A skull discovered in David Attenborough’s back garden belonged to the victim of a gruesome Victorian murderr, a coroner has ruled.
Widow Julia Martha Thomas, 55, was attacked in 1879 by her maid Kate Webster who pushed her down the stairs, then strangled her, chopped up her body, boiled it and gave the dripping to local children to eat.
Webster was tried and sent to the gallows but the skull lay undiscovered until October last year when workmen at TV naturalist Sir David’s £1.5million home dug it up while building an extension.
Widow Julia Martha Thomas, 55, was attacked in 1879 by her maid Kate Webster who pushed her down the stairs, then strangled her, chopped up her body, boiled it and gave the dripping to local children to eat.
Webster was tried and sent to the gallows but the skull lay undiscovered until October last year when workmen at TV naturalist Sir David’s £1.5million home dug it up while building an extension.
Thanks for that intriguing bit of history, Bored Panda. (erp)
I really shouldn't point fingers -- after all, one of my recent book orders included a copy of SCURVY by Jonathan Lamb... a very complete history of this unusual disease. I entertained the Brick with a few of the more disgusting symptoms, including having to pare away your gums when they got black and swollen. He winced, said "Gross," and changed the subject.
Weenie.
How did I get interested in this? Polar explorers, including my buddies on the Franklin Expedition, were always dealing with it. No citrus, few canned vegetables -- though seal liver has enough Vitamin C to help. (Polar bear liver has way too much -- and will poison, instead of heal you.) Yes, scurvy comes from an extreme lack of C. (A and D too, as I remember.)
Guess I'd better go eat some mandarin oranges while I keep reading.
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