Have You Heard of Jenny Haniver?
An eerie beachside discovery led me down a rabbit hole of obscure maritime trickery.
It was nearly 70 degrees, but a cool breeze coming off the ocean kept us zipped in our hoodies. I carried a canvas tote as we walked along the deserted beach on the North Fork of Long Island. Every few minutes my daughter dropped something into the bag. She was collecting supplies for her future sandcastle—a perfect shell, an interesting rock, some dried seaweed.
“Mom, do you want to keep this?” she asked.
She handed me a rock shaped like a heart.
“Yes, for sure I do. Thank you,” I replied, slipping it into my pocket.
I was walking beside her looking for anything that caught my eye when I gasped. At my feet was the dried carcass of an alien sea creature; its dark eyes and downturned mouth captured seemed to plead “Help, help—put me back in the water.”
What we’d found, it turns out, was nature’s own version of a Jenny Haniver. Perhaps you’ve heard of Jenny before? I hadn’t.
A Jenny Haniver is the carcass of a ray or a skate that has been modified by hand then dried, resulting in a mummified specimen intended to resemble a fanciful fictional creature, such as a demon or dragon. This practice dates back to the 16th century when these specimens were often sold as curiosities to sailors and collectors. —Wikipedia
References to this mythical sea creature began appearing in the 1500s. Enterprising fishermen from Antwerp carved stingrays and skates, dried and varnished them and sold them to tourists and sailors as curiosities. According to Atlas Obscura, The name may be a derivation of the French phrase jeune fille d’Anvers, or “young girl of Antwerp.”
Today, Jenny Hanivers can still be found in private homes, museums, and curiosity shops.
The creature we stumbled upon certainly looks like it washed up from the edge of some forgotten myth.
Till next week,
Words of the Week
“Believe half of what you see and nothing of what you hear.” —often attributed to Edgar Allan Poe
Photo of the Week
The morning of collecting seashells and rocks on the beach was followed by an afternoon of rain—perfect for staying in and getting crafty. Carolina and I took the opportunity to create “nature puzzles” with nothing but a glue gun and our imaginations. We started with bases of driftwood or rocks and fit pieces together in ways that felt almost predestined—the grooves in a whelk shell aligned perfectly with the ridges of a rock.
Little by little we glued to create a fun little collection of sculptures. What we’ll do with them? Still undecided.
So interesting! Love your weekly newsletters!
Once again, Lia, you have introduced me to something I did not know -- a Jenny Haniver! I live on the North Shore of Long Island, and often upside-down horseshow crabs show up on our rocky beaches. While they do not have the facial likeness of skates or rays, they do look like alien creatures.
Lia, you continue to delight, amaze and educate