Skip to content
Search AI Powered

Latest Stories

People Divulge The Most Controversial Things They Own

What's that old saying? "Make sure you're always wearing clean underwear in case you're in an accident. What would the medics think."

I'm paraphrasing, but you get it.

That saying can be applied to many aspects of life.

What "surprising" items are hidden in your drawers? Or under you bed?

Or dear Lord... what is on your phone?

We all have ownership over a belonging or six that could cause quite a stir.

Especially if we aren't there to explain it's existence.


Redditor churned_applesauce wanted to hear about all the belongings many of us have that could cause quite a stir.

They asked:

"What is the most controversial thing you own?"

I'm not telling you mine.

I'm not that brave.

But let's see who is...

Pennies...

"I have an old Iraqi bill with Saddam Hussein's face on it. It's worth about 17 cents according to Google." ~ postsingularity

Giphy

1937

"My grandfather went to the World Scout Jamboree in the Netherlands in 1937, and while he was there he traded patches and gear with some scouts from Germany. By 1937, the German boy scouts had transitioned into the Hitler youth, so I own a Hitler youth boy scout uniform with a bunch of swastikas on it." ~ iamagainstit

Walrus Parts

"My family owns a petrified walrus penis, my grandmother took it to get it identified at the Smithsonian several decades ago. Apparently her grandfather or maybe it was her great-grandfather brought it home after he spent several years on some type of expedition up around northern Alaska and points north."

"It has been loaned out to several museums at different times. The family has talked about selling it but everyone has to agree and so far there is no agreement about selling it. So I own 1/67th of a petrified walrus penis." ~ Robyn_withaY

Propaganda...

"When I was 18, I bought a print of a 1918 German zoo advertisement from a thrift store. I thought the artwork was neat. It had a leopard on it and I was completely cat-obsessed at the time. Turns out the artwork was by Ludwig Hohlwien. He would go on to produce Nazi propaganda." ~ wolfmoral

Jars

"An ornate, Boer tobacco jar from the 1800s. My great grandfather looted it off a dead militiaman during the Second Boer war." ~ deathtotheminutemen

Giphy

Interesting.

Nothing too crazy thus far.

Hey, to each their own.

Shut Tight!

"I have a glass vial/small bottle of pure histamine. If anyone would be exposed to this they would get a deadly allergic reaction. I have it double sealed." ~ TheRealMonreal

Giphy

Holiday in Kenya

"A complete ivory and ebony chessboard bought a sale of confiscated poacher stuff to fund elephant preservation. When I lived in Zambia and was on holiday in Kenya. My dad bought it and I got it as a hand me down. We were friends with someone who owned an animal sanctuary and their security had shot the poachers as far as I remember. They had a parentless baby hippo as well. It stole my sister's chewing gum and tried eating their cat. It was moved further away from the main houses after it tipped over their Land Cruiser." ~ xxrumlexx

Oh Grandma...

"I wanted a chinchilla really badly as a kid, but my parents said hell no. One Christmas my grandma got me a teddy bear made out of chinichilla fur. Luckily my parents told me it didn't hurt the chinchilla its just like getting a hair cut for them, but they were like WTF to my grandma. I now know better and am also like WTF grandma." ~ lebrunjemz

Snuffed

"I have a set of small bone carved snuff bottles from China (dated to the 19C) with explicit images on them. They’re kind of curiosities in themselves but when my in laws separated my MIL called my husband and asked him if there was anything in the house that he wanted and he said, nothing but the explicit snuff bottles."

"She took them and left them with a note that said ‘I’ve left you, please don’t contact me again. I’ve taken the snuff bottles; they were the only things in the house I liked.' After their separation we got all sorts of controversial hoardings, including a suitcase full of ivory and an abundant collection of Enid Blytons first edition books." ~ waireti

Luggage

"I have a few Ivory jewelery pieces from the early 70s my parents bought back from Botswana, and a poison arrow kit. Mum has the 3-metre long python skin she just put in her luggage from back then too." ~ Icy_Hippo

Giphy

Bat Parts

"A first print edition of Batman Damned #1, the one featuring Batman's 'little batman.' (From DC Black Label featuring more adult content. Violence and swearing are totally fine, but a shadowy penis profile made people flip out enough they removed it from subsequent print runs). You guys are some creative freaking people with your Bat-Penis puns. Love it." ~ 1nd1anaCroft

Rude

"I don’t think I have it anymore but back when I was in 9th grade and my brother was a senior we hosted a foreign exchange student from Norway. Without us knowing he had been taking pictures of every overweight/obese American that he saw while he was here for the year. It wasn’t until a year after he went home, on Christmas he sent us a leather bound photo album, like it looked really nice, opened it and boom..."

"Hundreds of photos of people from Walmart and malls. My mom was not too impressed but me and my brother had a good chuckle, not even at the people but just the fact that he took all that time and energy to collect all those photos and then make them into a photo album." ~ Toxicvenom_77

A Museum?

"There is a pharmacy museum in Cuero TX that is absolutely incredible. The building was purpose built in the late 1800's as a pharmacy and used for that for over a hundred years and they managed to hold on to all of their old inventory. They have tons and tons of bottles of heroin, morphine, cocaine, and the like as well as all sorts of quack medicine including one product you gave to your baby if the baby was too ugly." ~ texasrigger

Dumbo?

