Observatory Mansions: A Novel

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Observatory Mansions: A Novel Page 29

by Edward Carey


  464. Milkshake powder in a plastic container.

  465. A chocolate sculpted penis.

  466. A tortoise.

  467. A bottle of oil of cloves.

  468. A dwarf’s dress.

  469. A club membership card.

  470. A reflex hammer.

  471. A list of numbers to open a combination lock.

  472. A police file.

  473. A number of children’s paintings.

  474. A photograph of a first communion.

  475. A No Smoking sign.

  476. A hipflask (full of brandy).

  477. A lottery ticket.

  478. A photograph of an old woman.

  479. A human rib (believed to have belonged to a saint).

  480. A snooker cue.

  481. A meat pie.

  482. A personal stereo.

  483. Silk underwear.

  484. Two floorboards.

  485. A record.

  486. A number of hair curlers.

  487. A brass cigarette lighter.

  488. A number of moth balls.

  489. A stamp album.

  490. A briefcase.

  491. A receptacle for the remains of a dead person (plastic).

  492. The remains of a dead person (ash).

  493. A screwdriver (plastic handle).

  494. A red satin bra.

  495. A magnet.

  496. A contact lens.

  497. A fencing foil.

  498. A pair of sunglasses.

  499. A child’s first pair of shoes.

  500. A fur hat with ear flaps.

  501. A dentist’s grinder.

  502. A mortarboard.

  503. A pair of leather jackboots.

  504. A bone drill.

  505. A letter from a mother to her son.

  506. Four peacock feathers.

  507. A book of criminal statistics.

  508. A book of fingerprints.

  509. A wheelchair (collapsed).

  510. A blue and green bobble hat.

  511. A sextant.

  512. A photograph of a six-year-old’s birthday party.

  513. A number of chocolate eggs.

  514. A wind chime.

  515. An employee-of-the-month badge.

  516. A washing line.

  517. A piece of primitive pottery.

  518. An unwashed shawl.

  519. A camera obscura.

  520. A collection of cat ornaments (china, porcelain, plastic, rubber, glass).

  521. The leg from a small clockwork ballerina.

  522. A boy’s collection of stolen bras (twelve pieces).

  523. A matchstick model of a single-span bridge.

  524. Two pig’s hearts in a pine box.

  525. A pair of stonewashed jeans.

  526. A children’s encyclopedia.

  527. A large cactus.

  528. An electric fan heater.

  529. A silver cigarette case.

  530. A hearing aid.

  531. A photograph of a woman water-skiing.

  532. Several teeth of a tiger.

  533. A jar of mustard.

  534. A bottle of pills (labelled).

  535. A signed lithograph.

  536. A clown’s make-up box.

  537. A typewriter ribbon.

  538. A pair of sunglasses.

  539. A cine camera.

  540. Cine film (exposed).

  541. Reels of cine film (developed).

  542. A polo-neck jumper.

  543. A quantity of postcards.

  544. A can of air freshener.

  545. A steel and plastic fountain pen.

  546. A phial of supposed virgin’s blood.

  547. A music stand.

  548. A stilt.

  549. A terracotta ashtray.

  550. A threadbare doormat.

  551. A nun’s wimple.

  552. A map of a foreign country.

  553. An opium pipe.

  554. A dry-cleaning collection ticket.

  555. A dental brace.

  556. A spark plug.

  557. A nappy pin.

  558. A china inkwell.

  559. A book of children’s folk tales.

  560. A handbag (with numerous contents).

  561. One half of a ten-year correspondence (479 letters).

  562. A piece of a jigsaw puzzle.

  563. A scapular (cloth).

  564. A university degree certificate.

  565. An air pump.

  566. A photograph of a teenage girl.

  567. A number of sparklers.

  568. A marriage licence.

  569. A quantity of sheet music.

  570. A hardback novel.

  571. A photograph of a political rally.

  572. A collection of chewing-gum wrappers.

  573. A manhole cover.

  574. A schoolboy’s lines (thirty sheets of paper, completed).

  575. A dissertation on castrati (handwritten).

  576. A coarse blanket.

  577. A wooden idol.

  578. The seat of a wicker chair.

  579. A collection of hotel stationery.

  580. A quilted bedspread.

  581. An ounce of hashish.

  582. A number of spent gun cartridges.

  583. A prayer wheel.

  584. A pager.

  585. A suitcase full of bananas.

  586. A schoolgirl’s diary.

  587. A doll’s house.

  588. An ankle band.

  589. A collection of pinned moths.

  590. The complete handwritten love poems of an amateur poet.

  591. A circus poster.

  592. A blindfold.

  593. A sheath of cooking recipes.

  594. A boatswain’s call.

  595. A photograph of an old man and a young girl.

  596. A collection of menus.

  597. A sewing kit.

  598. A bottle opener.

  599. A hymn book.

  600. A pearl necklace.

  601. A box of medical gloves.

  602. A letter from a solicitor.

  603. A dictionary of an extinct language.

  604. A small painting of the Virgin Mary.

  605. A shooting target (used).

  606. A doctor’s night bell.

  607. A television.

