvard.edu/aleph/005786452/catalog
HenryInTwoForks
Two of the three books actually are human flesh
ImgurPremiumAccount
Thx
NerdN1
Some books actually are bound in human skin.
TGWeaver
But not this one.
AgainstMethod
I'm glad.
Lonehoof
I owe you tree fiddy for that bit of groundbreaking knowledge
StrawberryJamJam
Flesh is not the same as skin.
theyar
And Ol' Nessie ain't the same thing as a dinosaur.
TheQuack
Depends on the context.
DrHenryJonesJr
According to Shakespeare even hair counts as flesh.
HailBaconOurLordAndMaster
To be fair, Shakespeare was kind of an idiot.
Tankbutt
explain
diphenhydraminehcl50mg
He dum.
People6643
Thank.