Tale Of Two Faces: The Peculiar Story Of Edward Mordake

The tale about the man, Edward Mordake, and his two faces.

Joanna

• Published in Weird
• January 1, 2018

You read right - this is the tale of a man by the name Edward Mordake who had two faces.

It will bring your mind back to Harry Potter and Professor Quirrell who had Voldemort’s face placed on the back of his skull and controlled Quirrell's every movement, forcing him to murder.

Two Faced Professor Quirrell

For all you Potterheads the story of Edward Mordake is chillingly similar but dates back to Victorian England times, centuries before JK Rowling based her setting for Harry Potter.

Mordake, considered one of the ‘human freaks’ of the 19th century, was born with an additional face on the back of his head. Although an eerie fascination to many, it is thought he suffered from a rare deformity called diprosopus (bifurcated craniofacialduplication). Normally, the afflicted person is born with an extra facial feature such as a nose or an ear, but in very rare cases entire faces are duplicated, as was described of Mordake in the Boston Post in 1895.

Edward Mordake

Edward Mordake is said to have been heir to one of the noble peerages in England. Sadly, he never claimed the title and took his own life at 23. When alive, he lived as a recluse and wouldn’t even allow his family to visit. Although the second face couldn’t see or speak Mordake claims to have heard heinous whispers from his ‘devil twin’ whilst it smiled and sneered if he cried. He even begged doctors to remove it and because they refused, he committed suicide, demanding for the ‘demon face’ to finally be destroyed ‘lest it continues its dreadful whisperings in my grave’.

Not wanting to burst anyone’s bubble here because it is one compelling tale, but it has been said the fable of Edward Mordake may be just that… a fable. Stories of people born with two faces have been recorded whereas this one hasn’t. However, the urban legend of Edward Mordake is still plausible, so don’t go cutting off your nose to spite your face just yet. What makes this story different though is the claim of the second face being capable of whispering and expressions whereas the duplicated face in people with diprosopus is normally lifeless.

True or not, it is not difficult to see why this tale has fascinated many people over the years.

Artist's depiction of Mordake's mummified head.

Edward Mordake: The Man With Two Faces

Joanna