While visiting an odd little antiques store in Farmville, Virginia I purchased a curious collection of family photos dating to the late 1800's. Sadly, there is no other information about the subjects or of the photographer and his son. ... / READ MORE / |
On the night of September 9, 2007 I dreamt of a machine to collect, focus, and manifest malevolence. It was a gorgeous machine. It spoke to me. In the dream it spoke in whispers and clicks. In the dream I saw the parts of the machine in detail and tried hard to rememb... / READ MORE / |
"Within this context, the original mission of the new hospital, as established by the General Assembly in 1797, was to provide for the relief of indigent sick persons, and for the reception and care of lunatics." -(Acts of 1797) Spring Grove Mental Hospita... / READ MORE / |
During the late 19th century photographic portraiture was often an expensive luxury. Few people would have their photographs taken except upon very special occasions. One of those occasions may well have been shortly after their death. Families who could afford to do ... / READ MORE / |
In August of 2002 a curious book came into my possession. It was a fairly nondescript textbook from the Victorian era. The book was "Seventy Lessons In Civil Government", written by Calvin Townshend in 1875. The book was strangely bowed, and could not close, h... / READ MORE / |
Regarding this site
My name is Michael McCuen, and I can no longer keep these things to myself.
Since the age of two I have been plagued with vivid and disquieting dreams. Early in childhood I developed a deeply morbid curiosity.
I put these down to being a remarkably active sleepwalker, and for having as a child witnessed the drowning death of my Mother's fiancé (she was to re-marry due to my actual father having abandoned us shortly after my birth).
During my life I have constructed an elaborate, persistent, and navigable dreamscape. The Ossuary is my attempt to shift to the web the furiously scribbled notes from my dream journals, along with the mental debris that may have caused them. I will share with you pages from my notebooks, sketchbooks, photographs, and collections of curiosities.
Of particular interest to those with morbid sensibilities is "The Dreadful Scrapbook", containing gruesome news articles from an 1895 scrapbook I obtained long ago.
Occasionally people I know will appear in my dreams, and I see no reason to inflict any embarrassment or harm upon them. To that end all names will be obscured.
Do be warned that, apart from names, I am not censoring the content in any way, and that there will be mention of things both grisly and sexual from time to time.
The contents of the site are not in any chronological order (at least not at the beginning). The entries appear in the order I happened to enter them.
Having only just begun this work, you must bear with me while I add more content.
I hope to at least hold your interest. Thank you for visiting.
