Nutshell Studies of Unexplained Death, The
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| Nutshell Studies of Unexplained Death, The | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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This fascinating and macabre volume offers readers an extraordinary glimpse into the mind of a master criminal investigator. Frances Glessner Lee, a wealthy grandmother, founded the Department of Legal Medicine at Harvard in 1936 and was later appointed captain in the New Hampshire police. In the 1940s she built dollhouse crime scenes based on real cases in order to train detectives to assess visual evidence. Still used in forensic training today, the eighteen Nutshell dioramas, on a scale of 1:12, display an astounding level of detail: tiny pencils write, window shades move, whistles blow, and clues to the crime scene are revealed to those who study them carefully. Corrine Botz's lush color photographs lure viewers into every crevice of Frances Lee's models and breathe life into these deadly miniatures, which represent the dark side of domestic life, unveiling tales of prostitution, alcoholism and adultry. Botz's introductory essay, which draws on archival research and interviews with Lee's family and police colleagues, present a captivating portrait of the creator of these amazing miniatures.
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Bizarre and utterly fascinating, The Nutshell Studies of Unexplained Death is a dark and disturbing photographic journey through criminal cases and the mind of Frances Glessner Lee--grandmother, dollhouse-maker, and master criminal investigator. Photographer Corinne May Botz stumbled across the "Nutshell Studies" while making a video about women who collect dollhouses. On the suggestion of a collector, she visited the Baltmore Medical Examiner's Office, where Lee's miniature reconstructions of crime scenes were on display. The macabre dioramas fascinated and repulsed her: "I was entranced by the details: the porcelain doll with a broken arm in the attic, the grains of sugar on the kitchen floor...I was also riveted by the miniature corpses. Shot in bed, collapsed in the bathtub, hung in the attic and stabbed in the closet; all were eternally frozen in miniature rooms that had become their tombs."
A remarkable woman, Frances Glessner Lee established the Department of Legal Medicine at Harvard in 1936. At the time, innumerable murders went undetected because evidence was mishandled, or ignored. To train investigators of sudden and violent deaths to better assess visual evidence, Lee created the Nutshell Studies--dollhouses that students could study from every angle, with minute crime scenes details taken from actual cases. Lee created 18 dioramas, using only the most mysterious cases (cases that could have been ruled as accidents, murders, or suicides) to train detectives and challenge their ability to read evidence.
Botz reveals as much about the nature of obsession as she does about Frances Glessener Lee--each model is painstakingly photographed from multiple vantage points, allowing the reader to witness the astounding level of realism and precision in each case, as well as giving the reader unobstructed access to each eerie setting. All 18 studies include a brief synopsis of each case, as well as a key to each grisly floor plan. Perfect for amateur sleuths, aspiring medical examiners, and fans of CSI, The Nutshell Studies of Unexplained Death is grim and oh so bewitching. --Daphne Durham
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| 05-14-07 | 5 | (NA) |
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Great photos and a wonderful introduction about the creator of these "dollhouse crimes," Frances Glessner Lee. The book is full of wonderful photos of the crime scenes Glessner Lee created as well as background about the crimes she recreated. Facinating and beautiful despite its macabre subject matter.
(Review Data Last Updated: 2008-01-10 12:31:18 EST)
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| 05-13-07 | 5 | (NA) |
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Great photos and a wonderful introduction about the creator of these "dollhouse crimes," Frances Glessner Lee. The book is full of wonderful photos of the crime scenes Glessner Lee created as well as background about the crimes she recreated. Facinating and beautiful despite its macabre subject matter.
(Review Data Last Updated: 2008-10-09 10:27:12 EST)
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| 12-18-06 | 2 | 1\1 |
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Had I seen this book in a store I wouldn't have gotten it primarily because I'm into dollhousing & am used to seeing excellent photography. The majority of the photographs in this book is very poor. There is a close up shot of a table with lots of clues on it but the photo is so blurry that you can't tell what most of the items are. Its a real shame too because they make cameras just for miniatures & those of you who are familiar with the quality photos in "Miniature Collector" & "Dollhouse Miniatures" magazines would recognize just how poor they are. Also because Mrs. Lee was very talented & it would have been a great pleasure to have seen her work photographed clearly.
