Object Identification
- Object name: Phrenology Head of Margaret Gottfried
- Date: 1820s-1840s
- Maker: Anthony O’Neil
- Origin: 16 West Register Street, Edinburgh
- Materials: Plaster of Paris, oil paint
Object Summary
The phrenology head of Margaret Gotfried was likely made between 1820-1840s by Anthony O’Neil at 16 West Register Street, Edinburgh. Phrenology is a pseudoscience which suggested the shape of skulls impacted personality traits, this idea was eventually discredited by scientists by the mid 1800s due to the growing number of evidence against it. A. O’Neil was a figure maker who created many phrenology heads and had ties with the Phrenology Society in Edinburgh. The head itself is of Gesche Margaret Gottfried who was a German mass-murderess from Bremen, Germany killing 15 people by arsenic poisoning. The cast of her head was presented by Dr. Hirschfeld of Bremen to the Phrenological Society.
This object was conserved by Rubina Gurung. Find out more about her by clicking on the profile below!
Rubina Gurung
