Buncheong Epitaph Tablets: A Mini-Essay

     Only produced during the first two hundred years of the Korean Joseon Dynasty (1392 to 1897), buncheong ware began as ceremonial pottery for royalty and the upper class to mark major life events. At birth, for example, placenta jars contained the umbilical cord and placenta of the royal infant and, after death, epitaph tablets were buried with the body.[1] Meant to accompany the dead into the afterlife, these tablets possessed basic biographical information about the deceased and functioned as an introduction card for the spirit. While most buncheong pottery contained script, others were decorated with designs and – in some cases – drawings of elephants and tortoises to symbolize longevity.[2] As time progressed, buncheong ware became popular among the middle class and eventually the mass populace, resulting in its decline around the sixteenth century as it no longer held social prestige.[3]

 

Works Referenced

 

Lee, Soyoung. Art of the Korean Renaissance, 1400-1600. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 2009. 39.  

Lee, Soyoung, and Jeon Seung-Chang. Korean Buncheong Ceramics from Leeum, Samsung Museum of Art. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 2011. 50. 

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[1] Lee, 39. 
[2] Lee and Seung-Chang, 50. 
[3] Lee, 39.

Rotten Hand Cloche

$35 - $40 (based on 2020 prices) 
Makes one display

I was impressed with the rotten patina of the decomposing fingers, so I decided to apply the paint job to larger items, specifically severed limbs. To achieve this goal, I created two props: one with a rotting hand (featured here) and one with a decomposing leg. To further enhance their ickiness, I covered the limbs in maggots, just as I did the maggot doll for 2017’s haunt. 

• One vinyl severed hand small enough to fit within the cloche
• One glass cloche with detachable wooden base (roughly twelve inches tall)
• One 2 oz. bottle of acrylic paint in flat black*
• One 2 oz. bottle of acrylic paint in flat brown*
• One 2 oz. bottle of acrylic paint in dark gray*
• One 2 oz. bottle of acrylic paint in light gray*
• One 2 oz. bottle of acrylic paint in khaki*
• One bag of maggots (roughly one-hundred insects per bag)
• One 0.14 oz. bottle of superglue gel
• One six-inch wooden dowel
• One 10 oz. can of interior/exterior, fast-drying spray paint in flat black*
• One 10 oz. can of interior/exterior, fast-drying spray paint in metallic silver*
• One 8 oz. can of oil-based interior wood stain in Jacobean*

1. On a newspaper-lined surface, give the hand three even coats of khaki paint. Although I used three, you may want more or less based on your desired coverage.

2. Lightly dry brush brown paint onto the fingertips, knuckles, and other raised areas. I discovered that applying a small amount of paint to your thumb and index finger and rubbing it onto the prop works well.

3. Once the brown paint has dried, repeat the process in step two with black. During this step, be careful not to cover too much of the brown paint.  

4. Begin detailing the nails with a coat of dark gray paint then, after that dries, dab light gray onto the nails, building up layers until they look decrepit. To complete the process, smudge black around the tips of the fingers and along their cuticles.  

5. Color the stump and the wounds black and, using a brush with splayed bristles, stipple black paint around their edges.

6. Glue the maggots to the hand. For believability, you want to pick one or two of the wounds where they will swarm outward. I decided to do this with the laceration on the wrist, building up a large mass and gradually spreading the insects out. The specific maggots I bought were made of a sticky gel, so I had to use superglue to hold them in place. Although it took several hours to adhere each insect individually, the final product was well worth the effort and time. During this process, ensure that you reserve at least a dozen of the insects for steps eleven and thirteen.

7. Cut the wooden dowel into a six-inch section. Depending on the height of the cloche, you may need to adjust this measurement. Then, determine where you would like the hand to rest below the cloche and, using a 13/64 bit, drill a hole in the base, insert the dowel, and glue it in place.

8. On a newspaper-lined surface in a well-ventilated area, build up layers of black and metallic silver spray paint to give the base and dowel the look of steel. It works best to apply a base coat of black followed by sliver, working in quick bursts to allow parts of the black to remain visible. You can also touch up portions with additional blasts of black if the silver becomes too heavy.  

9. Once the spray paint dries, create a wash of brown paint and use it to add a level of grime to the prop, allowing the liquid to settle in the crevices.  

10. With a 13/64 bit, drill a hole into the stump of the hand and slide it onto the dowel, gluing it in place. To guarantee the prop fits under the cloche, you may need to play with its positioning a few times before permanently attaching it to the dowel.  

11. Using some of the maggots reserved from step six, glue them to the dowel and base. You want to make it look like some have crawled from the hand onto the stand to help bridge the gap between both items and make the prop appear more cohesive.

12. On a newspaper-lined surface in a well-ventilated area, paint the cloche with the wood stain. I discovered that applying a thin coat and patting it with paper towels produces a hazed appearance. Likewise, brushing the rim with a swift downward motion creates the illusion of grime buildup.

13. For added creepiness, glue the remaining maggots crawling up the side of the cloche once the wood stain has dried. I elected to do this in just one spot to make the effect subtle; however, you can do this in multiple areas for more visual impact.