For the mystery minded, the book offers clues along with the bad photos but does not solve the mysteries. I would suggest that you go & look at it in a bookstore before you decide to buy it. You just might save yourself some money. (Review Data Last Updated: 2007-07-09 04:31:51 EST)
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| 11-06-06 | 4 | 0\1 |
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I got this for my sister-in-law and she said it was really cool but she would have liked more text--more information on the background crimes and their outcomes.
(Review Data Last Updated: 2007-07-09 04:31:51 EST)
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| 08-04-05 | 3 | 3\6 |
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I loved this book all except the fact they didn't tell you the answers to the death riddles and yes they do have them. Darn now I have to become a law enforcement agent to find out.
(Review Data Last Updated: 2007-07-09 04:31:51 EST)
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| 04-14-05 | 5 | 2\9 |
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The book is a by far the best in Miniature Studies,Today April,13,2005,my friend Dan and I saw the photo's related to the book and Frances Glessner Lee's,historical items related to her life at the Glessner House In Chicago
1800 Prairie Ave,the home she grew up in,Buy This Book and you can explore the world of a CSI,but only through the eyes of the Miniature World Of Ms. Lee Bloodstains and more........Dominick Manella, Miniature Room Creator (Review Data Last Updated: 2007-07-09 04:31:51 EST)
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| 12-05-04 | 5 | 56\65 |
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The original Nutshell Studies were dioramas of evil and tragedy, created over 60 years ago by Chicago heiress Frances Glessner Lee, who used them to train investigators in the art of dissecting a crime. The presentation of these meticulously and faithfully reproduced scenes of mayhem - at a 1:12 scale - forced investigators to literally see "the little things," at a time when ignorant officers often ruined evidence critical to solving the case.
Author Corinne May Botz, who also shot the multiple-angle photographs of the 18 models, explores how conflicts and contrasts are at the heart of the dioramas as well as their creator, Lee. Botz suggests that Lee expressed her tension and ambivalence about her place in society through these equally conflicted and violent still lifes. I gave this book 5 stars because I appreciated its fine quality - it is beautifully produced by Monacelli Press - but I also respected the way Botz's accompanying essays draw parallels rather than conclusions between Lee's life and her unconventional Nutshell Studies of Unexplained Death. Botz's essay's show that whether it is a crime scene or a personal journey, the search for truth is what good investigators seek. Lee would have been proud. (Review Data Last Updated: 2007-07-09 04:31:51 EST)
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| 12-05-04 | 5 | 31\36 |
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The original Nutshell Studies were dioramas of evil and tragedy, created over 60 years ago by Chicago heiress Frances Glessner Lee, who used them to train investigators in the art of dissecting a crime. The presentation of these meticulously and faithfully reproduced scenes of mayhem - at a 1:12 scale - forced investigators to literally see "the little things," at a time when ignorant officers often ruined evidence critical to solving the case.
Author Corinne May Botz, who also shot the multiple-angle photographs of the 18 models, explores how conflicts and contrasts are at the heart of the dioramas as well as their creator, Lee. Botz suggests that Lee expressed her tension and ambivalence about her place in society through these equally conflicted and violent still lifes. I gave this book 5 stars because I appreciated its fine quality - it is beautifully produced by Monacelli Press - but I also respected the way Botz's accompanying essays draw parallels rather than conclusions between Lee's life and her unconventional Nutshell Studies of Unexplained Death. Botz's essay's show that whether it is a crime scene or a personal journey, the search for truth is what good investigators seek. Lee would have been proud. (Review Data Last Updated: 2005-06-18 05:36:34 EST)
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| 10-22-04 | 4 | 26\29 |
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The story of the Nutshell Studies is wonderful and intriguing. The Studies themselves are also intriguing... I think. The problem is that the photographs in this book are artsily blurry. I couldn't see the crime scenes clearly. An especial frustration is that there are line drawings of the crime scenes with clues marked -- but there's no corresponding photograph! It's very annoying to be told, for instance, that a doll's face is red from carbon monoxide when I can't see that face in any of the pictures.
(Review Data Last Updated: 2006-01-17 14:43:29 EST)
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