Real-life vampire slayer’s kit from the 19th century for sale
If you secretly wished you could have taken down the Volturi in “Twilight,” then you’ll be best prepared with the purchase of this real-life vampire-slayer’s kit.
Equipped with all the essentials, the slaying kit was discovered in the UK and once belonged to a 19th-century nobleman, Lord William Malcolm Hailey, who kept guns, crucifixes, holy water and a wooden stake in case he came under attack from a pesky vampire.
Additionally, the lockable box contains more crucifixes, a matching pair of pistols, a brass powder flask, a Gothic Bible, a wooden mallet, a stake, brass candlesticks, rosary beads and Metropolitan police paperwork from the period.
If the kit has piqued your interest, it’s going under the hammer and is expected to sell for anywhere between $2,400 and $3,600 at UK-based Hansons Auctioneers on June 30.
Auctioneer Charles Hanson told South West News Service that items like this “always capture the imagination of the world,” adding that vampires have been part of popular culture for more than 200 years in European folklore.
“Belief in vampires, an undead creature said to need human blood to survive, goes back hundreds of years and persists in some parts of the world today,” he said.
Hanson said the kit’s original owner, William Malcolm Hailey, was a highly educated man, recognized for his intellect, and also harbored an obsession with the creature from folklore.
“He was educated at Corpus Christi College, Oxford. He was governor of the Punjab from 1924 to 1928 and governor of the United Provinces from 1928 to 1934,” he said. “The provenance reminds us that the vampire myth affects people from all walks of life.”
“Amid his illustrious career, he was drawn to this vampire-slaying kit,” he continued.
“That’s perfectly understandable. These objects are both curious and intriguing.”
Hanson said killing a vampire was “extremely serious” and historical accounts suggested the need for particular methods and tools.
“Items of religious significance, such as crucifixes and Bibles, were said to repel these monsters, hence their presence in the kit we have found,” he said.
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