Plague doctors, or at least images of plague doctors, are having a bit of a cultural moment again, roughly 300 years after their actual heyday. They’ve become popular motifs for stickers, pins, masks, ...

I first glimpsed a plague doctor years ago, in a framed etching on the wall of a Venetian gift shop. The image was macabre: a sinister, masked figure draped in a dark robe. The head was covered with a ...

Putting on a mask to protect oneself and others against disease is nothing new, nor is resistance to mask-wearing, but mask designs have changed considerably from their first iterations. A 1619 ...

All products featured here are independently selected by our editors and writers. If you buy something through links on our site, Gizmodo may earn an affiliate commission. Reading time 5 minutes If ...

It’s the beak that lends the attire of the medieval plague doctor its surreal quality, but it wasn’t there just to scare The Art of Sausage Making A Flight Through the Universe Inside the Epic Artemis ...

When he first put on the Toucan, Thomas Finney felt transformed. He saw the bright orange, green, blue, and red leather beak hanging from his face, and he was no longer himself—and, more importantly, ...

CC0 Usage Conditions ApplyClick for more information. It’s the beak that lends the attire of the medieval plague doctor its surreal quality, but it wasn’t there ...