I am writing this column from a hotel room in Salisbury, a small city in the southwest of England that is famed for its stunning 13th-century cathedral (which houses the best-preserved copy of the Magna Carta). It is also a place which, rather peculiarly, has made me think about mummification twice in one day, a subject perfect for the Halloween issue of Genii.
The first occasion was in the afternoon, while looking at the tomb of William Longespée, an illegitimate son of Henry II who, in 1226, was the first person to be buried in the cathedral. Longespée died in mysterious circumstances, after attending a banquet held by a rival for his wife’s affection, with speculation abounding that he might have been murdered. Fast forward to 1789, when the cathedral was being remodeled, and Longespée’s tomb was opened as it was being moved. On inspecting the skull a mummified rat was discovered, which, when tested, contained traces of the poison arsenic. A case of attempted pest control combined with a tomb that may not have been perfectly sealed? Perhaps…. Or perhaps it was a rat that thought it had stumbled on a delicious brunch when it gained access to the tomb, and then ingested the poison that had killed Longespée as it nibbled on his brains.
The second (and more magic related) incidence of mummification took place just a short walk away from the cathedral, when we popped into The Haunch of Venison for dinner. The nearby pub is around a century newer than the cathedral, and has one particularly interesting feature as far as a magician is concerned: Built into one of the walls, to the side of a fireplace, is a bread oven, containing a mummified human hand holding a fan of cards. Legend has it that around 1820 a stranger was particularly “lucky” while playing cards in the pub. Unfortunately for them, their luck ran out when the other patrons started to suspect they were a card cheat. In a moment of anger a drunken butcher used his cleaver to cut the player’s hand off, at which point the player ran away (as you would) leaving behind a bloody hand holding additional cards that proved he had been cheating.
After spending some time trying to work out how this story (and the presence of an amputated hand in the wall behind my right shoulder) might lend itself to an impromptu miracle (definitely not a gambling demonstration), this unfortunate card cheat made me think about a third and final instance of mummification, which I find remarkable. Perhaps it is because I am interested in sleight of hand, as well as various other art and craft practices, that I find hands fascinating. I am also a lover of history, and particularly enjoy learning about the things that bring us closer to those in our past who are otherwise so distant. Imagine my surprise, then, when visiting Dublin a few years ago, that I should come face-to-face (!) with the hand of one of our distant ancestors. Old Croghan Man is a “bog body” naturally mummified after being placed into a peat bog some 2,300 years ago, likely as part of an Iron Age ritual. And he is so well preserved that you can see the texture of his skin and the details of his nails (well manicured, he apparently did no manual labor). If you let your imagination wander, as you might well do after hearing the two previous stories for the first time, you can then imagine those same fingers playing with a coin or a cup, manipulating objects, or making some kind of astonishing thing seem to happen.
While we were putting the finishing touches to this issue we heard the sad news that Juan Tamariz has passed. Rather than rush to remember him in these pages, and risk not celebrating his life and work as we would want to, we are working on a fuller and more considered tribute in our November issue. For now, however, we offer our sincerest condolences to his family, and to his many friends in magic.
Erratum
In the August 2026 issue of Genii we shared a piece on the California Magic Club. In it, we talked about the items on display and mentioned “Michael Finney’s Superman spandex underwear.” We have since learned that the Superman spandex outfit belonged to Genii writer Shawn McMaster, and wish to apologize to all concerned for any confusion.