  608. A seat from a swing.

  609. A wooden rod from a banister.

  610. A collection of cartoon magazines.

  611. Part of a motor from inside a mechanized waxwork.

  612. A plastic, yellow toothbrush.

  613. A photograph of a man speaking to a large crowd.

  614. A traffic policeman’s whistle.

  615. An edition of twelve etchings.

  616. A paper bag containing sherbet lemons.

  617. A martyr’s palm (plaster).

  618. A tin of caviar (opened).

  619. A For Sale sign.

  620. A pickled human cerebellum.

  621. Twelve bottles of home-brewed beer.

  622. A sun hat.

  623. An auditor’s report.

  624. An eyepatch.

  625. A language learning course (four cassettes, one book).

  626. A back scratcher.

  627. A cinema poster.

  628. A letter terminating work.

  629. An exhibition catalogue of a wax museum.

  630. A final pay cheque.

  631. A purple ribbon.

  632. A gabardine.

  633. A pair of black buckled shoes.

  634. A false leg.

  635. A chipped urinal bowl.

  636. A brass cockleshell.

  637. A portable gas cooker.

  638. A coral necklace.

  639. Seventeen detective novels.

  640. A milk bottle (unopened).

  641. A pair of a celebrated magician’s white gloves.

  642. A group photograph of a school reunion.

  643. A radi
o.

  644. A notebook (containing weights of human beings).

  645. A number of (developed) slides.

  646. A slide projector.

  647. A registered letter (unopened).

  648. A pack of cards (pricked).

  649. A book on dry cholera.

  650. The name of a dead soldier from a war memorial.

  651. A starting pistol.

  652. A wedding dress (satin).

  653. A bicycle pump.

  654. A bottle of glue.

  655. A snorkel.

  656. A play script.

  657. An architect’s plan for housing poor families.

  658. A compact mirror.

  659. A pair of chequered trousers.

  660. A cat flap.

  661. A stuffed salmon (in a glass case).

  662. A doily (cotton).

  663. A milk bottle (unopened).

  664. A sex discovery manual.

  665. A box of assorted fireworks.

  666. A lock of black hair.

  667. Lipstick (vermilion).

  668. A number of grooved lead and nickel bullets.

  669. A dinner jacket and trousers.

  670. A violin.

  671. A shower head.

  672. A chest wig.

  673. A silver picture frame (empty).

  674. A cravat (silk).

  675. A business card.

  676. A pair of ankle-length leather boots.

  677. A photograph of a spotty male adolescent.

  678. An oil painting of a blue Persian cat.

  679. A milk bottle (unopened).

  680. A scabbing hammer.

  681. A woman’s vibrator.

  682. A bird table.

  683. A clock’s pendulum.

  684. An astrology chart.

  685. A pair of tailor’s shears.

  686. A group of photographs of voluntary patients of a mental asylum.

  687. An ivory roulette ball.

  688. A ventriloquist’s dummy.

  689. A tide chart.

  690. A man-made pair of wings.

  691. A colostomy bag (empty).

  692. A penny whistle.

  693. A bottle of shampoo.

  694. A tin of biscuits.

  695. The top of a lectern (ash).

  696. A white linen suit (three pieces).

  697. An eternity ring (diamond, silver).

  698. A paper and wood fan.

  699. A gobstopper.

  700. A skull cap.

  701. A lint-removing device.

  702. A coathanger.

  703. A self-portrait.

  704. A leather bookmark.

  705. A cotton nightdress (white).

  706. An anchor.

  707. An oven door.

  708. Skin moisturizing cream.

  709. A packet of cigarette rolling papers.

  710. A candle.

  711. Four cans of lager beer.

  712. A penknife with sixteen different blades.

  713. The remains of a tulip.

  714. An aviator’s compass.

  715. A drawer’s handle (brass).

  716. A wallet full of money.

  717. A pair of jogging bottoms.

  718. A pair of cinema tickets.

  719. A Pyrex coffee pot.

  720. A canister of petrol.

  721. Certificates of shares.

  722. A tape-measure.

  723. A bull’s nosering.

  724. A worker’s overalls.

  725. A milk bottle (unopened).

  726. A blackboard rubber.

  727. A length of cane.

  728. A schoolroom stool.

  729. A camera lens.

  730. A dog’s bone.

  731. A pair of child’s gloves with faces knitted on to the fingertips.

  732. A fire extinguisher.

  733. A suitcase.

  734. A hairdryer.

  735. A guidebook to a foreign city.

  736. A canvas bag.

  737. A broken calculator.

  738. A nail file.

  739. A ballcock.

  740. A first-aid box.

  741. A hinge from a door.

  742. A starched collar.

  743. A leather sports bag.

  744. A sheath of paintbrushes.

  745. A metal trunk.

  746. A pair of false eyelashes.

  747. A brown leather satchel.

  748. A Father Christmas costume.

  749. An elephant’s hoof umbrella stand.

  750. A tin of fluorescent paint.

  751. A uniform from a vanquished army.

  752. A kneeling cushion from a church.

  753. A suitcase with wheels.

  754. A dumb-bell.

  755. A canister of hair-styling foam.

  756. A used condom.

  757. A mosquito net.

  758. A corkscrew.

