SifuPhil
R.I.P. With Us In Spirit Only
- Location
- Pennsylvania, USA
No, Jenny Hanniver is not the gal down the street. She's already been made - multiple times.
I'm talking about the time-honored art and craft of posing dried-out skates and rays into human-like forms.

First mentioned in a natural history almanac in the mid-1500's, the name is thought to be derived from the French phrase jeune d'Anvers ('young person of Antwerp') which was Anglicized by British sailors into "Jenny Hanvers".

The dried skate or ray is posed and altered before having a coat of shellac or varnish applied. These grotesque little guys were then sold by the sailors to tourists at the docks, no doubt feeding them the lines that these were mermaids or sea monsters.


I'm talking about the time-honored art and craft of posing dried-out skates and rays into human-like forms.

First mentioned in a natural history almanac in the mid-1500's, the name is thought to be derived from the French phrase jeune d'Anvers ('young person of Antwerp') which was Anglicized by British sailors into "Jenny Hanvers".

The dried skate or ray is posed and altered before having a coat of shellac or varnish applied. These grotesque little guys were then sold by the sailors to tourists at the docks, no doubt feeding them the lines that these were mermaids or sea monsters.

