# Is this a photo of a real human head? WARNING: GRAPHIC, NSFW, etc.! **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [November 22, 2006, 6:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-a-photo-of-a-real-human-head-warning-graphic-nsfw-etc/381447 "2006-11-22T18:13:41Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Uncommon\_Sense](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Uncommon\_Sense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Uncommon_Sense)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2006, 6:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-a-photo-of-a-real-human-head-warning-graphic-nsfw-etc/381447/1 "2006-11-22T18:13:41Z")
mopo.ca (about a 1/3 of the way down) has a photo with story about a man travelling with a human head. They show a photo with the story but the head looks fake. I have doubts that the head is really the head in the story or that it’s a real head at all. Look at the blood on the face and compare it to the blood on the neck parts. The blood on the face is too red and doesn’t match the blood on the neck area. Thoughts? Is this a stock image of a fake head? (Don’t say I didn’t warn you…) ---
**Author:** ![FormerMarineGuy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/65b543/32.png) [@FormerMarineGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FormerMarineGuy)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2006, 6:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-a-photo-of-a-real-human-head-warning-graphic-nsfw-etc/381447/2 "2006-11-22T18:18:58Z")
This same site has an article stating that KFC will be the first company to have it’s logo seen from space, and [also shows this picture](http://www.mopo.ca/uploaded_images/kfc-space-730679.jpg). I am not a specialist in human body parts but would say that the picture of the ‘head’ is just there to add to the story. ---
**Author:** ![lieu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c2a13f/32.png) [@lieu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lieu)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2006, 6:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-a-photo-of-a-real-human-head-warning-graphic-nsfw-etc/381447/3 "2006-11-22T18:22:51Z")
It looks very real to me. Proper amount od neck muscling, throat, spinal column, etc. Ears look a little strange but not enough to override the rest. Pretty grusome and viewers better think twice before looking but I’d give this one a “real”. ---
**Author:** ![fluiddruid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c2a13f/32.png) [@fluiddruid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fluiddruid)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2006, 6:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-a-photo-of-a-real-human-head-warning-graphic-nsfw-etc/381447/4 "2006-11-22T18:25:23Z")
I am by no means an expert, but how that thing could be mistaken for a real human head is beyond my comprehension. Look at how rubbery and distorted the face is! ---
**Author:** ![fluiddruid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c2a13f/32.png) [@fluiddruid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fluiddruid)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2006, 6:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-a-photo-of-a-real-human-head-warning-graphic-nsfw-etc/381447/5 "2006-11-22T18:26:45Z")
Not to mention the ears and the total lack of blood on the wooden surface it’s resting on. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2006, 6:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-a-photo-of-a-real-human-head-warning-graphic-nsfw-etc/381447/6 "2006-11-22T18:29:12Z")
Looks completely fake to me–blood looks too red and too thoughtfully spattered. Then again, I’ve never seen a severed head and I’m not an anatomist. Perhaps one of our resident MDs or medical school students would have something more authoritative to say? ---
**Author:** ![Jake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f475e1/32.png) [@Jake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jake)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2006, 6:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-a-photo-of-a-real-human-head-warning-graphic-nsfw-etc/381447/7 "2006-11-22T18:30:38Z")
What happened to the link? ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2006, 6:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-a-photo-of-a-real-human-head-warning-graphic-nsfw-etc/381447/8 "2006-11-22T18:34:08Z")
[QUOTE=Jake] What happened to the link? [/QUOTE] There was never any link. You have to type it into your browser. First word of the OP. ---
**Author:** ![lieu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c2a13f/32.png) [@lieu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lieu)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2006, 6:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-a-photo-of-a-real-human-head-warning-graphic-nsfw-etc/381447/9 "2006-11-22T18:35:27Z")
Are there two pictures? I can’t see the face at all. As for the blood, it’s dried long before the head was placed on the board. The linked article says it was in a man’s luggage on a bus. He was removed from the bus after a tip, they found a finger in his pocket and then they had to locate and chase down the departed bus again. If it’s real, that severed head had been without a pumping heart for hours. The lack of blood on the board doesn’t bother me. Admittedly though, that ear’s just weird looking. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Hamster\_King](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8edcca/32.png) [@The\_Hamster\_King](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Hamster_King)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2006, 6:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-a-photo-of-a-real-human-head-warning-graphic-nsfw-etc/381447/10 "2006-11-22T18:44:41Z")
Absolutely a fake. It’s a rubber Halloween prop. It’s not the actual head from the news story, just an image to illustrate it. The bloods the wrong color. The head’s proportions are all wrong. And the edges of the “skin” where the “head” has been severed look molded. ---
**Author:** ![Sage\_Rat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sage_rat/32/399_2.png) [@Sage\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sage_Rat)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2006, 6:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-a-photo-of-a-real-human-head-warning-graphic-nsfw-etc/381447/11 "2006-11-22T18:56:18Z")
Rubber. I would also point out that the “head” is a man’s head. The head found in the article (given as I can read) was that of an old lady. I don’t know of very many skinhead old ladies with bulging eyebrow-bridges, strong cheekbones, strong neck muscles, and ears that are just glued on, etc. ---
