Victorians had a serious fascination with the strange and exotic, which led to their beloved cabinets of curiosities. Imagine a room filled with taxidermied animals, preserved creatures in jars, fossils, and mysterious artifacts from far-off lands. It was like a mix between a natural history museum and Ripley’s Believe It or Not, all tucked away in someone’s parlor.

Gentlemen would proudly display their "treasures"—anything from shrunken heads to glowing rocks—to impress their guests and spark conversation. Explorers were like rock stars, bringing back oddities that made you the coolest host on the block. Whether it was a crocodile skull or an alleged mermaid skeleton, the weirder the item, the better the story.

For the Victorians, cabinets of curiosities were a way to explore the world without leaving home, indulge their curiosity, and show off their unique taste in peculiar treasures.