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Why Cryptid Museums Mix Evidence and Souvenirs

The International Cryptozoology Museum shows how cryptid exhibits mix alleged evidence, replicas, souvenirs and pop culture in one room.

On this page

  • Alleged traces beside replicas
  • Pop culture as museum material
  • What hybrid displays ask visitors to decide
Preview for Why Cryptid Museums Mix Evidence and Souvenirs

Introduction

International Cryptozoology Museum - Portland Maine

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Alleged Traces Beside Replicas

The museum’s exhibition design rests on a simple challenge: most cryptids do not come with a body that can be displayed. To address that absence, the museum combines claimed physical evidence with visual reconstructions and models.

The International Cryptozoology Museum: Bigfoot, Sea Monsters, and More!

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Pop Culture Becomes Museum Material

The museum’s hybrid character becomes even more apparent in its treatment of popular culture. Unlike conventional natural history museums, which typically distinguish sharply between scientific collections and entertainment artefacts, the International Cryptozoology Museum openly includes media objects and cultural souvenirs as part of its mission.

The museum describes its collections as ranging from scientific and zoological specimens to popular-cultural homages, anthropological material, psychological interpretations of sightings, native art and contemporary souvenirs. This broad definition effectively expands the meaning of a museum object. A creature-related television prop, a themed souvenir or a piece of fan culture can be displayed alongside research materials because all are considered evidence of cryptozoology’s cultural impact.[Cryptozoology Museum]cryptozoologymuseum.comCryptozoology Museum International Cryptozoology Museum 490 Broadway, BangorCryptozoology MuseumInternational Cryptozoology Museum 490 Broadway, Bangor…September 24, 2020 — We have a wide range of exhibitions f…Published: September 24, 2020

Several well-known exhibits illustrate this philosophy. The museum displays a pterodactyl prop created for the television series Freaky Links, a recreation of P. T. Barnum’s FeeJee Mermaid and other objects that are historically significant not because they prove a cryptid exists but because they show how people imagine, market and circulate mysterious creatures.[Cryptozoology Museum+2Odd Things I've Seen]cryptozoologymuseum.comCryptozoology Museum Exhibitions | International Cryptozoology MuseumCryptozoology Museum Exhibitions | International Cryptozoology Museum

The FeeJee Mermaid is especially revealing. It belongs to a long history of fabricated curiosities that blurred entertainment and natural history in nineteenth-century exhibition culture. By exhibiting a version of the famous mermaid alongside cryptozoological material, the museum draws attention to the ways mystery, spectacle and belief have often intersected. The object is museum-worthy not as biological evidence but as evidence of how extraordinary-animal stories acquire cultural power.[Dan Szczesny]danszczesny.substack.comDan Szczesny The Feejee Mermaid of PortlandDan SzczesnyThe Feejee Mermaid of Portland - by Dan Szczesny - SubstackThe mermaid is a Hollywood prop, specifically a prop used for the…Hybrid Displays illustration 2

Why the Museum Includes Successful Discoveries

International Cryptozoology Museum - Portland, ME - Hunting For Dambo Trolls!

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What Hybrid Displays Ask Visitors to Decide

The museum’s most distinctive achievement may be that it avoids forcing a single interpretive position. Its exhibitions contain objects that different visitors will evaluate very differently. A believer may view a hair sample or footprint cast as meaningful evidence. A sceptic may see the same object as an interesting historical artefact documenting a claim rather than confirming it. Both responses remain possible within the gallery.[Cryptozoology Museum]cryptozoologymuseum.comCryptozoology Museum Exhibitions | International Cryptozoology MuseumCryptozoology Museum Exhibitions | International Cryptozoology Museum

This openness is reinforced by the variety of material on display. Cases devoted to creatures such as the Dover Demon, Jersey Devil, Montauk Monster, Skunk Ape and thylacine bring together reports, artwork, replicas and associated cultural material rather than presenting a single authoritative conclusion.[Cryptozoology Museum]cryptozoologymuseum.comCryptozoology Museum Exhibitions | International Cryptozoology MuseumCryptozoology Museum Exhibitions | International Cryptozoology Museum

As a result, the museum functions simultaneously as a collection of alleged evidence, a record of folklore, an archive of media history and a showcase of fan culture. Its hybrid display strategy recognises that cryptozoology survives not because definitive specimens have settled every question, but because stories, artefacts, images and debates continue to generate public interest. In one room, visitors encounter both the search for hidden animals and the cultural world that the search itself has created.[Cryptozoology Museum+2Cryptozoology Museum]cryptozoologymuseum.comCryptozoology Museum International Cryptozoology Museum 490 Broadway, BangorCryptozoology MuseumInternational Cryptozoology Museum 490 Broadway, Bangor…September 24, 2020 — We have a wide range of exhibitions f…Published: September 24, 2020Hybrid Displays illustration 3

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Endnotes

1. Source: cryptozoologymuseum.com
Title: Cryptozoology Museum International Cryptozoology Museum 490 Broadway, Bangor
Link:https://cryptozoologymuseum.com/

