#UnusualDeaths
Around 600 B.C., Athenian legislator Draco delivered a speech in the Aeginetan theatre. As was the custom of the time, his audience showed their approval by showering him with items of clothing – cloaks, hats, shirts – inadvertently smothering him to death. pic.twitter.com/F6pRYh1Mfp— Joseph Mallozzi 🏴☠️ (@BaronDestructo) February 18, 2023
#UnusualDeaths – Death by malmsey
In 1478, George Plantagenet, Duke of Clarence, was executed for treason by his brother, King Edward IV. It is said he was taken to the Tower of London and summarily drowned in a butt of malmsey, a pricey sweet wine. Cheers! pic.twitter.com/sCquRGL1BY— Joseph Mallozzi 🏴☠️ (@BaronDestructo) February 19, 2023
Days later, a man attempting to demonstrate how Vallandigham accidentally shot and killed himself accidentally shot and killed himself. 2/END
— Joseph Mallozzi 🏴☠️ (@BaronDestructo) February 20, 2023
#UnusualDeaths
According to legend, Christian martyr Marcus of Arethusa met his sweet, sweet end after being slathered in honey, hung in the sun, and covered in bees. pic.twitter.com/FkXHATdjL2— Joseph Mallozzi 🏴☠️ (@BaronDestructo) February 22, 2023
#UnusualDeaths
According to legend, the Greek philosopher Heraclitus died while attempting to cure himself of dropsy, an accumulation of fluids in the body. After covering himself in cow dung, he lay out in the sun to dry – only to be devoured by dogs.— Joseph Mallozzi 🏴☠️ (@BaronDestructo) February 22, 2023
#UnusualDeaths
The Greek philosopher Empedocles hurled himself into Mount Etna's active volcano to prove he was an immortal god.
Spoiler alert: He was not.
According to legend, the volcano demonstrated its disdain by belching up a lone bronze sandal. pic.twitter.com/ZHAiTsrULk— Joseph Mallozzi 🏴☠️ (@BaronDestructo) February 24, 2023
#UnusualDeaths – A pair of pears!
Ancient Greek comic poet and playwright Antiphanes was purportedly killed by a pear. It's unclear whether it fell on him or was thrown at him by an unruly spectator passing judgement on one of his productions. 1/— Joseph Mallozzi 🏴☠️ (@BaronDestructo) February 24, 2023
#UnusualDeaths – A pair of pears!
Claudius Drusus, the eldest son of Roman emperor Claudius, choked to death after tossing a pear into the air and trying to catch it in his mouth. 2/END— Joseph Mallozzi 🏴☠️ (@BaronDestructo) February 24, 2023
#UnusualDeaths
Byzantine Emperor Basil 1 died of fever following a hunting accident that saw him dragged for 26 miles after he snagged his belt on a deer's antlers. pic.twitter.com/8tzFq1u4lU— Joseph Mallozzi 🏴☠️ (@BaronDestructo) February 25, 2023
#UnusualDeaths – Death by Beard
Hans Steininger was the proud owner of the world's longest beard at 4 feet 2 inches. On September 28, 1567, amid the panic of a fire in the town of Braunau am Inn, Hans tripped over his own beard, fell down a flight of stairs, and broke his neck. pic.twitter.com/JOpZ0ADwKp— Joseph Mallozzi 🏴☠️ (@BaronDestructo) February 26, 2023
[Edit: That should be 892]#UnusualDeaths
In 1892, the second Earl of Orkney, Sigurd the Mighty, defeated his rival Máel Brigte the Bucktoothed in battle. He kept Máel's head, strapping it to his saddle – then developed sepsis and died after Brigte's infamous buck tooth scratched his leg on the ride home, pic.twitter.com/ntankEmazt— Joseph Mallozzi 🏴☠️ (@BaronDestructo) February 27, 2023
#UnusualDeaths – The Erfurt Latrine Disaster
On July 26, 1184, during an informal assembly of European nobles in Petersburg Citadel in Erfurt, the second floor of the building collapsed, dropping everyone into a ground floor latrine. 60 nobles drowned in liquid excrement. pic.twitter.com/WcZT9JliKV— Joseph Mallozzi 🏴☠️ (@BaronDestructo) February 28, 2023
🤯 I see you have another hobby.
None of those would be good ways to die but the excrement one, that is bad! Not the cow dung but the St. Petersburg one (can’t believe there’s more than one excrement involved death).