KUDOS Halloween 2016 | Page 18

Other interesting things you may not know about those staid and stodgy Victorians... Believe it or not, nipple piercing was a fad during this era. Women believed it would make their breasts larger and rounder. The advent of electricity provided the Victorians with a new plaything. Electropathy became a medical fad, with many so-called doctors offering treatments where patients would be zapped with high voltage currents, often being left with horrific burns. Arsenic was a popular beauty product for women. Unfortunately, it also eventually caused scarring on the face, and, on many occasions, debilitating illness or death. Victorians enjoyed some rather morbid, cruel and bizarre pastimes, which included visiting and touring the local sewers, morgues, prisons and insane asylums. Perhaps one of the most ghoulish fads was having photos taken of family members when they died. 15