Freak Babylon : an illustrated history of teratology & freakshows / Jack Hunter.

"Freak Babylon is a sometimes startling, sometimes disturbing documentary of the history of one of mankind's most fascinating sciences - teratology - and its dubious cultural correlative, the Freakshow, from ancient times to the present day. The book features over 200 rare and intriguing photos of human anomalies and covers the areas of scientific research, sideshows, cinema and body modification. By tracing the history of teratology - the classification of human anomalies - and looking at some famous case histories such as the Elephant Man and Johny Eck, Freak Babylon shows how medical research and exploitation are often interlinked - and poses the question whether new sciences of cloning and genetic engineering are taking us back to the "dark days" of man-made freaks. The book includes "The Elephant Man" by Sir Frederick Treves. Long out-of-print, this is the true account which inspired David Lynch's film of the same name. Also includes an in-depth illustrated document of the controversial 1932 horror film Freaks."--Provided by publisher.