The Elephant Man 2

Mr. Joseph Merrick - aka the ELEPHANT MAN - head measured 36 inches - roughly one-third larger than an average human's and a great deal additional weight for his body to support, possibly interfering in his balance and ability to sit or stand for periods without resting his neck.

Elephant Man Rear Bust

Joseph Merrick's -aka the Elephant Man - deformity favored the right side of his body e.g. enlarging his right hand to a flipper like state. We do not have access to audio recordings of him speaking but it is reasonable from looking at photographs to believe that he must have spoken with a severe dysarthritic splutter.

Elephant Man Skull Front	Elephant Man Skull Right Side

Internal structures of Mr. Merrick's - aka the Elephant Man - were no less spared. Toward the end of his life severe arthritis forced him to limp and use a walking stick . In addition, the scoliosis (curvature) of his spine revealed in surviving photographs probably would have reduced his lung capacity predisposing him to shortness of breath and chest infections.

Elephant Man Skeleton

The psychological cost to Mr. Joseph Merrick - aka the Elephant Man - of his disease are not hard to imagine in a society less educated and tolerant than today. Study of his surviving writings prove him to have been of at least normal intelligence and able to appreciate the horror of his condition.

Joseph's Merrick's Handwriting

 

There is a divide amongst Joseph Merrick medical authorities as to just what disease he had actually suffered from. An early theory was that Joseph Merrick had elephantiasis - a disease of blocked sewage vessels in the body - lymphatics - that leads to tissue swelling, but this is not currently in favor. Neurofibromatosis had been a very strong contender for a number of decades until 1976 when a very rare condition called Proteus syndrome was forwarded. Proteus is so rare that less than one hundred cases to date have ever been documented, but it agrees with the 'fossil' evidence left by Mr. Joseph Merrick. It describes overgrowth of soft tissues and bone, sometimes only on one side of the body (hemihypertrophy). Classical neurofibromatosis on the other hand, is a tumorous growth of nerve schwann sheaths (insulated covering like that around copper wiring), and does not readily lend itself to explain Joseph Merrick's bones - aka the Elephant Man.

The Royal London Hospital which used to keep Mr. Joseph Merrick's remains (these have since been buried), had allowed medical sleuths in the past, to take casts, photographs, caliper measurements, and X-rays of Mr. Merrick - aka the Elephant Man. Still, we may never conclusively know what he had suffered from since efforts in years past to preserve his skeleton for us, may have irreparably damaged any DNA forensic scientists could have used for incontrovertible proof. Indeed, some claim that perhaps Joseph Merrick had a unique disease... 'Merrick's Disease'.

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