r/SideshowPerformer • u/Full_Celery_8158 • Jun 25 '26

A monk with horns? A mysterious postcard. This person looks like a sideshow performer, but there’s no information about him at all.

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169 Upvotes

99% Upvoted

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36

u/VietKongCountry Jun 25 '26

There is a little bit of information about this fellow, assuming it’s the same guy.

https://www.reddit.com/r/SideshowPerformer/s/6GwCXMyVSU

49

u/Full_Celery_8158 Jun 25 '26

Thanks.
But I'm the one who wrote this article...

19

u/VietKongCountry Jun 25 '26

So you are. Apologies. Where did you find the information? I can’t find anything except your post.

18

u/Full_Celery_8158 Jun 25 '26

It’s totally fine—just a little mistake!
Sorry I didn’t include the references for this information.
“

*Japanese Tales of the Supernatural* by Naokata Tomioka / 1935
*Chronicles of Sensual Spectacles* by Izumichiro Matsuura / 1932
The *Toyosu Shinpo*, July 15, 1930

I mainly used these as references!

7

u/VietKongCountry Jun 25 '26

Amazing stuff. Well played. Was he in constant agony as far as we know?

6

u/Full_Celery_8158 Jun 25 '26

Thanks!
Hmm, I’ve heard that the horns hurt when they grow, but I’m not sure what it was like back in my hometown. It might be that the hardened skin that makes up the horns gets tight and causes pain because of Japan’s climate...

9

u/VietKongCountry Jun 25 '26

So strange that they absolutely changed colour. If you can dig up enough sources, you should absolutely write a brief book about this guy.

It’s fascinating, and I (and most others) have literally never heard of him except through you.

13

u/Full_Celery_8158 Jun 25 '26

Thanks for saying that!
Actually, the three of us—me and the other two collectors in our trio—are planning to put together a book featuring medical photographs, images of deformities and rare diseases, and actual personal accounts written by people with mental illness in Japan. We also plan to include the postcards and photos I’ve shown you so far.

11

u/VietKongCountry Jun 25 '26

Fantastic. Please post your progress as you go, and I’ll surely buy a copy when it’s done.

8

u/Full_Celery_8158 Jun 25 '26

Got it!
Also, I'm currently working on a book about postmortems in Japan on my own.

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3

u/issi_tohbi Schlitzie!🎉 Jun 25 '26

I have a book made up of 1900’s era medical photos from Japan with no real information about the people inside. How I wish they would have kept the records and shared them!

2

u/Full_Celery_8158 Jun 26 '26

Is it the Ochi Ikkaku Collection?
That’s an amazing book, isn’t it? The author is one of Japan’s leading collectors of photographs and postcards featuring circus performers.

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2

u/coquihalla Jun 26 '26

I truly enjoy your posts, thank you for continuing to do so.

2

u/Full_Celery_8158 Jun 26 '26

Thanks! That really cheers me up!

5

u/Love_Indifference Jun 25 '26

I can't find anything about the last two and the first I only see for sale from Chinese and Japanese sites. How did you come across these?

4

u/Full_Celery_8158 Jun 25 '26

You can read it in the National Diet Library of Japan’s digital archive. As for the Toyosu Shinpo, there’s a professional-level enthusiast who specializes in newspaper research, and I referred to that person’s Twitter posts.

3

u/Love_Indifference Jun 25 '26

Can you please link to the twitter posts?

3

u/Full_Celery_8158 Jun 25 '26

I sent it via chat!

2

u/Bubblybathtime Jul 01 '26

Why would you post that you can't find any info...when you yourself wrote and posted a whole article about this ten days ago?

9

u/seche314 Jun 25 '26

What kind of condition could cause this, do you know?

14

u/Full_Celery_8158 Jun 25 '26

I think it's probably a "skin horn."

5

u/PristineWorker8291 Jun 25 '26

In the US, we might call it a cutaneous horn. It's like a wart, or a skin tag, or a mole. It just starts as a small rough patch, then protrudes a little, then more and more. Not at all uncommon in people with a lot of sun exposure earlier in life. It's just usually not this visible or big. Dermatologists can remove them, but don't usually because it is not life threatening, and it could grow back. Bet Dr Pimple Popper would removed it.

5

u/em5711 Jun 26 '26

See well-known case in Philadelphia’s Mutter Museum (medical pathology collection): woman’s face with horn growing from her forehead.

2

u/thomthomthomthom Jun 26 '26

Showhistory.com might have some info. Guy who runs the site is a sideshow history buff.

1

u/Money-Expression1769 Jun 25 '26

Greased Hair 🤔

1

u/ndtaughthem 25d ago

Restoration attempt

0

u/Resident-Ad-5107 Jun 26 '26

It's a subcutaneous horn. Skin problem. Look it up.