Monday, September 02, 2024

MADAME DIMANCHE


Madame Dimanche, also known as 'Widow Sunday', was a French woman who lived in Paris in the early 19th century.

At the age of 76, a 9.8-inch horn began to grow from her forehead.

Fortunately for her, it was successfully removed by a French surgeon.

According to medical records, Dimanche's horn began as a small wart above her right eyebrow, and then continued to grow.

Madame Dimanche died seven years after the horn was removed.

The Mütter Museum acquired the wax model of Madame Dimanche's face, which was sculpted from life.

It shows the face of an elderly woman, with a large horn protruding from the top of her forehead and hanging in front of her face.

'Cornu cutaneum', or 'cutaneous horns', look similar to animal horns, but have a different composition.

They are firm, keratin-like bumps of lesions that most often occur on areas of the body that are commonly exposed to the sun, such as the face, hands, and forearms.

Women over the age of 50, who have had long-term sun exposure and many sunburns, are more likely to have these growths than men.

The first well-documented case of a human cutaneous horn dates back to 1588, and was that of Margaret Gryffith, an elderly Welsh woman.

Another famous case is that of 17th-century Englishwoman Mary Davis, an elderly widow who had horns on the back of her scalp.

She was exhibited in London as a "natural wonder"

Humans and horns share a twisted history.

In mythology and folklore, horned humans represent devils, demons, and other nefarious creatures.

It is easy enough to imagine that the strange sight of a horn on a human could frighten anyone, making them believe that it belongs to a demon. 

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