  759. A pair of starched shorts.

  760. A jar of porridge oats.

  761. A photograph of a man with no nose.

  762. A bottle of scent.

  763. A souvenir plaster statue of an ancient church.

  764. A book on genocide.

  765. A dried sea horse.

  766. A thank-you letter.

  767. The rod from a sundial.

  768. A coffee grinder.

  769. A tube of tooth glue.

  770. A passport photograph (inscribed on reverse).

  771. A bottle of suntan lotion.

  772. A straw hat.

  773. A false moustache.

  774. A nutcracker.

  775. An Instamatic camera.

  776. A flat cap.

  777. A thermometer.

  778. A silk dressing gown.

  779. A bill from a lawyer.

  780. A book of autographs.

  781. A bottle of vodka.

  782. A chocolate bunny.

  783. The results of a pregnancy test.

  784. A chequebook.

  785. A cheque-guarantee card.

  786. A cut-throat razor.

  787. A railway platform ticket.

  788. An engagement ring.

  789. A packet of ground coffee (vacuum sealed).

  790. A blade from a kitchen blender.

  791. A wedding ring (gold).

  792. A length of hosepipe.

  793. An unopened box of chocolates.

  794. A military cap.

  795. A gallstone (in a glass jar).

  796. A photograph of a ship.

  797. A cork from a champagne bottle.

  798. An Alice band.

  799. A car’s number plate.

  800. A red dress.

  801. A photograph of teenage males marching.

  802. A vacuum cleaner.

  803. A brass button.

  804. A man’s wristwatch.

  805. A set of six wineglasses.

  806. A bronze bust of a famous politician.

  807. A photograph of an amateur theatre production.

  808. A bottle of cough mixture.

  809. A doctor’s handwritten journal (seven volumes).

  810. A pair of shoes, formerly belonging to a giant.

  811. An eyewitness report of an alien sighting.

  812. A stamp (franked).

  813. A plaster angel.

  814. A stethoscope.

  815. A pair of white gloves, from a military band’s trombone player.

  816. A photograph of a bulldog.

  817. A plastic bottle of washing-up liquid.

  818. A barometer.

  819. A tattoo design.

  820. A conductor’s baton.

  821. A gas mask.

  822. A Valentine’s day card.

  823. A silk underskirt.

  824. A box of soft-centred chocolates (unopened).

  825. A football.

  826. A change of address card.

  827. A set of liar dice.

  828. A digital watch.
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  829. A list of people.

  830. A pair of theatre tickets.

  831. A toupee.

  832. A baby’s dummy.

  833. A jeroboam of very old wine.

  834. A number of photographs of naked children.

  835. A wallet full of foreign currencies.

  836. A black tie.

  837. A bicycle saddle.

  838. A gimlet.

  839. A quantity of fruit-machine tokens.

  840. A verruca sock.

  841. An answer-machine tape.

  842. A bottle of bubble bath.

  843. A bride’s bouquet.

  844. The skeleton of a fruit bat.

  845. A christening gown.

  846. A bottle of essence of vanilla.

  847. A dead goldfish in a plastic bag of moulding water.

  848. A grey overcoat.

  849. A bottle of formaldehyde.

  850. A name plate.

  851. A plastic comb.

  852. A kite.

  853. A pair of taxidermist’s blunt-tipped scissors.

  854. A woman’s swimming costume.

  855. An invalid’s hand bell.

  856. A polka-dot bow tie.

  857. A prison uniform.

  858. A rosette.

  859. A knife used by a celebrated murderer.

  860. A fossil of an ancient centipede.

  861. A rabbit hutch (empty).

  862. A snowstorm within a plastic dome (souvenir).

  863. A spirit level.

  864. A number of newspaper cuttings.

  865. A turban.

  866. A strait-jacket.

  867. A number of plant seeds in a packet.

  868. An oar.

  869. A plastic dustbin.

  870. A future chemist’s first periodic table.

  871. A conker on a length of string.

  872. A history book.

  873. A plastic toy astronaut.

  874. A hospital patient’s chart.

  875. A driving licence.

  876. A handkerchief (initialled).

  877. A bottle of vitamin tablets.

  878. A number of mouse traps.

  879. A satellite television disc.

  880. A plastic water pistol.

  881. A laptop computer.

  882. Four pieces of lead guttering.

  883. A dried locust.

  884. The left speaker from a hi-fi unit.

  885. A builder’s helmet (plastic).

  886. A car’s aerial.

  887. A red beret.

  888. A cymbal.

  889. A bath plug.

  890. A skeleton key.

  891. A china teapot.

  892. A number of Christmas cards.

  893. A photograph of a naked woman and a horse.

  894. Seventeen volumes of photograph albums from one family.

  895. A child’s molar.

  896. An architect’s pen.

  897. The pin from a door lock.

  898. A theatre programme (autographed).

  899. A syringe.

  900. The centrifugal governor from a lift.

  901. The space bar from a computer keyboard.

  902. A pair of handcuffs.

  903. A cheque.

  904. A doorbell.

  905. An alchemist’s chart.

 

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