This is the most amazing Victorian contraption I have ever come across

(and I am a history NUT)

Recently myself and Sian went on an over nigth ghost hunt at the Haunted Antiques Centre. We had been seeing friends go there for years and had seen a few event companies selling tickets so thought it might be worth a visit. Wilst, as usual, we didn’t experience anything supernatural, we did have a great night and would absolutely recommend it to anyone who enjoys macabre museums.

You will find everything here from gimicky Halloween items to genuinely nerve wracking artifacts. As mentioned me and Sian didn’t experience anything paranormal but that doesn’t mean that some things don’t give you the creeps. When your looking at a crowded shelf full of items but one jumps out at you for no apparent reason, even making you want to leave the room, you know the place has potential.

Some of the many MANY trinkets on show

We spent the first part of our evening with some friends in the seance room but quickly got restless, they were also connecting with with spirits personal to them which felt a little invasive on our part so we decided to have a look around on our own.

We spent a little time in the area just outside, where we later found out one of the creepiest photos was taken. It had three paranormal occurances in it at once! You will have to pay a visit a speak with a member of staff too see it though. The area not only has plenty of jars and candles and other things associated with dark arts but it also has a collection of human bones.

This place really has everything…

We stayed in the one half of the building and quickly found our way back to the entrance where the museum team were eating the best smelling fish and chips you could have come across. After a quick conversation we realised we had another half to explore!

They are fully equiped with a seance room and plenty of other nooks and crannies to explore but you do need to book in advance.

We went into the room next door and were quickly followed by one of the museum team who wanted to show us an item…. It was a medical impliment from the Victorian age and, unlike most of their contraptions, had more to do with pleasure than with pain.

Female hysteria was a big issue at the time and doctors needed a little help

So much time was spent treating women for hysteria in fact that doctors became physically unable to keep up. The prescribed treatment at the time was feminine massage! Their poor little fingers would get so tired that the above machine was delveloped.

Thats right people, this is the first vibrator!

Doctors found that ‘curing women of their hysteria’ all day was giving them finger cramp and so this machine was suggested for at home use BUT required a second person to operate it! Could you imagine being a maid and your mistress asking you to help with her hysteria treatment?! I’m sure the answer to that will vary depending on the person reading this but we can all agree it probably wasn’t in the job description!

We did ask and apparently there are no spirits attached to this item, it is merely a curiosity piece in the museum.

After this we had a wander through and found a couple of big rooms full of more haunted objects including plenty of haunted dolls!

This little guy has been reported to move inside his glass cabinet

There is a room full of military paraphernalia which for some reason is naturally very spooky, self driving wheel chair and all! There was, unfortunately, one room we did not get to see which was the doll room (I know, even more dolls!). The rest of our group were in their and we were reluctant to disturb them. Sneaking into a room on a ghost hunt, even knocking on the door first can prove fatal if your a nervous person, or at least it may make you scream like a banshee in front of your friends.

Some of the more gimicky displays

As mentioned some of it seems quite gimmicky but if you atart looking at the individual items above you can still see some unsettling things mixed in there….I mean whats that teddy bears story?!

Either way we had a great time and are looking to go back on our own. Whilst it is nice exploring with friends it becomes more difficult to ‘de-bunk’ things if there are other people in the building you can’t account for. We will also get to spend some time in the doll room, which should be pleasant…

Apparently the resturaunt behind the museum in the Victorian Arcade is well worth a visit too 😉

Lots of love Kel xx