"Not me, my parents growing up. They had an actual elephant foot turned into a table. Like an actual foot cut from an elephant and taxidermied made into an end table. Had a glass table top. You could feel the thin hairs on it. Freakin' haunted my dreams man." ~ bobsux1234

elephant sneezing GIFGiphy

Hey Doc

"My grandfather was a doctor until the '60s. I have glass syringes with needles, forceps, a bottle of nembutal tablets, glass vials of pitocin, order forms for buying morphine from the government, and a few other things. Here's a link to a photo of an order form:"

"https://imgur.com/yil38Nv"

~ BSB8728

They Lived

"Umm mortuary toe tags from an asylum in New York... like twenty or so of them... I think they could be the only things left showing that these people actually lived." ~ ironviking13

"It's sad, but when you think of it, most people who ever lived left no records of themselves. It's more usual to just fade out of existence as people forget you." ~ DumbleForeSkin

Trinkets

"Growing up near a fairly prominent civil war battlefield (manassas), I had a few confederate themed items. slouch cap, small battle flag, and a tie based on an old painting. for me, it was a 'the people who were from the same place as me were on this side' without looking any deeper into it than that. I was a kid, and it was the 80s." ~ bearded_fisch_stix

Jars

"A ceramic jar with 'cocaine' written on it. My father is a contractor and he got it from a client who was descended from a relatively prominent US President. It was headed for the trash, my father didn’t steal it, of course." ~ Apprehensive_Goal811

"It’s probably a pharmaceutical jar for a dentist office from back in the day. Cocaine was commonly used as an anesthetic, and came in ceramic jars like that." ~ Joygernaut

In the middle of Kansas...

"My grandma used to tell a story about a woman in her town whose husband captured one of those enormous red swastika banners. He saw that it was made out of some decent quality silk so he thinks, 'Hey my wife could make some really nice dresses out of this.' So he packs it up and ships it home."

"His wife gets it, carefully washes the whole big-a** thing by hand, and then without thinking, hangs it out of an upstairs window to dry. In the middle of Kansas, in the middle of WWII, this lady is flying a a giant nazi banner. Apparently there were some extremely colorful conversations with the neighbors." ~ MustBeThursday

Catholic Comics

"I have a book of Roman-Catholic–themed comic strips from 1953. All men are lazy drunks, all women are gossips and nags, all boys only fight, and all girls are only supposed to be Mary Sunshine." ~ android-unknown

tim curry no GIFGiphy

Who doesn't have cursed or ancient jewels hidden somewhere?

At least nobody on this thread mentioned faces or eyes.

That's what I was waiting for.

Want to "know" more?

Sign up for the Knowable newsletter here.

Never miss another big, odd, funny or heartbreaking moment again.

More from Trending/best-of-reddit

Doug Savant on 'Melrose Place'
FOX

'Melrose Place' Star Reveals Why His Gay Character Wasn't Allowed To Show Affection On Show

With the plethora of LGBTQ+ characters and storylines being normalized on various TV shows and streaming platforms, it might be difficult for younger generations to fathom that it wasn't always like this.

The cast of the popular '90s drama Melrose Place had a poignant discussion on the Still The Placepodcast.

Keep ReadingShow less
Screenshots of Scott Jennings and Abby Phillip
CNN

CNN Host Drops Truth Bomb After Republican Guest Explains Why GOP 'Likes' Kash Patel For FBI Director

After conservative commentator Scott Jennings defended President-elect Donald Trump's choice of Kash Patel for FBI Director, CNN host Abby Phillip dropped a truth bomb, drawing an apt comparison to the GOP's election reform crusade.

Jennings said the following about Patel, whom he suggested would restore trust and "public confidence" in the bureau:

Keep ReadingShow less
Image of Melania, Barron and Donald Trump on election night
Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post via Getty Images

Rare Video Of Barron Trump Talking On Election Night Has People Doing A Double Take

A rare video of President-elect Donald Trump's son Barron Trump speaking has many social media users doing a double take, with many pointing out the similarities between his and his father's speech patterns.

In the clip, Barron greets one of his father's supporters:

Keep ReadingShow less
John Rich; Lindsey Graham; Pete Hegseth
Steve Jennings/Getty Images; Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images; Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images

MAGA Country Singer Rages At Lindsey Graham For Waffling On Confirming Pete Hegseth

John Rich, one half of the country duo Big & Rich, furiously took to X to question "RINO" Senator Lindsey Graham's manliness after the South Carolina GOP politician called the allegations against Trump Cabinet pick Pete Hegseth "disturbing."

Hegseth, a Fox News host who is President-elect Donald Trump's nominee for Secretary of Defense, faces scrutiny after CNN reported that he paid a woman who accused him of sexual assault in a settlement agreement that included a confidentiality clause.

Keep ReadingShow less
Flavor Flav
Bryan Steffy - Formula 1/Formula 1 via Getty Images

Flavor Flav's 'Spirit Is Broken' After NBC Kicked Him Out Of Backstage Area At Tree Lighting

Rap icon Flavor Flav was dispirited by the way NBC treated him in a backstage area at the tree lighting ceremony at Rockefeller Center on Wednesday.

The 65-year-old cofounder of the rap group Public Enemy said he was kicked out for no reason.

Keep ReadingShow less