I have not seen a post on this. For some people it is a myth, but it is real. The suggested new name of this phenomena is "fat wick burns".
Spontaneous combustion. Definition: When a human being dies from a fire without any obvious cause. There are a lot of after pictures online you can easily find.
In the Victorian Age is was believed alcoholism was the culprit. The theory was the standards of alcohol production or moonshine saturated the body and made it flammable. A small flame set the body on fire. The fat in the person's body acted like a wick and burnt out as the person was consumed. Ether can combust from something small as static electricity.
A Dr. Leonard Parry wrote an article on the similarities of the victims. Alcoholic elderly women. A lighted substance has ignited the body from the midsection causing the hands and feet to fall off. The fire has caused little damage to its surroundings. It leaves a offensive residue of greasy ashes.
Here is his article from 1938 on what the victims had in common:
It still happens today!
Spontaneous human combustion in the light of the 21st century (2012)
Spontaneous combustion. Definition: When a human being dies from a fire without any obvious cause. There are a lot of after pictures online you can easily find.
In the Victorian Age is was believed alcoholism was the culprit. The theory was the standards of alcohol production or moonshine saturated the body and made it flammable. A small flame set the body on fire. The fat in the person's body acted like a wick and burnt out as the person was consumed. Ether can combust from something small as static electricity.
A Dr. Leonard Parry wrote an article on the similarities of the victims. Alcoholic elderly women. A lighted substance has ignited the body from the midsection causing the hands and feet to fall off. The fire has caused little damage to its surroundings. It leaves a offensive residue of greasy ashes.
Here is his article from 1938 on what the victims had in common:
It still happens today!
Spontaneous human combustion in the light of the 21st century (2012)
A unique sequence of events takes place for the human body to incinerate to ashes. The flame burn victim has to die for the body fat to start melting. A tear in the skin has to occur for the melted fat to impregnate the charred clothes, igniting a wick effect that produces localized heat for extended period. A phenomenon called spontaneous human combustion is reality. The term “spontaneous human combustion” has nuances which are not applicable to this situation or to these modern times, therefore we suggest a new term “fat wick burns.”
Unique thermal destruction of the body following suicidal burning (2019) The development of alleged spontaneous human combustion requires the following: ignition (external heat source), fuel (molten human fat), a wick (e.g. charred and porous clothing, bedding, or ground), time, and an optimal microclimate for gradual burning.
