Pascualita

La Pascualita/Facebook

Corpse bride or shop mannequin? No one knows for sure

Ghost stories have entertained and terrified us for as long as humans have been telling stories. Whether it’s a spooky story told over the campfire, a horror film enjoyed in the dark, or a haunting conspiracy found online, there’s no denying that stories about death enthrall us all.

One of the most enduring examples of these stories is that of La Pascualita. Is she truly the embalmed corpse of a blushing bride? Or is it just a mannequin created with incredible attention-to-detail?

The history

In March of 1930, Pascuala Esparza’s bridal boutique in Chihuahua, Mexico displayed its new mannequin. Esparza can’t have known that this action would create a debate lasting ~90 years, but it has. To this day, the consensus is divided.

This mannequin was strikingly lifelike. With rosy cheeks, natural flowing hair, clear eyes, and extremely realistic hands, she made passers-by feel uneasy.

It certainly didn’t help that the mannequin paid striking resemblance to Esparza’s recently deceased daughter… something that the locals quickly realized.

You see, not long before this mannequin appeared, Esparza’s daughter died on her wedding day.

The appearance of a new, extremely lifelike mannequin might not cause too much concern, but for this mannequin to bear striking resemblance to the store owner’s dead daughter? It gets a bit creepy.

Because of this, locals began speculating that this mannequin was actually the embalmed corpse of Esparza’s daughter… and who can blame them? Since then, the speculation has grown and the debate has waged. Is this mannequin, dubbed La Pascualita, really the corpse of Pascuala Esparza’s daughter?

“Is she truly the embalmed corpse of a blushing bride? Or is it just a mannequin created with incredible attention-to-detail?”

Corpse bride or mannequin?

Over the decades, many people have chimed in with their opinions on La Pascualita. From experts (funeral directors, morticians, etc.) to amateurs, there are compelling arguments to be made from both sides of the debate.

Overwhelmingly, experts agree that La Pascualita is not a corpse. For a corpse to stay in such pristine condition, the environment must be perfect, the embalming must be flawless, and constant work would need to be done. Something that is not possible in a small-town bridal shop window.

Even if all of these could be achieved (and that’s a big if), it’s unlikely that over 80 years the corpse would look the way La Pascualita does. Let’s compare her to the corpse of Lenin, for example. Embalmed in 1924, Lenin looks nowhere near as good as La Pascualita.

It’s improbable that La Pascualita, a mannequin that’s sat in a shop window for 80+ years, could be in better condition than Lenin’s corpse. It has a team of experts that carry out work frequently and it’s kept in a very stable environment; two important things that La Pascualita does not have.

Even with this information, people still believe that La Pascualita is an embalmed corpse. And it’s no surprise. Her hands are incredibly realistic and because of this, even some experts aren’t 100% sure she isn’t a corpse. They seem to have discolored over time and the cuticles have dried out and drawn back from the nailbeds much like the hands of a corpse would.

Joeysodi/Wikimedia Commons

Regardless of which side you take, there’s no denying that the story of La Pascualita is an intriguing one. Whether she is the corpse of Pascuala Esparza’s daughter or an incredibly detailed mannequin, her fame has rocketed Esparza’s humble bridal boutique into the haunted hall of fame.

Next time you’re in Chihuahua, head past Esparza’s bridal shop and take a look. La Pascualita is still there and she continues to creep out and enthrall tourists and locals alike.

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