<summary>Source snippet</summary><p>Cryptozoology MuseumInternational Cryptozoology Museum 490 Broadway, Bangor…September 24, 2020 — We have a wide range of exhibitions f…</p>
Published: September 24, 2020

2. Source: cryptozoologymuseum.com
Title: Cryptozoology Museum Exhibitions | International Cryptozoology Museum
Link:https://cryptozoologymuseum.com/exhibitions/

3. Source: oddthingsiveseen.com
Title: now with more bigfoot international
Link:https://www.oddthingsiveseen.com/2016/07/now-with-more-bigfoot-international.html

<summary>Source snippet</summary><p>Odd Things I've SeenThe International Cryptozoology Museum's New Digs13 Jul 2016 — Throughout the museum, all my old favorites were there…</p>

4. Source: shewalkssoftly.com
Title: the international cryptozoology museum
Link:https://shewalkssoftly.com/2010/06/21/the-international-cryptozoology-museum/

<summary>Source snippet</summary><p>21 Jun 2010 — Museum items included specimens, bones, taxidermy, molded casts, replicas, pop culture renditions of various cryptids, vide…</p>

5. Source: danszczesny.substack.com
Title: Dan Szczesny The Feejee Mermaid of Portland
Link:https://danszczesny.substack.com/p/the-feejee-mermaid-of-portland

<summary>Source snippet</summary><p>Dan SzczesnyThe Feejee Mermaid of Portland - by Dan Szczesny - SubstackThe mermaid is a Hollywood prop, specifically a prop used for the…</p>

6. Source: facebook.com
Link:https://www.facebook.com/groups/1556355194641471/posts/3612674435676193/

<summary>Source snippet</summary><p>eman was one of the first experts onsite when it was discovered.Read more…</p>

7. Source: thefinchandpea.com
Title: the international cryptozoology museum
Link:https://thefinchandpea.com/2013/10/08/the-international-cryptozoology-museum/

<summary>Source snippet</summary><p>8 Oct 2013 — The museum has models and exhibits of many of the most well-known cryptids (term for these not yet proven animals) and some…</p>

8. Source: youtube.com
Title: International Cryptozoology Museum
Link:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=camXhM9usPk

<summary>Source snippet</summary><p>Portland MaineThis is the world's only cryptozoology museum or non-profit existence since 2003 and there are over 10,000 items that you'r…</p>

9. Source: youtube.com
Title: Cryptozoology Museum | Travel Channel
Link:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qzd-Xf-CrWQ

<summary>Source snippet</summary><p>International Cryptozoology Museum - Portland Maine…</p>

10. Source: youtube.com
Title: Cryptozoology Museum: Portland’s CREEPIEST Tourist Attraction
Link:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hTRQy9R7qXw

<summary>Source snippet</summary><p>The International Cryptozoology Museum: Bigfoot, Sea Monsters, and More…</p>

11. Source: youtube.com
Title: The International Cryptozoology Museum: Bigfoot, Sea Monsters, and More!
Link:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gXZuNFNeDss

<summary>Source snippet</summary><p>International Cryptozoology Museum - Portland, ME - Hunting For Dambo Trolls…</p>

12. Source: youtube.com
Title: International Cryptozoology Museum
Link:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RSWOb0oY5A4

Additional References

13. Source: neverendingfootsteps.com
Link:https://www.neverendingfootsteps.com/cryptozoology-museum-portland-maine/

<summary>Source snippet</summary><p>I Went to Portland's Cryptozoology Museum and Everything…6 days ago — There was an entire section devoted to the Dover Demon: a small…</p>

14. Source: facebook.com
Title: pick up your cryptozoology gifts and souvenirs at the international cryptozoolog
Link:https://www.facebook.com/cryptozoologymuseum/posts/pick-up-your-cryptozoology-gifts-and-souvenirs-at-the-international-cryptozoolog/949274850572131/

<summary>Source snippet</summary><p>Pick up your cryptozoology gifts and souvenirs at…19 Oct 2024 — Pick up your cryptozoology gifts and souvenirs at the International Cr…</p>

15. Source: huntershea.com
Title: inside the international cryptozoology museum
Link:https://huntershea.com/2013/08/12/inside-the-international-cryptozoology-museum/

<summary>Source snippet</summary><p>12 Aug 2013 — Hey, fans of Bigfoot, Mothman, the Jersey Devil, The Dover Demon, Sea Serpents, Chupacabra and all creatures strange and un…</p>

16. Source: instagram.com
Link:https://www.instagram.com/reel/DKaaePePp33/?hl=en

<summary>Source snippet</summary><p>yptids. The exhibits include crypted hair samples, eco material…</p>

17. Source: instagram.com
Link:https://www.instagram.com/reel/DZV_9R1RW_z/

<summary>Source snippet</summary><p>g everything from unique scientific specimens to…Read more…</p>

18. Source: tripadvisor.com
Title: Cool Cryptid Museum
Link:https://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserReviews-g40827-d1674550-r889953898-International_Cryptozoology_Museum-Portland_Maine.html

<summary>Source snippet</summary><p>Review of International…This place is a cool little museum filled with bizarre and unique artifacts. There is a clear love and appreci…</p>

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