14. Reattach the cloche to its base. If you plan for a more permanent display, you can glue the item down. Likewise, you can add extra embellishments, such as a specimen tag or biohazard label, to cater the prop to your theme.

*You will not use the entire bottle’s content for this project.

“The Vampire” (A Poem)

Originally published is his collection of poetry Les Fleurs du mal (The Flowers of Evil) in 1857, Charles Baudelaire’s poem “Le Vampire” uses the vampire as a metaphor for love, with the narrator tormented by his beloved, who has – like alcohol to a drunkard or dice to a gambler – ensnared the narrator in their unbreakable spell. Although there are numerous translations of the poem, I have chosen Roy Campbell’s for its strong rhyme scheme and clean line length.

You, who like a dagger ploughed 
Into my heart with deadly thrill:
You who, stronger than a crowd
Of demons, mad, and dressed to kill,

Of my dejected soul have made
Your bed, your lodging, and domain:
To whom I’m linked (Unseemly jade!)
As is a convict to his chain,

Or as the gamester to his dice,
Or as the drunkard to his dram,
Or as the carrion to its lice —
I curse you. Would my curse could damn!

I have besought the sudden blade
To win for me my freedom back.
Perfidious poison I have prayed
To help my cowardice. Alack!

Both poison and the sword disdained
My cowardice, and seemed to say
“You are not fit to be unchained
From your damned servitude. Away,

You imbecile! since if from her empire
We were to liberate the slave,
You’d raise the carrion of your vampire,
By your own kisses, from the grave.”[1]

Works Referenced 

Baudelaire, Charles. “Le Vampire.” Les Fleurs du mal. 1857. Trans. Roy Campell. London: The Harvell Press, 1922. 41-42. 
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[1] Baudelaire, 41-42.

Tribal Ram Skull

$40 - $50 (based on 2025 prices)
Makes one skull

I have wanted to do a cannibal island theme for years, but plans keep falling apart. In an effort to push the concept into reality, I made two tribal skulls to transition the haunt out of the creative ether and into the tangible real world. For this ram version, I went with a busy tribal design to contrast with the simplicity of the deer version. Although these are intended for a cannibal theme, you can easily cater them to fit other haunts, such as a voodoo or witch motif. 

• One life-size plastic ram skull 
• One 10 oz. can of interior/exterior, fast-drying spray paint in heirloom white*
• One 10 oz. can of interior/exterior, fast-drying spray paint in dark walnut*
• One 10 oz. can of interior/exterior, fast-drying spray paint in espresso*
• One 2 oz. bottle of acrylic paint in burnt umber*
• One 2 oz. bottle of acrylic paint in flat red*
• One 4 oz. bottle of all-purpose tacky glue*
• Four small plastic bones
• One bag of decorative wooden beads (roughly thirty beads per bag)
• Five to six yards of twine

1. Remove any decorative elements from the skull to give the paint a clean surface and, on a newspaper-lined surface in a well-ventilated area, apply two even coats of heirloom white spray paint. I wanted an off-white color for an aged patina, but you can use pure white for a bleached look.  

2. Once the paint dries, wrap the skull in plastic and use painter’s tape to seal the space between the horns and skull. Then, working from dark to light, build up layers of dark walnut and espresso spray paint on the horns. It works best to apply a base coat of dark walnut followed by quick bursts of espresso. If the espresso becomes too heavy, you can also touch up portions with additional blasts of walnut.

3. After the paint on the horns dries, remove the skull from the plastic and brush its surface with a wash of burnt umber, ensuring the liquid settles into all the cracks and fissures. You might want to experiment with the consistency before doing this: the less water you add, the deeper/darker the wash; the more water you add, the fainter/lighter the wash.  

4. Use red paint to detail the skull with tribal designs. What pattern you use is entirely up to you. You can create your own design or use one found in a reference book. Likewise, you can make the pattern symmetrical for a balanced appearance or irregular for more visual interest.  

5. Repeat the procedures in steps one and three with the small plastic bones, giving each one a coat or two of heirloom white spray paint and a wash of burnt umber. Following this, cut two two-foot strands of twine and use them to bind the bones together. As you do so, utilize decorative wooden beads as spacers and leave a foot of excess to wrap around the horns in the next step.  

6. Wrap the two one-foot sections of twine around the horns and allow the bones to dangle down between the eyes and nostrils. Although you can leave them loose, I glued them down to prevent them from catching in the wind and knocking against the skull.  

7. Cut two six-foot sections of twine and wrap them around the remaining portions of each horn, threading beads onto random sections and gluing them down to serve as an anchor. How you decide to do this is entirely up to your chosen aesthetic for the prop: you can create balance with stripes that are evenly spaced or – as I did – something more chaotic.

8. Because the tribal pattern I used was rather busy, I tried to keep other details at a minimum to prevent the prop from being too overpowering; however, you can embellish the skull further with feathers, shells, or other accessories.  

*You will not use the entire bottle’s content for this project.