Severed limbs and other stuff

I've had to abandon the nun's shoes this last week as it is so hot here. If I wear them in this weather, they begin to compete with my sons' trainers (you really don't want to know) and I have to leave them outside my windows.. My main problem now is



...being delicious to mosquitos. I would like to know though, why they prefer my left leg? This was taken a couple of weeks ago - I look like Spotty Muldoon now..

Yesterday - Saturday (so, melon & carrot and mango & peach - can recommend both) I took myself off to EUR. EUR is the area of Rome developed by Mussolini, it is enormous. The reason I went was to visit the Museum of Folklore which was right up my street.



At first it looked a little dull with lots of old carts and wooden handlebars



Although I quite liked this one..

Then you get upstairs and it's a lot more interesting. It reminded me of the Bygones museums which we had to visit at school (at the time, those visits seemed interminable but now I really wish I had taken more notice of them) with lots of implements for the farm or the house



I can never resist a jelly mould now, can I?

And stuff for hunting



And my favourites, decoy ducks!



I liked this apparatus for selling water on the streets



They had lots of silver votives, I have always liked these - I first saw some in Greece where they are called Tama (I think, or something very like) and are used to say prayers for either yourself or your loved ones for healing bits of you



And these weird ones - which really caught my fancy..



I love the attention to detail - those bloody stumps and the painted toe and fingernails! Or do you think those red tips are actually from where the nails have been ripped off - they really are gruesome aren't they? There does appear too to be some Stigmatic action going on as well..

I wonder if one of these would stop those mozzies from going for my leg?



What do you think that this is for??



Or this?



I was excited to discover these amulets




Amazingly similar to the Ashby Amulets which I will be photographing this week

There were some old billboards for advertising stuff too - these are for watermelons



Some things never change..