Had to check that out. So I clicked it and was taken to paramuseum.com, a.k.a. the website for The Traveling Museum of the Paranormal and the Occult.
A traveling paranormal museum? Are you freaking kidding me? Genius!
But wait. It gets better.
Warning: Waiver Required
It’s cool enough that it’s a traveling museum, but you’re able to hold the allegedly haunted artifacts. (If you dare…)
Hold your horses once again though. It gets even better: You’re not only allowed to touch, you can photograph and “test” them yourself.
With a few extreme exceptions, all artifacts in the museum are available to view, hold, photograph, and even test by the general public and paranormal investigators alike.
That’s right. You can research the items…at your own risk, of course.
Check out the above photo. Specifically the signage on the far right. To handle the artifacts, you have to sign a waiver.
I’m curious what the waiver says? “You break it, you pay for it.” “Handle at your own risk. Not responsible for any residual cooties and their consequences.”
Hmmm. Intriguing. Might have to request an interview and find out more. (Other questions I’d have to ask are which items can’t be held, and how do they determine which are “safe” and which aren’t.)
What Kind of Artifacts Do They Have?
Speaking of artifacts, what exactly is in the museum’s collection? All sorts of things, such as:
- A Corrupted Testament – Apparently it was used to “wrestle hundreds of believers from the grips of Satan while in the hands of a New York-based deliverance minister in the early 1800s.” The minister who used it was bedridden until his death after failing to deliver a family member from demonic possession.
- Ruby the Haunted Doll – Beware this one. Handling her is said to make some feel physically sick. Family members who owned her said she also mysteriously moved from room to room by herself. Watch out Robert and Annabelle. Ruby might be petite, but she sounds fearsome.
- The Restless Painting – This painting used to be for sale in a shop. No one ever bought it. Perhaps because it had a penchant for flinging itself from the wall? TMotOP reports this is a favorite at events because “it’s a reliable source for measurable paranormal activity, giving impressive readings to a wide variety of investigation equipment. K2s, Ovilus, you name it. If it’s got blinking lights, this haunted object will make them go nuts.”
To see what else is in the museum’s collection, visit their Artifacts page.
It’s very nicely laid out. When you click on any of them, you’ll read the history behind it, how it came to be in their collection, and what kind of activity it generates.
How To Experience the Museum
If you attend paranormal pop-culture gatherings, you may have seen Dana and Greg and their haunted artifacts. They often attend paracons. (To find one near you, be sure to visit HJ’s Paracons & Horror Fests section.)
To find exactly which events the Traveling Museum of the Paranormal and the Occult will be at, check out their Visit page.
They’re also available for private bookings, which you can request by visiting their Booking page.
What Would You Do?
Since I edited a book with stories about cursed objects, you know this sort of thing is right up my alley.
But would I be brave enough to hold any of the items?
Definitely.
Would you?
Courtney Mroch is a globe-trotting restless spirit who’s both possessed by wanderlust and the spirit of adventure, and obsessed with true crime, horror, the paranormal, and weird days. Perhaps it has something to do with her genes? She is related to occult royalty, after all. Marie Laveau, the famous Voodoo practitioner of New Orleans, is one of her ancestors. (Yes, really! As explained here.) That could also explain her infatuation with skeletons.
Speaking of mystical, to learn how Courtney channeled her battle with cancer to conjure up this site, check out HJ’s Origin Story.
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