This is not mine! Doing my research for Book 1 of the Portia Adams adventures I was going to create an infographic of decomp when I found this instead.
This one was created by the very talented Chanelle Augustine of Toronto and you can find the original here: http://www.behance.net/gallery/Human-Decomposition-Infographic/7669031
I need one of those charts.
Both creepy and awesome. One of the best things about being a writer is all the cool stuff you dig up when researching.
I know – right? Here I was planning to create one for my own edification and it already existed (in a far better form than I could ever have created!)
It’s an excellent chart, quite helpful, in fact, but it blurs when I try to view it…even the original.
I noticed that too Christina, and I can only assume it’s so that Chanelle’s original hard work cannot be ‘stolen’ — I think if you order it you get the full resolution image.
I’ve encountered plenty of that kind of description in the WW I memoirs I’ve read as part of my research for the current novel, but the really gruesome thing about it, was personally having had the experiences of smelling pools of recently spilled arterial blood (35 years ago), and of decomposing human flesh (23 years ago). Even after all this time, the olfactory memories haven’t faded.
That is so amazing Christine, your experiences make me jealous and at the same time not (if you know what I mean). To be able to pull from that roster of experience must be so helpful as a writer.
It is helpful, if not always pleasant…. But like you, I still have to work at avoiding anachronistic details, by researching my way back into any history that doesn’t correspond to my time.
BTW, if it’s any help, arterial blood does not smell like menstrual blood, nor does human blood smell like animal blood. And it’s correct to describe the stench of decomposing human flesh as “sickly sweet.” The odor also has a clinging characteristic that seems to stick to the soft palate, in the back of the throat, where it comes back periodically to haunt the sense of smell for several days afterwards.
Thanks for letting me camp out in your blog for a little while today. I had a great time and tried to leave my campsite as good as when I arrived. I’ll be back!
Any time!