The
abortive trial of William
H. Mumler
in 1872 was the start of a decades-long battle between
Science and the Séance. In the United States,
Britain and France, spiritualists were investigated by
expert commissions and spirit photographers were
sometimes prosecuted for fraud.
Well
into the 20th century, spirit photography had
high-profile supporters--including the physicist Sir
William Crookes and the creator of Sherlock Holmes, Sir
Arthur Conan Doyle. Many of the photographs in this
exhibition were made under test conditions thought to
rule out possible fraudulent acts.
But
the skeptics took their toll. Led by the great
illusionist Harry Houdini, investigators unmasked spirit
mediums, revealing many of their "manifestations" to be
nothing more than cynical tricks and
sleight-of-hand.
And
yet-- there are people who still believe. Some cling to
the hope of contacting a departed relative. Others buy
books purporting to show modern-day photographs of
ghosts. Television "documentaries" claim to reveal
contemporary cases of hauntings. A young film actor
whispers "I
see dead people"
and millions feel a chill go up their
spines.
Many
of the images presented here have been studied and
debated for nearly a century. Whether they are ludicrous
or miraculous is in the eye of the beholder.
Do
you believe?
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Additional Text and Larger Images, Click on Any Photograph or Title
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William
Eglinton (England)
Mary
Burchett with Spirit of her School-Master
Albumen
cabinet card, 3.5 x 4.5 inches
December
9, 1886
"Taken
in my room with my own camera and plates by Mr. Eglinton
and developed directly afterward in my
presence."
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Edward
Wyllie (American; born India 1848, died London,
1911)
J.
R. Mercer with Spirits of his First Wife and Mother, a
Spirit Message and Flowers from the Other
Side
Silver-gelatine
cabinet card, 3.75 x 4.75 inches
circa
1895
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Edward
Wyllie (American, 1848 --1911)
Mr.
Robert Whiteford, Professional Photographer of Rothesay,
with "Extra"
Silver
print cabinet card, 3.5 x 4.75 inches
October
7, 1909
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Robert
Boursnell (England)
Couple
with the Spirit of an Old Family Doctor who Died Around
1880
Collodion
print, 4 x 5.75 inches
January
3, 1893
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Robert
Boursnell (England)
Self-Portrait
with Spirits
Silver
print cabinet card, 4 x 5.5 inches
March
9, 1902
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William
Hope (Crewe, England)
Annual
Meeting of the Society for the Study of
Supernormal Pictures
Silver
Print, 3 x 5 inches, before
1922
--Click
on the Image or Title to View the Spirit
"Extra" in this
photograph--
Lady
and Lord Conan Doyle are at the left in
the middle row.
Sir
Arthur Conan Doyle was a Vice President
of the S.S.S.P.
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Dr.
Thomas Glendenning
Hamilton
(Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, 1873-1935)
Conan
Doyle's Return (enlarged
detail)
Gelatin-silver
print of unknown date from negative taken
June 27, 1932
The
great writer's spirit returns through the
mediumship of Mrs. Mary Marshall--in a
two-dimensional materialization. Doyle is
seen in the upper portion of the "ectoplasm"
shown exuding from the medium's
nose.
Click
on the image or title to view a full-frame
version of the seance photograph that
contains this detail.
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