**Author:** ![Uncommon\_Sense](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Uncommon\_Sense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Uncommon_Sense)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2006, 6:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-a-photo-of-a-real-human-head-warning-graphic-nsfw-etc/381447/12 "2006-11-22T18:56:51Z")
[QUOTE=Pochacco] Absolutely a fake. It’s a rubber Halloween prop. It’s not the actual head from the news story, just an image to illustrate it. The bloods the wrong color. The head’s proportions are all wrong. And the edges of the “skin” where the “head” has been severed look molded. [/QUOTE] Man, if that’s a halloween prop it’s a damn good one…that could make for an interesting plant somewhere where no-one would expect to see it, like under the cover of the dinner plate that the turkey is supposed to be under. 🆒 Maybe not, I have relatives with weak hearts. ---
**Author:** ![lissener](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lissener/32/6139_2.png) [@lissener](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lissener)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2006, 7:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-a-photo-of-a-real-human-head-warning-graphic-nsfw-etc/381447/13 "2006-11-22T19:04:12Z")
I think it’s pretty clearly a movie prop, used in the article for effect. ---
**Author:** ![lieu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c2a13f/32.png) [@lieu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lieu)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2006, 7:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-a-photo-of-a-real-human-head-warning-graphic-nsfw-etc/381447/14 "2006-11-22T19:18:38Z")
Okay, **Uncommon Sense** , we’ll all go see a scary movie together and the others can laugh at you and I huddled in fear. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![drachillix](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/48db29/32.png) [@drachillix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drachillix)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2006, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-a-photo-of-a-real-human-head-warning-graphic-nsfw-etc/381447/15 "2006-11-22T19:22:22Z")
[QUOTE=lieu] It looks very real to me. Proper amount od neck muscling, throat, spinal column, etc. Ears look a little strange but not enough to override the rest. [/QUOTE] Having had the unbiased joy of seeing a decapitated corpse on one occasion and expsoed to plenty of stories in the ambulance biz, my first thought was waaaay too neat. Human bodies do not come apart in nice clean lines anything like the pic unless cut off with tools. Color is totally wrong, blood spattering too bright and skin tone is very very wrong for a dead person, especially one dead for more than a few minutes. ---
**Author:** ![Uncommon\_Sense](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Uncommon\_Sense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Uncommon_Sense)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2006, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-a-photo-of-a-real-human-head-warning-graphic-nsfw-etc/381447/16 "2006-11-22T19:28:14Z")
[QUOTE=lieu] Okay, **Uncommon Sense** , we’ll all go see a scary movie together and the others can laugh at you and I huddled in fear. 🙂 [/QUOTE] Deal! ---
**Author:** ![The\_Hamster\_King](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8edcca/32.png) [@The\_Hamster\_King](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Hamster_King)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2006, 7:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-a-photo-of-a-real-human-head-warning-graphic-nsfw-etc/381447/17 "2006-11-22T19:30:30Z")
I Googled “severed head”. Here’s the [source](http://www.frightprops.com/frightprops/props/Product.asp?ID=0644) for the image. You’re right **lissener** , it’s a movie prop. Looks like they’ll FedEx one to you for only $39.99 … . ---
**Author:** ![lieu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c2a13f/32.png) [@lieu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lieu)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2006, 7:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-a-photo-of-a-real-human-head-warning-graphic-nsfw-etc/381447/18 "2006-11-22T19:38:28Z")
[QUOTE=drachillix] Having had the unbiased joy of seeing a decapitated corpse on one occasion and expsoed to plenty of stories in the ambulance biz, my first thought was waaaay too neat. Human bodies do not come apart in nice clean lines anything like the pic unless cut off with tools. [/QUOTE] But isn’t that generally what the story alledges? This supposedly should have resembled a “Berg” scenario and not someone who wen’t through a windshield. Either way, somewhat glad to see it’s only a prop. ---
**Author:** ![Uncommon\_Sense](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Uncommon\_Sense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Uncommon_Sense)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2006, 8:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-a-photo-of-a-real-human-head-warning-graphic-nsfw-etc/381447/19 "2006-11-22T20:48:06Z")
[QUOTE=Pochacco] I Googled “severed head”. Here’s the [source](http://www.frightprops.com/frightprops/props/Product.asp?ID=0644) for the image. You’re right **lissener** , it’s a movie prop. Looks like they’ll FedEx one to you for only $39.99 … . [/QUOTE] Thankyou, thankyou, thankyou! Now, when I get mine I’m going to darken the blood on the face to make it look _more_ realistic. Dinner should be interesting. ---
**Author:** ![Cartooniverse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cartooniverse/32/3084_2.png) [@Cartooniverse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cartooniverse)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2006, 2:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-a-photo-of-a-real-human-head-warning-graphic-nsfw-etc/381447/20 "2006-11-24T02:59:57Z")
Nineteen posts and nobody’s mentioned the illegality of travelling ANYWHERE with a severed human head unless you’re a medical examiner?? I’d call bullshit on this story on that count alone. Please. :rolleyes: Cartooniverse [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-a-photo-of-a-real-human-head-warning-graphic-nsfw-etc/381447.md?page=2)